Ross Tucker's Week 17 NFL Betting Advice

Now that was more like it!  Last week I told you to take the Arizona Cardinals getting 9.5 points from the Seattle Seahawks and not only did they cover, but they took it to the Seahawks in a 27-13 victory even though quarterback Kyler Murray got injured during the game. On offense, the Cardinals ran all over the Seahawks as Kenyan Drake had a career day while on defense, Chandler Jones and the crew made life miserable for Russell Wilson throughout. It was a satisfying, great call, but it still only counts as one so it’s time to keep it rolling again this week.

Each week, I will give you a bet or two that I like for that week. Sometimes, it will be pure analysis and observations of the matchups and an edge that I feel I am able to identify. Other times it will be my instincts as a former player. And hopefully a lot of times it will be a combination of both.

That is the case yet again this week. I like the New York Giants getting 4.5 points from the Philadelphia Eagles for three reasons:

Giants On Fire

Big Blue is on a roll. They’ve won their last two after squandering a two-score lead over these same Eagles on Monday Night Football back on December 9th. They’ve averaged 38.5 points per game the last two times out and in his first game coming back from injury, rookie quarterback Daniel Jones played his best game of the season throwing for five touchdowns without any interceptions against the Redskins on Sunday. A big part of his 352-yard effort was getting the ball to sensational running back Saquon Barkley. Barkley finally looks healthy and has been heating up the last two weeks with over 100 yards rushing in each on his way to close to 500 yards of total offense. Simply put, the Giants have weapons and they are firing on all cylinders right now.

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Road-Weary Eagles Defense

Those talented Giants weapons are bad news for an Eagles defense that has not played nearly as well away from home as they have in front of their typically raucous crowd at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. The home vs. road splits all year are significant, but the Eagles struggled badly in their last two away games. They allowed Ryan Fitzpatrick and the Dolphins to score 37 before Dwayne Haskins had the best game of his career two weeks ago when he got 27 points on the board for the Redskins without being sacked once. Not exactly encouraging. That’s not going to get it done for an Eagles crew that will be without injured cornerback Ronald Darby and may be playing with a banged up Jalen Mills on the other side.

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Something To Play For?  

The NFC East Division title is on the line for the Eagles, so you know they are going to be motivated but how exactly does that manifest itself on Sunday? Do they play tight while the “nothing to lose” Giants come out and play loose and fast? Nobody really knows those things as it is all guesswork, but the Eagles will have to do it with a banged-up Zach Ertz if he plays at all.  Given how these teams have played as of late and the game being in New York as the Giants try to finish the season on a three-game win streak it really is a toss up in my mind. I wouldn’t be surprised at all if the Giants won, but the Eagles have a tremendous ability under Doug Pederson to find a way to win these late season games they must win. Even if that does happen it should be a close one, so take those 4.5 points and run with them.

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About Ross Tucker 

Ross Tucker played in the NFL for seven years as an offensive lineman after graduating from Princeton University in 2001. As a broadcaster, he works for Radio.com, CBS Sports, and Westwood One.  He also owns and hosts his own podcast network including the Ross Tucker Football Podcast all available at RossTucker.com. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram @RossTuckerNFL.