NFL Online Betting – Sunday Review
Another wild NFL betting Sunday is in the books. The east coast folks saw two winless teams get off the snide during the 1:00 O’clockers, as the Rams (1-4 SU, 1-4 ATS) charged into the nation’s capital and shocked the Redskins (4-2 SU, 4-2 ATS), and the hosting Texans (1-4 SU, 1-4 ATS) lassoed the Dolphins (2-3 SU, 3-2 ATS) in the final seconds.
St. Louis, who were near or at the bottom of the league’s stats sheet on both sides of the ball, erased their 2008 goose egg SU and ATS as double-digit underdogs with a 19-17 victory to end an eight-game losing streak dating back seasons. It was the Rams first cover in seven games.
The Redskins entered the game as one of the hottest teams in the league and the only club in NFL history to open a season with no offensive turnovers through its first five games. However, the streak ended with four fumbles in six possessions. Despite the turnover, Washington mounted a comeback to erase a nine-point fourth-quarter deficit via a Clinton Portis 2-yard run with 3:47 left on the clock to take a 17-16 lead and appeared poised to improve to 5-1.
But like the old saying goes, every dog has his day, and in this case, literally. The Rams took advantage of the three minutes and change remaining to retake the lead. On a third-and-13 play Marc Bulger hit Donnie Avery for a 43-yard gain to move into field goal territory, where Josh Brown kicked a 49-yard field goal as time expired for a rare St. Louis victory despite getting outgained in yardage 368-200.
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Houston also found the win column for the first time this season in a close one, but unlike the Rams, they couldn’t cover the spread along the way as field goal favorites in a 29-28 win over the Fins, as the Texans fall to 1-4 ATS. Houston QB Matt Schaub threw interceptions on Houston’s first two possessions of the game, but made up for his early blunders with a late 3-yard touchdown run with 3 seconds left. Schaub finished 22-of-42 for 379 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions.
As one-of-four teams winless SU heading into Week 6, the Lions (0-5 SU, 1-4 ATS) nearly became the third team to post its first victory of the 2008 online NFL wagering campaign. The Lions fought, scratched and clawed as the 13-point underdogs against the Vikings (3-3 SU, 2-4 ATS) throughout the game but fell short 12-10 on the road, though, they managed to cover for the first time this season. The Lions are 0-5 and haven’t won a game SU since December 2007 and are 2-7 ATS in their last nine games dating back to last year.
The fourth team having a shot at earning its first victory on Sunday was the visiting Bengals (0-6 SU, 2-4 ATS), who are, well, still the winless Bungles at 0-6 SU and 2-4 ATS after their 26-14 defeat to the 10-point favored New York Bretts (3-2 SU, 3-2 ATS). Cincinnati has now started a season at 0-6 for the third time since 2000. With the Lions and Bengals not meeting this year, that leaves the door open for one of the only two remaining winless teams to go 0-16. Ouch! The team that could first alleviate itself from the realms of that possibility is Detroit who plays the Texans next week, as Cincinnati gets the Steelers (4-1 SU, 2-3 ATS) coming off a bye.
Also in Sunday’s early football betting action, Peyton Manning and Drew Brees returned to their dominating form of old, as both quarterbacks went off en route to easy cover victories. The Colts (3-2 SU, 3-2 ATS) embarrassed the Ravens (2-3 SU, 3-2 ATS), who owned the NFL’s best defense, with a 31-3 home win. It was Indy’s first home victory since December 2007. Manning finished 19-for-28 for 271 yards with three touchdowns, improving his team to 3-2 SU and ATS.
Meanwhile, Brees went 26-of-30 for 320 yards and three touchdowns in a 34-3 rout of the Raiders (1-4 SU, 2-3 ATS). Brees, who now has 1,993 yards passing through six games, marches his team to .500 at 3-3 SU and 4-2 ATS. Three of the Saints’ (3-3 SU, 4-2 ATS) covers have come at the Superdome, where they won’t play again until facing Green Bay (3-3 SU, 3-3 ATS) for a MNF matchup on Nov. 24.
Total players watched seven of the eight early games go under the number. But the 4:00 O’clockers yielded a different outcome for total’s investors, as the four late afternoon games produced a combined 205 points with three of the four games playing over the number. Overall, the O/U record was 4-9 on the day.
Among the late afternoon contests, the Cowboys (4-2 SU, 2-4 ATS) at the Cardinals (4-2 SU, 4-2 ATS) stole the spotlight in what was arguably the best game of the entire day, which resulted in a 30-24 overtime Arizona victory. The wildness began with a game opening 93-yard kickoff return by J.J. Arrington, who had been inactive the first four games of the season, for a Cardinals touchdown.
The matchup ended in overtime by a Sean Morey blocked punt off the foot Dallas’ Mat McBriar with the pigskin being scooped up and carried 3 yards to the house by Monty Beisel to give Arizona the money-making win as the 5-point dogs. It was the first time in NFL history a game started with a kickoff return for a score, and ended with a blocked punt in overtime for a touchdown.
It was Arizona’s sixth consecutive home victory, the longest since 1975-76. They are 5-1 ATS in their current home winning streak. Kurt Warner went 22-of-30 for 236 yards and two touchdowns, meanwhile, Tony Romo finished 24-of-39 for 321 yards and three touchdowns, but it wasn’t enough for a sixth straight cover against the Cardinals.
Donovan McNabb passed for 280 yards and two touchdowns without his top two receivers and his best running back, and the Eagles’ (3-3 SU, 4-2 ATS) stout defense forced three turnovers during a 23-point fourth quarter in 40-26 victory over the 49ers (2-4 SU, 2-4 ATS). The Eagles avoided falling further out of the NFC East race to snap a two-game skid SU and ATS. Philly’s win improves them to 8-1 ATS in their last nine road games.
Sunday Night Football wrapped up an incredible day of NFL online betting action, which ended with a 30-10 Chargers (3-3 SU, 3-2-1 ATS) home win over the Patriots (3-2 SU, 2-3 ATS). Philip Rivers threw three touchdown passes and San Diego’s defense shutdown quarterback Matt Cassel and company, as New England had its regular-season road winning streak snapped at 12, which was the second-longest in NFL history. The Patriots’ 10 points scored was their fewest points since their last road loss, 21-0 at Miami on Dec. 10, 2006.
Week 7 Bye Teams: Atlanta, Philadelphia, Arizona and Jacksonville
