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Saints Rip Giants Behind Brees‘ Four TD Passes

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Heading into last Sunday, there was a consensus that the New York Giants were the best team in the NFL with an undefeated record, a productive offense and the league’s top ranked defense. The New Orleans Saints made a compelling case to the contrary, however, as they dismantled the Giants to win 48-27 behind yet another MVP-like performance from quarterback Drew Brees. Brees threw for 369 yards and four touchdowns with no interceptions as New Orleans kept their record perfect on the season at 5-0.

NFL betting enthusiasts who took New Orleans as -3 home favorites were confident that they’d be cashing a ticket by halftime as the Saints shot out to a 34-17 lead at the break. The Saints also remained perfect against the NFL pointspread at 5-0, while the Giants failed to cover for the first time this season and stand at 5-1 ATS. The 75 points scored sailed OVER the posted total of 47.

After the game, Brees explained his team’s strategy:

„We wanted to really dictate the tempo of the game the whole way through. Seven different guys scored touchdowns. That’s big. That’s the type of rhythm that, when you get in, you feel like you can call anything and it’s going to work.“

The Saints are off to their best start since’93 and have yet to trail in a game this season. Still, head coach Sean Payton wasn’t entertaining talk that his team had established themselves as the presumptive Superbowl favorite:

„I don’t think you can talk about big pictures after game 5.“

Giants‘ QB Eli Manning was looking forward to a homecoming of sorts-his father, Archie, played the same position for New Orleans during his NFL career. Suffice to say it didn’t go as he had planned:

„It’s not the way I imagined it during the week, but you’re going to encounter all sorts of games and all sorts of situations. I look at it as a loss. We need to go back to work this week, fix some things and try to improve.“

New York head coach Tom Coughlin marveled at the play of the Saints‘ offensive line who gave Brees great protection all day long:

„I don’t know that we ever hit him. At this level, if you’re going to stop the pass, you’ve got to get pressure. You’ve got to force the quarterback not to throw it on his tempo.“

The Saints will now face the Miami Dolphins on the road, with New Orleans a -6 favorite and the total set at 47. After the trip to south Florida they’ll return home for a game against longtime rival Atlanta on Monday night football. They’ll then host the Carolina Panthers on November 8. The Giants return home to play the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday night, with New York a -7 home favorite and the total set at 46. They’ll head to Philadelphia to play the Eagles next week before returning home for a date against the San Diego Chargers on November 8.

Ross Everett is a freelance writer and respected authority on soccer betting. His writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sports news and sportsbook directory sites. He lives in Las Vegas with three Jack Russell Terriers and an emu. He is currently working on an autobiography of former interior secretary James Watt.

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Lesnar Becomes UFC Champion With Win Over Mir

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UFC 100 was a historic night for the sport of mixed martial arts, and Brock Lesnar used the occasion to avenge his previous loss to Frank Mir with a lopsided TKO victory. With the victory, Lesnar unified the promotion’s heavyweight championship. The Mir/Lesnar tilt was the main event on an epic card which culminated an insane week in Las Vegas.

The anticipation surrounding UFC 100 was unprecedented among the fight sport media and, more significantly, among mainstream sports media. The fact that every major outlet including ESPN, SI.com and Fox Sports featured UFC 100 as their top story of the day is downright amazing. The broader implications of UFC 100 remain to be seen, but it could very likely become a turning point for the sport where MMA transcended cult or niche status to burst into the mainstream consciousness.

Preliminary buy rates suggest that more than 1.5 million people purchased the event, which would not only make it the UFC’s biggest PPV ever but put it in the top five of *all* PPV sporting events. While it fell short of the all time PPV record of 2.4 million buys set by the De La Hoya/Mayweather fight, the unprecedented interest has put MMA on the map to stay. The event’s weigh in was a standing room only affair with over 2,000 fans turned away. A Fan Expo held in conjunction with UFC 100 counted over 30,000 visitors on Friday and an equal or greater number on Saturday. Even veteran fight media experienced in covering big boxing and MMA events worldwide have reported that the energy and general vibe around this event is like nothing theyve seen.

