Rams winners for second time in 10 weeks
Football Betting Lines
12/20/2006 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Though it came against the AFC doormat -- the NFL's? -- a shutout is still a shutout.
And so the St. Louis Rams' 20-0 victory over the Oakland Raiders on Sunday allows those who write about the team to try something novel this week: accentuate the positives.
Head coach Scott Linehan may have said it best after the game.
"It's hard to go on the road and win," he declared, "and it's hard to do it when you're somewhat struggling, so I'm very proud of the team in that regard."
The Rams (6-8) traveled to Oakland having lost two straight home games and seven of their last eight overall. For those of you keeping score, that was one win since Oct. 8.
Neck and neck with the Democrats.
But on Sunday, a disappointedly middling Rams team shook the dust from their win column and gave their fans a reason to watch Inside the NFL this week. They did what they should have done while losing to lesser competition this season.
They controlled the game.
Looking to Steven Jackson early and often, the Rams attacked one of the only NFL run defenses as bad as their own. Jackson touched the ball nine times on St. Louis' first two possessions, including seven times during a 7 1/2-minute drive that ended with a Jeff Wilkins field goal.
The Rams came right back and handed Jackson the ball six more times on their next drive, leading to another Wilkins field goal and a 6-0 halftime lead.
Jackson ended with a career-best 31 carries for 127 yards and two touchdowns, one each in the third and fourth quarter. If nothing else, it was proof that he deserved his first-ever Pro Bowl citation, which came Tuesday.
On the other side of the ball, the bedraggled Rams defense held Oakland to just 57 yards rushing. The Raiders, of course, were without LaMont Jordan again, but we're talking about a St. Louis run defense that has allowed nearly 150 yards per game -- second-worst in the NFL.
Raiders quarterback Aaron Brooks was pulled in the fourth quarter after going 11-of-19 for just 98 yards and an interception. Replacement Andrew Walter threw for 131 yards in the fourth, but the Rams picked him off twice.
The Rams caused five turnovers without committing any themselves. Marc Bulger was just 11-of-22 for 137 yards, but that's all he needed to be. His team was that much in control.
"It's great to finally have something good happen for us on both sides of the ball in the same game," said defensive end Leonard Little.
With the way the Rams' season has gone -- "We've lost some close games and not so close games," Linehan pointed out -- pitching a shutout against the Raiders must've felt pretty good.
ADAM'S RIBS
Unable to play with three broken ribs, Rams guard Adam Timmerman missed Sunday's game to end his streak of 204 consecutive games played, including the playoffs.
His career built on durability, Timmerman had strung together the second- longest regular-season consecutive games streak (184) among active NFL offensive lineman, behind only Will Shields of the Kansas City Chiefs.
Timmerman, 35, hadn't missed a game since he was a rookie with the Green Bay Packers in 1995. He had been playing with the injury since it occurred in a Nov. 19 loss to Carolina.
LEONARD GOIN'
Leonard Little had two sacks on Sunday to become the Rams' official all-time leader. Little has 12 sacks this season and 73 for the Rams since 1998, surpassing Kevin Greene's 72 1/2.
Hall of Famer Deacon Jones, one of the greatest ends of all-time and the so- called "Secretary of Defense," was credited for more than 150 sacks before it became an official NFL statistic in 1982.
ACTION JACKSON
Jackson's performance gave him 1,236 yards rushing and a career-high nine touchdowns on the ground this season. He has also caught 82 passes -- fourth in the NFL -- for 680 yards and another score this year.
Since last season the 23-year-old Jackson has proven to be a weekly threat, no matter how his teammates perform around him. Sunday, he was rewarded with the driver's seat.
"It really felt like they finally put the game in my hands, and I enjoyed it," Jackson said.
UP NEXT: ANOTHER WINNABLE GAME
The Rams won three straight games early in the season, when things still looked promising. And with a home game against Washington looming, they could be looking at another streak.
They lost to the Redskins, 24-9, in St. Louis last season and have dropped five of the last seven meetings overall. But Washington (5-9) is in classic let-down position after winning at New Orleans on Sunday.
If you believe in that sort of thing.
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New Orleans Saints clinched their first division title in six years on Sunday, but the newly-crowned NFC South champions were hardly in a jubilant mood. The Saints sewed up a playoff home game despite a 16-10 loss to t
<< Flyers acquire York from Isles
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia Flyers acquired
forward Mike York from the New York Islanders on Wednesday in exchange for
forward Randy Robitaille and a fifth-round pick in the 2008 draft.
The 28-year-old
<< Gators host Hatters in Gainesville
Gainesville, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The fifth-ranked Florida Gators finally
returns home, as the team plays host to the Stetson Hatters in non-conference
action from the O'Connell Center this evening.
Billy Donovan's Gators have not
<< UConn seeks to ride wave of momentum against Pepperdine
Hartford, CT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The undefeated and 14th-ranked Connecticut
Huskies have been much better than expected in the early part of this
season, and they will attempt to score another non-league victory over
the Pe
<< Catfight in the desert
Tucson, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A top-25 battle will take place in the desert
this evening, as the ninth-ranked Arizona Wildcats play host to the 18th-
ranked Memphis Tigers in the 22nd-annual Fiesta Bowl Classic from Tucson.
