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12/20/2006 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - List of things to do for you Ravens fans in the week preceding Christmas:
1. File a formal complaint with whoever is responsible for selecting the AFC Pro Bowl team (be sure to CC yourself, since fan voting makes up a large portion of the selection process). No Ray Lewis? No Bart Scott? Have the voters been paying attention to who is leading the NFL's top-ranked defense of the moment?
2. Get out your Ben Roethlisberger, Joey Porter, or Bill Cowher voodoo doll, and prick, prick, prick away. This Sunday's trip to meet the suddenly- resurgent Steelers will be huge for team confidence, and will also have major implications in regard to AFC Playoff seeding. The Ravens, who drilled the reigning Super Bowl champs (27-0) back in Week 12, haven't won in Pittsburgh since 2001 and have never swept the Steelers in a home-and-home.
3. Find out which channel, either on your Sirius radio or Direct TV package, you can find the Colts/Texans game, also scheduled for 1pm on Sunday afternoon. If the Ravens wish to secure a first-round bye, a loss by similarly 11-3 Indianapolis would be extremely helpful. The Colts would win a tie- breaker with Baltimore based on a better record against common opponents. Indy/Houston will be the game to flip to when the Ravens go to commercial.
4. Repeat Step 3, only switch Colts/Texans to Chargers/Seahawks, which is the 4pm Christmas Eve game that matters most. San Diego (12-2) is a game better than Baltimore at present, but since the Ravens own the tie-breaker over the Chargers based on a head-to-head win, Brian Billick and company still have a chance at the No. 1 seed in the AFC. You can even find yourself a Shaun Alexander No. 37 jersey to slip on in time for the Seahawks game. You'll probably be able to find one on the discount rack.
If that sounds like a busy week, it is certainly preferable to the alternative, experienced by all of Ravens nation last season.
Baltimore was 5-9 and headed nowhere at this time in 2005.
WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS, MY FRIENDS
It was a little on the anti-climatic side, but the Ravens' 27-17 victory over the Browns on Sunday, coupled with the Bengals' 34-16 loss in Indianapolis the following night, gave Baltimore its first division title since 2003.
The ability to add a new "2006 AFC North Champions" hat to the collection was a tad bittersweet for the Ravens, who were actually rooting for Cincinnati to defeat Indianapolis to improve their position in regard to earning a top-two seed. However, the fact that the Ravens wrapped up the division with two games left to play, when few (present company included) had predicted them to finish better than third before the season began, was an impressive achievement nonetheless.
"We're still in the battle to get homefield and let the playoffs go through Baltimore," said Ravens linebacker Bart Scott. "Hopefully, we can keep chugging along because we know it's a huge advantage and something we're fighting for. By no means do we shut it down here."
The division crown was just the second in Ravens team history. Baltimore was a Wild Card entry when it won the Super Bowl in 2000, and also went as a Wild Card in 2001. The Ravens were 20-17 First-Round losers to the Titans following their only previous division title, in '03.
McNAIR SCARE
Sunday's win over the Browns will likely be best-remembered for the hand injury that kept quarterback Steve McNair out for most of the afternoon. McNair had his hand stepped on by Cleveland linebacker Andra Davis in the first quarter, and though he could have returned, Billick opted to leave him on the sideline to avoid re-aggravating the injury. McNair is expected to start in Pittsburgh on Sunday.
Former starter Kyle Boller stepped in for McNair, the second time this season that the 2003 No. 1 pick has played meaningful minutes. Boller, who also played extensively in a 23-21 loss to the Panthers in Week 6, completed 13- of-21 passes for 238 yards with two touchdowns and an interception against Cleveland. Boller's passer rating was raised to 104.0 in the victory.
PRO BOWLING
Though there were notable Ravens omissions on the AFC Pro Bowl roster, including Lewis, Scott, and defensive tackle Kelly Gregg, Baltimore did manage to place five players on the squad.
From the defense, linebacker Adalius Thomas and safety Ed Reed were both named, starters and linebacker Terrell Suggs and cornerback Chris McAlister reserves. On offense, tackle Jonathan Ogden was the only player selected.
It was the ninth career Pro Bowl citation for Ogden, the third for Reed and McAlister, and the second for Suggs and Thomas.