And the main event of the week was Saturdays UFC 100 fight card where Lesnar established not only his dominance of the promotions heavyweight division but his status as the biggest heel in MMA. To his credit, he had a perfect gameplan for Mir that allowed him to use his strength and power to maul his opponent on the ground while minimizing his exposure to submissions.

By contrast, Mir made a tactical mistake in allowing Lesnar to put him on his back so quickly and control him on the ground. He may have considered this his best opportunity to win“wait out Lesnar and look for an opportunity for a submission“but it never materialized and by the end of the first round hed already absorbed a brutal beating. Lesnar quickly took Mir down again at the start of the second round, ending the fight with a punishing ground and pound assault that prompted referee Herb Dean to call a stop to the contest at 1:48 of the second round.

Lesnar’s postfight performance was less impressive and not befitting a champion. He taunted Mir after the stoppage, prompting the crowd to boo him mercilessly. He responded to this with a double handed middle finger salute before a short and arrogant postfight interview that would have been much more at home in the WWE than in this setting. Mir was the consummate professional in defeat, giving credit to his opponent and generally displaying all of the class that Lesnar lacked.

Ross Everett is a widely published freelance writer and highly respected authority on sports betting odds comparison. He writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sportsbooks and sportsbook directory sites. He lives in Las Vegas with three Jack Russell Terriers and an emu. He is currently working on an autobiography of former interior secretary James Watt.

Marketing

Japan’s Judo Gold Medalist Satoshi Ishii Looks For A ‚Home‘ In MMA

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It may be a bit of a stretch to call Satoshi Ishii the Michael Phelps of Japan, but not by much. His victory in the heavyweight judo competition at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing was easily the defining moment of the games for his countrymen and was considered by most media outlets the #1 highlight of the year in all of sports. Though Japan does well at the Olympics for a country of its size and has won gold medals in a number of sports, its important to keep in mind that until the late’70s judo was the country’s most popular sport.

Ishii himself is also a marketing dream. Hes especially big by Japanese standards with 240 pounds packed on his bulky 511 frame. Not surprisingly, hes tough as nails and a terror on the mat but away from the gym he comes off like an awkwardly cheerful overgrown boy. He definitely seems younger than his 22 years, but gives off the vibe of a nice neighbor boy who youd gladly pay to mow your lawn. Unlike his telegenic American gold medalist counterpart Phelps, who acts as if he spent as much time working on media relations as his backstroke heading up to the Olympic games, Ishii’s demeanor is of an athlete who literally spent the bulk of his life in a gym only to emerge and find himself a national hero and superstar. He alternately seems to be having the time of his life at the vortex of a media frenzy as he is somewhat overwhelmed by the attention.

With the ability to offer him the most money and exposure, it seemed almost a fait accompli that Ishii would sign with DREAM and K-1 parent group FEG. Obviously its a good idea to keep your options open in negotiations, so he also reportedly talked to Sengoku parent World Victory Road and Antonio Inokis Inoki Genome Federation pro wrestling group.

Ishii then shocked the Japanese fight sport world by categorically rejecting FEGs offer, saying that it was his lifelong dream to fight in the UFC. While this rationale might sound plausible to a US based fan, its akin to a top college baseball player from a SEC school turning down a big offer from the Atlanta Braves saying that its his lifelong dream to play for the Yomiuri Giants in Japan Central League. It frequently comes a shock to US MMA fans when immersed in Japans culture for the first time just how low the UFC ranks in the countrys fight sport pantheon. In MMA, their profile is lower than DREAM and Sengoku, but even smaller groups like Shooto and DEEP. Overall, the interest in and prestige of the UFC is well below not only boxing but even Japanese pro wrestling (puroresu). The UFC is making some progress, and big fights like GSP/Penn and Lesnar/Couture now get higher profile coverage (Lesnar/Couture owed most of its interest in the Japanese press to Brocks run as IWGP pro wrestling champ) but by no means is the #1 US MMA promotion considered on par with any of the major Japanese fighting groups.

Ishii then travelled to Las Vegas for UFC 92, with the Japanese media in tow covering his every move. Upon his return to Japan, he appeared at the Sengoku card in January addressing the audience from the ring and wearing his ubiquitous UFC shirt; his message was that he was going to fight in America for awhile but would eventually return to Japan.

