NFL
NFL Week 8 preview: Jets can cut Giants down to size
There were more twists and turns in the NFL last week as the Philadelphia Eagles swept the Miami Dolphins aside and the Baltimore Ravens put an end to the winning streak of the Detroit Lions in clinical style.
We look ahead to the pick of Week 8’s games.
New York Jets @ New York Giants
A big grudge match takes place at the MetLife Stadium this weekend as the New York Giants host rivals the New York Jets.
This match up has been played out 14 times in the past, and the Giants hold the slight edge with eight wins to the Jets’ six, but it’s the Jets that have won the last two meetings.
This season has proved disappointing for both sides so far, with the Giants languishing at the bottom of NFC East having a record of 2-5, and the Jets only marginally better as they lie third in AFC East with a 3-3 record. Both teams do come here on the back of a win though, meaning they bring some confidence into the game and that should make for a better spectacle.
The Giants won only their second game of the season last time out as they got the better of the Washington Commanders in a low scoring game. It’s in the offensive department that the Giants have really struggled this season and they are the only team to have yet to surpass 100 points scored, having only made 85 so far. They have only scored eight TDs too and it may be that they struggle to break down a Jets’ defence that is one of the better ones in the AFC, so it’s unsurprising that they come here as the 13/10 underdogs on the money line.
The Jets have probably been in better form than their position in AFC East lets on, having won their last two, including an amazing 20-14 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 6. That was the Eagles only defeat of the season so far and it showed the Jets stout defence as they didn’t concede a point in the final half of the game. That’s some going against a team with the attacking potency of the Eagles and it suggests that they should be able to restrict their New York rivals to minimal scoring. At 4/6, the Jets are the play.
With the Giants lacking bite and the Jets well versed in defence, this could be a low-scoring encounter and a price of 10/11 about their being under 36.5 points scored during the match could represent the best value bet.
Minnesota Viking @ Green Bay Packers
Another big rivalry is renewed in NFC North this weekend as the Minnesota Vikings travel to Wisconsin to take on the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field.
This is a historic rivalry with 125 meetings between the two teams. The Packers hold a narrow advantage with 65 wins to 57, while there have also been three draws.
The Vikings will certainly be hoping to close that gap on Sunday and come here in the better form after two wins on the trot, while the Packers must turn around a three-game losing streak. That form sees the Vikings as the 20/27 favourites.
Kevin O’Connell’s team beat the Chicago Bears in Week 6, but were even more impressive last week when defeating the Super Bowl-fancied San Francisco 49ers.
In QB Kirk Cousins the Vikings have a real star, and he threw two TDs against the Californian franchise last week. Cousins currently sits third in the NFL for most passing yards with 2057, while he has thrown 16 touchdowns so far this season, second only to Josh Allen.
With the spread a slender +/- 1.5, this is expected to be a close encounter and the Packers shouldn’t be written off, having only narrowly fallen to defeat against the Denver Broncos last time and the Las Vegas Raiders the time before that. However, they do need to redress that form and at 23/20 it’s hard to see them having enough to get past the Vikings, while with the +1.5 handicap they don’t make much more appeal at 21/20.
