Sports Betting Professor

Hello everyone,

Rich here from www.sportsbettingprofessor.com

Well there certainly isn’t a shortage of things to talk about it the NFC East. The cream of the crop in the NFC in recent history, this division is simply riddled with depth. Things have shaken up quite a bit in the offseason and should make for a very interesting year. While most other divisions have clear cut favorites and a team or two that nobody has any faith in, we should be looking at 4 competitive teams in the NFC East.

Philadelphia Eagles (18/1 to win Super Bowl)

It was an interesting offseason so far to say the least about the Eagles. Franchise quarterback and 11 year veteran Donovan McNabb was shipped out to their division foe Washington Redskins. Taking the reins will be virtually untested Kevin Kolb. Although Kolb hasn’t had much playing time, he did show promise this past season, racking up over 700 yards in 2 games. Knowing the football smarts that head coach Andy Reid possesses, it’s tough to imagine that he would get rid of a talent like McNabb without a backup plan. Already stacked with some young talents, if Kolb can hold his own then Philly has potential to be a contender for years to come.

DeSean Jackson leads the young receiver core and could be considered a premier deep threat in the game. Although there isn’t much versatility to him and won’t give you the inside grit that many would like in a receiver, his deep ball potential trumps any doubts about the rest of his game. Next on the receiving depth chart is 2^nd year man Jeremy Maclin out of Missouri. A nice compliment to the receivers is tight end Brent Celek, who has blossomed into a solid receiving TE. Leading the ground game is LeSean McCoy out of Pittsburgh who is also entering his second season. McCoy will be relied upon heavily as they’ve dropped their running back of the last 8 years in Brian Westbrook.

With the offense pretty much ready to go, the eagles main focus in the draft was to fix up their fairly average defense. 2 of their first 3 picks were defensive ends including Michigan’s Brandon Graham 13^th overall. With the 2^nd pick Philadelphia selected USF free safety Nathaniel Allen who is expected to start right away.

With the absence of McNabb and Westbrook, this time has undergone a pretty big makeover. If the young guns can rise up and play significant roles than you can expect a competitive squad. Obviously “if” doesn’t mean much in this business, but I have a feeling that Kolb will make things happen and will make sure that it won’t be a cake walk for anybody when they roll into Philadelphia.

Dallas Cowboys (12/1 to win Super Bowl)

It was a pretty typical season for the Boys of Dallas. They were solid during the regular season going 11-5 and gained some momentum going into the playoffs, only to disappoint in the end. It seemed as though they’d gotten the monkey off their back when they won their first playoff game since 1996 but the victory was only a build up to another let down. Tony Romo broke a number of records last season so it’s hard to place the blame on him, but the 3 points that he led the Cowboys to in the divisional round certainly weren’t going to be enough to beat the Vikings at home.

It seems as though Jerry Jones and co. are finally willing to admit that Roy Williams wasn’t the player that they thought he was. Williams has accumulated only 57 catches for 8 touchdowns in 25 games for Dallas which is a huge underachievement. The Cowboys moved up in the 2010 NFL Draft to select Oklahoma State WR Dez Bryant. Bryant is highly touted and probably the most intriguing player to come out of the draft. He was suspended this past season at Ok. St. due to recruiting issues so it will be interesting to see how he performs at the highest level having not played in 2 years. Bryant will be alongside Dallas’ top receiver, Miles Austin. Austin wasn’t much a factor early on in the season but came on strong to record 81 receptions for 1,320 yards and 11 TDs. TE Jason Witten was once again Romo’s go to guy and put up 94 receptions for 1,030 yards but only 2 TDs. Look for Romo to find Witten more in the red zone in the upcoming season.

The running back by committee concept is popping up more and more in the NFL these days. The Cowboys seem to have a pretty decent system going with Marion Barber being the hammer to pound into the defense, Felix Jones having the breakaway speed to take it to the house at any given time and Tashard Choice having solid abilities of catching out of the backfield and being a solid 3^rd down man.

There aren’t many adjustments on the defensive side of the ball. Free Safety Ken Hamlin is no longer with the team which seems to be the only hole. The Boys defense ranked 2^nd in points in the NFL last season so as long as all of the other pieces stay in place then there seems to be no reason why they can’t be a top tier defense again.

Washington Redskins (25/1 to win Super Bowl)

Where do you even start when talking about the Washington Redskins? The team that has been making the most noise in the NFL this offseason, I feel that the Skins have dramatically improved their team. Washington was more or less a laughing stock for the majority of the 09-10 season.

Mike Shanahan and Jim Zorn, in a single word, are incomparable. If you remember Zorn’s fake FG attempt against the giants last year (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ew76rhNocL0) then there’s not much room for argument with that statement. Many of the Skins’ players last season anonymously noted that not many people in the locker room respected Zorn as a head coach and that he was basically known as a pushover. With Shanahan’s stern style of coaching, it should be a nice change up for this Washington squad.

While Jason Campbell may or may not be a capable starting QB, one thing for sure is that Donovan McNabb is. And while Campbell was hardly protected last year, the Skins have upgraded the offensive line and McNabb shouldn’t expect to take the beatings that Campbell took on a weekly basis. Tackle Jammal Brown from New Orleans should be a solid fit to protect the blind side and Artis Hicks is also a nice improvement. They also selected tackle Trent Williams from Oklahoma with the 4^th overall pick in the draft.

The missing puzzle pieces seem to be at the offensive skilled positions. With 3 running backs out of their prime it may be tough to hold a consistent ground attack. Larry Johnson, Willie Parker and Clinton Portis were all at one time highly coveted running backs but as we all know that doesn’t last very long when you’re a running back in the NFL. The Redskins still have Santana Moss but lost Antwaan Randle El which creates a rather large whole at the number 2 receiver slot. Chris Cooley will be fresh off a leg injury but will be heavily relied upon. Fred Davis also emerged as a capable receiving TE so even though the options will be limited, they won’t be nonexistent.

