Thursday Night Football: NFL Bye Weeks Begin

Thursday Night Football Betting: NFL Bye Weeks Begin

Right from the first Thursday night game of the NFL season the weekly football betting routine can fly by at a furious pace. NFL lines for the following week’s games are often posted by online sportsbook before we have even heard the final whistle on Sunday Night Football but as fans and bettors, we wouldn’t have it any other way.

It’s hard to believe three weeks have already passed and as we work through the Week 4 card, it’s time to start focusing a little closer on matchups and situational football handicapping.

The bye weeks are here, starting with the Dallas Cowboys, Minnesota Vikings, Kansas City Chiefs and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. It means a little less action from a viewing standpoint but the smaller card also frees up more time to handicap the other 14 games on the card.

LONG DIVISION

In Week 4, even with the bye weeks coming into effect, there are more divisional games scheduled than in any other week through the first month. Week 1 had seven, Week 2 there was only three and in Week 3 we saw six divisional matchups.

The road team will be favored in at least four of the nine divisional contests, possibly five, depending which way the line moves in New England at Miami.

There is a trend developing this season that involves divisional road favorites and it’s certainly worth noting for Over/Under bettors.

- When favored by -3 points or more, divisional road favs this year have played 0 overs, 4 unders and 1 push.

Cincinnati (-3) at Cleveland (Total of 37), NY Jets (-5) at Buffalo (Total of 37) and Indianapolis (-7.5) at Jacksonville (Total of 46) all fit the criteria and the "Under" in these three matchups is a play for you to consider.

PICK A SPOT

When looking at these divisional rivalries it is impossible to ignore certain trends that have developed between some of the teams. Two guaranteed meetings per season boosts the credibility of a betting trend because it involves more of the same players and coaches.

Just from the above matchups we can see that the underdog in the Bengals-Browns series is 6-0 ATS since 2007.

We also noticed that the road team in the Colts-Jaguars series is 6-0 ATS the past three seasons.

The road teams is 5-0 ATS in the past five tilts between the Jets and Bills but one of the more glaring trends shows that Buffalo has been a terrible play as a home underdog, going 1-8 ATS the past nine times.

Road favorites were 4-4 ATS in Week 3 but it doesn’t completely make up for their 0-4-1 ATS mark in Week 2. In these three divisional matchups we’ve listed, the road team and the "Under" look like the solid picks but before you circle any of them as a best bet, make sure to do thorough research into the local papers and team websites for injury information.

Think of it this way – with only 14 games on the card you should have some extra time!

Free Ryder Cup Contest

Aside from football, there is also a great golf event this weekend.

The best American golfers go head-to-head against the best Europe has to offer in the 2010 Ryder Cup. It only happens once every four years and for my money, is one of the top sports events of the fall when it tees off.

This year’s starts on Friday and runs through Sunday.

Check out this fun contest to make the event even more interesting.

Play the $100 Ryder Cup Contest…get your picks in today!

NFL Betting: Saints vs. 49ers Preview

Monday Night Football is usually considered the ‘big’ game of the week during the regular season, but with the run the Saints have been on, primetime matchups are starting to become old hat. In a stretch that goes back to last year’s playoffs, tonight marks the fifth consecutive game for New Orleans in front of a national TV audience.

The Week 1 opener vs. Minnesota was not exactly the brand of football Saints bettors have become accustomed to, but a 14-9 win was enough to get the team past the mythical post-Super Bowl jinx that has sent several past champions to the mat.

San Francisco not only lost its first game, they were slapped hard by a divisional opponent (Seattle) who this weekend at Denver proved they were not very special after all. The pressure in this game for a strong performance is clearly on the 49ers.

Sportsbook have the line as New Orleans -5.

PAST PERFORMANCES
2010 marks the third straight year the Saints have opened the season at home and followed it with a non-divisional road game the very next week. They are 3-0 SU in the home portion and the games that followed the last two years had completely different results (5 point loss – 26 point win). Today’s Saints are nothing like the group from `08, however, so it’s not worth putting too much weight into the trend.

