Playing The Spread, Week 4

I am not a particularly huge fan of stadium naming rights. I believe that a stadium name auctioned off to the highest bidder detracts from the identity and therefore the home-field advantage that a stadium can offer. At the same time, however, I recognize the economic reality of such deals, particularly when you consider it's a great way for teams to earn money that is not subject to revenue sharing agreements.

What I humbly request is that the names teams choose for their stadiums don't sound too corporate. A stadium name that sounds like a person's name, even though it's actually an investment company, is acceptable (Edward Jones Dome, Raymond James Stadium). A stadium named after a business that is so central to a city's identity is also acceptable (Heinz Field, Reliant Stadium, Ford Field). However, stadium names that end in -co or -com are not acceptable (Invesco Field, Qualcomm Stadium), nor are stadium names that include the word "Bank" (M&T Bank Stadium, Bank of America Stadium), nor are stadium names that are made up of initials (LP Field, RCA Dome), nor are stadium names that are goofy words that might or might not be acronyms (Qwest Field, Alltel Stadium).


The Arizona Cardinals' new stadium's name is particularly wacky. The newly-christened University of Phoenix Stadium sounds like it's a college football field on the campus of the University of Phoenix. However, the University of Phoenix is a for-profit institution with a national presence that provides adult career-based education and specializes in distance learning. It fields no intercollegiate sports teams. So, while the new stadium name sounds perfectly rational, it's actually rather bizarre when you think about the backstory.

The following picks are for entertainment purposes and should not the basis of any actual cash wagers.

Last week: 7-5-2
Season to date: 25-19-2
Best bets: 1-2
Eliminator: 3-0

Bengals (-6) over Patriots
Yep, never though I'd see the day when I pick the favored Bengals to defeat the Pats. Sunday night's performance by the Pats was not particularly encouraging. Never thought I'd see the day either when Bill Belichick would talk trash to Chad Johnson. Guess there's a first time for everything. LOSS (happy to have lost this game)

Falcons (-7) over Cardinals
Last week's Arizona-St. Louis comedy of errors was a contest to see who wanted to win the game the least. WIN

Saints (+7) over Panthers
Carolina needed a last-second field goal to beat a winless Bucs team that had to play its second-string QB. New Orleans destroyed a Falcons team that was considered among the best in the NFC. And you're telling me the Panthers are favored by a full TD? WIN

Vikings (+1) over Bills
Maybe I didn't give the Vikes enough credit at the beginning of the year. They've been very competitive in all three of their games thusfar. LOSS

Ravens (+2.5) over Chargers
Chargers safety Terrence Kiel was arrested at team headquarters after trying to ship two boxes of prescription cough syrup to Texas. Sources tell me the packages were addressed to T.O. WIN

Texans (+3.5) over Dolphins
David Carr has the highest QB rating in the NFL right now, which makes sense when you realize that sacks don't figure into the calculation. I see the Texans, at home, finally scratching out a win, against a Dolphins team that has struggled to put points on the board. WIN

Cowboys (+9) over Titans
I have 25 million reasons why Terrell Owens should shut up, stop being a distraction, and just play football. I also have 25 million reasons why Terrell Owens should fire his publicist immediately. With or without T.O., the Cowboys will roll. WIN

49ers (+7) over Chiefs
You heard it here first: Alex Smith has a breakout game, throwing for over 300 yards and at least two touchdowns. He has yet to throw an interception this season, and it won't happen Sunday. LOSS

Jets (+9) over Colts
In order to give the Jets a chance in this game, Indy is benching Peyton Manning in favor of some guy that looks like Bronson Pinchot from a cell phone commercial. WIN

Rams (-5.5) over Lions
I remain concerned that the Rams will be able to score enough points to even make the spread, but even if they do decide to reenact the Miracle at the Meadowlands for the second week in a row, Detroit is the other team besides Arizona that is inept enough to be unable to capitalize on such a gift. WIN

Jaguars (-3) over Redskins
Beating the Texans last week is nothing for the Redskins to hang their hats on. LOSS

Raiders (+3) over Browns
T.O.'s latest antics have caused the public to completely forget that fellow malcontent wide receiver Randy Moss exists. Or maybe it's just the fact that Moss has been borderline invisible on the field this season. TIE

Seahawks (+3) over Bears
You saw the Seahawks' fully-loaded passing game on prime display this past Sunday. In fact, I think their passing game is so good that the loss of Shawn Alexander to the Madden Curse will be no big deal. LOSS

Eagles (-11) over Packers
Brett Favre came back to life last week, but I still believe that the Eagles have the most underrated offensive weapons in the league. WIN

BEST BET: Jaguars (-3) over Redskins LOSS
ELIMINATOR: Dallas Cowboys WIN