Big Albert Haynesworth seems to be the thorn in the side of this team. I guess $100 million isn’t enough these days. Haynesworth doesn’t like the 3-4 defense that Washington is trying to use so instead of showing up and doing what he’s paid to do, he instead took a $21 million bonus and decided to not show up. What a pro.

An upgrade in coaching, quarterback and offensive line should ensure that Washington fans won’t have to continue to wear bags over their heads in the upcoming season.

New York Giants (25/1 to win Super Bowl)

The Giants are yet another interesting team in this division to me. After starting out 5-0 last season, they went on the road to lose to the eventual super bowl champion Saints. They then lost 7 of their remaining 10 games to finish the season at 8-8. A big reason for this was simply an injury plagued season. Brandon Jacobs suffered a knee injury which contributed to his touch down totals dropping from 15 the previous season to 5 this past season.  Ahmad Bradshaw, the speedier of the 2 running backs also battled injuries for most of the year.

A lot of people didn’t give the Giants passing game a lot of credit without Plaxico Burress but some young receivers took advantage of their opportunities and showed that they can play at the NFL level. Mario Manningham and Hakeem Nicks, both stand out receivers are their respective Universities but unproven in the NFL world, stood out and had an impact. Add in Eli’s favorite target in Steve Smith and there’s no reason why we shouldn’t expect another solid air attack from the G Men this upcoming season.

The Giants’ defense lost their leader to retirement this offseason in Antonio Pierce. Pierce’s play was dramatically downgraded this season and the 9 year veteran was eventually benched, but he still remained the heart of the defense. There is no lack of depth at the DE position. Justin Tuck, Osi Umenyiora and Mathias Kiwankuka are all exceptional talents.

The problem for the defense of the Giants is the secondary. Opposing teams seemed to be able to throw th ball at will this past season. They brought in Antrel Rolle from the Cardinals who is a hit or miss defensive back which I’m not certain is what they need because of all of the long touchdowns that they gave up last season. He is a big name guy but more of a risk taker than an actual shut down corner.

It’s not often that you’ll hear me talk about a punter in an article about an upcoming football season, but the G Men lost Jeff Feagles in the offseason to retirement. With 22 years experience, it seemed that everytime he punted the ball it would be downed inside the 15 yard line. With field position being a top priority in the NFL, the Giants will definitely be missing his boot.

Have a good one,

Rich

www.sportsbettingprofessor.com

It seems to have been happening at the end of each NFL season for the past three or four years. The question of whether Brett Favre will continue to put his body on the line and strive to get one last Super Bowl title. This question has been a crucial one first for the Packers, then the Jets and now the Minnesota Vikings.

Brett Favre actually holds the future of the Vikings in his hands because if he is to return, the Vikings easily turn into arguably a ten to eleven win team. Without Favre, and with Tavaris Jackson under center the Vikings will have their work cut out for them. They go from having a future Hall of Famer with the most victories in NFL history to an average quarterback with 21 career passing touchdowns.

Now, everything seems to be falling into place with Brett Favre, Brad Childress and the Vikings and I think everybody will be completely surprised if he doesn’t return this coming season. Although it may happen a week before the season actually begins, Favre seems to be prepping for another comeback. He will not need to attend training camp or even preseason games, as long as Favre is dressed in a purple jersey with the number 4 on it on in New Orleans on September 9^th.

It is clear that the Vikings will not have quite the same fire power without the ole gunslinger behind center. Young players like Percy Harvin and Adrian Peterson will almost automatically become better players with Favre passing and handing the ball off during the season. His presence comes along with an attitude that cannot be duplicated. He has played in the most consecutive games of any NFL player in history, and players take note of that. They see Favre fighting through injuries and playing when he is not at 100% and it is contagious in the locker room.

The next question is how does Favre’s decision affect the rest of us? The Vikings will definitely not be as exciting a team to watch if Favre is not there. That matters because the NFL and the television networks are banking on Favre’s return as they have put the Vikings on four primetime telecasts already. In addition, it seems as though Vegas has already penciled in Favre as the starting quarterback for the Vikings in week one. Minnesota is listed at 12:1 to win Super Bowl XLV. They are at 6:1 to win the NFC title in 2011, the best odds of any team and the same as the Dallas Cowboys.

The Minnesota Vikings need Favre there as well, not only for wins and to be contenders in the NFC this year, but also for stadium revenue. Vikings fans hear the name Brett Favre and no matter who they are playing, they believe they can win…realistic or not. That belief will create a buzz in the stadium and will get people in the stands consistently. All in all, Brett Favre is the puppet master and the Vikings are the dangling puppet. They are relying on Favre to be a competitive team this year, and there’s nothing that franchise can do about it. Although Favre is putting us all through this for the 3^rd consecutive offseason, there is no reason to believe he won’t be back in a Vikings Jersey come the beginning of the season.

NFL Preview – AFC West

Hey guys, Rich Allen here from www.sportsbettingprofessor.com

Today we are going to take a look at the AFC West, which has recently been looked at as a rather sub-par division. With only one team finishing with a winning record last year, the AFC West has been struggling to pull themselves out of the cellar of the NFL. However, with new season comes new hope and I’m going to take a look at some of the strengths and weaknesses of this division team by team.

It’s only right to start off with the San Diego Chargers. The Chargers have been the only bright spot of the AFC West the past couple seasons. Finishing the 2009-2010 season with a record of 13-3, Norv Turner has done a fine job leading this team to the postseason but has not found any success thereafter. San Diego has won the last four AFC West division titles and look as though they will do the same this year, with the other teams in the division still in rebuilding modes for the most part. Starting a quarterback, Phillip Rivers as carried this football team to successful seasons since earning the starting job in 2006. He set a career high in passing yards in 2009 with 4254 yards, and he finished 3^rd in the league in passer rating at 104.4. He will have his work cut out for him in the beginning of the season as star wide receiver Vincent Jackson has been suspended for the first three games for violating the league’s personal conduct policy. The Chargers re-signed WR Malcom Floyd as well as RB Darren Sproles and will hope to get more productivity out of them this coming season.