Lute
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Columbus Blue Jackets aim for a home-and-home sweep of the Detroit Red Wings tonight, when the clubs meet for the finale at Joe Louis Arena. The Blue Jackets snapped a two-game losing streak Monday evening with a 4-3
Predators streak into Chicago >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Nashville Predators will shoot for their fifth
consecutive victory tonight, when they visit the Chicago Blackhawks at the
United Center.
The Predators were last in action on Sunday and earned an overtime victory in
St
Raiders' nightmare season continues >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - With all the possible playoff scenarios catching
everybody's attention, let's not forget about the battle for the No. 1 overall
pick in next year's draft, the only race that currently involves the Oakland
Raiders.
The Rai
Stars, Ducks clash in Anaheim >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Dallas Stars will try to slow down the powerful Anaheim
Ducks, as the division rivals meet this evening at the Honda Center.
The Ducks lead the Pacific Division and the NHL with 58 points. They are
currently 10 points
Sixers try to get back to concentrating on basketball vs. Pacers >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Allen Iverson era in Philadelphia is officially over
as the new-look Sixers take the court this evening against the Indiana Pacers
at the Wachovia Center.
Iverson and forward Ivan McFarlin were dealt to the Denver Nu
Betting Football
NFL Football Betting OnlineIs there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL?
I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.
Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said.
There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans.
Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal.
For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though.
A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup.
The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games.
Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff.
So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action.
Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns.
“I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said.
Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season.
“Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said.
It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties.
Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples.
The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left.
“The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits.
“These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.”
Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough.
The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday.
“Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.”
Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach?
“It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.”
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines.
Teams that should be in: Stanford
Oregon and USC get their tickets punched after taking care of business this weekend. Yes, the Trojans' computer numbers aren't great, but there's no way the third-place team in this league is getting nixed. Grudgingly, I added Arizona after consultation with our Bracketologist. I don't know that Arizona will lose its last three (including a Pac-10 quarterfinal game), and even if the Cats do, I still can't see how they'd be left out, given the overall profile. That said, it bears watching, as three more L's would leave them at 18-12 (9-9) and on a 6-11 skid entering the Dance. It would be nice to see the Wildcats get at least one W in the Bay Area next week, as Cincinnati (albeit without Armein Kirkland and with a worse profile) was axed after a similar slide last season. I just couldn't rationalize having some of the other teams as locks and not having Arizona in that category -- there just aren't enough good teams behind the Cats to threaten their spot, it seems. Stanford has its fate in its own hands with the Arizona schools coming to the Farm to close out the regular season next weekend.
Should be in:
Stanford [17-10 (9-7), RPI: 40, SOS: 21] No shame in not getting a win in L.A., but that makes the home game against Arizona State a must-win ahead of what could be an intriguing meeting with Arizona should the Cats lose at Cal. Getting to 11 Pac-10 wins would make Selection Sunday much more comfortable, but 10's probably more than enough this season. The Cardinal have nonconference wins over Texas Tech and at Virginia to lean on, although they also lost badly to Air Force and Santa Clara at home.
| Southeastern Conference odds | |
Work left to do: Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Mississippi State It looks more and more possible that no one from the SEC West will make the NCAAs. How weird is that? Tennessee and Vandy move into the locks category after more good work this weekend. Kentucky stays there, although it would be smart for the Cats to handle Georgia at home Wednesday ahead of a trip to the Swamp. Could a disaster scenario (two more L's and a first-round SEC tourney exit) somehow dislodge the Cats despite their incredible computer numbers? Still unlikely, but not worth chancing it.
Work left to do: Alabama [19-9 (6-8), RPI: 43, SOS: 47] The tough L at Tennessee was understandable, and even created some hope. Unfortunately, that hope was dashed by a home loss to Auburn, which leaves the Tide in some real trouble. There's still no signature win on the profile (no, Kentucky doesn't count), and the computer profile is weakening rapidly. The Tide conceivably could beat Ole Miss and win at Miss. State to get to 8-8 and clinch at least a share of the West crown, but that's probably not enough right now. The Tide will need to do some work in the SEC tourney. Georgia [16-10 (8-6), RPI: 52, SOS: 23] This is the team with the best chance to make it from this section right now. The Bulldogs rebounded from a terrible performance at Ole Miss to beat down Miss. State. Now they are at Kentucky (king of the RPI 51-100 win) and home to Tennessee. That would be worth a lot of computer points to get both (which is doable), as both teams are in the top 11 in RPI. Finishing at least 9-7 is an absolute must, and I would feel much better about the Dawgs' chances if they got both to get to 10 SEC wins. They also beat Gonzaga, but lost to ACC bubblers Georgia Tech and Clemson. Mississippi [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 63, SOS: 79] Like everyone else in this division, Ole Miss gacked up a chance to stake a claim, losing by double figures at South Carolina. Even 9-7 likely is not nearly enough with a nonconference profile devoid of anything notable. Mississippi State [16-11 (7-7), RPI: 66, SOS: 37] With a chance to get in the mix, these Bulldogs were leashed by their Georgia counterparts. Could they get to 9-7? I guess -- although winning at Arkansas, then beating Alabama is no lock -- but would that mean all that much for a team with this overall profile? Probably not. There's nothing of note (on the good side) in the nonconference profile. |
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