Sports Betting News: NFL Team History | NFL Football Betting | College Football Betting | Baseball Betting | Basketball Betting | College Basketball Betting | Hockey Betting | Golf Betting | Tennis Betting | Auto Racing Betting | Horse Racing Betting | Soccer Betting
08/11/2010 - Brooklyn, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Series: NASCAR Sprint Cup. Date: Sunday, August 15. Race: CARFAX 400. Site: Michigan International Speedway. Track: two-mile oval. Start time: 1:00 p.m. (et). Laps: 200. Miles: 400. 2009 winner: Brian Vickers. Television: ESPN. Radio: Motor Racing Network (MRN)/SIRIUS NASCAR Radio.
With four races remaining before the Chase begins, tension is building among several drivers who hope to secure a spot in the playoffs. Just 205 points separate 12th-place Mark Martin from 19th-place Juan Pablo Montoya, who won his second career Sprint Cup race last weekend at Watkins Glen International.
Montoya made the Chase for the first time last year, finishing eighth in points. He is a long-shot in making the playoffs for the second year in a row, but anything can happen between this weekend's race at Michigan and next month's regular-season finale at Richmond.
"I think it's been for a while realistic that to make it you need a miracle," Montoya said. "Win one week, lose another. I made a lot of mistakes this year. I hurt the team a lot from that point."
Montoya snapped a 113-race winless streak in NASCAR's top-tier series at Watkins Glen. His first win came in June 2007 at the road course in Sonoma, CA. Montoya's win at Watkins Glen allowed him to gain two position in the standings.
"I think last year we didn't have the pace we have this year, and we made the Chase pretty easy, I thought," Montoya added. "This year, we had two cars capable, easily making the Chase, and both cars are out. That's what it is, I guess."
The closest battle in the "Race to the Chase" right now is between Martin and 13th-place Clint Bowyer.
After finishing 32nd at Watkins Glen, Bowyer dropped out of the top-12, as he trails Martin by a slim 10 points. Martin moved up one spot in the standings after his 19th-place run.
"This team is improving every week, and we just have to keep that going in Michigan," Martin said. "It's a good feeling to be back in there (top-12), but it's not at all a relief. We have four races to go. Anything can happen."
Martin won at Michigan in June 2009.
Bowyer's Richard Childress Racing teammates Kevin Harvick and Jeff Burton are first and third in points, respectively. Harvick could become the first driver to clinch a spot in the Chase this year, as he currently is 569 points ahead of Martin.
Ryan Newman, Kasey Kahne and Montoya are those drivers who made last year's Chase, but presently sit outside of the top-12. Newman is 83 points behind Martin in the 14th spot.
"It's still a great race for that 12th spot," Newman said. "I think it's easy to see that with all the shifting in the points each week. While we would much rather be inside the top-12 already, we've put ourselves in a good position to make the Chase, thanks to a lot of hard work by everyone at Stewart-Haas Racing."
Jamie McMurray, winner of the Daytona 500 and the Brickyard 400 this year, is 94 points in back of the 12th position. McMurray jumped from 17th to 15th after an impressive sixth-place run at Watkins Glen.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. sat in 11th place after last month's race at Daytona, but has fallen to 16th with finishes of 23rd of worse in the last four races. Earnhardt Jr.'s last win in the series came in June 2008 at Michigan (79 races ago).
Could Sunday be the day Earnhardt Jr. finally snaps his winless streak?
"[Crew chief] Lance [McGrew] and the guys unloaded a great car last time at Michigan," said Earnhardt Jr., who finished seventh at Michigan two months ago. "We've had some good runs with this car. I enjoy going to Michigan because it's so wide. It has a lot of different grooves, and we can move around and find places to run on the track. We like coming here because it's in the backyard of the manufacturers. Hopefully, we'll get a win for Chevrolet."
Kasey Kahne heads to Michigan 133 points behind Martin, while David Reutimann trails by 166 markers.
Earlier this week, Red Bull Racing announced that Kahne will drive one of their Sprint Cup cars next year. Kahne will then move over to Hendrick Motorsports in 2012 to drive Martin's No.5 car.
