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09/14/2007 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - For the first time since 1991, Bill Cowher won't be on the sidelines for the Pittsburgh Steelers' home opener. Instead, Mike Tomlin will make his home head coaching debut on Sunday, when his club welcomes the Buffalo Bills to Heinz Field.
Despite the fact that Tomlin served as Minnesota's defensive coordinator last season, the Steelers had no problem putting points up on the board in a 34-7 rout of the Browns last Sunday.
Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger threw a career-high four touchdown passes in the victory and brings a 15-5 record at home into Sunday's contest. His performance helped Tomlin become the third straight Steelers' head coach to win his first game, joining Chuck Noll and Cowher.
Not to be outdone, the Pittsburgh defense held the Browns to just 221 yards, forced five turnovers and posted a collective six sacks in an impressive effort. The club also escaped from the contest relatively injury free, as cornerback Deshea Townsend is the only starter listed on this week's report. He is probable with a groin injury.
Pittsburgh has won four straight and five of its past six home openers. The Steelers are also trying to start a season 2-0 for the second time in three seasons.
Historically, the club needs one more win to reach 500 regular-season victories, which would make them the first AFC team to accomplish the feat.
For the Bills, calling their final-second setback to Denver last week a heartbreaker would be an understatement. Not only did they have to deal with the painful loss to the Broncos, but all thoughts during and after the game were on tight end Kevin Everett, who suffered a cervical spinal fracture while making a tackle during the opening kickoff of the second half.
Everett left the field in an ambulance and immediately went into surgery. The initial prognoses wasn't good, as operating surgeon Dr. Andrew Cappuccino dubbed the injury "catastrophic" as well as life-threatening.
While those involved feared Everett would be left paralyzed by the injury, encouraging news came on Tuesday, when it was reported at the tight end was able to voluntarily move his arms and legs and gave hope to the idea of Everett walking again.
On the field, Buffalo will try to recover from Everett's injury and a 15-14 loss to Denver. The Bills led for most of the game until the Broncos' Jason Elam booted a 42-yard field goal in the final seconds.
Buffalo is making its first trip to Heinz Field, which opened in 2001, and will try to avoid its first 0-2 start since dropping the first four games of the 2004 season.
SERIES HISTORY
Pittsburgh has a 10-8 lead in the all-time regular season series with Buffalo, including a 29-24 road win when the teams last met in Week 17 of the 2004 season. The Steelers have won the last five meetings played between the teams in Pittsburgh, with the most recent coming in 1996, and Buffalo's only regular-season win in the Steel City came in 1975. The Bills' most recent win of any kind over Pittsburgh came at Ralph Wilson Stadium in 1999.
In addition to their regular-season advantage, the Steelers hold a 2-1 edge in the postseason series between the teams. Pittsburgh defeated Buffalo in AFC Divisional Playoff contests in 1974 and 1995, and the Bills were a 24-3 road winner in a 1992 AFC Divisional Playoff.
The Bills' Dick Jauron is 0-1 against the Steelers in his career as a head coach, with that loss coming when he was interim head man of the Lions at the end of the 2005 season. Tomlin will be meeting both Jauron and Buffalo for the first time as a head coach.
WHEN THE BILLS HAVE THE BALL
Buffalo received an encouraging outing from rookie running back Marshawn Lynch on Sunday. The 12th overall pick in last April's draft set a Bills' rookie record for rushing yards on opening day, totaling 90 on 19 carries along with a touchdown. Quarterback J.P. Losman completed 14 of his 21 pass attempts, but for just 97 yards. He was also picked off once and sacked twice. In all, it wasn't an encouraging sign for the Bills, as they mustered just 184 yards of offense. Perhaps the club will get another solid outing from wideout Roscoe Parrish, who returned a punt 74 yards to the end zone to give the Bills their first points of the game. Losman will also try to get wide receiver Lee Evans more involved this week, as he made only two catches for five yards.
That's easier said than done against an energized Steelers defense that was all over the Browns last weekend. Defensive back Ike Taylor (5 tackles) and Townsend both recorded interceptions, with Taylor also chipping in a sack. Linebacker James Farrior (4 tackles) also had a solid game with a sack, quarterback hit and forced fumble. In total, seven different players got their hands on the Browns' quarterbacks last weekend, and Tomlin won't be shy about bringing pressure again versus the Bills. Another good sign was that almost every player on the defensive side of the ball was involved, as outside linebacker James Harrison was the leading tackler with seven stops. Eleven different Steelers had two or more tackles in the game.
