Pittsburgh 13/10

Superbowl XLV promises to be one of the most competitive and brutal in years, with the hard hitting Steelers taking on a Packers team dangerous on both sides of the ball. So where will this game be won and lost?

Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers has without doubt the hottest arm of any QB at the moment, but Ben Roethlisberger is highly underrated and no one can withstand the rush better than him. Its Rodger’s ground game however that could give him the edge. Because of his awesome arm defences often overlook that after the Eagles Michael Vick, he is probably the most athletic signal caller in the game. With the ability to hit them deep the Packers offense should force Pittsburgh to commit men to cover deep to medium routs, allowing for Rodgers to scramble for yards.

Both teams’ defences should be feared as neither has glaring weaknesses or holes in coverage and both have the talent to bring the heat on any rush. The game could be won by the play of either Clay Matthews or Troy Polamalu, who just piped the latter to the AP Defensive player of the year award. Both will have outstanding games, but the outcome of the game may come down to which one is in the right place at the right time.

This game promises to be very close, and whoever wins it will deserve it, but Green Bay should just about edge it.

The visitors need to win to keep their playoff hopes alive, but must do so without arguably their only consistent offensive weapon, running back Frank Gore. San Diego on the other have only lost once in their six games.

This run is mainly thanks to the superb performances of QB Phillip Rivers. All of Rivers’ numbers are good; his pass completion tops 65%, but possibly the most impressive stat is that seven of his receivers average over 15 yards per catch.

With the Chargers offense in such good shape, their solid defense is under little pressure to make game changing plays, allowing them to sit back and wait for the 49ers inconsistent offense to make a mistake.

San Diego look to be clear favorites heading into this matchup and the bookies tend to agree, valuing them at 2/9, but betting on them to win is still a good bet.

The game offers up some interesting matchups, both teams suffer from similar problems and benefit from the same strengths. Each teams respective secondary’s are suspect and both face receivers with the talent to stretch the field. But it’s the Ravens multiple threat at wideout that gives them the edge. While Houston rely almost solely on Andre Johnson, Baltimore’s QB Joe Flacco has many targets that can both beat the defence deep and over the middle, as well as offer effective screen-plays.

Arian Foster is one of the break –out rookies of 2010, but could struggle against a Baltimore front seven that at its best, can block out the sun.

The Ravens are good for the win at 4/6.

The Bills should have won last weekend against the Steelers, if were not for a dropped catch by standout second year receiver Steve Johnson. The Vikes went one better than Buffalo and posted a win, thanks to the performance of rookie RB Toby Gerhart, who will play a vital role in Sunday’s game.

Despite improving in the past weeks, The Bills rushing defence is still the worst in the league. Minnesota will look to take advantage of this and use their one-two combination of Gerhart and Adrian Peterson. However, Brett Favre will struggle to find his rhythm against a solid secondary, so look for The Bills to stick eight in the box and stifle the rush.

With this in mind, Buffalo’s young offence will look to stretch the Vikings defence utilizing Johnson, Lee Evans and rookie CJ Spiller in the passing game. Ryan Fitzpatrick is one of the discoveries of the season and has shown the ability to maximise the most out of an improving Bills’ offence.

Look for a Bills’ win at 9/4.

Chelsea continue to slide down the ratings table whilst Manchester United’s strong recent form puts them further ahead at the top of our table. The teams behind the top two have all been inconsistent and have cancelled each other out. 

Chelsea are looking for a first win in a month and  this is precisely the sort of game where you need battlers such as John Terry, Frank Lampard and Michael Essien who are all still unavailable for Carlo Ancelotti.   Chelsea are a best price of 3/4 for a win and this sems a little short for such a trip and Chelsea’s current form. Followers of Gamblng Man’s ratings will have noticed Chelsea have dropped off top spot  whilst Newcastle have a similar form rating to Spurs and Everton. Newcastle have got problems of their own this  week with the snow meaning their training this week has been confined to indoors while Sol Campbell and Steven Taylor will be the central defensive pairing with Mike Williamson and Fabricio Coloccini both suspended.  Newcastle knocked Chelsea out of the Carling Cup but haven’t even scored against them in the league in 7 games. The value is still with Newcastle at 9/2 and is well worth a punt.