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11/21/2008 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - When Jamal Lewis speaks, people listen. The Cleveland Browns veteran running back called out some of his teammates for giving up after a home loss to Denver a few weeks ago and the team responded with a big win at Buffalo in Week 11.
Lewis will try to fire up his teammates again this Sunday afternoon at Cleveland Browns Stadium, where the club hosts the Houston Texans.
The lights were shining bright in prime time last Monday night at Buffalo's Ralph Wilson Stadium, and the Browns didn't let the hostile scene affect their game during a 29-27 victory in Orchard Park.
Cleveland ended a two-game losing streak with the win and improved to 4-6 to stay afloat in the AFC postseason race. Second-year quarterback Brady Quinn earned his first win in the league since taking over for deposed starter Derek Anderson, who led Cleveland to a 10-6 mark in 2007 and earned his first Pro Bowl bid that same year.
The muscle-bound Quinn, who will play despite a broken right index finger, seems to have a grasp of the offense but didn't have to do much to get the Browns back in the win column on Monday. The second-year pro went 14-of-36 for 185 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions. In his previous start, Quinn was 23-of-35 passing for 239 yards and threw two touchdowns against the Broncos.
He may be without tight end Kellen Winslow, who is questionable for Sunday's game with a shoulder injury.
Houston has lost three in a row after a three-game winning streak, and fell to 3-7 on the season after last Sunday's hard-fought 33-27 loss to the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium. Chances of reaching the playoffs for the first time in franchise history were most likely dashed for the Texans, who have allowed no less than 28 points in each of the past three losses.
Backup quarterback Sage Rosenfels hasn't been able to erase the loss of injured starter Matt Schaub since taking over the offense. Schaub went down on November 2 at Minnesota and has missed two starts. Head coach Gary Kubiak hopes he can return in a few weeks, since Schaub is now able to bend his knee and move around with more ease.
Rookie running back Steve Slaton has been a big surprise for the Texans and totaled a team rookie-record 156 rushing yards on 14 carries against the Colts, including a franchise-long 71-yard touchdown run. Slaton will try to keep the Houston locker room positive against the Browns' meager run defense.
SERIES HISTORY
The Browns lead the all-time series with the Texans 3-2, breaking a deadlock in the series with a 27-17 home victory when the teams met in Week 12 of last season. The Texans won the previous meeting, a 14-6 affair in Houston in 2006. The Texans are 0-2 in Cleveland all-time.
Browns head coach Romeo Crennel is 1-2 in his career against the Texans, while Kubiak is 1-1 against both Crennel and Cleveland as a head coach.
WHEN THE TEXANS HAVE THE BALL
Rosenfels (956 passing yards, 4 TD, 7 INT) has thrown for 956 yards and four touchdowns on 78-of-118 passing in relief of Schaub. He has struggled in his last three performances, throwing for just three touchdowns and six interceptions. Rosenfels has proven himself to be a capable leader in the NFL, but hasn't been doing much to maintain that status for the Texans, whose offense ranks second in the AFC and fifth in the NFL at 370.1 yards per game. Houston has had the third-most prolific offense in the NFL over the last eight weeks, thanks mainly to wide receiver Andre Johnson (71 receptions, 3 TD), who leads the NFL with 955 receiving yards and extended his own team record by catching a pass in his 44th consecutive game last week. He hasn't had more than 55 yards receiving in each of the last three games, however, after posting four straight contests with no less than 131 yards. Wideout Kevin Walter (40 receptions, 6 TD) leads the Texans with six touchdown catches. He has started 25 games in the last two years and has hauled in 105 passes for 1,374 yards and 10 touchdowns over that span.
Defensive end Corey Williams (27 tackles, 0.5 sacks), who finished with four tackles against the Bills, is the biggest pass-rushing threat on the Cleveland front line that may not have fellow end Shaun Smith (17 tackles) for this weekend. Smith suffered a calf injury on Monday and did not participate in practice early this week. With no push up front, Cleveland's 19th-rated pass defense will face a true test against Houston's surprising aerial attack. Cornerbacks Eric Wright (42 tackles, 3 INT) and Brandon McDonald (43 tackles, 2 INT) were able to shut down Buffalo's passing game and Cleveland posted three interceptions in the win. McDonald came away with one of those picks. Safeties Sean Jones (33 tackles) and Brodney Pool (36 tackles, sack, 2 INT) will help the corners against both Johnson and Walter.