At age 22, Ishii’s got plenty of time to develop as a fighter. His biggest downside risk from signing with Zuffa is financial since hed be lucky to get a fraction of what FEG is willing to pay him. The competitive logic of learning his craft slowly notwithstanding, theres a huge risk in automatically assuming that he can fight for the UFC for a few years and then cash a big check when he returns to Japan as the potential of injury and changing market conditions could seriously impact his market value. On the other hand, it could be a risk hes willing to take given that hes got his celebrity both with the mainstream public and in the judo community to fall back on. Still, its a logical assumption that the goal of all professional fighters is to maximize their income while facing the best competition possible. For Ishii, a move to the UFC defies both components of that axiom.

Theres another very realistic scenario that it was all a negotiating ploy by Ishii. The UFC was likely willing to play along, figuring that their investment of a few plane tickets and hotel suites would be worth the resulting PR surge in Japan. Ishii and the UFC develop a cordial relationship which could be to the benefit of both parties down the road and both sides realized that a long term commitment wasn’t the right move at this point.

With the recent revelation that Ishii has broken off UFC negotiations to entertain offers from other parties thats starting to look like the plausible explanation for the once hot and heavy courtship between Ishii and Zuffa. Ultimately, the Ishii/UFC affair could simply prove to be a fling that accrued small benefits to each party, but both realized that there was no long term future for the pairing.

As a postscript to the Ishiis relationship with the UFC, it apparently opened the doors for his move to the US where hell be training with the American Top Team in Florida. That alone is a positive for his future development as a fighter, as hell be training with a whos who of professional fighting.

Ross Everett is a widely published freelance sports writer and respected authority on hockey betting. His writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sportsbooks and sportsbook directory sites. He lives in Las Vegas, Nevada with three Jack Russell Terriers and a kangaroo. He is currently working on an autobiography of former interior secretary James Watt.

categories: UFC,sports,recreation,entertainment,celebrities,Japan,business,marketing

Marketing

Vikings Stay Undefeated With Win Over Packers

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Brett Favre has been a significant part of the Minnesota Vikings undefeated start the NFL regular season, and on Monday night he finally beat his old team, the Green Bay Packers. Favre passed for 271 yards and three touchdowns as the Vikings prevailed by a 30-23 final score. The Vikings improved to 4-0, while the Packers dropped to 2-2.

The Vikings rewarded NFL betting enthusiasts by covering the spread as -4 home favorites. Minnesota is now 3-1 against the number, while the Packers loss evened their ATS record on the season at 2-2.

Afterwards , Favre said that he didnt have any unusual emotions playing against his old team:

„I don’t know how to explain it. I felt right, but I guess I never thought I’d be in that situation.“

He had gone out of his way to downplay the significance of the matchup:

„My statement has been what I’ve done over my career. One game does not define my career good or bad. I know what I’ve done. I’m proud of what I’ve done. I know I can play. I wanted to do what it takes to win.“

Favres teammate Adrian Peterson said that the team understood the games importance:

„I definitely wanted to get this win for Brett. He downplayed it all week, but I just knew it meant a lot to him. I could see it in his eyes.“

Packers cornerback Charles Woodson gave credit to Favre, but then admitted that his team didnt help themselves with their effort:

„I don’t think there was any question what he could do when he came back. But you know, we didn’t do ourselves any justice.“

Favres replacement under center in Green Bay, Aaron Rodgers, had a rough night. He was sacked eight times and threw an interception and after the game was critical of his performance:

„Below my expectations, definitely. To have three possessions where you’re in their territory and come away with zero points, two of them are directly related to mistakes by myself, that’s disappointing.“

Vikings coach Brad Childress was impressed with Favre’s poise in the face of all the media focus on playing his former team:

„You don’t want quarterback crying coming out of the locker room. He was great.“

The Vikings will your head to St. Louis to play one of the NFLs worst teams this weekend, the St. Louis Rams. Minnesota has been installed as a -10 favorite with the total set at 39. They’ll return home to host the Baltimore Ravens the following week before playing the Superbowl Champion Pittsburgh Steelers on October 25th. The Packers will take this weekend off before hosting the Detroit Lions on October 18th. They’ll play at Cleveland the following Sunday before a return date with the Vikings at Lambeau Field on November 1st.