The Chargers let go aging RB LaDainian Tomlinson and drafted RB Ryan Mathews out of Fresno State to hopefully fill that void. Other key draft picks by the Chargers include ILB Donald Butler and SS Darrell Stuckey. They will need more production out of DE Shawne Merriman if they want to improve on their defense that finished 20^th in rushing yards allowed per game with 117.6. They are also very weak in the defensive backfield after losing CB Antonio Cromartie and SS Kevin Ellison. Though their defense has seemed to encounter a few problems, that Chargers will look to supplement it with their stout offense, as they have been doing the past four years. Their current odds to win Super Bowl XLV are listed at 17-2 (+850), the best in their division.

Next up is the Oakland Raiders. Finishing last year with a 5-11 record, the Raiders have been making steps to improve their squad that has been completely inept since making it to the Super Bowl in 2002. They brought in QB Jason Campbell and released former number one pick Jamarcus Russell. They are hoping to leave the disasterous Russell era in the past with a new leader in Campbell who will definitely improve their odds. There is nowhere for this offense to go but up after finishing 2009 29^th in total passing offense with only 2557 passing yards on the year. Michael Bush was somewhat of a bright spot on that offense, averaging 4.8 yards per rush in 2009. The Raiders lost RB Justin Fargas, so they will hope that RB Darren Mcfadden can pick up the work load after averaging 3.4 yards per rush.

The Raiders improved their team greatly through the draft this year…surprising, I know. They drafted ILB Rolando McClain out Alabama, DT Lamarr Houston out of Texas, as well as OT Jared Veldheer out of Hillsdale College. Another aspect of the team which they can build off is the strong passing defense. The Raiders finished 7^th in the NFL in passing defense allowing only 206 yards per game. CB Nnamdi Asomugha who was rattled with injuries last year will no doubt lead that defense to keep points off the board, since it is projected that they will not be scoring much on the other side. Richard Seymour, although getting up in age is still very much feared as a defensive end in this league and will have to step up his game in order for this team to succeed in 2010-2011. The Raiders are currently listed at 100-1 (+10,000) to win the Super Bowl this year, so they have some work to do to gain the respect of sportsbooks.

Next up are the Kansas City Chiefs, who have the same odds to win the Super Bowl as the Raiders, 100-1. Finishing last in the division in 2009-2010 with a record of 4-12, the Chiefs have only won the AFC West once since 1998. Second year coach Todd Haley will be accompanied by highly touted coordinators Charlie Weiss and Romeo Crennel this upcoming season. However, those two can only do so much off the field and it’s up to the players to put the work in to have a winning season. Matt Cassel is coming off a mediocre season where he was 20^th in the NFL with 2924 passing yards, accompanied with an overall passer rating of 55.0. The Chiefs looked to solidify their backfield this offseason by acquiring RB Thomas Jones. He will play alongside Jamaal Charles who finished his season very strong with 658 rushing yards in the final four games of the season. Other offensive weapons Cassel will have to use this season is WR Chris Chambers and WR Dwayne Bowe.

The Chiefs, like the Raiders had a pretty good draft that they can build off. They used their first pick to select safety Eric Berry. The Chiefs are going to need Berry to step in and play a role right away as their defense was rather abysmal, ranking 30^th in the NFL in total defense, allowing 6211 yards on the season. They also need a strong performance out of DE Tyson Jackson who has been injury plagued since being selected 3^rd overall in 2009. They also got offensive utility man Dexter McCluster out of Ole Miss in this year’s draft. Overall, the Chiefs have their work cut out for them in terms of winning the division, but they need to start by piecing together wins avoid another 4 win season.

Lastly we have the Denver Broncos, who finished last season under first year coach Josh McDaniels with a record of 8-8. After starting off the season 6-0, the Broncos stumbled the rest of the way only managing two wins in their last ten games. Before winning the division in 2005, they had not won since 1998, the Elway days. The Broncos are another team in a transition period after losing a few of their big guns this offseason. WR Brandon Marshall left and went down to South Beach (seems to be the trend these days). They also lost TE Tony Scheffler, veteran CB Ty Law, and ILB Andra Davis. However, Kyle Orton did a good job leading that team with mediocre talent to a .500 record. He finished 11^th in the NFL with an average of 238 passing yards per game. However, he will try to replicate last year’s performance without Marshall making freak catches all over the field. This is where WR Eddie Royal and draft pick WR Demaryius Thomas are expected to step in and fill the roles. Of course, we can’t mention Denver Broncos draft picks without mentioning Tim Tebow. Tebow is not expected to do much in his rookie season, but McDaniels seems to be grooming him to be the quarterback of the future for that team.

Defensive Coordinator Mike Nolan was hoping to turn this defense around, and he did that with his passing defense, but it was the complete opposite for his rush defense. Denver finished 3^rd in the NFL in passing defense allowing only 2981 yards on the season. Their rush defense, however, was a complete disaster finishing 26^th in the league with 128.7 yards per game. The discrepancy among these two aspects of their defense must be fixed if they wish to contend in the West. With star players like OLB Elvis Dumervil, S Brian Dawkins, and CB Champ Bailey there’s no reason they can’t balance things out. One additional bright spot on the Broncos last year was the kicker Matt Prater who made 30/35 attempts on the season. Denver is listed at 50-1 (+5000) to win Super Bowl XLV.

Hello everybody,

Rich Allen here from www.sportsbettingprofessor.com

If you’re like me, then you couldn’t wait until the day after “the decision” was made so that all of this LeBron talk would be put to rest. But now that James has signed with Miami along with Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh it begs the question for us gamblers: should I be putting my money this offseason on a Heat futures bet?