Kicker Matt Stover, tight end Todd Heap and special teams stalwart Gary Stills were all listed as Pro Bowl alternates, as was Lewis. A selected player at each's position would have to bow out in order for any of the above to make the trip to Hawaii.
QUICK HITS
-Running back Jamal Lewis rushed 22 times for a season-high-tying 109 yards and a touchdown against the Browns, leaving him just 14 yards shy of the fifth 1,000-yard season of his career. After scoring one touchdown in his first seven games, Lewis has scored seven times in his last seven contests.
-Rookie wide receiver Demetrius Williams posted his first career 100-yard game on Sunday, with most of the damage coming on a 77-yard catch from Boller that staked Baltimore to a 24-17 lead in the third quarter. The fourth-round draft pick out of Oregon is the third Raven this season to post a 100-yard receiving game, joining Mark Clayton (3 times) and Derrick Mason (once). Williams joins Clayton as the only Ravens rookies to accomplish the feat.
-Scott (9.5 sacks) and Suggs (8 sacks) have two games to join Ravens end Trevor Pryce (12 sacks) and linebacker Adalius Thomas (10 sacks) in the double-digit sacks category, which would make Baltimore the first team in NFL history to have four players with 10 or more sacks.
NEXT UP: PITTSBURGH
The Steelers hold a 13-8 edge in the all-time regular season series with the Ravens, but as mentioned, were routed, 27-0, when the teams met in Baltimore in Week 12. The teams split last year's home-and-home, including a 20-19 Pittsburgh win when the teams met for a Monday Night showdown in the Steel City in Week 8. The home team has won the last eight installments of the series since Pittsburgh won in Baltimore during the 2002 campaign. The Ravens are 0-4 in regular season games played in Pittsburgh since last winning there in 2001.
Pittsburgh won the only postseason meeting between the teams, a 27-10 triumph in a 2001 AFC Divisional Playoff at home.
Pittsburgh head coach Bill Cowher is 14-8 against Baltimore all-time (including postseason), while Billick is 7-9 overall against both Cowher and the Steelers.
<< Tomlinson among AFC Players of the Week
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - San Diego Chargers standout running
back LaDainian Tomlinson, Indianapolis Colts defensive end Dwight Freeney and
Buffalo Bills punter Brian Moorman took home the weekly AFC honors for Week 15
of the
<< Grossman, Dawkins, Turk earn Player of the Week honors
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chicago Bears quarterback Rex Grossman,
Philadelphia Eagles safety Brian Dawkins and St. Louis Rams punter Matt Turk
have been named the NFC Players of the Week for Week 15.
Grossman was named Offensi
<< 49ers' Smith shows his leadership
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Everyone was as sure as Pacific Northwest rainfall that
Seattle would avenge an early-season defeat against the 49ers last Thursday,
and in the process clinch the NFC West.
But Alex Smith had a different idea.
Smith sho
<< Injuries, inconsistency plague Browns once again
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cleveland Browns lost another game this past Sunday.
That should have come as no surprise, considering they were facing a very good
Baltimore Ravens squad on the road.
Romeo Crennel's troops displayed grit, fighting ba
Clippers need to find their game >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Expectations are high for the Los Angeles Clippers this
season. After winning 47 games during the 2005-06 campaign and advancing to
the conference semifinals, the Clippers are expected to be a factor in the
West.
The Cl
Carolina places Wahle, Rucker on IR >>
Charlotte, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Carolina Panthers placed offensive
lineman Mike Wahle and defensive end Mike Rucker on injured reserve Wednesday.
Wahle will undergo surgery within the next week to repair a torn labrum in his
righ
The Rockets are Yao's team >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - All-Star center Yao Ming has been huge for Houston, which
is a solid 15-9 and is 3 1/2 games behind the first place San Antonio Spurs in
the Southwest Division. The second place Dallas Mavericks are just one game
behind
Braves agree to terms with Woodward >>
Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Atlanta Braves and infielder/outfielder
Chris Woodward agreed to terms on a one-year contract for the 2007 season on
Wednesday.
Financial terms of the deal were not announced.