Ross Everett is a freelance sports writer and respected authority on World Cup betting. His writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sportsbooks and sportsbook directory sites. He lives in Las Vegas with three Jack Russell Terriers and a kangaroo. He is currently working on an autobiography of former energy secretary Donald Hodell.

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The NFL Returns To London As New England Dominates Tampa Bay

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Sunday’s game between the New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers was played in an unusual venue, but produced the expected result. In the NFL’s third regular season game in London, England the Patriots showed the Wembley Stadium crowd why they’re among the league’s best as they methodically dismantled the Bucs en route to a 35-7 victory. Oddly, it took a trans-Atlantic trip for the Pats to get their first road win of the season-the Bucs were ‚officially‘ the home team in the contest. New England QB Tom Brady threw for 308 yards and 3 touchdowns, though was picked off twice in the workmanlike victory. Tampa Bay remained winless, slipping to 0-7 while New England improved to 5-2.

The Patriots easily covered the pointspread as -15′ ‚road‘ favorites, and improved their record against the number to 4-3 on the season. The Bucs have struggled almost as badly against the NFL pointspread as they have straight up, and slipped to 1-6 versus the money.

Afterwards, Pats‘ QB Brady said that he’s enjoying the trip to England-as well as the victory:

„I’m feeling great. I keep rolling. That’s two wins in a row. We went out there and put two touchdowns on the board there in the second half. We had plenty of distractions coming over here, but everybody was really energized. To get the win and fly home and have a bye week off is just great.“

NFL football is still a big deal in soccer mad England, and over 80,000 fans jammed the stadium for the game. League commissioner Roger Goodell has stated that he’d like to see multiple regular season games held in London, with a possibility of the city eventually receiving an NFL franchise. Even a superstar like Tom Brady wasn’t quite used to the rock star like treatment he received in England:

„All the flashbulbs were going off there before the kickoff. They went on for about 10 minutes, which you don’t see in the States too often. I think it’s a privilege to come over here and get to enjoy this type of experience. It will probably never happen again for us, so we’ll retire 1-0 internationally.“

Even the taciturn coach Bill Belichick was pleased with the experience:

„It’s a great way to end this week. It’s been an enjoyable couple days here and glad we could end it on a positive note.“

And even in Europe, Bucs‘ first year coach Raheem Morris continued to sound like a man in over his head as he made his weekly excuse filled post game comments:

„Tom, he’s the guy that changed the game. He’s the guy you worry about constantly. When you have a great quarterback like that, that’s what he does and that’s what he will do for you.“

The Bucs have now lost 11 straight games, their longest losing streak since a NFL record 26 game losing run in’76-77. As Brady noted, New England will have a bye next week as will Tampa Bay.

Ross Everett is a freelance sports writer and highly respected authority on World Cup betting. His writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sportsbooks and sportsbook directory sites. He lives in Las Vegas with three Jack Russell Terriers and an emu. He is currently working on an autobiography of former interior secretary James Watt.

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Edmonton Gains Sole Possession Of First Place In CFL West With Win Over Stamps

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The Edmonton Eskimos survived a wild back and forth CFL shootout against the Calgary Stampeders before prevailing 38-35 to take over sole possession of first place in the CFL West. Ricky Ray hit Fred Stamps with a 23 yard touchdown pass with just nine seconds to play to earn the victory, erasing the lead that Calgary had earned with their own TD pass less than a half minute earlier.

