2011 NFL Week 1 Free Picks
(The Spread) – Check out our top four free picks for Week 1 in the NFL!
We hand out free picks for every game in the NFL each Sunday, but here are our top 4 selections for Week 1.
Indianapolis Colts vs. Houston Texans, 1:00 PM ET
The Colts are 6-1 against the spread in their last seven games as an underdog and 5-1 ATS in their last six games as a road underdog. They’re also 4-1 ATS in their last five games in September and 3-1-1 ATS in their last five road games. Kerry Collins isn’t a long-term fix but he’s not completely incapable of leading an NFL offense. After all, he is a 38-year-old veteran with postseason experience. He’s not Peyton Manning but he’s not Curtis Painter either. These two teams know each other extremely well, which should lead to a close game and an Indianapolis cover.
2011 NFL Week 1 Free Pick: Colts +9
Philadelphia Eagles vs. St. Louis Rams, 1:00PM ET
The Eagles are 7-1-1 against the spread in their last nine meetings with the Rams, who are just 1-9-1 ATS in their last 11 games in Week 1. St. Louis is also 15-33-3 ATS in its last 51 games in September while Philly is 4-0 ATS in its last four games on turf. There are high hopes for Sam Bradford and the Rams heading into the new season, and for good reason. If they can get through a brutal first-half schedule, there’s no reason to believe St. Louis won’t win the NFC West. But Vick and the Eagles will be too much for the Rams, especially on turf. Philly has too much speed on both sides of the ball and Bradford could really struggle against the Eagles’ outstanding corners.
2011 NFL Week 1 Free Pick: Eagles –3.5
Cincinnati Bengals vs. Cleveland Browns, 1:00PM ET
According to latest NFL trends, the underdog is 7-1 against the spread in the last eight meetings between these two teams, while the Bengals are 4-1 against the number in their last five games overall. They’re also 4-1 ATS in their lat five games in September, while the Browns are 1-5 ATS in their last six games in September and 1-10-1 ATS in their last 12 Week 1 contests. Cleveland is also 0-4 ATS in its last four home games and 0-4 ATS in its last four division games. Plenty of bettors will hop on the Browns because they’re the up-and-coming team, while the Bengals are seemingly going backwards with a rookie a QB. But if that rookie QB can just limit his mistakes, the Bengals aren’t that bad of a team overall. They should be able to hang with their AFC North counterparts and cover the spread.
2011 NFL Week 1 Free Pick: Bengals +6.5
Seattle Seahawks vs. San Francisco 49ers, 4:15PM ET
The 49ers should play well in Jim Harbaugh’s debut, even if they still have a host of problems on both sides of the ball. According to latest NFL trends, the home team is 4-0 against the spread in the last four meetings between these two teams, while the Seahawks are just 2-9 ATS in their last 11 games as a road underdog of 3.5 to 10 points. Pete Carroll is about the only person in Seattle who thinks Tarvaris Jackson should be the Seahawks’ starting quarterback. We’ll see how long before Jackson is benched for Charlie Whitehurst.
2011 NFL Week 1 Free Pick: 49ers –5.5
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