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Feb Football News

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Holy crap, is football really over? Has anyone started to go through withdrawal yet, or get a massive case of the shakes?
Well, we can help you out with a round up of some of the latest Feb Football news.

If you are suffering from some of these symptoms, try to digest the following, and make sure you watch plenty of old games.
The XFL is also on, but ughhh…so let’s start there.

XFL

Can you smell what the Rock is cooking? ‘Cause it’s smells a bit undercooked, as the XFL kicked off its third incarnation in mid Feb 2023.

When Vince McMahon first birthed the XFL in 2001, many had hoped that the league might remain and offer a building block of rosters for the NFL.
Sadly it collapsed just like his WWE dreams, before it was saved by one of his former employees.

The Rock had tried to revive the league, partner it with the CFL, then took a safety in 2021 when the then ‘coronavirus’ punched any hopes of the league restarting right in the throat.

So how did it do on its return to the airwaves in 2023?
Meh.
Ratings are down huge from 3.3 million in 2020, to well under 1.6 million for the new games.

To put that in perspective, that’s LESS than both the launch of the AAF and the 2022 debut of the USFL, which brought in over 3 million viewers.

The XFL does benefit from being on both ABC and ESPN, so there is hope for the league if they continue blasting it to bored fans.

Not so easy for us to watch in the UK though, with games not starting til roughly 1am.

Some clever clog on Reddit made a concept for an XFL expansion. We’ll just leave that here for you.

Chad Ocho

NFL legend Chad Ochocinco has dropped a big bomb on fans that he actually lived at the Cincinnati stadium during his first two years in the league.

Ever clever and good for sound bites, Ocho revealed on a recent podcast that given the Bengals stadium had showers, food, video games and more, it made sense for him to live there to save some dosh.

While no one can officially confirm that Ocho did actually live there for 2 seasons, it would be on par with the behaviour of a celebrated bon vivant of the league.

How cool would it be to play Madden on the Jumbotron when you had the stadium to yourself?

Pay Brady

Tom Brady needs money y’all, so someone else has just dumped a truck load of cash to his Florida bachelor pad.

SiriusXM has renewed Tommy’s ‘Let’s Go’ podcast with former NFL’er Larry Fitzgerald and broadcaster Jim Gray, for more cashola.

TB12 isn’t required for his 10 year broadcasting deal with FOX, in which he will make another $375 million.

Of course that won’t mean anything, if the Dolphins or 49ers get to that point in the season where they just need one top QB to get them to the promised land.

He’ll be back…

Free Agents

As we all patiently wait for the 2023 NFL Draft, eyes are on some of the top prizes in the game, and where they might end up next season.

Some of the big guys everyone will be watching includes:

Lamar Jackson

Will the Ravens be foolish enough to part with Lamar, or are they planning on building a team around him?
The ‘will they’ or ‘won’t they’ has become so infuriating with Baltimore, it feels like the romantic twist in a bad sitcom.
We predict that he will stay in Baltimore for next year and beyond.

Geno Smith

Geno was initially seen as a stop gap solution when he beat out Drew Lock to captain the Seahawks last season. Then Geno went off, and the whispers of ‘MVP’ started circling given the way he was able to sling some Seattle wins together.

So will the Seahawks pony up and pay the man?
Seems pretty bloody likely given how well he played for what he was paid.
Had their running game not gone to crap, maybe they could have made the post season.

Derek Carr

This Carr cracker crumbled in 2023, after his much hyped Las Vegas Raiders ate a big turd-burger despite some pretty marquee talent.

Carr is gone from Vegas despite promising fans that the Raiders would be the last team he would play for. He can still sling the pig skin, so it makes sense that he plays a few more years, before taking his fugly-jug to the broadcast booth next to his gorgeous bro.

We see Derek Carr heading down to New Orleans next year to lead the Saints to a losing record.

London Games

Are you ready for the Bills, Titans and Jaguars to come to London this year?

Us too, and we’ll let you know more as soon as we hear about it.