There’s no doubt about it, the Heat are a power house. Team chemistry or no team chemistry, when you put 3 top super stars together they are going to create a lot of matchup problems. There are few teams in the league that possess the personnel to defend  3 of the top talents that the NBA has to offer. But can we all pause and remember that after trading away Michael Beasley that this team now has a total of 4 players? I know a lot of people are already crowning the Heat champions but there is a big difference between saying that a team will when and actually being confident enough to put your money where your mouth is.

A lot of people are comparing this new Heat team to the 08’ Celtics. Both acquired 2 key players in the offseason to create their own big 3. But basketball is a team sport and you cannot underestimate the importance of a deep bench. The Celtics didn’t have a highly paid bench but they had key players stepping up at key times to capture that title. No one could have predicted Glen Davis (who barely made the team at the beginning of the season) to come in and have the impact that he had. James Posey may be known as a better than average defender but you couldn’t have seen the shut down defense and clutch 3’s coming.  The point being that the Celtics’ big 3 didn’t get it done by themselves and neither can Miami’s. And with the kind of money being dished out to those top 3 players, you can bet that there will be a big drop off from the starting lineup and those that are going to be replacing them off the bench.

On top of questioning the Heat’s bench and team chemistry, a lot of people seem to be forgetting about the defending champs. There’s a reason why you haven’t heard anything about the Lakers this offseason and that’s because that team is pretty damn good already. You can’t go wrong having a coach with the most titles in history and you have to remember that the core of that Lakers squad are proven winners. Nearly all have 2 rings already while on the other side LeBron and Bosh have yet to win a game in the NBA finals. You also have the defending Eastern Conference champs to consider. Yes we all know and agree that the Celtics are an old team but had they held on to that fourth quarter lead maybe we are sitting around talking about a possible repeat instead of essentially writing them off as being too seasoned as most of the analysts seem to be doing. They have the big 3 all returning and with the emergence of Rajon Rondo and the recent acquisition of Jermaine O’Neal to replace an injured Kendrick Perkins early on in the season, I certainly expect them to be a challenge to this new Heat squad.

As of this article being written, the odds for the Heat to win the NBA title are coming in at 7/4 (was 25/1 before the acquisitions, so good job if you got that in). Odds makers realize the hype that this team is getting is almost unprecedented. They know that people are going to bet the Heat as a future bet more than any other team no matter where they set the odds, so you are really giving up a lot of value by making this bet. I’m not saying that it is or isn’t the right bet to make because I can’t predict the future and a lot can happen from now and the 11 months before a champion is crowned but when making a futures bet, value is what you need to consider. The Lakers are coming in at 11/4. Again, winning less than 3 times your money for a season long bet isn’t very enticing to me. I would take a strong look at a team like the Celtics who are proven winners coming in at 12/1 or the Orlando Magic (who were the best team in the NBA for the 2^nd half of last season) at 10/1. Again, I wouldn’t be surprised in the slightest to see Miami carve through the NBA and take down a ring this season but I feel that it’s important to cover every different point of view before placing money on them.

Have a good one,

Rich

www.sportsbettingprofessor.com

Hello all! Rich Allen here from www.sportsbettingprofessor.com

It’s almost time for training camps to begin which means the regular season will be here in no time. The offseason is when football clubs get all their chess pieces in order through free agency and the draft. We’re going to take a look at the AFC South through each team’s key additions, key losses and draft pick ups.

The reigning champions of the AFC South are the Indianapolis Colts. Finishing the season with a 14-2 record and running away with the title, the Colts jumped out of the gate with 14 straight wins. They only began losing when the title was in hand, and their starters began resting up for the playoffs. Eventually losing in the Super Bowl, Peyton Manning and his crew had the second best passing offense in the NFL last year with 4515 total passing yards. Their passing game was highlighted this year by young studs WR Pierre Garcon and WR Austin Collie, due to an injury early in the season for WR Anthony Gonzalez. Peyton Manning led this high powered offense and in doing that, won his fourth NFL MVP award. The Colts defense, conversely, was not as highly ranked as their potent offense, but it got the job done and helped them get to their second Super Bowl in four years. Their defense seemed to have trouble stopping the run, finishing 24^th in the league in rush defense, allowing 126.5 yards per game. To help improve this aspect of their team for the 2010 season the Colts drafted TCU standout DE Jerry Hughes with the 31^st pick in the draft, as well as ILB Pat Angerer from Iowa with the 63^rd pick. They also resigned the glue that holds that defense together, LB Gary Bracket to a 5 year, 33 million dollar deal. The Colts have the best odds in this division to Super Bowl XLV, currently at +600 (6 to 1). With 2^nd year coach Jim Caldwell at the helm, these Indianapolis Colts have the fire power to continue to dominate this division.

The next team we are going to examine is the Houston Texans. Finishing the 2009 season with a record of 9-7, they finished second in the division and just barely missed a playoff spot. Matt Schaub led this team to the success it had with his best season as an NFL quarterback. He finished with 4,770 total yards, the 6^th most by any quarterback in NFL history. Another player who can take partial credit for some of that success is WR Andre Johnson who showed this season that he is one of the elite wide receivers in the game. Johnson led the NFL with 1,569 receiving yards, and the Texans finished 1^st in total passing yards with 4,654 total yards. On the other side of the ball, the Texans were a mediocre team. They were led by defensive rookie of the year Brian Cushing who finished tied for 5^th in the league with 134 tackles on the season. In addition, Mario Williams managed to get 9 sacks to help the Texans stay in contention down the stretch. They also looked to solidify their defense through the draft by acquiring CB Kareem Jackson out of Alabama with the 20^th pick, as well as DT Earl Mitchell out of Arizona with the 81^st pick. The Texans are going to need help on the defensive side if they want to compete with the Colts, who have dominated the Texans since they came into the league. Since the Texans became a team in 2002, they’ve played the Colts a total of 16 times. Out of those 16 games, the Texans have won one game. Head coach Gary Kubiak, who received a hefty contract extension after the 2009 season through 2015 has some work ahead of him if he wants to change that. The Texans are currently going off at +3000 (30 to 1) to win Super Bowl XLV.

