It's in the Cards: Arizona edges Atlanta in Wild Card play
Football Betting Lines
01/03/2009 - Glendale, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kurt Warner threw two touchdowns and the Arizona defense came up with two big plays as the Cardinals downed the Atlanta Falcons, 30-24, in NFC Wild Card play.
Warner went 19-for-32 with 271 yards and an interception while Anquan Boldin and Larry Fitzgerald each had a touchdown catch for the NFC West-champion Cardinals (10-7), who played their first home playoff game since the team relocated from St. Louis to Phoenix in 1988 and the franchises first home playoff game overall since 1947, when the team was playing in Chicago.
Edgerrin James had 16 carries for 73 yards while the defense came up with a fumble return for a touchdown and a safety for Arizona, which was making its first postseason appearance in 10 years. Tim Hightower had a rushing touchdown in the win.
Arizona will now take to the road for its next playoff game as the team will play either Carolina or the New York Giants. Should the Minnesota Vikings prevail in tomorrow's game against the Philadelphia Eagles, Arizona will take on New York, but if the Eagles win the Cardinals will face Carolina.
Rookie of the Year Matt Ryan was impressive at times, but threw two costly interceptions and finished the game 26-for-40 with 199 yards and two scores for the Falcons (11-6), who made their first postseason appearance since the 2004 season.
Michael Turner had a sub-par game as he finished with just 42 yards on 18 carries with a score while Roddy White had 11 catches for 84 yards and a score for Atlanta, which bounced back from a 4-12 2007 season which saw star signal- caller Michael Vick incarcerated for his involvement in a dogfighting ring and previous head coach Bobby Petrino walk away from the mess with three games still to play.
Trailing by four points to start the second half, Arizona had to start the half on defense, but the defense came up with a big play as Turner was hit in the backfield as soon as he took a handoff, the ball popped into the air, Antrelle Rolle came down with it and raced into the end zone from 27 yards out for a 21-17 lead.
Later in the third, Arizona had a chance to put more points on the board as the team started a drive with the ball at the Atlanta 38 after an interference call on an Atlanta punt, but Neil Rackers missed a 51-yard field goal attempt to the left.
However, after forcing a three-and-out by Atlanta, the Cardinals put together a 14-play, 76-yard drive that ate up almost eight minutes of the clock and was capped on a four-yard touchdown run by Hightower for a 28-17 lead with just 2:48 left in the third quarter. The team converted four third downs in the drive.
The Arizona defense again came up with a big play after the punting unit pinned the Falcons at thier own three-yard line. On the first play, Antonio Smith was able to wrap up Ryan in the end zone for the safety and a 30-17 lead with 12:37 left in the game.
The Falcons defense stopped Arizona after the free kick and the team made it a one-score game as Ryan and White hooked up for a five-yard score to complete a nine-play drive and make it a 30-24 contest with 4:15 to play.
The Atlanta defense, though, was unable to come up with a stop as Arizona got the first downs it needed to and after the two-minute warning Warner took knees to kill the clock and end the game.
The Cardinals offense sputtered out of the gate as the team was held to a three-and-out, but the defense came up with a big play as Ralph Brown read a pass play perfectly and picked off Ryan to get the ball back for Arizona.
James carried the ball three consecutive times for 21 yards and was handed the ball for a fourth straight time on 2nd-and-4, but he tossed the ball back to Warner and Warner went deep to Fitzgerald, who made a leaping catch in the left side of the end zone for a 42-yard score and a 7-0 lead with 10:28 to play in the first.
The rest of the first quarter featured little forward movement by either offense as the game evolved into a field position contest.
However, Atlanta ended the frame with the ball and put together an impressive drive to put some points on the board. Starting with the ball at his own eight-yard-line, Ryan went 7-for-7 for 50 yards and Turner added 22 yards on the ground in the 14-play drive that was capped on a 30-yard field goal from Jason Elam to make it a 7-3 game with a bit over 10 minutes to play in the second.
The Cardinals, though, quickly answered to take a 14-3 lead. On the third play of the drive, Warner hit Boldin with a short pass out in the left flat. Boldin then raced to the left sideline and Lawyer Milloy had a chance to tackle him, but he took a bad angle on the play and was only able to get a swipe at the jersey. Boldin easily shrugged that off and raced down the sideline and into the end zone on a 71-yard score.
Ryan showed his poise on the next touch as he marched the team down the field to make it a four-point contest. Facing a 3rd-and-10, Ryan connected with Michael Jenkins for 21 yards to move the chains. He then completed passes on two other third down opportunities, with the second one setting up a 1st-and- goal at the seven-yard line and Turner took it into the end zone untouched around the left tackle to make it a 14-10 game with 2:55 left in the first half.