Make sure you check here for all the latest news, and thanks for reading our Feb Football News.

https://www.nfl.com/uk/international-games

 

 

Week 11 Picks

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We’re over halfway through the NFL season as the league hosts its final international game in Mexico, the World Cup is almost here, and the Green Bay Packers eat another ‘L’.
It’s time for our Week 11 Picks!

Wade and Ryan are back again, using their medium sized brains to crank out their nuggets of wisdom as we make our way to Thanksgiving.

Ryan had a bit of turkey in week 10, going 5-8 in his picks, while Wade had a bit more stuffing with a 9-4 record ATS.
How will the boys do this week?

The show is all snow in Buffalo, the Patriots tee up the Jets for another potential beating, the Bears are underdogs to Mariota, and the Rams well and truly suck this year.

Who do the guys have for Week 11?

You can listen to the whole podcast here, and get all of the Picks you’re looking for!

Here are some of the betting picks the guys are looking at for Week 11.

Browns (3-6) vs -8 Bills (6-3) +50.5

As much as we laud Buffalo for staying strong during their snowy winters, when you look at the white covered city, you can see why it had to be moved to Detroit.
The Bills and Browns are both in the dome, in a game that could signal the beginning of the Deshaun era, and Josh Allen looking to shake off recent picks.

Buffalo is starting to lose grip on the top spot in the AFC east, with the rise of the Jets Dolphins and Patriots to playoff potential.
Josh Allen’s last minute picks have put the Bills in a tricky spot, after taking that sore L from the Vikings.

The Browns have limped their way into this season, hoping that Watson will rub out the past deeds, and tug them into a brighter future.
The running game and ascent of Peoples-Jones could help the Browns keep this one closer than the line Vegas has provided.

Ryan likes his Bills to win, but doesn’t like that 8 point spread.
He thinks that the Browns will keep in closer than that.

Wade agrees, and thinks that the tight week, and with Buffalo due to play in 4 days for Gobble Gobble, they might not be focused on laying a beating.

Ryan-Bills 27  Browns 20
Wade Bills 28 Browns 21

-6.5 Eagles (8-1) vs Colts (4-5-1) +43.5

The Eagles have gotten that first loss out of the way, now it’s time to focus!
Philly not only made a load of mistakes against Washington in week 10, they also got gashed by the running game, something that future teams will look to as a template.

Indy is shaking off the hangover, and trying to string something together after the Matt Ryan awkwardness of a few weeks ago. Is he back? Does Jim still like him?
Whatever it is, they still have Jonathan Taylor, who like Stella-seems to have finally gotten his groove back.

Ryan likes the Eagles to continue to dominate, learning from their Week 10 loss, and ready to rebound all over the faces of Jeff Saturday and his boys.

Wade thinks the Colts are on the rise, and this could potentially be another chance to draw blood and put themselves on the playoffs path. The could win, but should cover.

Ryan-Eagles 30 Colts 17
Wade-Eagles 28 Colts 22

Bears (3-7) vs -3 Falcons (4-6)  +49

It only took 5 weeks, but the Bears have finally figured out what to do with Fields and a weak Bears O-line.
Justin has been on fire, ripping up Fantasy numbers, and having Bears worry that he could get broken with the amount he’s running, leaving them with no toys at all.

How is Marcus Mariota still a starting QB?
His passes are as awkward as an asexual at a porn awards, and he’s often putting the Falcons under pressure than leading them to victory.
So how are the Falcons 3 point faves? Is it all home field?

Ryan thinks that the Falcons are in the right, and that spotty Bears D will be open enough for Atlanta’s running game to create some opportunities.

Wade is all over his Bears, with the team averaging 28 points in the past 4 weeks, they will continue to score against a hapless Falcons D.

Ryan-Falcons 27 Bears 24
Wade-Bears 30 Falcons 24

That’s it for our Week 11 Picks, who do you have?

Make sure you follow us on social media and play along on DraftKings every week of all the fun!

 

Humpway There

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The final London game is done and dusted, trades have been made, and we push on to the second half of the NFL season, as we are officially Humpway There.