Woodward, 30, played
The most popular sports to bet on are NFL and college football along with NBA and NCAA basketball. There are multiple betting opportunities within those sports, beginning with the basic wager on a game’s outcome (also called betting the side). College Football Point spreads are used in both football and basketball in an attempt to even the attractiveness of each team in a match-up. ( See our article detailing how and why point spreads are made)
But you could also simply bet on the money line, or straight-up winner of the game. Oddsmakers use the money line so that more money must be risked on the favorite or expected winner and less money on the underdog to balance the action on both sides. While money line gambling is an attractive option for football and basketball bettors who only care about picking a winner, it is the primary option for those bettors who enjoy wagering on MLB baseball and individual sports like boxing, tennis, golf and racing events such as NASCAR. ( More details on playing the Money Line)
Another bet across all major team sports including football, basketball, baseball, and hockey involves wagering on the amount of scoring in a game, called an Over/Under total. For example, the Over/Under total on Super Bowl XXXIX was 48, which means a bettor could wager whether there would be more or less than 48 points scored by both teams combined in the game.
The final score of Super Bowl XXXIX was 24-21; the scoring of both teams added up to 45, which means the game went Under . So Under bettors won, and Over bettors lost.
Sports gambling doesn’t end there. Betting sides and totals are the most common wagers available everywhere, but many sportsbooks also offer future bets on big upcoming events like who will win next year’s Super Bowl and what movie will win Best Picture at the Academy Awards.
The main advantage of futures is that you can get appealing odds by betting far in advance. For example, with NFL futures you often can get much higher odds on a team by betting before the season even starts. A NFL future bet on a team to win the Super Bowl odds might be 20/1 in the preseason; but by midseason, their odds might decrease to 10/1 if they turn out to be legitimate championship contenders.
Involves one individual wager, whether it be on your team to cover the point spread, to win the game straight-up on the money line, or to go over/under the total.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs.
Kansas City, MO - Kansas City has not officially named Matt Cassel its starting quarterback, but there can be no doubt now.
NFL Betting
After praising his leadership and work ethic through spring workouts, the Chiefs announced Tuesday they had signed the 27-year-old Cassel to a multiyear contract. Terms were not disclosed, but he will almost certainly be one of the highest-paid members of the team.
"We are excited to be able to reach a long-term agreement for Matt Cassel to be a Kansas City Chief for many years to come," owner and board chairman Clark Hunt said in a statement. "His proven leadership on and off the field will be a tremendous asset to the organization."
Patriots made him their franchise player, meaning his salary for this season will be about $15 million.
New head coach Todd Haley, taking over for Herm Edwards after a 2-14 season, refused to name a starter at any position during offseason workouts. But it was obvious to everyone the team belonged to Cassel.
"I go out there each and every day with that focus that I'm the starter," Cassel said during a June minicamp. "Competition brings out the best in everybody."
The signing will come as welcome news to Cassel's new coaches and teammates. Amiable and hardworking, online football betting he appeared to win over everyone at minicamp.
"I think he's got some unique leadership qualities. I think his teammates like him and have respect for him. I think he's doing a pretty good job on the field, too," Haley said last month. "He's doing everything that I'm asking him, that our coaches are asking him to do. I don't have one single complaint how he's carrying himself."
After one workout, wide receiver Devard Darling declared Cassel "a breath of fresh air."
"He has a lot of swagger, a lot of confidence. It's good for us," said Darling. "We trust in him that he's going to go out there and lead us all the way."
nse to accommodate his specific abilities.
Trapped on the bench behind Heisman winners Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart at USC and then unable to unseat Super Bowl MVP Brady at New England, Cassel seemed destined to be a backup all his life. As Brady was helped off the field last September, Cassel seized the opportunity he'd been waiting for since high school.
In his only sustained action since his teens, he hit 349 of 555 passes for 3,949 yards at New England. He had 23 touchdown passes and 13 interceptions as the Patriots, who had gone unbeaten through the regular season the year before, finished 11-5 and out of the playoffs.
Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli, who had been Bill Belichick's assistant in New England, engineered the trade after the Patriots became convinced that Brady would recover fully from his knee operation.
"Since Matt arrived in Kansas City, he has embraced the team and the community," Pioli said. "His work ethic, his ability and competitive presence is what we expect from our players."
To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your college football betting needs.
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