Arizona started the next drive with the ball at its 20-yard line, but on the third play Warner threw a quick pass to Jerheme Urban, who was unable to make the catch and the ball popped into the air and Chevis Jackson came down with the interception.
Just six plays later, Ryan used the play action, rolled out to the right and hit Justin Peelle in the end zone from two yards out to give the Falcons a 17-14 lead heading into the locker room.
Game Notes
Warner is now 6-2 in eight postseason starts...The Cardinals lead the all-time series with Atlanta, 15-10...Fitzgerald finished the game with six catches for 101 yards while Boldin had two catches for 72 yards...Hightower had only six carries for 23 yards along with the score...Arizona had three sacks in the game...Arizona won the time of possession game, but by just four seconds.
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Super Bowl XLIV Odds
Super Bowl XLIII isn't even a week old yet and oddsmakers have already released Super Bowl XLIV odds.
Despite the Pittsburgh Steelers winning Super Bowl 43, the New England Patriots are 8/1 favorites to win Super Bowl 44.
Bet Super Bowl XLIV Future Odds
With their 27-23 victory over the Arizona Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII, the Steelers became the latest NFL champion. But believe it or not, oddsmakers from online sports book MySportsbook.com don't have the Steelers the favorites to win Super Bowl XLIV next season.
That honor belongs to the New England Patriots, who are 8/1 favorites to win despite not even qualify for the postseason in 2008. The Pats also have a major decision to make regarding what to do with Matt Cassel, who played well in Tom Brady's (knee surgery) absence last year but is also a free agent this offseason.
Ironically, the Steelers aren't even oddsmakers second choice to win Super Bowl 44, as the Dallas Cowboys are listed right behind the Patriots at 9/1 despite not making the playoffs themselves. Clearly oddsmakers think the public will hop back on the Cowboys' bandwagon considering the immense talent they have and the opening of a brand new stadium.
After Dallas, then comes Pittsburgh at 10/1, but they share those odds with the New York Giants, who won Super Bowl XLII. The Indianapolis Colts and San Diego Chargers round out the top six teams at 12/1, while the Baltimore Ravens (14/1), Tennessee Titans (16/1), Carolina Panthers (18/1) and Philadelphia Eagles (18/1) complete the top 10.
The NFC Champion Arizona Cardinals got no love from oddsmakers as they were established as a 30/1 long shot to win next year's Super Bowl. They share those same odds with the Chicago Bears and Tampa Bay Buccaneers – two teams that didn't even qualify for the postseason. Other long shots are the Kansas City Chiefs (100/1), Detroit Lions (100/1), St. Louis Rams (75/1) and Oakland Raiders (75/1).
To see a complete list of all the team's odds to win Super Bowl XLIV, check below.
NFL TEAM FUTURE ODDS TO WIN SUPER BOWL XLIV
New England Patriots 8/1
Dallas Cowboys 9/1
New York Giants 10/1
Pittsburgh Steelers 10/1
Indianapolis Colts 12/1
San Diego Chargers 12/1
Baltimore Ravens 14/1
Tennessee Titans 16/1
Carolina Panthers 18/1
Philadelphia Eagles 18/1
New Orleans Saints 20/1
Atlanta Falcons 25/1
Denver Broncos 25/1
Green Bay Packers 25/1
Jacksonville Jaguars 25/1
Minnesota Vikings 25/1
New York Jets 25/1
Arizona Cardinals 30/1
Chicago BearS 30/1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 30/1
Buffalo Bills 35/1
Houston TexaNS 35/1
Miami Dolphins 35/1
Washington Redskins 35/1
Seattle SeahawkS 50/1
Cleveland Browns 55/1
Cincinnati Bengals 60/1
San Francisco 49ers 60/1
Oakland Raiders 75/1
St. Louis Rams 75/1
Detroit Lions 100/1
Kansas City Chiefs 100/1
Odds as of: 2/2/09
Bet Super Bowl XLIV Future Odds
To visit this online sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your NFL football betting needs.
Betting Football
NFL Football Betting OnlineIs there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL?
I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.
Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said.
There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans.
Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal.
For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though.
A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup.
The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games.
Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff.
So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action.
Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns.
“I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said.
Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season.
“Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said.
It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties.
Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples.
The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left.
“The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits.
“These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.”
Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough.
The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday.
“Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.”
Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach?
“It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.”
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines.