Streaks Weekly Issue 4

Tuesday, October 12, 2021

Hoops on the Horizon - The two main events in October sports are the start of the NBA season and the World Series. Unfortunately, Streaks will not offer MLB playoff contests because we cannot guarantee fair results with the Houston Astros still competing. However, we are very excited for basketball and will tip off Streaks NBA contests with the Brooklyn Nets visiting the defending champion Milwaukee Bucks on October 19th. This is a rematch of last year’s Eastern Conference semifinals, which came down to Kevin Durant’s sneaker size, so expect a high-scoring and exciting game. Look out for James Harden trying to evolve his play style, as this season the NBA has thankfully updated the rule about leaning into shooting fouls for cheap free throws.

Congratulations to Rocky from Idaho and Michael from New York for winning last week’s contests, earning 250,000 Streaks Cash each. Here are our previews for this week’s primetime matchups to help you take home the next prize purse.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Philadelphia Eagles (Thu – 8:20 ET)

Last Sunday, Tom Brady, at the age of 44, threw for 400+ yards and 5+ touchdowns for the first time in his career. With their convincing win against the Dolphins, and the Bills dropping the Chiefs to 2-3 on Sunday night, the Buccaneers took over as the odds-on favorite to repeat as Super Bowl champions. The Bucs’ passing attack ranks first in the league—Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, and Antonio Brown are all on pace to record 1,000-yard seasons, which would be the sixth time in NFL history that three receivers on the same team achieved that milestone in the same year. This week will be a tougher test as the Bucs travel to Philadelphia to play the Eagles, who have the third-best passing defense in the league, only giving up 194 passing yards per game. The Eagles are looking to build some momentum after coming from behind to upset the Panthers in Carolina last Sunday.

Eagles’ quarterback Jalen Hurts has taken a step forward in his second year, with a drastic improvement in accuracy from his rookie season (52 completion percentage to 65). With his hard-nosed, dual-threat play style, Hurts has been reminding Eagles fans of a young Donovan McNabb. Hurts will have to prove that he can rely on his arm to put up points in this game, as the Bucs rank first in rushing defense (45 yards per game) but last in passing defense (314 yards per game). Some of that disparity has to do with teams trying to keep pace with the high-powered Bucs’ offense, so the Eagles will try to keep the game close and maintain a balance between rushing and passing plays in order to leave the Brady bunch on the sidelines. Rookie Devonta Smith should play a significant role this game, as he has emerged as Hurts’ number-one target, displaying the hands and route running that made him last year’s Heisman Trophy winner. Do you think Hurts has what it takes to outduel the GOAT?

Spread: Buccaneers favored by 6.5 points

Over/under: 52.5

Preview Question: How many fantasy points (ESPN standard scoring) will Tom Brady have in this game?

Brady’s right thumb was wrapped in a large bandage during last week’s post-game press conference, and he’s listed as questionable for Thursday night, though Brady says the injury isn’t serious and shouldn’t be a factor in this game. ESPN’s standard scoring for quarterback fantasy points awards 4 points per passing TD, 2 points for a passing TD over 40 yards, 2 points for completing a 2-point conversion, 1 point per 25-yards passing, and -2 points for turnovers. Tom Brady leads all players in fantasy points per game this season with 26.9.

Seattle Seahawks at Pittsburgh Steelers (Sun – 8:20 ET)

Russell Wilson has started 149 games in a row for the Seahawks, the longest streak among active quarterbacks, but that will end this week as he is recovering from surgery on his middle finger, which was injured last Thursday against the Rams. Geno Smith took over in the fourth quarter and promptly drove the team down the field for a D.K. Metcalf touchdown, but with a chance to put together a game-winning drive, Smith threw an interception when Tyler Lockett slipped as he broke out of his route, sealing the game for the Rams. Smith has been waiting for his shot at redemption ever since he got punched in the face in the Jets’ locker room and lost his starting position. This week he gets a chance to show improvement in just his third start since 2014 against a Steelers defense that has been vulnerable through the air, giving up 260 passing yards per game.

The Steelers are coming off a big win against the Broncos, with Ben Roethlisberger having his best game of the season so far. He will look to replicate that performance against the Seahawks secondary, which is giving up 305 passing yards per game, the third most in the league. Unfortunately for the Steelers, their wide receivers continue to be plagued by injury: JuJu Smith-Schuster is out for the rest of the season after getting surgery on his right shoulder. Expect Ray-Ray McCloud to line up as the slot receiver for most of this game, though he only has 149 receiving yards in his career so far. Thankfully, Diontae Johnson and Chase Claypool are healthy, so Roethlisberger will have options. We’re far enough into the season that fatigue and injuries are starting to add up (team byes begin this week), so it’s time to pay attention to the IR lists when you make your picks. Can Big Ben turn back the clock to beat the Seahawks like he did in Super Bowl XL?

Spread: Steelers favored by 4.5 points

Over/under: 42.5

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