It is worth noting that the Saints are 6-9 ATS on Monday Night and they have won five straight over the 49ers since being swept in a 2001 home-and-home series against their then-NFC West rival.

San Francisco is looking to avoid its first 0-2 SU start since 2005. They are 4-1 SU in their home opener the past five years and 3-2 against the number.

SPOTLIGHT
No wonder the Saints don’t mind a lot of attention!

2009 Divisional Finals – Saints (-7) hosted the Arizona Cardinals, winning 45-14 (Over 57)

2009 Conference Championship – Saints (-3.5) beat Minnesota 31-28 in overtime (Over 54)

Super Bowl XLIV at Dolphins Stadium – Saints (+4) upset Indianapolis Colts 31-17 (Under 56.5)

2010 NFL Season Kickoff – Saints (-5) welcome Brett Favre back with another defeat, 14-9 (Under 49)

PUBLIC EYE
According to online sportsbooks, only three teams this week including the Saints (87-percent) were heavily over weighted with public money to one side. The other big favorites Sunday, Philadelphia (89-percent) and New England (89-percent), both came up short at the betting window.

Combine it with figures from Week 1, where overweight public favs went 1-3 ATS and it doesn’t paint a pretty picture for Joe Public. Can the Saints change the market?

PREDICTION
Expectations for the 49ers were high coming into the season and after the blowout at Qwest Field, no one should be sounding the alarms just yet. A 0-3 SU day for NFC West rivals on Sunday helps the cause and with a win today, San Francisco would be right on pace. Now getting that win vs. the most explosive team in football is another story.

QB Smith is going to be under a lot of duress from the front seven and when he does get the ball away the Saints’ ball hawking secondary will be looking to make plays. San Francisco’s run-game was good for only 49 yards against Seattle and if they fall behind it will be hard to get untracked.

The Niners also converted just 1-for-15 on third downs and while no team is ever ‘as bad’ as they were the week before, Mike Singletary’s squad has a lot of ground to make up.
Pick: Take the Saints

Check the updated NFL odds @ sportsbetting.com

Monday Night Previews: Ravens at Jets and Chargers at Chiefs

What better way to cap off Week 1 then with a Monday Night Football doubleheader!

Sunday featured its share of hard hits and upsets and tonight promises to deliver more of the same when Baltimore stops in at the new Meadowlands Stadium.

BALTIMORE AT NEW YORK JETS
Line: Jets -2.5
Over/Under: 35.5

Sportsbook opened this game at New York -3 but the Darrelle Revis holdout and 65-70 percent support from Ravens backers edged this line off the key number down to -2.5.

Both of these teams finished last season at 9-7 straight-up (SU) and put up a good fight in the playoffs. Key additions to the offense will bolster the attack but the edge in QB has to go to the Ravens. Joe Flacco is in his third year and having a legitimate downfield threat in WR Boldin will stretch the field for a passing game that ranked 18th overall last year.

Mark Sanchez was prone to turnovers and rookie mistakes in 2009 and the absence of WR Holmes (suspension) won’t help. New York will look to its ground game to take pressure away from Sanchez but this Ravens defense ranked first overall at limiting yards per carry.

New York also saw their leading rusher RB Jones leave for Kansas City; although RB Greene did show he was ready to take over. Veteran RB Tomlinson will also help and LT showed in preseason he still has a move or two left in the tank.

Monday Night Pick:
Revis will cover Boldin but Flacco also has TE Heap, TJ Houshmandzadeh, WR Mason and one of the top RBs in the game with Ray Rice. Beyond the hype that Coach Ryan has put into his team’s Super Bowl chances, the Ravens are one of the top teams in the conference. Getting points, we like the road team.
Take the Ravens

SAN DIEGO AT KANSAS CITY
Line: Chargers -4.5
Over/Under: 45

It was an active off-season for San Diego and rookie RB sensation Ryan Matthews is set to take his first steps as the new face of the Chargers ground game. WR Jackson’s absence will be felt, but TE Gates and WRs Floyd and Naanee will still provide plenty chances for QB Rivers to connect.

