Today's picks: Armed Forces Bowl best bet, plus NFL, NBA, college basketball and Serie A picks for Wednesday

Jonathan Coachman is joined by top sports betting experts Larry Hartstein, Justin Perri, Mike McClure and Tom Fornelli on the Early Edge podcast, powered by SportsLine. Get highlighted plays for the NBA, NFL, college basketball, college football and Serie A for Wednesday, Dec. 22, and you can stream the show live every morning on the SportsLine YouTube page.

The Coach revels in his showdown win after taking the Rams -7. Larry blames the poor performance of Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson as he missed his deep throws and failed to run the ball in Tuesday night's game. Fornelli is welcomed back into the fold to discuss some college football.

Tom jumps right into discussing what motivation means in bowl games. It's not uncommon to hear that a team "didn't want to be there" when they lose in bowl season. But Tom thinks there is some merit in a case like the Armed Forces Bowl. Missouri takes on Army at 8 p.m. ET, and the Tigers will be without their starting quarterback and running back, as well as some key defensive players. "It could be a problem," Tom says.

Larry delves into the Chiefs vs. Steelers matchup set for Sunday at 4:25 p.m. ET. Kansas City controls its destiny in the AFC, but Hartstein says he might have jumped the gun in laying the 9.5 points on Tuesday's show. The Chiefs are dealing with major COVID concerns, with 16 players in league protocols, including their top two tight ends. Former Baylor basketball player Mark Vital could get a chance, and while K.C. turned former hoops star Tony Gonzalez into a Hall of Fame tight end, Larry isn't excited about that prospect.   

The Coach drops the SportsLine Play of the Day, backing both teams to score (-160) in the AC Milan vs. Empoli Serie A match at 2:45 p.m. ET. It's on Paramount+, and it should be a shootout.

McClure jumps in with a Christmas Day NFL teaser, taking the Packers -1 at home against Cleveland and the Colts +7 on the road against the Cardinals (-120). "I think the Cardinals, they're falling apart right now, and I like this Colts team a lot," Mike says, adding that Indianapolis has been undervalued all year. With WR DeAndre Hopkins out for the year and players like RB James Conner and TE Zach Ertz banged up, Mike likes the value on the tease getting the Colts at a touchdown underdog. 

Perri has three college basketball picks, fading UNC-Wilmington with Campbell -3 in their noon ET matchup. He also likes St. Thomas +2.5 against Denver and San Diego +9 against UNLV.

In the Armed Forces Bowl, Fornelli is going Over the total of 54 points. The Black Knights should be able to run the ball all night, and the Army defense could have trouble matching up with SEC-caliber athletes. Tom says service academies are 37-14 ATS in bowl games since 1980, but he doesn't want to lay the points given the matchup issues. He will sprinkle a little on the Mizzou money line, anticipating a potential upset.     

The Maestro is taking the Cavaliers +6 in Boston at 7:30 p.m. ET. Hartstein points out that the Celtics are 5-7 ATS at home, failing to cover by considerable margins, while the Cavs have won six in a row and covered 14 straight.   

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