Sean Murphy Handicapper Review & Free Sports Picks

My selection is on the ‘over’ between Georgia State and Arkansas State at 7:30 pm et on Thursday.

I’ll back the ‘over’ in Jonesboro on Thursday night. We had to settle for a push with the ‘under’ in Georgia State’s most recent game – a 37-20 road loss to Troy back on October 4th. That was certainly a tough draw for the Panthers against a good Troy defense. Here, they should face a lot less resistance against an Arkansas State defense that just got dismantled by Appalachian State last week. The Mountaineers got off to a sluggish start against the Red Wolves, but eventually settled in and scored three second quarter touchdowns before adding two more in the second half. Appalachian State essentially got whatever it wanted against this Arkansas State defense. One game before that we also saw the Red Wolves hold up well for a stretch before falling apart and allowing three touchdowns from five minutes remaining in the third quarter until the end of the game in a loss to Georgia Southern. Keep in mind, prior to the blowout loss at Troy, Georgia State scored 46 points in a rout of Louisiana-Monroe, finding the end zone four times in the first half alone. The problem for the Panthers has been their defense, which got lit up for three touchdowns before the game was just over a quarter old against Troy and also allowed 34 points or more in each contest during a three-game slide earlier this season. Arkansas State shot itself in the foot time and time again on offense against Appalachian State last week but should find the going much easier against Georgia State. Take the over (10*).

NFL Thursday Night Game of the Month. My selection is on Arizona plus the points over Denver at 8:20 pm et on Thursday.

I’ll back the Cardinals on Thursday night as they host the reeling Broncos. Arizona has certainly shown signs of turning things around over the last couple of weeks. Two games back, the Cardinals posted a 28-18 victory over an improving 49ers squad in San Francisco. Just last Sunday they battled the Vikings hard for 60 minutes, ultimately falling by 10 points, on the road no less. Now they return home and draw a favorable matchup against a Denver squad that can’t get out of its own way right now. The Broncos have lost four straight games, allowing at least 23 points in each of those losses. Meanwhile, their offense continues to lag, having scored 20 points or less in four of their last five contests. QB Case Keenum doesn’t look like the right fit for the offense, with some Broncos faithful calling for Chad Kelly to take over. Outside of WR Emmanuel Sanders I don’t see any of the Broncos having much of an edge against a still-capable Cardinals defense. On the flip side, Arizona RB David Johnson should face little resistance against a Broncos defense that has had no success at all stopping the run in recent weeks. Denver’s once-feared ‘no fly zone’ defense is no more. Chris Harris is essentially the lone bright spot in the Broncos secondary. While the Cardinals by no means have an elite WR corps, especially with veteran Larry Fitzgerald playing at well below 100% healthy, they’re still capable of stretching the field and exposing the Broncos secondary. Look for WR Christian Kirk to continue to build on his solid rapport with rookie QB Josh Rosen, helping pace the offense in what I believe will be a win for the Cardinals. Take Arizona (10*).