The last time we checked on the NFL Kickoff Game, the best sportsbooks online favored the Eagles by four points. As game day looms in the horizon, that advantage has been cleft in twain. As of this writing, Philadelphia is a one-point favorite to defeat the Atlanta Falcons. The big story heading into the match is head coach Doug Pederson’s decision to start Nick Foles instead of Carson Wentz. Wentz has yet to be medically cleared to compete. Foles has been the starting QB since Wentz tore an ACL in Week 14 of the 2017 season. The Eagles went 5-1 SU and 3-3 ATS in Foles’s six starts. Including Super Bowl LII. Of which he named the Most Valuable Player. The question is whether that is the new norm for Foles, or just a fluke.
When he plays well, he plays really well. But when he plays badly, he stinks up the joint. For example, Week 16 against the Oakland Raiders. Foles completed 50% of his passes for 4.3 yards per attempt with one touchdown and one. Or for a larger sample, the 2012, 2014, 2015, and 2016 seasons. He completed 58.5% of his passes with a 26-24 touchdown-interception ratio for a 76.2 passer rating. His teams had a combined record of 12-14. One of those teams was precisely none other than the Philadelphia Eagles. Foles didn’t exactly shine during the preseason either. He had a 48.7 passer rating, four turnovers, and no touchdowns. The consensus among the best sportsbooks online is that the preseason doesn’t really count. However, the Eagles better hope Foles got the suckiness out of his system during the exhibition games.
Updated odds from MyBookie.ag:
ATLANTA FALCONS +1 (-110) 44½ (-110) -101
PHILADELPHIA EAGLES -1 (-110) 44½ (-110) -119
If the preseason were an accurate barometer of the regular season, the Falcons’d be up the creek without a paddle. Atlanta lost all four exhibition games, to the New York Jets, Kansas City Chiefs, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Miami Dolphins. And yet, the Falcons are going to be really good. And it’s not just the ravings of a superfan. Or “warnings” from rappers who wouldn’t last five minutes on the gridiron. If you check the best sportsbooks online, you’ll see the Falcons have pretty damn good odds all around. Save three exceptions, the Falcons are returning all starters from the 2017 season. That means Matt Ryan, Tevin Coleman, Devonta Freeman, and Julio Jones on offense. And Vic Beasley, Takk McKinley, and Desmond Trufant on defense. Among many others.
Additionally, Matty Ice will have a new target in rookie wide receiver Calvin Ridley. The Alabama product had 2781 yards and 19 TDs in three seasons of college football. The Falcons expect Ridley to bolster the offense. More importantly, the Falcons hope Ridley can help offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian to snap out of his funk. As James Parks of 247sports puts it, “If he is unable to restore the team’s production on offense with the player who scouts called the best route runner in the draft, a player with whom he worked at the nation’s premier college program, and who is now a member of one of the NFL’s best offensive rotations, and certainly the best this franchise has ever fielded, then Sarkisian will likely be out of a job next January.”
All things considered, there is something worth remembering. The Eagles beat the Falcons and covered a 2.5-point spread in the divisional round of the 2017 playoffs. The difference is that Philadelphia was the underdog and Atlanta the favorite of the best sportsbooks online. The circumstances are reverse now. Could also the outcome be reversed? That’s actually a very strong possibility.
