FOLLOW@cimini

Consistency on a week to week—month to month basis is hard to find. Zack Cimini has been dominating the books this season in both the NFL (81%) and college football (62%). Give him a test trial on this weekend’s NFL games to find out for yourself. To get Zack’s four NFL Sunday plays send him an Email for Week Nine NFL Plays. Also follow me on Twitter for tidbits each and everyday

For Saturday’s free play Zack is heading back to the pit that sports bettors likely will avoid with the Rutger Scarlet Knights. Rutgers just two weeks ago was a 5-1 team but have been stomped by Big Ten opponents in Ohio State and Nebraska. The Ohio State game was a true whipping and in the Nebraska game they failed to cover the opening line of -17 but did cover the gameday line of -19.

Saturday morning folks are going to jump all over this Wisconsin team -13.5 to -14 on the road. I’d caution against that as Rutgers has to have a little fight left in them to try and secure a bowl game bid. They’re at home for the first time since their October 4th win over Michigan. The Scarlet Knights also boast several juniors and seniors that don’t want to leave school with a disastrous finish to their careers.

The bottom line here is you have to ask yourself how many notches higher are the Cornhuskers and Buckeyes over the Wisconsin Badgers. I’d have to say at least a full tier higher which would mean this line is completely off. Rutgers covered on the road in Nebraska and participated in a run-up affair against Ohio State.

Back yourselves on the underdogs here as Rutgers gets too many points as the books look to bait bettors on the Wisconsin Badgers.

Follow@cimini

All ears are awaiting to hear if Tony Romo will play or not on Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals. At 6-2, Dallas still holds a marginal lead over the Philadelphia Eagles and are well out in front of the Giants and Redskins.

Fans and the media are ready to pounce on the possibility of a mini-collapse in Jerry World. As much as they’ve done on the field correct this season there are still eight games left. During the offseason there was heavy speculation on how Tony Romo’s back would hold up over the course of a rigorous NFL season. Even former Dallas quarterback, Troy Aikman commented that recovering from a back injury is the toughest for a quarterback.

Dallas released Kyle Orton when they signed Brandon Weeden. No one really paid particular attention to Dallas signing Weeden. Weeden was a late first round pick by Cleveland a few seasons ago and just never got a true opportunity to grasp the offense and lead the Browns. Their change over with coaches led to his exit as he struggled under a new system last year and lost his job to Brian Hoyer.

Throughout his struggles as Brown he never really had the consistency he now has in Dallas. Talented wide receivers, a great back, and a solid offensive line. People already made the mistake that Colt McCoy should have been written off when the Redskins gave him a chance amidst Kirk Cousins struggles.

If Weeden is named starter will people be quick to rush to the ticket window to bet against the Cowboys? Probably.

I’d caution against it. Arizona is 6-1 but has had some struggles as of late to get wins. They came from behind against the Redskins, fought off the Raiders, and came from behind against the Eagles. All of this has been done without having key mistakes on the offensive side of the football. How much longer can Carson Palmer hold up without having one of his mistake prone games that have plagued him during his career?

If an announcement is made on Romo, be careful rushing to place your money on the Cardinals? Brandon Weeden just may be ready to shine as a 31 year old veteran quarterback.

Follow@cimini

Eight fantasy weeks are officially in the books. Owners sitting on the outskirts of playoff contention need to rev up their team’s for one last push. While fantasy owners looking behind them at team’s one or two game’s out need to extend their lead in the standings. This is a crucial stretch to get yourself in position. Lets take a look at some viable names that did well in week eight that can give you an added boost.

Teddy Bridgewater
Bridgewater is going to have his bumps and bruises for the rest of this season. While people are clamoring on adding Mike Vick, I’d rather grab Bridgewater. He has better talent on offense and his scrambling ability is not going to get him crushed. Add to the fact that he has super talented speedsters in Jerrick McKinnon and Patterson. Simple catches can turn into big gainers and inflate Bridgewater’s overall numbers.

Colt McCoy
McCoy proved myself and a lot of doubters wrong Monday night. It looks like it’s his team for the immediate future as RG3 looks to strengthen his ankle. I could easily see McCoy getting the next two to three weeks of starts as the Redskins halt rushing RG3 back too early.

Jonas Gray
I was not a believer in Patriots running back Bolden, and it looks like the Patriots staff wasn’t either. Jonas Gray had a stout performance against a shaky Bears team. The platoon system likely will relegate the amount of carries Gray gets on a week to week basis. But he is their number one threat currently carrying the football and Vereen the pass catching back.