Next, we’re going to look at the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Jags have the recent reputation of being the cellar dwellers of their division, only making the playoffs twice since the year 2000. They made some positive steps in 2009 however, finishing 7-9 in a relatively tough division. The Jaguars are led on the offensive side by star RB Maurice Jones-Drew, who finished 2009 4^th in the NFL with 1,391 rushing yards. They have QB David Garrard under center who is an excellent runner out of the pocket, but who has few weapons at his disposal at wide receiver. Mike Sims-Walker seemed to step up in the 2009 season but compared to other teams in the division, the Jaguars are under-staffed on the offensive side of the ball. Coach Jack del Rio has been the coach since 2003 and some would say he is on the hot seat, and in desperate need of a turn around. Jacksonville’s defense was rather ugly in 2009, finishing 27^th in the NFL in passing defense by allowing 236 yards per game. Similar to other teams in their division, the Jaguars sought to get better on defense in the 20010 draft. They drafted DT Tyson Alualu out of California with the number 10 pick and DT D’Anthony Smith out of Louisiana Tech with the 74^th pick. They also picked up free agent DE Aaron Kampman from the Green Bay Packers. The defense of the Jaguars has seemed to improve in the offseason, however their offense has been stagnant in the recent past and with no key additions while losing veteran WR Tory Holt. The Jaguars have the odds stacked against them this season, and currently have the worst odds to win Super Bowl XLV in the division according to sportsbooks, going off at +5,500 (55 to 1).

The final team to analyze in this division is the Tennessee Titans. The Titans finished the 2009 season at an even 8-8. This is even more impressive considering the Titans started off the season 0-6, but kept bringing it every game after that and finished the remainder of the games at 8-2. When mentioning the Tennessee Titans it is also very important to include star RB Chris Johnson, who won the offensive player of the year this year finishing the season averaging 125.4 yards per game. Second place in that category was Rams RB Steven Jackson with 94.4 yards per game. QB Vince Young finished the year, taking over for veteran Kerry Collins. The Titans are hoping Young is the future for the Titans but he has struggled with consistency over the years. The Titans defense is a very strong squad led by LB Keith Bullock and LB Stephen Tulloch. They also have a strong group of defensive backs led by Cortland Finnegan and Vincent Fuller who combined for 8 interceptions in 2009. They also drafted highly coveted DE Derrick Morgan out of Georgia Tech who will look to have an impact on this strong defense in 2010. The Titans lost a couple of players through trades and free agency in the offseason. RB Lendale White was acquired by the Seahawks, DE Kyle Vanden Bosch signed a four year deal with the Lions, and TE Alge Crumpler signed with the Patriots. Not any enormous names, but key role players that might be missed throughout the long NFL season. The Titans are currently at +2600 (26 to 1) to win Super Bowl XLV. Coach Jeff Fischer, who has been with Tennessee since 1994, will do his best to improve the play of his players this season, and he will need to if he wants to keep up with the other contenders in the AFC South.

Rich Allen

www.sportsbettingprofessor.com

Hello,

Rich Allen here from www.sportsbettingprofessor.com

Known for their hard hitting smash mouth football, the AFC North is historically one of the top divisions in the NFL and there seems to be no reason why this season won’t be the same. The 6 game suspension of Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger is certain to shake things up a bit, but with draft picks and off season acquisitions there’s always something to talk about. On paper, the division looks to be up for grabs. Let’s get into things on a team by team basis.

Baltimore Ravens (+1600 for Super Bowl)

This division is certainly up for whoever wants it most. However the Ravens are going to be a tough draw for anybody and in my opinion the team to beat. In recent years, Baltimore’s Achilles heel has been their receiving core. In this past offseason they have acquired WR Donte Stallworth who is fresh off a yearlong suspension, but has always had the speed to be a solid 3^rd receiver to play the outside. In a trade with the Cardinals, they have also acquired WR Anquan Boldin who is a perfect fit for this Baltimore squad. Boldin’s tough style of play is exactly what coach Harbaugh was looking for. One of the most versatile receivers in the game, Boldin is a threat to play the outside and go long as well as a reliable slot receiver to play the inside on 3^rd downs.

The Ravens found themselves in unchartered on draft day. They had the 25^th pick overall in the first round, but traded it away to the Denver Broncos for the 43^rd, 70^th and 114^th overall picks in the draft. This would be the first time in team history that they traded out of the first round. A very smart move which can be attributed to coach John Harbaugh, who is one of the better coaches in the game in my opinion. The 3 picks turned out to be OLB Sergio Kindle from Texas, TE Ed Dickson from Oregon and TE Dennis Pitta from BYU. Kindle was a projected first rounder but fell significantly due to questions about an injured knee. Dickson and Pitta are a couple of pass catching TEs who are both capable of having immediate impacts. They also got DT Terrence Cody from Alabama with their own 2^nd round pick, a massive run stopper who should pair well with Haloti Ngata. Other draft selections include WR Davis Reed from Utah and DT Art Jones out of Syracuse both in the 5^th round and OT Ramon Harewood out of Morehouse in the 6^th.

Pittsburgh Steelers (+1800 for Super Bowl)

It’s been an interesting offseason to say the least for the Steelers. Remember that miracle touchdown pass to win the super bowl the year before last? Well receiver Santonio Holmes has found a new home in New York and will be playing for the Jets this next season. Add that with Big Ben’s 6 game suspension looming and it could be a season breaker for Pittsburgh. A year after Ben threw for career highs in completions (337), completion percentage (66.6) and passing yards (4328), it looks like the Steelers will have to get back to running the ball and smash mouth defense, at least for the first half of the season.