Houston knew the Colts had trouble defending the run, so it unleashed the rookie Slaton to great results. The Texans ran for 177 yards against Indianapolis and threw the ball only 18 times. Slaton (701 rushing yards, 6 TD) took advantage with his second-career 100-yard game. A home-run threat every time he touches the ball, Slaton ranks third among rookies with 89.9 total yards from scrimmage per game and is tied for the rookie lead with seven touchdowns scored. He also owns a 5.1 yards per carry average, good enough for fourth in the league for Houston's 15th-rated run offense, and ranks third in the AFC in rushing yards through the first 10 games of the season. Slaton can thank offensive linemen such as guard Chester Pitts for the success. Pitts is the only player to start each of Houston's 106 all-time games, but he injured his calf and is day-to-day. The Texans are averaging 114.3 yards per game on the ground this season, compared to 99.1 yards per game last year.
The Browns had a rough time stopping the run against the Bills and were lucky to escape town with a victory. Buffalo running back Marshawn Lynch had 119 yards on 23 carries, and Slaton will try for the same success against the NFL's 28th-rated run defense on Sunday. Run-stuffing tackle Shaun Rogers (52 tackles, 4.5 sacks) leads the team in sacks and had six tackles with a pass defensed this past weekend. Linebackers Andra Davis (50 tackles, 1 INT) and Kamerion Wimbley (41 tackles, 2 sacks, 1 INT) each had an interception on Monday night, while fellow linebacker D'Qwell Jackson (99 tackles, 2 sacks, 1 INT) leads the Browns in total tackles. Jackson had 11 stops and a tipped pass against the Bills and also made several stops against the run.
WHEN THE BROWNS HAVE THE BALL
Quinn (424 passing yards, 2 TD, 0 INT) will make his second career start at home on Sunday and matches up well against Houston's middle-of-the-pack defense. He supplanted Anderson as the starter versus Denver in Week 10, but is either a bad game or a hard hit away from losing the reigns. The athletic Notre Dame product has completed 37 of his 71 pass attempts for 424 yards and two scores this season. He has been meshing well with top receiver Braylon Edwards (35 receptions, 3 TD), who leads the team in receiving yards and is tied for the Browns lead with three scores. He matched his career high of eight receptions and totaled 104 yards against the Bills. It was Edwards' 10th career 100-yard receiving game and second of 2008. He has also caught a pass in 52 consecutive games and has a reception in every one that he has competed in during his four years in the NFL. Winslow (39 receptions, 3 TD) recently underwent an MRI on his ailing shoulder, and Quinn hopes his top tight end will be uniform on Sunday. Winslow, who did not practice Wednesday or Thursday, is averaging 87.5 receiving yards per game over his previous two contests at home.
Houston will try to put the pressure on Quinn, and not many do it better than defensive end Mario Williams (34 tackles, 8 sacks), who owns six sacks in the past seven games and his eight on the season is tops in the AFC. The first overall pick in 2006 ranks third in the NFL with 22 sacks since entering the league. The Texans didn't sack Colts quarterback Peyton Manning last week, and he burned the secondary for 320 yards and a pair of touchdown passes. Houston is 17th against the pass, allowing 210.8 yards per game through the air. Cornerback Dunta Robinson (18 tackles, 1 INT) missed the charter flight to Indianapolis on Saturday and was fined by the team. He didn't begin the game as the nickel back against the Colts, but ended with four stops. Cornerbacks Fred Bennett (34 tackles) and Jacques Reeves (29 tackles, 2 INT) were unable to contain any of Indy's wideouts and will be busy against Edwards -- and possibly Winslow -- all afternoon.
Lewis (658 rushing yards, 4 TD) is a bruising running back and had 65 yards on 18 carries against the Bills. He lit a fire under his teammates a few weeks ago and the team rebounded with a big win on Monday, even though Lewis has yet to reach the century mark in rushing this season. Backup running back Jerome Harrison (207 rushing yards, 1 TD) is faster and more elusive than Lewis, and should see more carries for the remainder of the season. He had 80 yards and a touchdown against the Bills as Cleveland ran for a season-high 161 yards. Harrison beefed up his stats with a 72-yard touchdown run for the Browns, who only 1-4 at home this season after going 7-1 as the host a year ago. Tackle Joe Thomas and guard Eric Steinbach anchor the offensive line and pave the way for both Lewis and Harrison.
Lewis will try to penetrate a Houston run defense that is rated 24th in the league and is yielding 132.5 yards per game on the ground. Colts running back Joseph Addai posted his first 100-yard rushing game in more than a year last week against the Texans because of poor tackling and defensive miscues. The Texans' interior line has been suffering without tackle Amobi Okoye (11 tackles), who has been limited in eight games this season due to an ankle injury. He is questionable against the Browns. Texans star linebacker DeMeco Ryans (73 tackles) is leading the team for the third consecutive season with 73 tackles, including 56 solos. He has led the team in tackles 21 times in 42 career games, and leads the NFL in 10-tackle games over the last three seasons with 18. Ryans ended with 11 stops against the Colts. Rookie linebacker Xavier Adibi (18 tackles) posted a career-high 14 tackles last week. He filled in for injured starter Morlon Greenwood (36 tackles), who is out with a leg injury. Greenwood is listed as questionable against Cleveland, while Adibi will likely get the start against the Browns.
