NFC South: Week 9 Recap
Cam Newton and the Carolina Panthers are contenders in the NFC South.
Nine weeks into the 2013 NFL season the NFC South has become a two-horse race, something most would have predicted before the season kicked off at the beginning of September
One thing most people didn’t predict though is that one of the two horses in question would be the Carolina Panthers. Yet true enough the Panthers are sat within touching distance of the division-leading New Orleans Saints, and now sit three games ahead of the preseason favorite Atlanta Falcons thanks in part to this past week’s results.
BettingSports.com brings you a recap of Week 9 in the NFC South, beginning with a surprising result in the Garden State.
New Orleans Saints 20, New York Jets 26
The Saints fell to the Jets Sunday.
For the third straight week, and fourth time in five games, the New Orleans Saints found themselves matched up against an AFC East opponent Sunday, this time facing the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ.
After being handed a first loss of the season by the New England Patriots three weeks ago, the Saints rebounded to take a victory over the Buffalo Bills last Sunday, and looked to move to 7-1 on the season. The Jekyll and Hyde-like Jets had other ideas though.
The Saints built a 14-6 lead midway through the second quarter thanks to a pair of touchdown passes from Drew Brees to Jimmy Graham. The Jets responded with a pair of rushing touchdowns over a two-minute span as the half drew to a close, the second coming after Antonio Cromartie picked off Brees in Saints’ territory.
Rex Ryan’s side held the Saints to a pair of Garrett Hartley field goals in the second half, which were matched by Nick Folk to give the Jets a 26-20 upset win. Geno Smith finished the day 8 of 19 for 115 yards, with 18 yards and a touchdown on the ground. Crucially, he didn’t turn the ball over. Chris Ivory ran for 139 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries as the Jets outrushed the Saints 198-41 yards. Brees completed 30 of 51 passes for 382 yards but his two touchdown passes were offset by a pair of interceptions.
Vegas Impact: New Orleans (5-3-0 ATS) failed to cover the spread for the second time in three games, while the Jets (6-3-0 ATS) covered for an AFC-best sixth time. The total went over, as it has in the last three Saints games and last four Jets games.
Up Next: New Orleans (6-2, 4-0 home) returns to the Big Easy this week for a Sunday Night Football showdown with the Dallas Cowboys (5-4, 1-3 road). The Saints open as the favorite having beaten the Cowboys in two straight and seven of the last eight meetings. Dallas’ won win in that stretch (Dec. 2009) did come at the Superdome though. Despite failing to cover the spread in Week 9, Dallas (7-2-0 ATS) remains the NFL’s best team against the spread.
Opening Odds – Favorite: New Orleans Spread: 6.5 Over/Under: 50 (matchup)
Atlanta Falcons 10, Carolina Panthers 34
It was another tough week for the Falcons.
While the Atlanta Falcons had high hopes coming into the season, the team’s injury-plagued season was essentially rendered null and void Sunday as the Carolina Panthers emerged from Bank of America Stadium with a 34-10 victory.
The Panthers took a 14-10 lead into the locker room at half time, thanks to a 4-yard scoring run from Mike Tolbert and a 14-yard strike from Can Newton to Greg Olsen. That lead could have been bigger had Matt Ryan not found Tony Gonzalez for a 17-yard score with less than two minutes left on the clock.
Having been intercepted twice in the first half, Newton shored things up in the second half as the Panthers outscored the Falcons 20-0. Newton went in for a score on the ground while Drayton Florence returned Ryan’s third interception of the day 38 yards for a score.
The 34-10 final score saw the Panthers win for the fourth straight game and fifth time in six outings, moving the team within a game of New Orleans at the top of the division. Atlanta meanwhile lost for the second straight game and fifth time in six games. At 2-6 and seriously banged up, any hopes the Falcons may have had of making the playoffs look like they’ve gone south.
Vegas Impact: Carolina (5-3-0 ATS) covered the spread for the fourth straight game. The Panthers have covered in each of their wins this season. Meanwhile, Atlanta (2-6-0 ATS) has failed to cover in each of its losses this season. The game saw the total go under.
Up Next (Carolina): The Panthers (5-3, 2-2 road) have not won five games in a row since 2005, when the team notched six straight wins. They’ll look to rectify that this Sunday (4:05 p.m. ET) when they visit the San Francisco 49ers (6-2, 3-1 home). The Niners can benefit from an extra week of rest and preparation following Week 8’s trip to London. The Panthers will hope recent history has something to say about things though; the Panthers have beaten the Niners in seven of their last nine meetings dating back to 1999.
Opening Odds – Favorite: San Francisco Spread: 6.5 Over/Under: 41 (matchup)
Up Next (Atlanta): After two straight road games, Atlanta (2-6, 2-2 home) returns home Sunday (1:00 p.m. ET) to host the NFC-leading Seattle Seahawks (8-1, 4-1 road) in a rematch of last season’s divisional playoff game. The Falcons have gotten the better of the Seahawks in their last four meetings, and will be hoping an upset win can act as a catalyst for the rest of the season.
Opening Odds – Favorite: Seattle Spread: 6.5 Over/Under: 45 (matchup)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 24, Seattle Seahawks 27 (OT)
The Buccaneers wasted a 21-point lead.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers haven’t had a lot to be cheerful this season. A 0-7 start has sapped fans of their patience, while the team itself looks to be slowly disintegrating into a state resembling the 2008 Detroit Lions. But the Buccaneers got something to be cheerful about Sunday, at least for half a game.
The Bucs shocked everybody, first holding the Seahawks scoreless in the first quarter and then building a 21-0 lead in the second quarter. Mike Glennon was productive in his fifth start for the team, completing 11 of his first 12 passes before finishing the day 17 for 23 with a pair of touchdowns. Meanwhile, Mike James had a career day on the ground, rushing for 158 yards.
The Bucs went into halftime with a 21-7 lead before adding a Rian Lidell field goal after the break. All looked good for the team to pick up its first win of the season. That win wasn’t to be forthcoming though.
Seattle rallied, scoring 17 unanswered points to bring the score to 24-24 with 1:51 left in the fourth quarter. Russell Wilson ran the ball in from 10 yards out before finding Doug Baldwin for a score late in the game. Tampa Bay was unable to do anything with the remaining time, punting the ball back to Seattle before the game headed for overtime.
The Buccaneers started the extra frame with the ball but a three-and-out saw Seattle take possession. That was all the Seahawks needed. Marshawn Lynch ran the ball six times to lead Seattle up the field, leaving kicker Steven Hauschka to seal the come-from-behind win with a 27-yard field goal, a win that condemned the Buccaneers to an eighth straight loss.
Vegas Impact: Tampa Bay (2-6-0 ATS) may not have been successful straight up, but the team managed to cover the spread for just the second time this season. Seattle (5-4-0 ATS) meanwhile has failed to cover the spread in four of its last five games. The Buccaneers saw the total go over for the fourth straight game.
Up Next: Tampa Bay (0-8, 0-4 home) returns home for an in-state showdown with the Miami Dolphins (5-4, 2-2 road) on Monday Night Football. The meeting marks only the 10th time the two sides have met, with Miami owning a narrow 5-4 advantage. The Fins won the last time the two sides met (Nov. 2009), snapping Tampa Bay’s three-game winning streak in the process.
Opening Odds – Favorite: Miami Spread: 3.5 Over/Under: 41 (matchup)
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