Their key area of need was their offensive line. After watching Big Ben take a beating nearly every game last season, the team addressed this with their first pick in the 2010 draft. Center Maurkice Pouncey from Florida will be an immediate impact player for the Steelers. The scouting report on Pouncey is that he can play either center or guard and is one of the more physical linemen coming out of the draft. Another name that you might recognize is Jonathan Dwyer, who fell to the Steelers all the way in the 6^th round. During his senior campaign at Dwyer was projected to be a first or second rounder, but was selected at 188 overall after a disappointing combine showing. Georgia Tech used Dwyer as a full back in their triple option attack, but will likely play as a hardnosed ball carrier as a Steeler.

Cincinnati Bengals (+2850)

The Bengals as of recent years seem to be one of those teams that are always on the cusp of being a contender but can never quite get over the hump. With an impressive 9-3 start in the 2009-2010 season, the Bengals would eventually win the division. However they characteristically fell off and eventually lost their opening playoff game at home to the Jets. The bright spot for the Bengals came from surprising but impressive RB Cedric Benson. Their defense was also on top of their game ranking 4^th in the NFL, and will need more of the same if they want to contend in the upcoming season. Cincy will have their work cut out for them as their schedule has them playing 8 playoff teams from last season.

After releasing 1 year Bengal Laveranues Coles, Cincinnati has signed WR Antonio Bryant. I must say I was also impressed with the Bengals drafting. Their first selection was the top TE in the draft in Jermaine Gresham from Oklahoma. Gresham has excellent receiving skills and will be a nice compliment to Chad Ochocinco and Bryant. Cincinnati did everything they could to improve their passing game as they also got WR Jordan Shipley who will be somewhat of an undersized slot receiver but definitely has potential. Another WR that they acquired through the draft was Desmond Briscoe out of Kansas in the 6^th round who is big and skilled and was worth a shot that late in the draft. Another talented draft pick was DE Carlos Dunlap out of Florida in the 2^nd round. A freak of an athlete, Dunlap has been compared to both Jevon Kearse and Julius Peppers but also has some off the field issues. It seems like a perfect match as we all know that the Bengals aren’t very picky about stuff like that.

Cleveland Browns (+8000)

God bless them. Cleveland has been somewhat of a laughing stock for the most part in recent history. They’ve definitely taken the first step in the right direction in hiring offensive guru Mike Holmgren as president of the organization. The Browns have also done a complete makeover of their QB staff in getting rid of Derek Anderson and Brady Quinn and acquiring Seattle backup Seneca Wallace and former Panthers QB Jake Delhomme who played for a super bowl in the 2003-2004 season.

The Browns drafted QB Colt McCoy in the 3^rd round of this year’s draft, who they are hopeful to be the franchise QB after developing him for a year or two. Although I would have liked to see them tune up their offense a bit, it was still a pretty decent draft for the Brownies. With the 7^th overall pick in the draft Cleveland selected CB Joe Haden from Florida who is a legitimate shut down corner. Many were surprised that their 2^nd round pick was another addition to their secondary in T.J. Ward from Oregon. A hard hitting safety, a lot of people thought that they were reaching with this pick but with a secondary like theirs it’s tough to argue the reasoning for trying to improve it. Another key name as a Cleveland draft pick was Tennessee RB Monatrio Hardesty. A north south, looking for contact runner, he will be a nice compliment to the speedy Jerome Harrison. The Browns have also acquired Peyton Hillis from Denver as another addition to their back field.

Take Care,

Rich

www.sportsbettingprofessor.com

Hello,

Rich Allen here from www.sportsbettingprofessor.com

Well how bizarre was that. Upset after upset in the first round is making for a very intriguing second round. We saw the top 3 seeds in the conference fall to the bottom 3 and now it’s anybody’s playoffs to win. The first round just goes to prove that you’re only as good as your goaltending and goalies can take over a series singlehandedly. In hockey more than any other sport, team’s true identities come out in the playoffs and whoever wants it more will end up with the W. There’s not many other ways to explain how the 6, 7 and 8 seeds can knock off the 1, 2 and 3 seeds.

Philadelphia Flyers (+130) at Boston Bruins (-150)

Talk about getting a gift from the hockey Gods, how about the Bruins getting home ice in the second round as a 6 seed? I must say I was surprisingly very impressed with both of these teams in the first round. Philadelphia made quick work of 2^nd seeded New Jersey, taking the series in just 5 games. Boston and 3^rd seeded Buffalo produced a nail biter nearly every game that they played. Both teams showed great physicality in the opening round and should make for an exciting series. If you watched this year’s winter classic at Fenway Park, you know that this will be a good one. Expect some old time hockey in this one. Neither team is very flashy and both will look to crowd the front of the net and capitalize on rebounds.

Philadelphia will be without forwards Jeff Carter and Simon Gagne for the entire series which is a huge blow. Their bright spot in the first round came from goalie Brian Boucher. The 33 year old journeyman had a .940 save percentage and 1.59 goals against average in the first round against the limited offense of the Devils. The Bruins play a similar style of the Devils, not a flashy offense by any means and gets by by keeping the puck out of their own net. The Flyers will rely heavily on defenseman Chris Pronger on the penalty kill, as the Flyers are notorious for taking penalties and don’t really have the offensive power to get into a high scoring affair. Injuries will haunt Philadelphia’s power play and they may struggle to light the lamp consistently against another hot goalie.

While Philadelphia is losing essential pieces of their power play to injury, the Bruins are heading in the opposite direction. Marc Savard will make his first appearance since suffering a concussion late in the season against Pittsburgh. Savard is the piece that makes this power play go and they should have plenty of opportunities against a Flyer team which had the 2nd most penalty minutes in the league in the regular season. Savard will look to get LW Marco Sturm going, who led the team in goals during the regular season but has yet to record a single point in the post season. Tuukka Rask has simply stood on his head the entire season for the Bruins. The young goalie has carried the team on his shoulders which was dead last in the league in goals for.

Montreal Canadians (+250) at Pittsburgh Penguins (-300)

Well Montreal pulled off the unthinkable huh? I can guarantee you that the 3 other teams that had already moved on to the second round instantly became Montreal fans for that game 7.