WHEN THE STEELERS HAVE THE BALL
Roethlisberger found four different receivers for touchdowns against the Browns, connecting with tight ends Heath Miller and Matt Spaeth, while also finding wideouts Hines Ward and Santonio Holmes in the end zone. Holmes may be emerging as Big Ben's deep threat, as the second-year player hauled in a pretty 40-yard score. Willie Parker had a quiet 100-yard rushing day, breaking off 109 yards on 27 carries. If this offense clicks like it did last week against the Browns, the banged-up Bills defense is in some trouble.
In addition to Everett's loss, Buffalo also suffered a rash of other injuries during the game to its already-depleted defensive unit. Cornerback Jason Webster and starting free safety Ko Simpson have landed on injured reserve after suffering a broken forearm and fractured ankle, respectively. Linebacker Coy Wire is out indefinitely after spraining his knee during the contest.
Wire was already replacing Keith Ellison, who is out with an ankle injury in the starting lineup. Defensive end Ryan Denney is also sidelined with a foot ailment, while end Anthony Hargrove will serve the second game of his four- game suspension this weekend for violating the league's substance abuse policy. To help fill the injury void, the Bills signed defensive back Bryan Scott, defensive end Copeland Bryan and linebacker Leon Joe this week.
Jim Leonhard took over for Simpson and paced the Bills with 13 tackles and an interception in Sunday's loss, while rookie middle linebacker Paul Posluszny posted nine tackles in his debut. Linebacker Angelo Crowell chipped in with 10 tackles and fifth-year corner Terrence McGee had three passes defensed. Pro Bowl defensive end Aaron Schobel had three tackles but no sacks, leaving him 1 1/2 shy of moving into second place on the Bills' all-time sack list.
FANTASY FOCUS
A majority of the Steelers' offense deserves a look this week, especially given the current injury state of the Bills' defense. Ride the hot hand of Big Ben as well as Parker, who should find the end zone as many as two times on Sunday. Also start Ward, but wait another week before you move Holmes into your permanent rotation. Also start the Steelers' defense if you have them. This probably isn't a good week for any of your Bills players, though. Losman and Lynch are going to face a high amount of pressure, meaning low numbers for Evans as well.
OVERALL ANALYSIS
This is the story of two sides of the coin. The Steelers are riding high after a blowout win over the Browns, while the Bills are dealing with a tragedy in the locker room and a last-second loss. Football may be far from the minds of many Buffalo players this week, but the team still has to step on the field Sunday, and there is no telling how Everett's injury while affect the club. Pittsburgh will show little mercy on the field and will throw the kitchen sink at a rattled Buffalo team. The Steelers should find themselves in good field position throughout the game and should cruise to a victory over the weary Bills.
Sportsbook Betting Lines Predicted Outcome: Steelers 28, Bills 10
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Super Bowl XLIII is now set, the Arizona Cardinals and the Pittsburgh Steelers will meet each other on February 1st in Tampa's Raymond James Stadium to battle it out for the coveted Lombardi Trophy. The game kicks off at 6:00pm ET on NBC with announcers Al Michaels and John Madden covering the on-field action. Super Bowl XLIII betting odds at online bookmaker MySportsbook.com have the Steelers listed as an early -6.5 against the spread favorite.Super Bowl XLIII Betting Odds
Pittsburgh earned their passage to the big game by beating their division rival, the Baltimore Ravens, 23-14 in yesterday's AFC Championship Game. The Steelers jumped on Baltimore early, building a 13-0 first half lead, and never let up on their way to a fairly easy win. Although the Ravens did close to within two points in the fourth quarter, it never appeared as if they had enough offense to pull off the upset.
The Steelers dominating defense held Baltimore to a total of 198 yards while allowing them to convert just three third downs in 13 attempts. Pittsburgh also forced quarterback Joe Flacco into three interceptions, one of which safety Troy Polamalu returned fourty yards for a touchdown.
The Cardinals, by far the playoff team with the longest odds to reach Super Bowl XLIII, did so yesterday with a 32-25 upset of the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Championship. Arizona charged out of the gates and built a 24-6 halftime lead that had the Eagles venerable defense reeling. Quarterback Kurt Warner and wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald did most of the damage, connecting on three first half touchdowns.
Arizona, however, could not sustain their momentum and the Eagles took a 25-24 with 10:45 left to play in the fourth. The Cardinals, with the franchise's first Super Bowl appearance hanging in the balance, mounted a fourteen play, 72 yard touchdown drive that consumed 7:52 off the clock. Warner hit running back Tim Hightower on a short screen for the go-ahead, game clinching score that will forever live in Cardinal infamy.
