Baltimore Ravens +160 (ML) @ New England Patriots

I struggled with this game. The loss of Wes Welker definitely weighed heavily in my early thinking, but it was countered by the fact that the Patriots have a great system, and Julian Edelman has proven capable of filling Welker’s shoes, at least moderately. What ultimately swayed me toward the Ravens is the Patriots defense and their inability to stop people this year. The first time these two teams met the Ravens stopped themselves. In that game the Ravens ran the ball a mere 17 times, yet accumulated over 100 yards. Of late, the Ravens have been running the ball over 30 times per game. Both teams are battle tested but I am giving my edge to the Ravens.

Green Bay Packers -2.5 @ Arizona Cardinals

Everyone loves the Packers today and for good reason. The Cardinals have not been playing well, while the Packers are definitely peaking at the right time. Anquan Boldin will not play for the Cardinals today which makes a difficult task that much more difficult. Vegas has responded to the public’s love for GB by moving them from early dogs to game day favorites. Should the Cardinals lose, and I think they will, expect this to be Kurt Warner’s last game.