Philadelphia Eagles vs St. Louis Rams

The Eagles and Rams hook up in a battle that will see the defenses ahead of the offenses, which is common in September football. Philly runs a short passing, West Coast offense with Michael Vick and the defense is super-talented. The Philly defense, already strong, added CB Nnamdi Asomugha, DB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, ex-Titans defensive end Jason Babin (12.5 sacks in 2010) and Packers star defensive lineman Cullen Jenkins. The real question mark on the team, however, is the offensive line which battled injuries all during August. The Eagles had a number of players who are spending a lot more time with the team's training staff than they are with the coaching staff. That included veterans such as offensive tackle Winston Justice, plus they moved Todd Herremans to RT last week out of necessity. Justice, who started 13 games at right tackle last season, still hasn't recovered sufficiently enough from February knee surgery to practice. I don't see this offense being in midseason form for this one. The UNDER is 5-1 in the Eagles’ last six games in week one and Philly is 37-18-1 to the UNDER in their last 56 games as a favorite of 3.5-10 points. The Rams play an aggressive, attacking defense for coach Steve Spagnuolo, and the offense has a huge new look to learn with offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, who has brought in the spread attack he ran in Denver and New England. That is likely going to take time to develop with young QB Sam Bradford. The UNDER is 12-5 in the Rams last 17 games in September and 7-3 UNDER in their last 10 home games. Play the UNDER in this one.

There wasn't a team in the NFL that had the injury issues to key players like the Rams did a year ago. They finished with a dreadful 3-13 mark - their worst finish since 1991. But certainly they are a better team than that. This team ran an offense behind a make-shift line each week, and the injury-depleted line stopped the Rams cold. Look for a healthy Marc Bulger to approach 2006 numbers. Many people have forgotten just how good he was back them (over 4,000 yards and 24 TDs with just eight interceptions). Even with a troubled offensive line, and four games missed due to injury, Stephen Jackson still rushed for over 1,000 yards last season. With a healthy line and healthy Jackson, look for the Rams to improve dramatically, and come out in game one with something to prove. Philadelphia played in some close games last season as five of their eight losses were by 4 points or less. The biggest problem was trying to turnover the opponent, as the Eagles managed just 19 takeaways all season. The Eagles biggest void, as has been the case for much of the Donovan McNabb era, will be at wide receiver as Kevin Curtis is out with a sports hernia. That leaves Reggie Brown, another oft-injured receiver, to carry the load. The other problem area for the Eagles is at linebacker, where they will field the youngest group in the league. This group may need time to get things in sync. Overall, this is a Rams team that is being treated by the odds-makers as not much different than their injury plagued '07 season, when the reality is they are more like the '06 team. I am backing the overlay here on the Rams.

In a "who cares" game between two non-playoff teams, sparks should fly. These teams have nothing of significance to play for and as a result, they are going throw caution to the wind. St. Louis loves to air it out anyway, especially at home. And, their defense is non-existent this season. It's ranked only ahead of San Francisco as they are allowing 370 yards per game and over 29 points per game. The Rams start their rookie for the third straight game and so far he has thrown six interceptions in his last two starts. Philadelphia's offense isn't horrible and they should score quite a bit in this one. Underdogs of 3.5 to 10 points that are allowing 24+ points per game, coming off a close loss are 4-2 ATS this season and 73% lifetime. I like the Eagles against the rookie QB and terrible defense. Two stars on the Eagles and two stars on this game to go OVER the posted total in a shootout that Philly keeps close and possibly wins.