Winning QB Ricky Ray said that he enjoyed playing in the shootout:

„That was a ton of fun. In the CFL you get to play in a lot of games like this, especially against a guy like (Calgary quarterback Henry) Burris, who has done this to us. It’s great to come out on the winning end of a shoot-out like that. It’s a great uplift for the team. It’s a huge win for us.“

Eskimos head coach Richie Hall said that the outcome couldnt have been timed any better:

„Regardless of what happens, we are coming back in first place. Now we have one up on Calgary. It’s going to be a dogfight for all the teams in the West and any chance you get to win, especially a win like this, it’s a real bonus. It’s great for our confidence.“

Calgarys Burris remembered a very similar situation in a game last year where Edmonton won by the same margin on a last play touchdown:

„They got us last year in this situation and of course you didn’t think it was going to happen again or even could happen again. It felt so great to get that late touchdown and with 38 seconds on the clock nobody was even thinking about last year. We had to stop Jackson and we didn’t. And we had to stop Ray and we didn’t. Kudos to Edmonton.“

Both teams have a bye next week. Calgary returns to action on Aug. 28 in Toronto while the Eskimos will next play on Aug. 29 when they host Hamilton.

Ross Everett is a freelance writer and respected authority on World Cup betting. His writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sportsbooks and sportsbook directory sites. He lives in Las Vegas with three Jack Russell Terriers and an emu. He is currently working on an autobiography of former interior secretary James Watt.

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Phillies Sign Slugger Ryan Howard To Big Money Deal

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Philadelphia Phillies‘ slugger Ryan Howard has two years remaining on his current contract with the club, but the team had no interest in potentially losing him as a free agent. For that reason, the Phillies have worked out a hefty contract extension with Howard that will pay him an average $25 million a year for the next five years. The deal is the second richest in Major League baseball behind the New York Yankees‘ shortstop Alex Rodriguez who pulls down a cool $27.5 million per season. The 30 year old Howard has played his entire career with the Phillies, leading the team to two consecutive World Series including a victory in 2008.

Howard spoke of his loyalty to the team as a primary reason that he jumped at the deal without hesitation:

„That wasn’t a very hard decision.“

„I tell you what, it’s a great feeling to have that security and know where you’re going to be. I feel what I’ve been doing over the last couple of years, I feel pretty confident that down the road, I’ll be right where I want to be and still doing the same things.“

He then threw in a playful jab at the notoriously demanding Philadelphia fans:

„Hopefully there’s no riots taking place back in Philly.“

Even Philadelphia’s GM Ruben Amaro, Jr. was in a joking mood:

„As part of this deal, he has agreed to buy a second home for me.“

He then gave a more serious take:

„We just felt it was good timing for us. We felt No. 1, he’s one of the elite offensive players in the game. We could have waited another year and a half or so and dealt with it later on, but the fact of the matter is we decided he is that important to our organization and to our club and to our future.“

Howard’s agent Casey Close was also upbeat:

„This is a very good contract for him. The reason he felt the time was right was he loves his teammates, he loves the city. He wanted to be a part of something special for a long time to come.“

As was team manager Charlie Manuel:

„This is absolutely great. We signed Ryan Howard quite a few years ago and that means we’re keeping him. He’s one of our guys, he is a Phillie. It’s big for our team. That’s what you set out for. He’s very worthy of it. He is a great player and he is going to continue to be a great player for a while. Everything about it’s good.“

There is some risk involved for the ball club-despite a team option for the 2017 season they’re banking that Howard will remain a high level offensive player. The size of the contract, if nothing else, would make him almost impossible to trade should the team decide to go in a different direction. The Phillies have cooled off somewhat since a red hot start, but are still in first place in the National League East.

Ross Everett is a widely published freelance sports writer and respected authority on NFL football betting. His writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sports news and sportsbook directory sites. He lives in Southern Nevada with three Jack Russell Terriers and a kangaroo. He is currently working on an autobiography of former energy secretary Donald Hodell.

categories: baseball,sports,sports business,entertainment,hobbies,business

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UFC 94 Flashback: GSP Defends Welterweight Title

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BJ Penn entered his main event battle against welterweight kingpin Georges St. Pierre looking to become the first man in UFC history to simultaneously hold titles in two weight classes. GSP never gave him the chance to make history, as he stopped Penn after four increasingly dominant rounds to retain his belt with a TKO victory and make a compelling case for being the pound for pound best fighter in mixed martial arts.