FANTASY FOCUS
Lewis, Edwards, Winslow and Quinn will produce the most fantasy points from the Browns this week. Quinn, though, has been a tough start the past two weeks, but Sunday's matchup with Houston favors the young signal-caller. Edwards and Winslow seem to have to no problem sharing catches and Lewis still has the power and agility to punish opposing defenses. Expect all four to produce decent numbers in most leagues this weekend. Johnson and Slaton have taken the fantasy world by storm each week, while Rosenfels is a good start although he may lose a few points because of turnovers. Rosenfels can light up the scoreboard with the best of them, though, and Johnson should get back to his 100-yard receiving ways. Houston's Walter should only be used in an emergency.
OVERALL ANALYSIS
Now is the perfect time for the Browns to start winning at home, where they are just 1-4 as the host in 2008. With hopes of a playoff berth fading at a rapid pace, the Browns must have a solid outing from the inexperienced Quinn against a defense he matches up well against. The Browns will surely devise the perfect plan for Quinn to succeed in, but he must not stray away from getting contributions by Lewis. The running back sets the tempo on offense with his punishing style of play and can open the defense for Quinn to pick apart. Houston already knows its season is pretty much in jeopardy and will do anything to crash Cleveland's party at home. Johnson and Slaton are not enough to keep the Texans from getting another notch in the loss column on Sunday.
Sportsbook Betting Lines Predicted Outcome: Browns 27, Texans 20
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Elite 8 NCAA Tournament Betting at online sportsbook MySportsbook.com
In what should be an outstanding Saturday of March Madness betting action, the top four teams in the South and West Regions square off in what should be extremely close match-ups. Three of the four teams are coming off extremely close games on Thursday evening, only UCLA won semi comfortably over Pitt 64-55.
Ohio State is coming off their second game in a row where in all reality they should have lost. Of course that doesn’t matter now since the name of the game is “survive and advance” but as the tournament continues, they can’t afford to keep getting down to their opponents early. Kansas also avoided a scare by holding off a scrappy Southern Illinois squad. In the third thrilling game of the evening Memphis pulled off the minor upset (+3.5) despite being the higher seed to Texas A&M.
Although the spreads are fairly small for Saturday’s games, MySportsbook.com continue to bet against the underdogs. Despite OSU’s two scares, 86% of the “betting public” feels the Buckeyes (-1.5) have what it takes to make the Final Four. In fact, so much of the early money is on OSU that the line has already moved from -1 to -1.5. In the second game of the doubleheader, Kansas and their high-powered offense are 2 point favorites as they take on UCLA and their effective defense. About 63% of the early money thus far is once again backing the favorites. If those percentages stay that high, don’t be surprised if this line moves as well. If you like Kansas (-2) you might want to jump on it early.
Memphis vs. Ohio State
Both squads were involved in thrillers on Thursday evening and should come out fired up. OSU can ill afford to get behind early like they did versus their previous two opponents (Xavier, Tennessee). Greg Oden needs to stay out of foul trouble; the Buckeyes are a completely different team when he is on the court. Memphis definitely has the athleticism and length to match-up with OSU. Of Memphis’ five leading minute earners, the shortest of the bunch is 6’5”. Each team has a very effective defense; Memphis surrenders 62.3 PPG whereas the Buckeyes give up only 61 PPG. With those type of numbers, it isn’t surprising that Memphis covered the UNDER almost 69% of the time this season. As a favorite, OSU has covered the UNDER almost 66% of the time over the last three seasons. The major concern for Memphis which is magnifies this time of the year is their brutal foul shooting (62%). This season, OSU is 17-11 ATS versus teams with a winning record and 7-2 ATS in all tournament games. Memphis has been an extremely reliable cover in tournament play in recent years with a 23-8 ATS record over the last three seasons.
UCLA vs. Kansas
In the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader, UCLA will play in a role which they are very unfamiliar with that of the underdog. Only twice this season have they been getting points from the handicappers and both times they covered. Over the last three seasons UCLA is a reliable 23-7 ATS in this unfamiliar role. UCLA has not fared well against Big 12 opponents recently going 1-7 ATS since 1997. Giving up only 59.6 PPG, UCLA will definitely look to do what they do best: keep this game as low scoring as possible. Their defense has been especially tough during the tournament. UCLA opponents have been able to muster up only 48.7 PPG while shooting a combined 34.5% from the field. UCLA definitely has a challenge at hand with a Kansas team that is capable of putting points on the board in bunches. As a team, they average 79 PPG and shoot an impressive 49.6% from the field and 39.4% from beyond the arc. During the tournament Kansas has been “lights out” from the field having shot 56.2%.