Pittsburgh has got to be licking their chops for this one. A battle tested team who knows what it takes to win, gets an 8 seed coming off an emotional 7 game series. There’s nothing new on the offensive front for the Penguins with Sid the Kid tallying 14 points in the first round, leading all skaters. Evgeny Malkin is behind him with 8 first round points. The Canadians will have their hands full with the depth and experience of the Pens.

Montreal is led up front by unsung heroes Tomas Plekanec and Michael Cammalleri. Cammalleri led the team with 10 points and Plekanec with 7, but those numbers can be deceiving as they were a combined -7 for the series. First year Canadians Scott Gomez and Brian Gionta will have to bring their A games if they want to hang with a Pittsburgh team who is capable of scoring at any given time with anybody on the ice. Marc-Andre Bergeron has proven to be somewhat of a liability on defense and will need to improve as he put up a -8 against Washington. Jaroslav Halak got the start for Carey Price who got pulled after giving up 4 goals in the first game. Halak was the bread and butter for Montreal in the opening series and put up a .939 save percentage. He held Washington to just 1 goal on 42 shots in the finale of the series and will look to continue his solid play.

In the end, I’m just not sure Montreal has what it takes to hang with the defending Stanley Cup champs. But then again, that’s what most everybody had been saying before the Capitals’ series as well. Although it didn’t seem it in the first round, the Bell Centre is a tough place to go on the road and get a win and the fans will look to be the equalizer in the home games.

Take care,

Rich

www.sportsbettingprofessor.com

Hello,

Rich Allen here from www.sportsbettingprofessor.com

Well unlike over in the East where things went up in flames for the top dogs and the conference has been shaken up a bit, the West remains pretty conventional.  In fact we had exact opposites as far as seeds go for the 2 divisions. In the East we had 4, 6, 7 and 8 coming out and in the West it was 1, 2, 3 and 5 that were victorious. Both divisions are only going to get more enjoyable to watch and just a little bit tougher to handicap. Let’s get down to it.

Detroit Red Wings (+110) at San Jose Sharks (-130)

This could potentially be one of the better series of the whole playoffs. Both squads are just stacked with talent. It’s no surprise that Detroit has been led offensively by Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg, as the top 2 forwards have combined for 11 goals through the first round. Valtteri Filppula and Johan “the mule” Franzen contributed 7 points each to help the Wings skate past a scrappy Coyotes team. Rookie goalie Jimmy Howard was pretty average in the first 7 games, and will have to be at the top of his game to hold off a high powered Sharks offense.

San Jose’s offense hasn’t come from its top guns. Joe Thornton has taken his annual playoff vacation and went fairly unnoticed per usual in the first round. Nobody on the Sharks top line of Thornton, Marleau and Heatley is in the top 5 on the team in scoring. Instead, Ryan Clowe and Joe Pavelski lead the way with 8 points followed by fellow line mate Joe Setoguchi and defenseman Dan Boyle both with 6. The Sharks top line will have to show up this round as getting by Detroit won’t be a cake walk.

The pressure is surely on San Jose, as they led the conference for the majority of the season and have become known for their playoff collapses. Rumors are already floating around that anything less than a Cup will result in a restructuring of the team and staff. Both teams match up pretty evenly and goaltending will be the difference in this one in my opinion. Nabokov has been hot and cold, looking like Swiss cheese in the first couple of games but ended up closing out the series strong. The big 3 for San Jose will start to produce eventually; Howard will have to do a solid job containing them. Keep an eye on the totals for this series as both teams can score at any given time and goalies are certainly capable of giving up softies.

Vancouver Canucks (+120) at Chicago Blackhawks (-140)

This series certainly isn’t lacking in talent. The Sedin twins, to no surprise, are leading the Canucks offensively. Henrik Sedin led the NHL regular season in points and is the center piece in making this offense work. Mikael Samuelsson has been a huge surprise. An offseason acquisition from the Red Wings, Samuelsson is atop the Canucks post season scoring leaders.

On the other side of things, Chicago has some of the top young talent in the league. Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews are surely exciting to watch. The Blackhawks had a balanced offensive attack from their top forwards in the first round, with Toews with 8 points and Kane, Hossa and Sharp all with 7. Norris Trophy finalist Duncan Keith will have to improve his game in the second round. The 26 year old defenseman tallied only 2 points and had a team low -4 plus/minus.

Neither goalie really had anything to write home about after round 1. Olympic gold medal winning Roberto Luongo really didn’t have a showing like the Luongo that we’ve come to know. He made the crazy saves that nobody could be expected to make, but also let in his fair share of softies which can make or break a season. Meanwhile for the Blackhawks, Antti Niemi was also pretty hit or miss. He came out of the series with 2 shutouts, but also let up at least 3 goals in 4 of the other games.

Both teams will have to play close to mistake free hockey. Each squad has the transition game to capitalize on key turnovers which could be the difference in going to the Western Conference Finals or hitting the fairways early.

Regards,

Rich

www.sportsbettingprofessor.com

Hello there. Rich Allen here from www.sportsbettingprofessor.com.

Can you smell it in the air? The NFL draft is over and training camps are just around the corner, which means the regular season will be here in no time. It’s never too early to hype up the NFL season, and I’m going to start it off right with a preview of the AFC East. This is going to be one of the strongest divisions in the NFL this year with a number of key players entering and exiting via free agency or the draft. Even though the Patriots have had the upper hand in this division for the past decade, with the new season comes new life and the AFC East title is completely up for grabs.