Anyone who says that they predicted this season needs a serious slap in the face, because no one foresaw the shiteshow demise of some of the biggest NFL franchises.

Rodgers, Brady, Stafford, Wilson and others have had a bad, bad season, while Geno Smith is looking to lock up the MVP award this season (seriously!)

Let’s look back at the week that was.

Week 8 Games

Panthers 34 Falcons 37

This game needed a bag over its head it was so ugly. From a kicker who warmed up so much, he missed, to D.J. Moore removing his helmet and getting the penalty that would put them out of field goal range.
A game that was truly tough to watch, but that’s the NFC South.
Mariota is not the solution, while the Panthers have to frustrated that they let this divisional game slip away due to stupid mistakes.

Raiders 0 Saints 24

What do you do when you have one of the worst defences in the NFL? Score ZERO points.
The Raiders have been sucking hard this season, with their D ranking at the bottom of everything.
So why didn’t Carr, Jacobs and Adams rip them a new one?
New Orleans snagged a much needed win when the Bucs and  Panthers both fell, but they still have a huge hill to climb ahead.

Bears 29 Cowboys 49

Dem boyz are back! Or did they just take advantage of a depleted and defeated Chicago squad?
Either Zeke is on a hunger strike, or Dallas is just refusing to feed him anymore, as it was the Pollard show all day.
Despite being shaken and stirred, Justin Fields and the boys were actually able to rally and put points on the board-something previous Bears teams have struggled to do.
Big win for the Cowboys, but not a horrible showing by the Bears.

Trade News

Well the trade deadline came and went, and this one did NOT disappoint!
Among some of the big trades that happened prior to the deadline.

Christian McCaffery to the 49ers was probably the biggest trade to kick off the action.
The Panthers continue to shed their previous incarnations, and San Francisco adds a breakable beast of a RB that will either take them to the promised land, or tear his ACL in week 10.

Jacksonville Jaguars started the season strong, which is probably why they made a few tweaks to secure wide receiver Calvin Ridley from the Falcons.
Having traded James Robinson to the Jets earlier, the Jags are looking to give Trevor Lawrence the speed and compliment to Christian Kirk.

Miami knows their D sucks, which is why they made the play for Bradley Chubb of the Denver Broncos.
The Dolphins have a serious playoff shot if they can plug in some holes in their backend, and Chubb certainly brings presence and play to the field.
Denver gets some picks, as well as RB Chase Edmonds who must be thrilled to go from contender to bender in a week.

Like sleeping with your sister, it’s generally not a good idea to pass players to teams in your division, but that didn’t stop the Lions from shipping off TE TJ Hockenson to the rival Minnesota Vikings.
By adding TJ, the Vikings get a nice compliment to Justin Jefferson, and another target for Kirk Cousins to overthrow.
Detroit knows that this season is over (again), and it’s time to build (again).

Chicago Bears were thought to be the bin bottom of the league this year, but looky-loo, they are tied with the Packers for second place.
The Bears starting shipping off the D early, shipping Roquan Smith to the Ravens in exchange for draft picks in 2023.
They pulled apart the D even further when they dealt Robert Quinn to the Eagles, who are looking to fulfil that perfect season.
Lastly, the Bears picked up Steelers WR Chase Claypool to give Fields that speed and height option that Mooney lacks.
The Bears might know that this season is over, but that hasn’t stopped them from looking towards next year.

Aaron Rodgers got nothing. No tools, no toys, no respect.
Maybe it’s because he took all that money?

Let’s see what Brady and Rodgers can do now?

 

Week 7 Tips

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It was another dump-pump-chump week in the NFL for week 6, as topsy turvy met the upside down world in the results, that’s why it’s called ‘Any Given Sunday’.

Wade and Ryan both took some chin-hits in their picks, but as Taylor says, ‘shake it off’, and they will , as they offer their Week 7 Tips.

To make sure that you hear all of our picks, check out our podcast this week, which you can also find on Spotify and iTunes.

