Giants NFL Opener On Wednesday

An NFL game on Wednesday? Yup! that’s exactly what’s going to happen when the NFL opens it’s 2012 season.

Traditionally, the first game of the season is played on a Thursday and features the defending Super Bowl champions. But the NFL has moved the game back one day, to Wednesday, Sept 5, 2012 @ 8:30 p.m. in Metlife stadium, to accommodate President Obama’s speech to the Democratic National Convention that Thursday evening.

In the 2012 NFL Wednesday opener, the Super Bowl XLVI champion New York Giants willl take on a yet to be determined opponent. According to a statement on the Giants official website (giants.com), “The Giants’ opponent in the game is expected to be announced at the NFL meetings in March. The potential opponents include Green Bay (which would match the two most recent Super Bowl champions), New Orleans (which has played in the league’s opening game each of the last two years), Pittsburgh (a six-time Super Bowl champion) and NFC opponents Dallas, Philadelphia and Washington.”

An NFL Wednesday game is very rare; the last time one was played was Sept. 22. 1948, when the Rams beat the Lions 44-7.

Since 2004, the NFL has made it a tradition to honor the defending Super Bowl champs by featuring them in the first game of the NFL season. The defending Super Bowl champion has won every NFL season opener since.

Here is it. The last Sunday NFL game in the 2008 regular season. The Denver Broncos play the San Diego Chargers for the AFC West Championship.  John Madden and Al Michaels will be in the booth for the game.

GAME INFO
Date: Sunday, Dec 28, 2008
Kickoff:  8:15 PM ET
Teams: Denver Broncos vs San Diego Chargers
Location: Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego California
TV: NBC

THE LINE (subject to change)
The Chargers are favorite by 8 points (-7).  The Under/Over is 49

THE MATCHUP
The winner is the champion of the AFC West. The loser goes home.
Denver is 8-7 overall and 4-3 on the road. They are 3-2 in the AFC West and 5-6 in the AFC
San Diego is 7-8 overall and 4-3 at home. They are 4-1 in the AFC West and 6-5 in the AFC
AGAINST THE SPREAD (ATS)
The Broncos are 5-10 overall ATS. They are 4-3 ATS away, 4-2 ATS underdog and 3-2 ATS as an away underdog.

The Chargers are 6-9 overall ATS.  They are 3-4 ATS at home, 4-8 ATS as the favorite and 3-4 ATS as home favorite

PREVIEW
Philip Rivers is on a serious roll and he is averaging 270 yards with 2.2 TDs vs just 0.5 interceptions for a simulation passer rating of 114. With Jay Cutler mustering just an 82 rating the Chargers are heavy 84 percent favorites. The Broncos lost 2 more RBs to injury and Tatum Bell and recently signed Cory Boyd are averaging well under 4 ypc. The Broncos have relied solely on the passing offense to win games this year. To pull off the upset they not only need a huge 3 TD performance from Jay Cutler, they also need the defense to sack Rivers twice and have at least 2 Chargers turnovers. In these simulations the Broncos pull even with an average simulation score of 30-30.
 
PREDICTION (ATS)
San Diego Chargers 35   Denver Broncos 14
Phillip Rivers will lead the Chargers into the Post season.  The Denver Broncos will not be able to overcome 2 more injuries to their running backs. Expect a high scoring affair – at least for the Chargers.

The Denver Broncos invade Cleveland to take on the Browns. The last meeting between the two was back in 2006 that resulted in a 17-7 win for the Denver Broncos.

Tonight, the Cleveland fan favorite, quarterback Brady Quinn, out of Notre Dame, will get his first career start. He is replacing starter Derek Johnson, who made the Pro Bowl in 2007 but has been lead the Browns to a disappointing 3-5 start.

In head to head competition, the Broncos own the Browns, winning 7 in a row. They lead the series 19-5, that includes playoffs meetings.

Last week the Cleveland Browns lost at home to the Ravens, giving up 17 unanswered points in the 4th quarter. Denver also lost last week, 26-17 at home to the Miami Dolphins. But the Broncos are still in a first place tie with the Indianapolis in the AFC South.

You can bet the “Dog Pound” will be abuzz tonight, as Brady Quinn gets his first start. The Browns (3-5) are in the 3rd place in their conference behind the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Baltimore Ravens. They have four top-10 teams the rest of the way. If they lose tonight, it’s sayonara for the Browns.