Both fighters had considerable fan support, with vocal, flag waving delegations from the Hawaiian Islands and Canada in evidence. During ring introductions, both men received enthusiastic cheers tempered with a few boos. After the opening horn sounded, however, the Penn backers had little to cheer about while the champions supports broke out in G-S-P chants on several occasions.

Boxing guru Freddy Roach recently praised Penn as the best technical puncher in MMA, but he had no opportunity to bring this weapon to bear as he had trouble finding the range from the outset. GSP mixed up his look perfectly, either staying just outside Penns range using his 6 reach advantage effectively or more often smothering his opponent on takedown attempts. St. Pierre was unable to complete any takedowns during the first round, but easily dictated the pace and style of the bout.

GSP began to assert his dominance in round two“with Penn starting to fatigue he was no longer able to fend off St. Pierres single leg takedown attempts by balancing on one leg. GSP got a takedown early in the frame and began to mount a ground and pound assault while moving around in Penns legendary guard almost at will moving from half guard to side control with frightening ease.

The eventual outcome was foretold between rounds two and three, as the obviously exhausted Penn required a pep talk from his entourage that his fatigue was all in his head. Across the cage, GSP calmly sipped water and listened intently to trainer Greg Jacksons instructions looking for all the world that he could go 12 rounds if necessary.

Round three was similar to the previous one, with GSP taking his opponent to the mat with a decreasing level of resistance and mauling him with punches and elbows once he got there. His complete control over the BJJ black belt Penn was incredible, but hardly surprising given the way that GSP dominated four time NCAA All American wrestler Josh Koscheck on the ground during their matchup.

The fourth round was a wall to wall rout for the welterweight champion, who started by effectively trading strikes with Penn before taking him down once again and resuming his highly successful ground based attack. At this point with GSP moving around at ease and Penn mounting little resistance it was apparent that the challenger was physically spent. St. Pierre almost ended the fight on the ground, as referee Herb Dean repeatedly reminding Penn that he needs to fight back. Penn survived the round on instinct alone, moving around just enough to keep the referee from stopping the proceedings. After the horn sounded to end the fourth round, however, it was evident that Penn had nothing physically or emotionally left and the fight was stopped by Dean on advice from the ringside physician.

Displaying his characteristic class, GSP delayed his celebration until he had crossed the cage and kneeled by his vanquished foe to honor his competitive spirit.

In the co-feature attraction, Lyoto Machida kept his undefeated professional MMA record intact with a first round TKO victory over Thiago Silva. Silva had no answer for Machidas well rounded skills and unorthodox Shotokan karate based style. Machida took his opponent down and knocked his opponent down twice“all counters as Silva was coming forward and Machida backing away. As the first round entered its final seconds, it appeared that Silva started to ease up in anticipation of the horn. Machida used this opportunity for another takedown, and then nailed his surprised opponent with a powerful punch that ended the fight.

Ross Everett is a widely published freelance sports writer and noted authority on World Cup betting. His writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sportsbooks and sportsbook directory sites. He lives in Las Vegas with three Jack Russell Terriers and an emu. He is currently working on an autobiography of former interior secretary James Watt.

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Carolina Thumps Slumping Tampa Bay

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Carolina Panthers‘ quarterback Jake Delhomme struggled on Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and was fortunate that his running backs bailed him out. Delhomme threw for only 65 yards with two interceptions, but D’Angelo Williams (152 yards) and Jonathan Stewart (110 yards) kept the chains moving as the Panthers won their second straight game defeating the Bucs 28-21. Tampa Bay has now lost ten straight dating back to last season and are 0-6 for the first time since’85. Carolina improved to 2-3 with the victory.

NFL sports bettors were faced with a choice between two teams with dismal ATS records in this game, and those who had the guts to take a 1-3 team as a -3 road favorite were rewarded with the cover. It was Carolina’s first NFL pointspread cover of the season and left them with a 1-4 record against the number. Tampa Bay has covered one of their six games this year. The 49 points scored went OVER the total of 40′. Tampa Bay has gone OVER in 4 of 6, while Carolina has exceeded the total in three of their five games.