Here are some of the top games that Wade & Ryan have lined up for Week 7.

Lions (1-4) vs -7 Cowboys (4-2) +49

Dak is back, whiggyity wack!
After injuring himself earlier in this season with a nasty wrist hamper, Dak has rushed himself through the pain to get himself back for Week 7. But is it too soon?
The Cowboys have survived on the back of their tough D, and ginger-ninja skills of Cooper Rush.
Four wins are great to have going into Week 7, but can they stave off a feisty Detroit team whose own D has led to multiple collapses?
The Lions have a Hard Knock hangover to start this season. After feasting on the hype, fans are now starting to see that a team with a couple wins last year isn’t going to suddenly go from grower to show-er.
Detroit has a few players back from injury, but their hapless D was still 9 players down heading into practice midweek.
Ryan likes Dak & Dem Boyz to feast on Dan Campbell’s ravaged corpse, easily covering the spread.
Wade is betting on the Lions, deducing that the return of Amon and the fast scoring Goff will come to play and get that second W.
Ryan-Cowboys 30 Lions 20
Wade-Lions 31 Cowboys 27

Giants (5-1) vs Jaguars -3 (2-4) +42.5

So the Giants have 5 wins, but the 2 win Jaguars are favoured at home?
What the hey heck is this malarky?
Perhaps Vegas believes that Daniel Jones and company might be a bit less of a squad than their record belies?
The Giants thundered the Pack-fanatics in London during a game that signalled the potential demise of the Green Bay decade long domination in the NFC.
Add to this wins over the Ravens and now people really believe that this team can be more than Saquon.
Apparently the bookies didn’t get the message, who pip Trevor Lawrence and the Jags as a better option.
The Jags were great in their first two games, then they kind of imploded.
Bolstered by two solid running backs, pretty okay receivers and D that blipped the Bills last season, and you wonder where the return is?
Can they string a bunch of wins together, or are they doomed to be tainted by the AFC dumpster fire.
Ryan is a Giant fan of New York, and sees the G-Men ripping a sixth win out of the beating heart of south Florida sun.
Wade likes the Jags, and sees Etienne getting the runs all over the Giants D.

Ryan-Giants 23 Jaguars 20
Wade-Jaguars 26 Giants 20

Colts (3-2-1) vs -2.5 Titans (3-2)

It’s the rematch from Week 4 that no one asked for! But that’s what you get in the AFC South.
Matty Ice looked like he was still frozen at the start of the season, as Indianapolis played their first few games like they were still in preseason.
Now the Colts are starting to win, and Matt Ryan is second in the league in overall passing yards.
Taylor and Hines are probables, as the Colts are able to get a few healthy bodies back to avenge their October 2 loss.
Tennessee is a mess, with Henry well below his perceived yards, and Tannehill lacking any real targets.
The Titans have 3 wins though, which in AFC South terms is akin to having a full set of teeth on the bayou.
Speaking of byes, the Titans are fresh off of one, although some players consider an early bye a future curse of health.
Ryan likes the Titans at home, and sees Henry having a good rushing day to secure the W.
Wade thinks that the thaw is over, and Matt Ryan and the healthy Colts are about to start an AFC push, which aside from the Bills, is a mess.
Ryan-Titans 27 Colts 23
Wade-Colts 24 Titans 20
That’s it for our Week 7 Tips, If you want to hear more of our picks, just listen to podcast and get all the feels.

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AFC/NFC Preview

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Well NFL darlings, it’s that time of the year again, as that giddy feeling in your stomach turns into the excitement of another NFL season!

The preseason is done, London games set, initial rounds of injuries have skated across the league, and it’s time for some football!

To commemorate the start of the 2022 NFL season, once again Wade McElwain and Ryan Cull have taken the task at hand of trying to determine who will emerge as the top teams to face off in the 2023 SuperBowl.

Thus we present to you our AFC/NFC Preview Podcast!

As a Bears and Bills fan, they have a skewed barometer of how their teams will fare, but there’s no loyalty in making picks.