With Friday -105 juice on Basketball betting, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on all of the “March Madness” action. Don’t forget to monitor who the public is backing at MySportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends”. By doing so, you have the best chance of predicting a possible line change, thus getting the best value for your wager.
To bet on March Madness games this online sportsbook accepts credit cards
In part two of MySportsbook.com’s draft preview, we’ll take a look at a division that was extremely disappointing last season: the NFC South. Many “experts” predicted the Panthers to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl, of course they could not even make the playoffs in an extremely weak NFC. The Saints definitely made up for the disappointing seasons of their NFC South brethren by exploding out of no where en route to the NFC Championship game. For the avid NFL gambler, it is imperative to pay attention to the NFL draft. Although free agency gets a ton of publicity, the successful franchises build their teams around the draft.
1. New Orleans Saints
Who would have thought this time last year that the Saints would be the favorites to win the NFC South for the 2007 campaign? New Orleans is loaded with firepower on the offensive side of the ball but with the exodus of Joe Horn they will most likely look to draft a WR on Day 1. Despite having the NFL’s 3rd ranked pass defense last season, the Saints will most likely upgrade their CB’s with one of their first two picks. Other possibilities for the Saints will be TE and DT. Because of where they will be selecting (27th), the Saints could go the “best available player” route which could net a LB.
Key additions: Eric Johnson TE, Troy Evans LB, David Patten WR
Key loses: Joe Horn WR,
Team needs: CB, WR, TE, LB, DT
Possible draftees: Aaron Ross CB Texas, Darrelle Revis CB Pitt, Ted Ginn Jr. WR OSU, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Chris Houston CB Arkansas, Greg Olsen TE Miami
2. Carolina Panthers
Carolina was one of the biggest disappointments in the NFL last season. With the signing of David Carr, expect the very first quarterback controversy to come out of Carolina if Jake Delhomme doesn’t rebound quickly from an average 2007 season. With veteran safety Mike Minter getting up there in age, they will look to draft a safety on Day 1 but probably not in the first round. LB is another need with the loss of Chris Draft to go along with Dan Morgan’s concussion problems. If TE Greg Olsen is still on the board, he might be too good to pass up despite their needs on the defensive side of the ball.
Key additions: David Carr QB
Key loses: Chris Draft LB
Team needs: LB, TE, S, OT
Possible draftees: Greg Olsen TE Miami, Patrick Willis LB Ole Miss, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Levi Brown OT PSU
3. Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons were another NFC South team to have a disappointing 2007 season. The Falcons have been plenty busy during the off season with plenty of players coming and going including a new head coach. The Falcons were able to improve their draft position with the trade of coveted backup QB Matt Schaub. High on the list of Day 1 needs will be a defensive end to replace Patrick Kerney and a hard hitting safety since Lawyer Milloy is nearing the end of his career. With an additional 2nd round pick, the Falcons could attempt to trade up to acquire local product WR Calvin Johnson.
Key additions: Joey Harrington QB, Toniu Fonoti OG, Joe Horn WR
Key loses: Justin Griffen RB, Patrick Kerney DE, Matt Lehr OG, Ashley Lelie WR, Matt Schaub QB
Team needs: DE, S, OT, WR, DT
Possible draftees: LaRon Landry S LSU, Amobi Okoye DT Louisville, Levi Brown OT PSU, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas, Alan Branch DT Michigan
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Age really caught up to the Bucs last season. The Bucs still have plenty of household names on defense in Ronde Barber, Simeon Rice and Derrick Brooks but the one thing those three have in common is unfortunately age. It is imperative for the Bucs to get much younger, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Despite having bigger needs on the defensive side of the ball, WR Calvin Johnson is the most likely pick if he is still available when the Bucs pick at the four spot. This would suit Bucs’ faithful just fine as Johnson is widely considered the top talent in the draft and it is a position of need for the Bucs.
Key additions: Jeff Garcia QB, Kevin Carter DE, Torrie Cox CB, Cato June LB
Key loses: Dewayne White DE, Sean Mahan OG
Team needs: WR, LB, DE, CB (Youth on defense!)
Possible draftees: Calvin Johnson WR Georgia Tech, Gains Adams DE Clemson, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas
It is never too early to start betting on the NFL. Log on to MySportsbook.com to checkout all of the NFL futures for the upcoming season. On the clock: the NFC North
Odds to win the NFC South:
New Orleans Saints 8-5
Carolina Panthers 2-1
Atlanta Falcons 12-5
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9-2
Odds to win the NFC:
New Orleans Saints 13-2
Carolina Panthers 7-1
Atlanta Falcons 20-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 25-1
Odds to win the Super Bowl:
New Orleans Saints 18-1
Carolina Panthers 20-1
Atlanta Falcons 50-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 75-1
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