The Patriots are the defending champions with a 10-6 record. They undoubtedly have the best quarterback in the division with the golden boy Tom Brady leading their powerful offense. Wes Welker is said to be out for the first half of the year after tearing his ACL and MCL at the end of last year. This leaves an open hole that needs to be filled by receivers like Randy Moss, the recently acquired Torry Holt, and 2009 draft pick Brandon Tate out of UNC who is expected to make a difference. The Patriots also made some moves to get weapons for Tom Brady in the 2010 draft by enlisting the help of TE Rob Gronkowski out of Arizona, TE Aaron Hernandez out of Florida, and WR Taylor Price out of Ohio University. Defensively, the Patriots are trying to get younger through the draft. The dropped LB Adalius Thomas, while  resigning Vince Wilfork and drafting a number of young cornerbacks and linebackers. The current odds on the New England Patriots winning the Super Bowl XLV are listed at +1,000, the best for any team in the AFC East. It will be interesting to see whether or not the Patriots can keep up their domination or if the Jets, Bills or Dolphins can knock them off.

The team that many experts are saying will challenge the Patriots in the AFC East is the New York Jets. Lead by pro bowler Bart Scott, the Jets have restocked their defense in hopes of maintaining their top ranked defense who held opponents to an NFL best 236 total points. With no salary cap in the upcoming season, the Jets didn’t hold back by acquiring two high caliber defensive players, CB Antonio Cromartie and DE Jason Taylor. They also drafted top prospect Kyle Wilson, cornerback out of Boise State. Offensively, the Jets are lead by second year quarterback Mark Sanchez. Having a stellar rookie season, Sanchez will be helped by a number of free agent signings made by the organization including RB LaDainian Tomlinson and WR Santonio Holmes. The Jets are currently at +1,500 to win the Super Bowl this year. They have definitely upgraded their squad to give the rest of their division quite a scare.

Next up is the Miami Dolphins, who have come a long way from being the laughing stock of the league in 2007 with their 1-15 record. They have greatly upgraded their team in the past three years and continue to strive to reach the top, which they did in 2008 being the only team in the past seven years to win the AFC East title besides the New England Patriots. They acquired arguably the best wide receiver on the market in Brandon Marshall to help balance their run oriented offense. They have quite the one-two punch at running back with Ronnie Brown and the resurgence or Ricky Williams. The Dolphins sought to solidify their defense in the draft after losing LB Joey Porter to the Arizona Cardinals. They drafted DE/DT Jared Odrick out of Penn State and DE/OLB Koa Misi out of Utah. The Dolphins finished 25^th in the league in 2009 by allowing 24.4 points per game, and will need to turn things around if they want to hold off the other teams in the division. Their current odds to win Super Bowl XLV are at +4,000, which puts them third in the AFC East according to sportsbooks. The Dolphins are not thought of as favorites by any means, but you can never count out a team lead by Bill Parcells.

Lastly, we take a look at the Buffalo Bills. The Bills have struggled in the past and have not won the AFC East since 1995. Last year they had two strong running backs in Marshawn Lynch and Fred Jackson who led them to a mediocre 16^th ranking in the NFL with 1,867 total rushing yards in 2009. They let WR Terrell Owens go and drafted highly touted RB C.J. Spiller out of Clemson. However, still being left with a huge question at quarterback you wonder how effective a great player like Spiller can be in the Bills system. Defensively, the Bills were a middle of the pack team in 2009. They brought in key role players in DE/DT Dwan Edwards from the Ravens and ILB Andra Davis from the Broncos to help their defense. In addition, they drafted NT Torell Troup out of Central Florida and DE/DT Alex Carrington out of Arkansas State to help prevent their D. The Bills are going to struggle to keep up with the rest of the teams in their division this year. Listed as +10,000 to win the Super Bowl, the Bills have a steep challenge ahead of them in the 2010-2011 NFL season.

Hello,

Rich Allen here from www.sportsbettingprofessor.com

OK so it might not be the night we’ve all been waiting for, but if we can’t have Pacquiao Mayweather then I’ll take it. The Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Shane Mosley fight will take place May 1^st, 2010 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

This line has had some pretty big movement. If you got it early on when it came out in early February, hopefully for value’s sake you got Mayweather at -260 and not Mosley at +200. As of this article being written, the odds sit at Mayweather -450 and Mosley +325.

We all know about Floyd and how talented he is. His undefeated record can’t and won’t be overlooked. His shoulder rolling defensive style is certainly a thing of beauty. Many will argue that Mayweather has never been tested. However with victories over the likes of Ricky Hatton, Juan Manuel Maquez and Oscar De La Hoya just to name a few, others would argue that he is just that good that he makes it look that easy.

Mosley is a warrior in every sense of the word. His advantage in this fight will come from his power. Once he senses that his opponent is hurt, he pounces and goes for the kill as good as anyone. He is coming off of knock out victories in his last two bouts, coming against Antonio Margarito in January of 2009 and Ricardo Mayorga in September 2008. At the same time, I don’t think I can remember ever seeing Floyd in trouble or phased in any type of way by an opponent. If Mosley can connect with some flush shots it will definitely make for an interesting fight.

Floyd’s boxing IQ is 2^nd to none. His speed and quickness along with his ability to not get lured into his opponents’ game plans makes him as tough to beat as they come. With trainer Nazim Richardson in Shane’s corner there’s no doubt that they will have a tactful approach to the fight, but with Floyd’s ability to adjust on the fly, a lot of people have doubts if that will be enough. On the other side, many believe that Shane doesn’t have the boxing mind that is required to beat Floyd. Mosley from time to time will suffer mental lapses and get impatient in the ring.

This will be Mosley’s 2^nd fight with Richardson. Nazim is viewed as a top tier trainer and will surely have a calculated game plan in hoping to take down the best. Let’s hope that it’s altered from the 40 game plans that Floyd has gone up against previous to this, as they have all fallen short. As Mayweather himself would put it, “40 have tried and 40 have failed.” Floyd’s corner has been the same pretty much since the beginning, with his uncle Roger leading the training.

In the end, does Shane have a chance? Sure. Would I be willing to risk my money on that? Probably not. +325 is not enough for me to bet against a 40 and 0 fighter. If I had gotten the line when it opened at -260 I probably would have considered making a play on Mayweather, but at -450 it’s just not worth it for me. 

Take care,

Rich

www.sportsbettingprofessor.com