More unsettling for Rivers may be the contract dispute that will keep veteran left tackle Marcus McNeill away from Monday’s game. For a Chiefs defensive unit that finished 30th overall last season, it’s never going to be any easier for them trying to break into the Chargers pocket.

San Diego was slow out of the gate last year, going 2-3 SU and 1-4 against the spread (ATS). Denver’s 6-0 start triggered an alarm that sent the team into an 11-game winning streak beginning in Week 6 at Arrowhead against this Chiefs team.

Monday Night Pick:
Slow starts aren’t new for San Diego, the team is 5-7 in September the past three seasons, but the sense of urgency is more apparent right now and we don’t see HC Turner letting this game slip by. Lay the points on the road with the better team in this one.

Take the Chargers

NFL Betting: Vikings at Saints

The long wait is over. The rosters have been cut, practice squads set and now the games actually count.

The NFL serves up a true marquee matchup to kick everything off, as the Vikings head back to the scene of the crime when they visit the New Orleans Saints. Sportsbook have been seeing heavy action on this one as the game gets closer.

The last time Minnesota played here it was the NFC Conference Championship game and we all remember how that finished for Favre and crew. Although those bettors who backed Minny in that one were able to smile as they cached in, playing the underdog at +4 in a 31-28 loss.

The Vikings are underdogs again, this time by 5 points. They will play without standout WR Sydney Rice, but otherwise have their usual assortment of weapons (Adrian Peterson, Bernard Berrian, Percy Harvin).

The defending Super Bowl champs, as stated, are laying 5 points in this game as they are again touted as one of a handful of Super Bowl contenders. The team is mostly in tact, with the exception of safety Darren Sharper, who was placed on the PUP list with a knee injury.

Will the Saints enter the game with the dreaded Super Bowl hangover? Or will they be fired up looking to defend their title? Will the Vikings avenge the Conference Final loss from last season? Or will they start the season the same way it ended last year? It should be a lot of fun finding out.

Looking at the sportsbetting.com, currently the action is heavily tilted to the home team, with 80% of all the money on the Saints.

Check all the NFL odds

Enjoy the game.

NFL Betting: AFC West Preview

Team On The Rise: Oakland Raiders

NFL betting handicappers are used to betting against the Oakland Raiders and taking it to the bank each year as they lose 10+ games. This year, things are different. They had a decent finish to 2009 (by their standards) and then picked up quarterback Jason Campbell to solidify a position that has been their Achilles heel. Campbell will move the ball and more importantly, he won’t cripple the team like JaMarcus Russell did.

The defense is tough and the offense will be more effective; that’s enough for an 8-8 season. For the Raiders, that would be a huge success.

Team On The Decline: Denver Broncos

Sportsbook were shocked when this team started 6-0 in 2009 but boy does that look like a distant memory now. The Broncos finished the year with just two wins in their last 10 contests and then put in an ugly offseason. They traded away stud wideout Brandon Marshall, then traded for quarterback Brady Quinn, drafted Tim Tebow and signed Kyle Orton to an extension. Their running backs are already injured and after signing their best defensive player, Elvis Dumervil, to a long term contract, he tore his pectoral muscle and will miss about half the season.

Head Coach Josh McDaniels continues to act like he knows more than anyone else but usually this type of arrogance leads to plenty of losses and a pink slip. The Broncos are squarely on that track.

Predicted Winner: San Diego Chargers

The San Diego Chargers are the biggest division favorite out there (by a long shot) and the reason is simple: they are the only team in the division that is not rebuilding. Beyond that, they are a definite Super Bowl contender. They have some question marks with Pro Bowl holdouts Vincent Jackson and Marcus McNeill, but outside of that, this team has been the epitome of consistency in the division.

There’s no reason to bet against them here. The Chiefs are a wreck, nobody knows what the Broncos are doing and while the Raiders are getting better, quantify that with the fact that they lose double-digit games every year. The Chargers no-brainer pick in the West.