To make sure that you get the best out of both guys, we have recorded not ONE, but TWO podcasts on this-one for each division!

AFC

The Buffalo Bills are heavily favoured to take it all this year, but as any seasoned Western New York fan knows, the wing might be spicy, it doesn’t mean that it’s fully cooked inside. (aka-expect failure0

It’s the Bills to lose this season, but the AFC East has the much touted Dolphins and their diminutive QB looking to be the big man.
The Dolphins have all the tools, but will those tools fit into the new machine?
Billy B will be looking to pull off some sleight of hand, convincing many preseason pundits that the Pats don’t have it together-they will.
The Jets…two words…Joe Flacco.
They’s be better off with Edie Falco.

The AFC North has all the drama for your mama this year, as Deshaun Watson immediately makes the Browns the least favourite team of any female fan of the NFL.
Cincy is fresh off a Superbowl appearance, but as history tells us-that isn’t always a good thing.
Lamar has a lot to prove this season, let’s just hope he doesn’t get hurt before he gets paid.
Pittsburgh has Trubisky. ‘Nuff said.

The West is Best in the AFC in terms of team calibre, but which of these rats can chew off the others faces to pip the top.
Patrick Mahomes is a safe bet to put on a show, as the Chiefs shrug off some dead weight to make another run at the title.
Hot on their heels will be the strong arm of Justin Herbert and a rejuvenated Chargers D. Is this his Joe Burrow year?
Vegas went all in on Carr, giving him the pieces he needs to make a buffet to feed the city their dreams.
Denver has Russ-but can he ever cook again?

Matty Ice is in the AFC, as he hope to run off of Taylor’s legs and take this AFC South division with ease.
Tannehill has lost loads of weapons this season, with the Titans trying to make a run, without all the tools they had before.
Houston-we have a problem. Davis Mills is fine, but you can’t build a team around him.
Jacksonville has to do something this year now that Urban Meyer is back working as a manager at Hot Topic. It’s all on you Trevor!

NFC

The NFC claimed the SuperBowl title last year, with the LA Rams and the noodle-elbow of Matt Stafford winning it all after a woeful time in Detroit.

It’s hard to repeat as champs, so they’ll need all the Cialis in their wallets if they want to stay hard this year.
The NFC West is a feast of talent, so the Rams will need to stifle the tough D and running game of the 49ers if they want to move ahead. This is your chance Trey!
Kyler asked to ‘show me the money’, now he needs to show he can score. Boom or bust year for him.
Seattle is famed for being a depressive place that led to grunge and copious coffee drinking. Put another pot on.

NFC East is the least in terms of being impressive, but that doesn’t mean that they haven’t gotten better.
Hurts and the Eagles were able to make the playoffs during a rebuild year-and that running game should move them to the playoffs again this year.
The Devil and Daniel Jones have one last chance in the Big Apple before the angels of Harlem chase their asses out of town.
‘Dem Boyz are looking more like the Proud Boyz, as many people are turning on them, as wondering who the hell they are.
Washington sucks so bad, they should change the name again.

The NFC Dirty South has TB12 and his mama drama. Will that stop the Bucs from returning to the big game and send Tommy Boy to retirement?
Jameis is ready to rock the Saints and their top tier D into the playoffs-they have enough talent to do it, but do they have enough discipline?
Baker has to cook something up in Carolina this year, before he finds himself carrying Pat McAfee’s golf bags.
Atlanta is a great TV show starring Donald Driver.

Aaron Rodgers has taken a full dose of himself, and he is ready to lead the Packers to another early round playoff exit. Is his team ready to this to the NFC North?
The Vikings have an amazing team on paper, but paper doesn’t play every week.
Hard Knocks fans have swallowed the Dan Campbell pill, and have them beasting the league this year. Do we all remember the Lions of last year? Good.
The Bears are slated to be the worst team in the league this year. They will definitely have the worst O line…and draft picks!

Wade & Ryan will be back with their Week 1 predictions, as well as more NFL in London fun.