Cincinnati Wins Low Scoring NFL Preseason Battle At New England

• Author: Ross Everett
• Filed under: Casinos
• Date: Feb 22,2010

When the biggest play of a NFL football game is an extra point, there\’s a good chance it was a dull contest. The big play of the game? A point after touchdown by the Bengals backup kicker, none other than wide receiver Chad Ochocinco. Ochocinco\’s PAT would prove to be the margin of victory as Cincinnati beat New England 7-6.

After the game, the always entertaining Chad Ochocinco talked about his love for European soccer:

\”\’Esteban\’ Ochocinco is back, the most interesting footballer in the world. Everyone has to remember, I\’ve always said that soccer is my No. 1 sport. I think Ronaldinho would be proud of me right now.\”

To punctuate his fondness for the sport known as football in the rest of the world, Ochocinco whipped out his iPhone to display a picture of him with former England captain David Beckham. He then continued his comedy routine:

\”Soccer\’s my first love, Kicking\’s easy … like riding a bike. I can kick them from 50, 60 yards, left or right hash mark. … I kicked all through high school.\”

Ochocinco was pressed into service as a placekicker when Shane Graham complained of a sore groin in pregame warm-ups. Rather than take any chances, head coach Marvin Lewis let Ochocinco take his place.

Patriots wide receiver Wes Welker, who was pressed into emergency service as a placekicker while with the Miami Dolphins, wasnt buying Ochocincos talk about kicking being easy:

\”It\’s not easy. To kick that is something, and he got real good height on it.\”

Cincinnati scored their only touchdown on JT OSullivans 24 yard pass to Chris Henry. That set up Ochocincos picture perfect extra point. OSullivan was also amused, but emphasized that his receivers athletic versatility is no joke:

\”Nothing surprises me. All joking aside, he still kicked the ball through the uprights and it ended up winning the game. Some people might think its funny, but it\’s important.\”

The Bengals continue their NFL preseason play on Thursday, hosting the St. Louis Rams. New England will be back in action on Friday night as they travel to Washington, DC for a game against the Redskins. Cincinnati will kick off their NFL regular season schedule on Sunday, September 13th as they host the Denver Broncos. The Patriots will get their campaign underway on Monday, September 14th as they play the Buffalo Bills at home.

Ross Everett is a well known freelance writer specializing in travel, casino gambling and sports handicapping. He is a staff handicapper for Anatta Sports where he is responsible for providing daily free sports picks. In his spare time he enjoys fine dining, falconry and deep sea diving. He lives in Las Vegas with four dogs and a pet coyote.

New Orleans Wins First Superbowl In Franchise History

• Author: Ross Everett
• Filed under: Casinos
• Date: Feb 19,2010

The New Orleans Saints used a 14 point fourth quarter to defeat the Indianapolis Colts 31-17 on Sunday to win their first Superbowl in franchise history. Drew Brees broke open a tight game midway through the final quarter with his touchdown pass to Jeremy Shockey, and Tracy Porter scored on a 74 yard interception return as the Colts were driving on the next series to secure the victory. Brees was named Superbowl MVP on the basis of his 288 yard, 2 touchdown, 0 interception performance.

After enthusiasts had come in early on the favored Colts, a good deal of buyback on the Saints had pushed the line to -4\’ and the New Orleans backers were enriched by their team\’s outright victory. The underdog has now covered three straight Superbowls and taken the money in five of the last seven games. The 48 points scored stayed well under the posted total of 57.

In his postgame interview, Brees gave much of the credit to the city of New Orleans:

\”We play for so much more than ourselves. We played for our city. We played for the entire Gulf Coast region. We played for the entire Who Dat nation that has been behind us every step of the way. It means everything. We\’re here because of their strength and everything they fought through here the last few years. They\’ve given us so much support, so we owe it all to our fans.\”

\”Just to think of the road we\’ve all traveled, the adversity we\’ve all faced. It\’s unbelievable. I mean, are you kidding me? Four years ago, whoever thought this would be happening? Eighty-five percent of the city was under water. Most people left not knowing if New Orleans would ever come back, or if the organization would ever come back. We just all looked at one another and said, \’We\’re going to rebuild together. We are going to lean on each other.\’ That\’s what we\’ve done the last four years and this is the culmination in all that belief.\”

Peyton Manning had little to say after the game particularly about the decisive interception return:

\”Made a great play. Made a great play. Corner made a heck of a play. Certainly disappointing, very disappointing. Disappointing.\”

Saints\’ coach Sean Payton made a bold call at the beginning of the second half when he called for an onside kick. New Orleans linebacker Jonathan Casalis suggested it was a game changing play:

\”We were really excited when he made the call. That changed everything.\”

Payton explained the unorthodox decision:

\”We\’re going to be aggressive. We\’d seen the onside kick all week and guys executed it well. It turned out to be a big change of possession.\”

The city of New Orleans will celebrate their team\’s victory with a parade. With Mardi Gras celebrations already scheduled to begin shortly thereafter, it could be quite some time before New Orleans returns to business as usual. Add New Orleans to cities like Miami, Bar Harbour, Palm Springs and Fire Island as must see spots for any fabulous football fan on the go.

Ross Everett is a consulting sports handicapper for Anatta Sports where he is in charge of providing daily free sports picks to Internet websites and broadcast media outlets. He is a widely published freelance writer specializing in sports handicapping, harness racing, wombat breeding and clogging. He lives in Southern Nevada with three dogs and a herd of wombats.