Good luck this season.

NFL Draft – All Bets are Off

With the 2009 NFL Draft under wraps after the great spectacle at New York Radio City Music Hall, attention now turns to mini-camps and possible trade speculation.

None of the big-name veterans changed teams over the weekend – unless you count Ellis Hobbs being traded from the New England Patriots to the Philadelphia Eagles for a pair of Fifth Rounders – but there was still plenty of drama all around.

Of course, a draft can never be properly evaluated 48 hours after it’s over – let alone 48 weeks for that matter, but some teams displayed some deft maneuvering in moving up and down the draft board and in snapping up highly-ranked prospects who fit a key need.

Let’s look at the teams that qualify as movers and shakers in this year’s NFL draft:

New York Jets

Emphasizing quality over quality, the Jets traded with the Cleveland Browns to move up to pick #5, where they snapped up Mark Sanchez to be their franchise quarterback of the future. Eat that Dan Snyder! On Day 2, the Jets also traded up to take running back Shonn Greene with the first pick of Round 3. Coupled with their strong Free Agent class of 2008, the Jets addressed their two key areas of need in this draft. However, they did not address their need for a wide receiver and time will tell how they address that. Perhaps a trade of next year’s draft picks for one of the available veteran wideouts is in order.

New England Patriots

The Patriots, who always find themselves on the Movers & Shakers list emphasized continuity over quality or quantity. Their biggest splash was a Safety, Patrick Chung out of Oregon, who should fit their system well. However, they locked up two additional second-round picks in the 2010 draft and that is a major coup for the team, setting them up nicely for next year’s richer draft class.

Philadelphia Eagles

The Eagles were involved in the most draft-day trades, trading both up and down, to find the players they wanted. They were surprised to see Jeremy Maclin sitting there at #19, and traded up a couple spots (giving up a 6^th-rounder to do so) and plucked him. They were expecting Knowshon Moreno to be there, but he was surprisingly taken at #12 by the Denver Broncos. Getting LeSean McCoy in the 2^nd round made up for that, and both Maclin and McCoy will add some serious punch to their offense, joining Brian Westbrook, DeSean Jackson and Kevin Curtis. The Eagles also picked up a sleepr in Tight End Cornelius Ingram, who could be a monster on the gridiron if his surgically-repaired knee holds up.

Tick-tock – Detroit is on the Clock

NFL Draft overview for sports bettors.

The NFL Draft has become a big day for TV over the last few years, and it has also become a popular event for sports betting. The NFL odds have been up for a while at many online sportsbooks and sports bettors have been taking their shots who they think will go to which teams.

Seven rounds, 256 picks. Yes, the flurry of the NFL draft is upon us this week and as owners, coaches and scouts from all 32 teams crowd into their respective ‘war rooms’ to finalize plans, sportsbettors can rejoice in having the luxury of sitting back and watching the plot unfold.

It’s a nervous time for NFL teams right now and the mood may seem especially tense for those involved with any one of the 11 franchises that finished the 2008 regular season with a sub-.500 record. For the 20 clubs that missed out on the post-season there is plenty of room for improvement, too, and if you are even still receiving a paycheck from the Detroit Lions organization it must be tough getting oxygen with the noose so tightly collared around your neck.

In the Motor City there is not a lot of margin for error as the club enters the 2009 campaign but then again, it would be difficult for the team to do worse than the 0-16 record posted in 2008.

Detroit has technically been on the clock since December 21 when New Orleans mashed in a 42-7 thumping to close out the home season for the Lions, guaranteeing that even the pitiful St. Louis Rams (2-14) would finish with a better record. Detroit will more than likely take a quarterback with its first pick but there are stirrings that the team is also considering the services of top-rated offensive tackle Jason Smith out of Baylor to protect the backside of the crusty, old QB that finished the season in silver and blue.

Check out all the NFL draft odds and the NFL future odds at SPORTSBETTING.com and enjoy the big draft day.