Delhomme attempted only seven passes in the second half, but the way Williams and Stewart were running there was no reason to put the ball in the air. Williams said that even though Tampa Bay knew what was coming they couldn’t stop the Panthers‘ running game:

„I’m sure everybody in the stadium knew what we were going to do. There were times they had nine in the box and we were still getting 7 or 8 yards.“

There’s been little impatience locally with Bucs‘ rookie head coach Raheem Morris, but his weekly habit of explaining the obvious to rationalize yet another loss is starting to wear thin:

„We got overpowered at the end, and really throughout the game.“

Carolina safety Dante Wesley was ejected after clobbering Bucs‘ return man Clifton Smith after a fair catch call. After the game, Wesley gave this defense for his actions:

„I was just trying to make a play. You can check my record. I’ve never really tried to hurt anybody. I’ve never tried to take a cheap shot on anybody.“

Wesley could face a possible fine or suspension from the NFL but, in all fairness, it did appear to be a momentary mental lapse as he was trying to make a big play and not a deliberate attempt to injure Smith.

Tampa’s schedule has the look of them going from ‚the frying pan into the fire‘ as they host the New England Patriots next Sunday-fresh off of their 57 point drubbing of Tennessee. The Bucs are +14 home underdogs to the Patriots with the total set at 45. They’ll get a week off after that contest and return to action on November 8 as they host the Green Bay Packers. Carolina has an easier draw, hosting the Buffalo Bills next Sunday.

Ross Everett is a widely published widely published freelance sports writer and highly respected authority on sports betting odds comparison. He writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sportsbooks and sportsbook directory sites. He lives in Las Vegas, Nevada with three Jack Russell Terriers and a kangaroo. He is currently working on an autobiography of former energy secretary Donald Hodell.

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Kansas City QB Cassel’s Status Uncertain For NFL Opener

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The good news for the Kansas City Chiefs as they prepare for the start of the NFL regular season is that their starting quarterback is back at practice. The bad news is that they still don’t know when hell be able to play. Matt Cassel returned to the Chiefs practice field on Monday for the first time since he injured his left knee in a NFL preseason game on August 29th. Still, there’s been no confirmation from either he or the team as to when hell return to action. The Chiefs don’t want to take any chances with Cassel due to the inexperience of their backup QB corps.

Cassel, who saw his stock shoot up precipitously as an NFL QB following his solid play in New England after starter Tom Brady went down to a season ending injury, signed a six year, $28 million contract with the Chiefs in the off season. Although Cassel was in full uniform at Mondays practice, head coach Todd Haley was noncommittal about whether he or Brodie Croyle would start Sundays NFL regular season opener on the road against the Baltimore Ravens:

„I think that as the week goes on, we’ll know a little bit more. We’ll know a little bit more with Matt for sure. But it was good that he was out there. He was able to get through some things. As the week goes on a little further, we’ll know a little more as far as where he’s at.“

„It’s good this is a long week. That will help with anybody who’s nicked up. I would say generally you would need to have a full practice to have a chance to play. Generally, you need to have a full Friday practice to have a chance.“

With or without Cassel, the Chiefs offense sputtered in the preseason scoring only two touchdowns. The lack of productivity cost offensive coordinator Chan Gailey his job and Kansas City stumbled to a 0-4 record in their NFL exhibition contests. Haley has taken over the offensive play calling for the time being, though it made no difference in the Chiefs final preseason game. Neither Croyle nor third stringer Tyler Thigpen was particularly sharp in preseason play, though Croyle got the most work and should get the nod on Sunday if Cassell is unable to play. Better to bring Cassel back slowly even if it means losing a game or two rather than rush him back and potentially have him re-injure his knee.

No matter who ends up under center for Kansas City as they start their NFL regular season, theyll face a tough assignment against the defensive tenacity of the Baltimore Ravens. The Chiefs will host the Oakland Raiders in week 2 of the NFL season before traveling to Philadelphia on September 27 for a game against the Eagles.

Ross Everett is a widely published freelance writer who covers travel, casino gambling and NFL football handicapping. He is a consulting handicapper for Anatta Sports where he is responsible for providing daily sports picks. In his spare time he enjoys fine dining, flower arranging and deep sea diving. He lives in Southern Nevada with four dogs and a pet coyote.