NFL Week 5 Surprises & Philadelphia Dominance w/ TNT’s Adam Lefkoe

Episode 116 of Wise Kracks is upon us and joining us this week is a returning guest who happens to be a friend of Shaq’s along with also being a pretty good Christopher Walken voice impersonator!

We also talk about the whirlwind of an MLB postseason, NFL Week 5, a legendary MMA fighter coming out of retirement, and why getting good information is valuable for sports betting. Here we go!

Your hosts Bill Krackomberger and Jon Orlando are having a grand old time watching MLB Playoffs! Are they still sticking to their predictions?

We’re over a quarter of the way into the 2022-23 NFL season, and it’s no less short on surprises. What do the guys make of this crazy season?

MMA legend and former UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva is looking to come out of retirement. Who does he have lined up to take him on?

As the gap between the losers and winners in sports betting spreads, Bill is here to lay down the line and talk about why getting good information is valuable when it comes to successful sports betting.

Joining Bill and Jon this week is Adam Lefkoe, host of TNT’s “Inside The NBA” every Tuesday, along with being one of the biggest pioneers of the Bleacher Report brand. He chats with the guys about being a die-hard Philadelphia sports fan, the Dallas Cowboys’ “Cinderella” season, and how his career revolves around one day of the week (to Bill’s envy).

All of this and more on this week’s Wise Kracks!

NFL Continues to Surprise in Week 5

With just over a quarter of the way through the NFL season, Week 5 was no different than any other week so far. It was a week full of upsets, letdowns, surprises, and triumphs. It also happens to be another week where Jon is surprised he’s still a happy Cowboys fan, “It’s just going too well!”

However, the Philadelphia Eagles still hold the top place in the NFC East Division with a perfect 5-0 record, with the Cowboys and New York Giants trailing each with 4-1 records. With the unexpected turnout from the Cowboys, Bill reconsiders his choices, “I had the Eagles to win the division… I don’t think it’s still as good of a bet.” To Bill’s surprise, the sportsbooks still list the Eagles as a far and away favorite to win the division, with the Cowboys sitting at +310. Bill is puzzled, “I didn’t expect that, something doesn’t seem right to me.”

Even with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers sitting at the top of the NFC South Division, the guys both agree that quarterback Tom Brady isn’t having a hot season.

He just doesn’t march down the field like he used to… I’m sure his personal life right now isn’t helping either, states Jon. Bill shakes his head, I see the story every day in the papers… I don’t care what happens to him off the field, as long as he keeps making me money!

With the game that was on everyone’s mind for the wrong reasons, Bill and Jon both agree that the Thursday night match-up between the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos was an “unbearable stinker.” Bill looks on the bright side,

It would’ve been a great game for betting totals, it was easily the lowest total of the week.

With a 12-9 victory for the Colts, skepticism toward Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson continues to run rampant. Jon comes to his defense, “People say he should do this and shouldn’t do that… he’s a professional athlete, he can do what he wants! He can stay up late and hit red carpets, I doubt any of that is influencing his game!”

Lastly, Bill gets in a final word about one of the more surprising developments of the season; the New York Giants have a 4-1 record. “Some guys think they’re actually good, but it wouldn’t surprise me to see them not make the playoffs!”

The Shaq and Christopher Walken Show

I see that helmet, those Dallas cockroaches!

Our guest this week, Adam Lefkoe, wastes no time playfully igniting the rivalry with Jon the Cowboys fan. As a Philadelphia sports fan through and through, his love for the Eagles is unmatched, along with his hatred for the Cowboys.

As Jon and Bill continue to laugh, Adam scowls, “I don’t even want to talk to a Dallas Cowboys fan!” Even through his passionate hate, Adam can appreciate Cowboys backup quarterback Cooper Rush stepping up, “I know you guys are undefeated, the real Dallas team is the team without Dak Prescott.” That appreciation does come with an asterisk, “I’m confident in the 4 games Rush has started, but the other teams were bottom four.”

To make the show rivalry even hotter, the Cowboys are set to take on the Eagles this coming Sunday with a battle for the top of the division. “I think this is Rush’s first true home game,” explains Adam, “You need to pound the rock against Dallas.”

Even with Rush playing to a higher standard than expected, Adam is confident in his Eagles based on the objective fact that they are 5-0 in the first half of games against the spread. Adam amplifies his confidence,

I would bet the Eagles in the second quarter every single game!

As a host of TNT’s ‘Inside The NBA” program every Tuesday night, Adam’s Tuesdays are jam-packed. With the show being based out of Atlanta and Adam residing in Brooklyn, Bill is curious about his schedule.

Adam has it down to a science, “I fly down Monday afternoon, Tuesday I get up at 7, work until 2, then I’m there until 2 in the morning, go back to sleep, get room service breakfast, maybe a little steam room, then I’m on my way home.” Other than that, most of his weeks are filled with free time,

I live the life of a regimented 75-year-old man!

As a Philadelphia sports fan, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that his favorite NBA team is the Philadelphia 76ers, “With Allen Iverson being drafted in ‘96, that was right in the heart of my fandom.” After seeing some predictions that place the 76ers third in their division overall for the 2022-23 NBA season, Adam is perplexed, “Do I feel crazy, or are the 76ers a good bet at third?”

Adam’s love for basketball came to fruition through betting. One night while watching a Boston Celtics game with friends, he said, “I bet the Celtics run away with it in the third quarter.” When he came to find that the Celtics were the number one third-quarter team in the NBA at the time, he looked into betting further and realized he could bet quarters.

As Adam is an on-air host, Bill wants to know if betting is still a taboo subject in sports programming. Adam doesn’t think so, “On the Tuesday show, I break down lines, and I often have to explain to Shaq what’s going on.” In fact, Adam thinks sports analysis benefits from betting talk,

To explain a favorite, it means more to explain odds than it does to just say that a team should win… I like to use betting metrics on television.

Earlier in the interview, Join brought attention to the massive Christopher Walken painting behind Adam, which leads to, you guessed it, an attempt at a Walken impersonation. The thing is, Adam’s is pretty good! Bill and Adam have a mutual appreciation for the actor, “He’s the man!”

After several impersonation bits later, along with an also pretty good Shaq impersonation, Jon wants to leave Adam with an incredible idea before he goes, “How about this; you start a new show where you do the Walken and Shaq impersonations as if they were talking to each other about sports!” With that, Adam gives his best try at what that would sound like, and the laughs the guys have only say that it would be a hit.

Catch Wise Kracks Thursday on YouTube

Welcome to Wise Kracks, the place to be for all things betting, pop culture, tips & more! Your hosts Jon Orlando and Bill Krackomberger dive into the NHL, NBA, MLB, & the NFL, while cracking each other up every chance they get.

A new guest joins the show every week with incredible stories from across the world of sports and entertainment. Wise Kracks wants to make a winner out of you, and Bill is the man with the plan.

Catch a new episode of Wise Kracks every Thursday by tuning into the WSN YouTube channel!