Up until the 2009 season, Roush Fenway Racing had been dominant at Michigan, winning a Cup race there for seven consecutive years. Team owner Jack Roush, who resides 60 miles away from the two-mile track in Northville, MI, recorded his 11th victory there with driver Carl Edwards in August 2008. Roush moved into a tie with the Wood Brothers for most car owner wins at the track.
Roush remains at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN after suffering facial injuries during a plane crash two weeks ago in Oshkosh, WI. His condition was upgraded to fair last week, but his release date from the hospital remains undetermined.
Last week at Pocono, Greg Biffle gave Roush and manufacturer Ford its first Cup victory of the 2010 season. Biffle presently occupies the 11th position, but holds a comfortable 112-point advantage over Martin.
"We know we are in the fight of our life to get in the Chase right now," Biffle said. "We have Michigan, Atlanta and Bristol all coming up, and those are some great racetracks for us that are right down our alley."
Biffle won back-to-back races at Michigan from August 2004 to June 2005.
Forty-seven teams are on the preliminary entry list for the CARFAX 400.
<< Braden goes the distance to help A's down Seattle
Seattle, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dallas Braden threw his fourth complete game
of the season -- and of his career -- while Mark Ellis doubled three times and
drove in as many runs in helping the Athletics salvage their three-game series
with th
<< This Week in Auto Racing August 13 - 15
Brooklyn, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series
head to the Irish Hills of Michigan, while the Camping World Truck Series
returns to Darlington after a six-year hiatus at the track too tough to tame.
NASCA
<< Great West title race is often, well, great
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The concept that "there is little margin
for error" doesn't hold much merit in the five-team Great West football
conference.
There's usually no margin for error.
There's been a different champion in eac
<< McCann's slam helps Braves bounce back to beat Astros
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brian McCann's grand slam capped a six-run
10th inning as the Atlanta Braves downed the Houston Astros, 8-2, in the
finale of a three-game set.
Alex Gonzalez drove in two runs while Omar Infante fin
U.S. falls five spots in FIFA rankings, top 13 remain unchanged >>
Zurich, Switzerland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The top 13 positions in the FIFA
World Rankings stayed the same, with 2010 World Cup Champions Spain staying in
the top spot.
Runners up Netherlands is second, followed by Brazil, Germany and Arg
Abreu's homer lifts Angels past Royals, completes sweep >>
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Bobby Abreu hit a game-winning home run with
one out in the 10th inning, leading the Los Angeles Angels to a 2-1 victory
and a three-game sweep over the Kansas City Royals.
Abreu's 14th home run of the
Trucks return to Darlington since 2004 >>
Darlington, SC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Series: NASCAR Camping World Truck. Date:
Saturday, August 14. Race: Too Tough to Tame 200. Site: Darlington Raceway.
Track: 1.366-mile "egg-shaped" oval. Start time: 7:30 p.m. (et). Laps: 147.
Miles: 200.8. 20
Jones joins Potters in record deal >>
Stoke-on-Trent, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Stoke City manager Tony Pulis has
broken his club's transfer record by snapping up Sunderland striker Kenwyne
Jones in an eight million Euro deal.
The 25-year-old Trinidad and Tobago interna
MySportsbook.com favors Bears, Bengals, Chargers and Colts to remain perfect
LAS VEGAS , Sept. 28 - Two big match-ups of undefeated teams have fans salivating at the Week Four schedule in the NFL. The Chicago Bears stifling defense looks to provide a less than hospitable welcome to the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday night in a battle of two 3-0 teams in the NFC conference. In the AFC, the San Diego Chargers (2-0) head to Maryland to face the surprising Baltimore Ravens (3-0) as both try to keep pace atop the conference standings. Betting Lines makers at MySportsbook.com, online sportsbook and casino, have set the Bears as 3.5 point favorites while the Chargers are a 2.5 point bet.
Of the three remaining undefeated teams, only one, New Orleans, enters this week's game as an underdog. Despite an emotional and resounding win over Atlanta on Monday night, the Saints are a 7.5 point underdog against the struggling Carolina Panthers. Indianapolis looks to stay perfect when they face the New York Jets as a 9 point road favorite while the Cincinnati Bengals are a 6 point favorite at home to the New England Patriots.
