56°F
weather icon Clear

Falcons rested, ready to roll past Jay Cutler, Dolphins

Updated October 13, 2017 - 8:27 pm

The Manning Face is a facial expression comprised of equal parts frustration and disgust. It was displayed often by former NFL quarterback Peyton Manning and lives on through his younger brother, Giants quarterback Eli Manning.

The Cutler Face is devoid of expression. The disinterested, apathetic look long has been displayed by Miami Dolphins quarterback Jay Cutler.

Cutler’s apparent indifference inspired the popular Internet meme, Smokin’ Jay Cutler, which photoshops a cigarette into the quarterback’s mouth and showed him smoking one during his introductory news conference with the Dolphins.

Las Vegas oddsmakers expect the Cutler Face to be on full display Sunday. They’ve made Miami the biggest underdog on the board, getting 12 to 13 points at Atlanta.

The Falcons, eighth in the NFL in scoring (26 points per game), are one of five favorites of at least nine points this week. They’re coming off a bye week that followed their home loss to the Buffalo Bills and will welcome back wideout Julio Jones and linebacker Vic Beasley, who led the league in sacks last season.

The Dolphins have the NFL’s lowest-scoring offense at 10.2 ppg. They’re coming off an ugly 16-10 home win over the Marcus Mariota-less Tennessee Titans in which Cutler completed only 12 of 26 passes for 92 yards, a touchdown and an interception.

While it’s usually unwise to back a double-digit favorite in the NFL, we can’t see the dysfunctional Dolphins keeping up with reigning league MVP Matt Ryan and the high-flying Falcons. Look for Atlanta to blow out Miami, which has scored only two offensive TDs in its past three games.

Four more plays for Week 6 (home team in CAPS):

CHIEFS (-4) over Steelers: Pittsburgh, averaging only 19.8 ppg, is dealing with a bit of dysfunction itself. Wideout Antonio Brown threw a tantrum on the sideline earlier this season, and running back Le’Veon Bell complained about his lack of attempts after Sunday’s 30-9 home loss to the Jaguars. To top it off, quarterback Ben Roethlisberger questioned if he still has it after throwing five interceptions against Jacksonville. Kansas City, 5-0 straight up and against the spread, leads the league in scoring at 32.8 ppg.

Packers (-3) over VIKINGS: Green Bay is banged up, but quarterback Aaron Rodgers (13 TDs, three interceptions) continues to find ways to win. He’s coming off another last-minute comeback victory over the Cowboys and gives Green Bay a huge edge at quarterback in this one. Backup quarterback Case Keenum is expected to start for Minnesota after starter Sam Bradford aggravated his left knee injury in Monday’s 20-17 win at Chicago.

TEXANS (-9) over Browns: Kevin Hogan will become the 28th quarterback to start for the Browns since 1999. Cleveland fell to 1-20 under coach Hue Jackson in its 17-14 loss to the Jets and is on a 6-24-1 ATS slide. The Texans are averaging 34.0 ppg in rookie quarterback Deshaun Watson’s first four starts. Houston won’t need injured defenders J.J. Watt and Whitney Mercilus to contain a brutal Browns offense averaging 15.4 ppg.

Lions (+4) over SAINTS: Detroit’s two losses have been by four points to the Falcons and three to the Carolina Panthers. Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford has thrown for nine TDs and one interception. Detroit has won the last three meetings, including a 28-13 win in December at the Superdome, where New Orleans has lost 14 of 25.

Last week: 2-3 against the spread

Season: 11-14

More betting: Follow all of our sports betting coverage online at reviewjournal.com/betting and @RJ_Sports on Twitter.

Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com. Follow @tdewey33 on Twitter.

Like and follow Vegas Nation
THE LATEST