MySportsbook.com's Super Bowl XLIII Betting Odds:
Pittsburgh Steelers -6.5 (-110), Over 46.5 (-110), -260 (Money line)
Arizona Cardinals +6.5 (-110), Under 46.5 (-110), +220 (Money line)
Matt Foust won both of his conference championship plays yesterday and he is ready to serve up plenty of Super Bowl action. Each individual play costs $15.00, however, MySportsbook.com recommends purchasing Matt's NFL Playoff Package which includes all of Matt's Super Bowl props and picks from just $45.00.
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While the NFL is the sport wagered on the heaviest, college football betting lines has become more and more popular as people realize it’s a game that can be beat. The NCAA football season gets longer each year with the addition of numerous bowl games and with that comes more opportunities for more money in your pocket, if handled correctly.
Betting on college football is not the same as with the NFL, so make sure you separate the two. Because of the vast number of teams, the parity between college football programs is slight and thus, you are going to see some high numbers in the NCAA. Teams favored by more than 40 points are not uncommon especially early in the season when teams playing their non-conference schedules.
The best advice when trying to tackle these enormous spreads and is to just stay away. A team that is favored by 40 points is favored by that many for a reason while teams getting 40 points are bad enough that they shouldn’t be touched. Set yourself a spread limit. Getting rid of these games will cut down on the number of contests that you need to handicap while staying away from backdoor or front-door covers.
What is a backdoor and front-door cover you ask? A backdoor cover is a team that is getting beat by more than the spread, but scores late to get within that number thus covering the spread. A front-door cover is just the opposite where the favorite scores late and covers the number they are favored by.
These front-door and backdoor covers are common when second and third string players enter games in college football and it can be the worst nightmare for some bettors. These players can also be your best friend, but ask any bettor and he will give you more instances on losing in this situation than winning. It just seems to work out that way even though everything evens out in the end.
College football betting has some of the softest lines of any sport and it’s being able to find these lines that will make you a successful college football handicapper. The NFL and NBA have the tightest lines around and while those sports can be beat by looking at situations and systems, college football doesn’t quite work that way. It’s much more manual, but when done correctly, it’s much more gratifying as well.
Getting into the nuts and bolts of college football means looking at the many stats in order to beat the number. As opposed to pro football, college football is less dependent on situations and angles and more on certain statistics. Rushing offense and defense, pass efficiency offense and defense and turnover margins are huge. These are vital in the NFL, but even more so when it comes to college football.
Being able to run the ball in college football has always been a key factor in the overall success of a team. The same adage also goes for teams who have the ability to stop the run. Putting these two factors together can produce some positive results in a team’s record both straight up and against the spread. These numbers show huge differences in teams and the spread may not take those into effect, which is where the value comes into play.
Passing yardage numbers both for and against can be a misinterpreted statistic. However, pass efficiency has always been one of the best ways to look at a teams’ passing game ability both offensively and defensively. But is it really a true indication of how they perform? I wouldn’t say so since they are raw passing numbers with nothing else taken into consideration.
I use pass efficiency ratings when doing my handicapping but I adjust my numbers based on a number of factors including power ratings, strength of schedules, personnel and injuries. This gives a much better picture of a team’s ability to pass effectively and also being able to defend the pass. Tweaking pass efficiency stats instead of raw passing yards is the key.
Turnovers are the single most frustrating, and at times the most gratifying, aspect of a college football lines, mostly because they are so unpredictable. They are part of the game and most of the time nothing can be done to control them. However, turnovers are contagious and they can carry over from game to game and season to season.
It’s important to know how to forecast these unforeseen events and how to use them to your advantage. You can find ways to give yourself an edge by looking at past histories of teams and coaches and how they have fared in turnover wars in the past. Instead of turnovers hurting you at the wrong times, find ways to use them to your advantage.
As you can see, college football handicapping is very labor intensive and isn’t just based on where teams are ranked in the AP and coaches polls. Experience, coaching and match-ups are all important since unlike the NFL, college teams turn over much more often with new personnel at most positions every single year. Keeping current on this information is vital.
Betting NCAA football can be lucrative if done correctly, but more importantly, it’s just plain enjoyable because it can be beat. College football is one of the best sports to watch with some of the best rivalries taking place in all of sports. The only downfall is that a championship isn’t decided on the field but on a computer-based system that is the Bowl Championship Series. That will change someday and we will all be better off for it.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your NCAA college football betting needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
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