Christine Michael
The Seahawks may not win the division title but they sure plan on being a wild card team. I don’t see their current plan of allowing Russ Wilson to scramble countless times working long term. Sooner or later they’ll need to bolster the amount of carries Lynch and Michael are receiving. If Michael can get 10-12 carries a game he should be a fantasy threat, especially with Lynch unhappy as a Seahawk.

Mike Evans
People are growing tired of Evans as they watch Sammy Watkins and Kelvin Benjamin light up opposing NFL defenses. What Watkins and Benjamin are doing aren’t the norm for rookies. Be patient with Evans as the Buccaneers as a whole are a mess. With nine games still remaining on the season, Evans should have a solid three to four games to offer for fantasy owners.

John Brown
It’s not often a third wide receiver gets solid fantasy value. With the injuries Arizona had at quarterback some leagues may have left Brown out of waiver consideration. Brown was thought to be better with Drew Stanton because of extra practice reps together. Brown’s proving that notion wrong by putting up strong performances with Carson Palmer. Brown has caught several game winning touchdowns in the fourth quarter this year, including last week’s against the Eagles and earlier against the 49ers.

Mychal Rivera
Oakland may not have a winning product on the football field but that is leading to some strong underrated fantasy value this season. Owners of wideouts James Jones and Andre Holmes have been happy with the output of production they have received. Rivera is the latest to string up some success. Add him as the Raiders being down to division opponents in the Chiefs, Broncos, Chargers, and rest of the NFL will continue.

Follow@cimini

Zack is coming off his third straight NFL Sunday sweep (26-5-1 (84%), posting a 5-0 ATS record. His winners included the New England Patriots, Bengals, Bills, under Jags/Dolphins, and over Packers/Saints. Zack’s plays are documented on kellyinvegas.com and jimfeist.com.

As for tonight in Monday Night football it’s not a game that I plan on putting action on. Public money seems to be on the right side this week, so we’ll see if that carries over into tonight’s game.

Dallas has had some great wins against the Saints and Seahawks, but also had some dud performances against the Rams and Texans. It could be a little bit of playing down to their competition.

Washington clearly is not in the same boat of class as the Cowboys are right now. Colt McCoy gets the start and it may be his last as an NFL quarterback. His downward spiral as an NFL quarterback has faded quickly since his departure from Cleveland. But while a Brown he did show some resiliency in tough spots. That wasn’t enough to win the third string battle in San Francisco last year.

As tough as it sounds my best advice in this game would be to sit it out or see if you can get a live bet on the Cowboys under the current number. Maybe early on the Cowboys are down 7-0 and you can get the line at far less value.

Enjoy the game tonight and come back later in the week for football plays.

Follow@cimini

The NBA can sometimes be a sport that requires weeks of leaving alone from a handicapping standpoint. It’s just one of those sports that is so long that consistency wanes from team to team periodically. This can be difficult to judge on a nightly basis when it comes to handicapping. That and it’s one of the few sports that trends can actually help you when it comes to sports betting.

One area that the NBA is probably the best for is season totals. Teams often don’t go through major changes like in MLB, NCAAF, NCAAB, or the NFL as far as severe injuries and benchings. You know first hand who is the primary star player, role players, rookies, and veteran depth.

Lets take a look at a few NBA win totals you can get in now before the season starts next week and profit on in April.

Cleveland Under 58.5— This is an awful high number for a team put together in the span of a summer. Key stars such as LeBron James and Kevin Love are paired with veteran signings of Mike Miller, Shawn Mario and others. Lets not forget this team has very young pieces as well with Kyrie Irving and Dion Waiters. They’ve had two years together and have failed to blossom with each other. I see this total falling short by a few games.

Denver Nuggets Over 40.5—- The Nuggets led by Brian Shaw were one of the teams that had severe imbalance last season. But towards the end of the season they started to show some promise. They have strong young assets in Faried, Lawson, and perimeter shooting. The West is tough but if healthy I like this Nuggets team to eclipse this mark by four to five games.

Houston Rockets Over 49.5—- Houston has that run and gun system that we’ve seen employed over the last ten years by teams such as the Phoenix Suns, Golden State Warriors, etc. All of these teams blossomed at key times and had great regular seasons followed by dud post seasons. I have a feeling this should be the year that the Rockets sizzle on the floor in the regular season. Even though they did not add Chris Bosh they have a system in place that thrives with stars James Harden and Dwight Howard. This seems like a low number to me.

Follow@cimini

Zack Cimini Previews Week 8 NFL/Week 9 College Football from Zack Cimini on Vimeo.