Six teams enter the week still looking for their first win, with a seventh, Tampa Bay, on a bye week. The prospect of dropping another game would not bode well for a potential playoff run. Since 1990, just three teams -- the 1992 Chargers, 1995 Detroit Lions and 1998 Buffalo Bills -- have overcome losing their first three games of the season to earn a postseason berth. And only the Chargers managed to accomplish the feat after starting 0-4.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your NFL football betting needs.
After all the trouble that’s ensued since Braylon Edwards allegedly punched one of LeBron James’ homeboys in the face at a club, the Cleveland Browns have sent away their last remaining player of worth to the New York Jets. This is a great move for Dirty Sanchez and all, but it’s even better for the Knicks. Now Donnie Walsh can say, “You get to haunt Braylon Edwards with your posse if you sign here!” next summer.
Putting that aside for a moment, the move is a clear indication that the new-look Jets are gunning for the Super Bowl this year. I don’t think that New York thought that Dirty Sanchez was going to be such a rock star. With a 75.2 passer rating that was killed against the Jets, Sanchez is doing an admirable job of managing games and putting the Jets in a position to win. The defense has been the major story in New York thus far, but the acquisition of Braylon Edwards makes this offense loaded with talent that can dent any defense…as long as Dirty Sanchez continues his meteoric rise.
Thus far, Edwards has been a non-factor in the NFL piling up just 139 receiving yards on 10 catches. He has yet to find the endzone, and with the Browns mired in the most unsexy quarterback controversy of all time (Anderson vs. Quinn...yawn), there going nowhere fast. Edwards is two seasons removed from a career year which saw him catch 80 passes for 1,289 yards and 16 touchdowns when the Browns were the spread killing monsters of 2007. In 2008, injuries slowed the receiver down to just 873 yards and three touchdowns though he played in all 16 games.
So that being said, we really don’t know if Braylon Edwards is just a flash in the pan, or a legit threat. At 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, he is a prototypical receiver. But he’s also shown a strange, and unwarranted, talent for dropping passes. Lining up opposite Jericho Cotchery, a speed demon with 23 catches, 356 yards and a single touchdown, may give Braylon the open looks he needs. A change of scenery may also rejuvenate the star receiver.
In return, the Browns will receive Chansi Stuckey, online football betting a special teams player you’ve never heard of and a pair of draft picks. That’s a tall order for a guy whose only real value right now is in his name, and it shows no promise to the Browns that they can rebuild around those acquisitions. Braylon was the only reason to hope for the Browns to go 3-14 SU this year. Without him, they don’t have a single guy on offense that can scare any team.
For the Jets, it’s a response to the pounding that they took at the hand of the Saints. Thomas Jones and Leon Washington have averaged around 4.0 yards per carry each on the ground, but striking a fair balance between the passing and rushing attacks in New York has been a struggle. You have to believe that the trio of Dustin Keller, Jericho Cotchery and Braylon Edwards will give Sanchez the weapons he needs to unleash through the air. Theoretically, that would open up holes for the rushing game. But the proposed public option health care plan works in theory too. We need to see the proof in the pudding before we start loading up mega bucks on the New York Jets to take the AFC.
The one wrinkle in this whole thing is that Braylon could very well be suspended by the league for disciplinary action due to his “brawl” with LeBron’s friend. If that’s the case, the Jets may have to bench him for a few games leaving them with a somewhat depleted receiving corps for a few games. Also, this is a guy who gets in fights with people at clubs. New York may not be the best place for him. Just sayin’.
The Jets have a long week before they meet the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football Betting in a virtual pick ‘em game. Braylon’s excess baggage may be a distraction, and his curiously low production may be what we should be expecting of him overall, but for the Jets, taking a chance to strike gold is well worth it. At the end of the year, they can simply just blame it on their rookie quarterback.
To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your college football betting needs.
Sports Betting News: NFL Team History | NFL Football Betting | College Football Betting | Baseball Betting | Basketball Betting | College Basketball Betting | Hockey Betting | Golf Betting | Tennis Betting | Auto Racing Betting | Horse Racing Betting | Soccer Betting