The New York Giants (5-7) travel to play the Miami Dolphins (5-7) looking to snap their three-game losing streak. A player to watch is the NFL’s fourth-leading receiver, Odell Beckham Jr. (1,154 yards, 10 TDs). It will begin Monday, Dec 14 at 8:30 p.m. ET and can be seen on ESPN.
Miami prevailed in a close one over the Ravens 15-13 last week. Olivier Vernon led the Miami defense in the win, registering four tackles and 2.5 sacks. New York didn’t have the same success as Miami, losing a game they could have won against the Jets 23-20. Odell Beckham Jr. had an outstanding performance for the Giants, totaling six catches for 149 yards and one TD.
Miami is a slight two-point favorite in this game and the Over/Under (O/U) is set at 46 points.
Heading into Week 14 of league action, the Dolphins are 5-7 Straight Up (SU) and 4-8 Against The Spread (ATS). Over their last five games, the Dolphins have records of 2-3 SU and 1-4 ATS. The Giants give up 6.1 yards per play, ranking 29th in the NFL. As for the Miami defense, there are important areas to keep an eye on. One of the keys to the game will be how the Giants plan to deal with Miami’s ball hawks. The defense ranks fourth in the league in interceptions with 1.2 per home game. On special teams, Miami has some playmakers. They average 101.5 return yards per game, third in the NFL.
Moving to the road team, the Giants have a record of 6-5-1 ATS and 5-7 SU. In the previous five games, New York has a record of 1-4 SU and 2-2-1 ATS. Miami’s defensive backs will want to be ready for their opponent’s passing attack. The Giants average 292.8 yards through the air over their past five games. Shifting to the other side of the ball, the New York defense can dominate if it takes advantage of some favorable matchups. The Dolphins can’t give the ball away to the turnover-minded Giants. The New York defense generates 2.3 turnovers per away game, second in the league. The Dolphins defense seems to get off to a poor start. The Giants can take an early advantage against Miami and its average of 6.6 first-quarter points allowed. Special teams help provide a spark for New York. They average the fourth-most return yards in the NFL with 100.1.
Predictions: SU Winner – NYG, ATS Winner – NYG, O/U – Under
Notes
Miami is 1-5 ATS in its last 6 games.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Miami’s last 6 games.
Miami is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games.
Miami is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games at home.
Miami is 1-7 ATS in its last 8 games at home.
Miami is 1-5 SU in their last 6 games when playing NY Giants.
New York is 5-4 SU when leading at the start of the fourth quarter this season. Miami is 3-0 SU when carrying a lead into the fourth quarter.
Remarkably, Miami is winless (0-5) SU in games where it wins the turnover battle, yet 4-1 SU when losing the turnover battle.
The Miami passing attack is ranked 22nd in the league, while the New York pass defense is only ranked 32nd. The Giants’ passing game is ranked seventh, compared to the 22nd-ranked pass defense of the Dolphins.
Miami has given up 26.2 points per game at home this year, which ranks it only 24th in the league. New York has scored 25.3 points per contest on the road (ranked seventh overall).
