The offensively struggling Kansas City Chiefs have finally found a way to win-play a team with a more stagnant offense than their own. The Chiefs gave Todd Haley his first win as a NFL head coach on Sunday with a---6 win over the Washington Redskins. Kansas City won despite not scoring a touchdown, compiling their-- points via 4 Ryan Succop field goals and a game ending safety.
To successfully bet on NFL football you occasionally have to put aside W/L records and look at the underlying statistics. Those who did that found reason to take Kansas City as +6' road underdogs and were rewarded with the outright victory. Kansas City is now 2-4 against the NFL pointspread and has covered two straight while Washington is a dismal 1-5 versus the money. The 20 combined points went well UNDER the posted total of 36'. The Redskins have gone UNDER in five of their six games this season, while Kansas City has curiously posted a NFL totals mark of 3-2-1 to the OVER despite not scoring more than 24 points in a game all season.
After the contest, Haley sounded more relieved than excited about finally putting a "W" on the board:
"We made it pretty difficult, right down to the end. We've pushed through a very difficult period. We needed to get some positive reinforcement with a win."
Kansas City QB Matt Cassel also won for the first time since coming over from New England in the off season. His postgame comments were more upbeat:
"There's been a lot of change, but this has definitely been special. We rose to the occasion. We made some big plays. We put ourselves in a position to score points."
Embattled Redskins' coach Jim Zorn was stripped of his offensive play calling duties by team management after the contest. In one of his last decisions in that role, he pulled starter Jason Campbell at halftime and went with Todd Collins. He explained his move as follows:
"I felt the need to create a spark on our football team offensively and went with Todd. I think the guys responded well. We kept our spark, at times, and then we refizzled."
The Redskins have managed to win only two of their first six games despite being the only team in NFL history to play their first six games of the season against winless opponents. They'll get another chance to silence their doubters next Monday night as they host the Philadelphia Eagles. They'll have a bye the next week and return to action on November 8th against the Atlanta Falcons at the Georgia Dome. Kansas City will try to string together back to back wins as they host the San Diego Chargers on Sunday.
To successfully bet on NFL football you occasionally have to put aside W/L records and look at the underlying statistics. Those who did that found reason to take Kansas City as +6' road underdogs and were rewarded with the outright victory. Kansas City is now 2-4 against the NFL pointspread and has covered two straight while Washington is a dismal 1-5 versus the money. The 20 combined points went well UNDER the posted total of 36'. The Redskins have gone UNDER in five of their six games this season, while Kansas City has curiously posted a NFL totals mark of 3-2-1 to the OVER despite not scoring more than 24 points in a game all season.
After the contest, Haley sounded more relieved than excited about finally putting a "W" on the board:
"We made it pretty difficult, right down to the end. We've pushed through a very difficult period. We needed to get some positive reinforcement with a win."
Kansas City QB Matt Cassel also won for the first time since coming over from New England in the off season. His postgame comments were more upbeat:
"There's been a lot of change, but this has definitely been special. We rose to the occasion. We made some big plays. We put ourselves in a position to score points."
Embattled Redskins' coach Jim Zorn was stripped of his offensive play calling duties by team management after the contest. In one of his last decisions in that role, he pulled starter Jason Campbell at halftime and went with Todd Collins. He explained his move as follows:
"I felt the need to create a spark on our football team offensively and went with Todd. I think the guys responded well. We kept our spark, at times, and then we refizzled."
The Redskins have managed to win only two of their first six games despite being the only team in NFL history to play their first six games of the season against winless opponents. They'll get another chance to silence their doubters next Monday night as they host the Philadelphia Eagles. They'll have a bye the next week and return to action on November 8th against the Atlanta Falcons at the Georgia Dome. Kansas City will try to string together back to back wins as they host the San Diego Chargers on Sunday.
About the Author:
Ross Everett is a freelance sports writer who has written on sports gambling and how to successfully bet on NFL football. He has appeared on TV and radio talking about boxing, mixed martial arts and NFL pointspreads. He lives in Las Vegas with three Jack Russell Terriers and a ferret.