Eagles Add To Redskins Woes

• Author: Ross Everett
• Filed under: Casinos
• Date: Feb 17,2010

The \’new look\’ Washington Redskins offense under Sherm Lewis looked much like the old offense under Jim Zorn, and the Philadelphia Eagles had little trouble as they opened a 27-10 halftime lead en route to a 27-17 victory on Monday Night Football. DeSean Jackson scored a long touchdown both rushing and receiving, and Donovan McNabb threw for 156 yards and a touchdown with no interceptions in the victory. The Eagles improved to 4-2 on the season, while the Redskins dropped to 2-5.

The Eagles also rewarded NFL betting enthusiasts with the pointspread cover as -8\’ road favorites. Philadelphia is now 4-2 against the number while the Redskins continued their struggles against the NFL pointspread dropping to 1-6. The 44 combined points went OVER the posted total of 38.

Jackson\’s only complaint after the game was that a sore ankle undermined the artistry of his post touchdown tap dance:

\”I was out there having fun, man, honestly. My ankle was kind of hurting. I really didn\’t feel it, but it did kind of affect my dance a little bit. I could put it to perfection a little bit better than that.\”

Redskins\’ defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth suggested that this team has to learn to play as a unit:

\”You can say but so much. You\’ve got to actually want to. So once we get to that point — where we want to do something — then we\’ll do something. But if we just keep going our separate ways, then we\’ll just keep getting slaughtered like we have.\”

Jim Zorn was apparently more interested in playing \’gotcha\’ with the management that replaced him as the Redskins\’ offensive play caller than in analyzing the game:

\”Well, the result was the same. We got 17 points. It was difficult for me. It was difficult to stand and watch. The hard part is to keep your mouth shut.\”

Washington running back Rock Cartwright expressed Washington\’s struggles in a philosophical light:

\”You have to take the bitter with the sweet. And right now we\’re at a bitter moment.\”

The Eagles will host the New York Giants this Sunday, with the game currently \’pick\’em\’ and the total posted at 44. The Redskins have a much needed bye week before they travel south to play the Atlanta Falcons on November 8. They\’ll host the Denver Broncos the following Sunday before playing on the road against the Dallas Cowboys on November 22.

Ross Everett is a freelance sports writer specializing in casino gambling, fine dining and sports betting. He has appeared on a number of TV and radio programs offering strategies for successful NFL football betting. He lives in Northern Nevada with three Jack Russell Terriers and a pet llama. He is currently writing a biography of former NFL quarterback Jim Plunkett.

Panthers Derail Struggling Buccaneers

• Author: Ross Everett
• Filed under: Casinos
• Date: Feb 16,2010

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. The fact that they ended up starting that year 0-9 on their way to a 1-15 record doesn\’t bode well for the rest of the season. 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.

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. The game is currently off the board pending the status of Bills\’ QB Trent Edwards who suffered a concussion in Sunday\’s win over the New York Jets. The Panthers will then play on the road the following two Sundays, traveling to Arizona and New Orleans.

Ross Everett is a widely published freelance writer and noted authority on sports betting odds comparison. He 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 a kangaroo. He is currently working on an autobiography of former energy secretary Donald Hodell.

Brett Favre Back In The NFL After Brief Retirement

• Author: Ross Everett
• Filed under: Casinos
• Date: Dec 29,2009

The retirement and un-retirement of Brett Favre is becoming an annual rite of the NFL preseason, and this year is no different. A few months after retiring from football after playing last season with the New York Jets, The Gunslinger is back in the NFL with the Minnesota Vikings, who’ll pay Favre $12 million bucks if he’s on the opening day roster.

Favre made his announcement at a Tuesday press conference where he spoke of the decision to come back for another NFL season:

“I felt I did everything I possibly could do to get where I need to be. You’re 39, your arm may not feel like it did at 21. But the pieces are in place that you don’t have to do that much and I agree with that. If they were willing to take that chance, I was, too. I don’t know how I’ll feel a year from now, five years from now, but I didn’t want to say what if.

The Vikings will pay Favre $12 million this season and $13 million next season. If his level of play isn’t up to par, or should he get injured in training camp the Vikings are still on the hook for $6 million.

Favres mother was even asked for her thoughts on the matter:

“I have mixed emotions, but I have always loved to watch him play. This time, however, I thought he would stay retired and stay home. I guess he could not do it. They Minnesota seem to have a good team in place, and he liked that. I guess I need to get a Vikings jersey now.”

Favre initially decided to not return to the NFL due to a torn rotator cuff but after consulting with noted sports physician James Andrews, he had a change of heart:

“I just kept thinking I didn’t want to go through what I did last year. Between three weeks ago and the phone conversation yesterday [with Vikings coach Brad Childress], I talked to Dr. [James] Andrews and he assured me it wouldn’t be an issue. I felt if everyone was going to take that chance, I was to. As friends and family has told me, you never know until you take the chance,”

Favre said that he’s optimistic that the Vikings can make a deep run in the NFL playoffs:

“I felt from my standpoint that I could offer some experience and leadership, and I have to admit through this whole process after I said no three weeks ago, sometimes I was OK with it, and other times I said. I can really help this team.”

Favre will wear his iconic #4, thanks to Vikings fourth string QB Josh David Booty who graciously gave up the number. Booty will wear #9. Viking QBs Sage Rosenfels and Tarvaris Jackson who were competing for the starting job will now be relegated to backup status.

Ross Everett is a consulting handicapper for Sports-1 Sportsbook as well as a widely published freelance sportswriter specializing in MMA, boxing and how to bet on NFL football. He is a respected authority on Internet sports betting, cigars and fencing. He lives in Las Vegas with three Jack Russell Terriers and a pet wallaby.