Ultra Sports Bet

Unlike Saturday, these games do absolutely nothing to excite me. That doesn’t mean I won’t pick them, though. I am a wild man.
New York Giants (+2.5) at Tampa Bay – I have gone back and forth on this one, but in the end I just have to go with the Bucs. I don’t like where the Giants are mentally after losing to the Pats despite laying it all out, and I don’t like their injury status. I am concerned about the Giants pass rush, but not as concerned as the media seems to be. In the end, I just …read more

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I like Saturday’s games way more than I like Sunday’s. That doesn’t mean that I am going to be original, though – it’s going to be all about the chalk today. I don’t love being in line with the public, but I can’t justify going another way here.
Washington (+3.5) at Seattle – The Redskins have been playing with emotion and determination. The Seahawks really haven’t. Washington matches up well on the run against the Seattle front line, and should be able to score. If Seattle wins they should win a close game, and my guess is that they won’t even …read more

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The Poinsettia Bowl is the most exciting game tonight in my mind, but then I’m a bowl junkie. While tonight’s NFL game isn’t as exciting, it is an interesting puzzle:
Pittsburgh (-7.5) at St. Louis – Normally, I would love to find a way to pick against the Steelers. They are playing poorly in recent weeks and I haven’t had a lot of faith in them all year. The problem, of course, is that they are playing the Rams. St. Louis has found all sorts of ways to be pitiful, their quarterbacking situation is one big uncertainty, and they don’t …read more

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As I said on Friday, I am not particularly thrilled with the NFL these days. Finding value this week was a mind-numbing challenge. There are so many games that are automatic passes, and a couple of the interesting games have lines that are pretty tight. I only found three games this week that I will be taking a piece of. They are the best of the week, but in all of them there is still a bit of a reason to be nervous about the team I am backing. It’s also a bit odd that I am on three road …read more

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It’s time to get back to some college basketball here on this site. It is a pretty light card for Tuesday night, but I nonetheless find two games interesting. It’s a bit of a unique night for me because I like the visitors in both cases:
Bradley (-1.5) at Wright State – Wright State is getting a lot of credit because they beat Butler last time out. They deserve some, but not much. They won, but Butler shot absolutely horribly and would win the game most days. Before that game, they had shown far less in losing to Valpo and getting …read more

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Five games strike my fancy today. The New England game is not one of them, but I will obviously be watching with interest. My feeling is that this is the game where the Pats get back into spread covering form. I don’t particularly believe in the Steelers, especially on the road. I don’t have enough faith in that particular conviction to bet on it, though. Here are the five:
Oakland (-11) at Green Bay – I can’t believe I am actually going to take the Raiders, but it’s true. I think that 11 points is too many here. The Raiders …read more

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New England (-18.5) at Baltimore – I am on Baltimore tonight. There are a couple of emotional based reasons, including the impact of the pride of a very potentially solid defense for Baltimore. My biggest reason to be on Baltimore, though, is the line movement. More than two thirds of the bets made have been on the Pats. Despite that, though, the line has fallen from the opening level of 20.5 down two and a half points to 18 in some places. That’s contrary to expectations, and can be a good indicator that the books don’t fear action on the …read more

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If you had told me at the beginning of the year that the biggest game of the year in the NFC would be Green Bay and Dallas I would have gently suggested that you find a way to get off the drugs. Regardless, that’s what it is, and it shapes up to be a great game. For once, I am in a television advantage in Canada – for some reason I get the NFL Network when millions down south don’t, and even if I didn’t it’s on regular cable here, too. That doesn’t make up for our inability to get …read more

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It is totally and utterly ridiculous that there is a 24 point spread in the NFL. Even more ridiculous, I can’t come up with a good reason to think that it is anything other than a legitimate spread. Don’t get me wrong – it’s a number that has been very inflated by the public support. I just don’t see how the Eagles can be competitive, so I don’t how how you could justify backing them. I normally would stay away from something this huge and silly, but I’ve had a winning weekend in the NFL already, and a loss here …read more

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It’s not a very interesting weekend to me on the football front. The Thursday games were boring, but they represented most of the weekend’s value in my mind. Only one NFL game captures my interest. Don’t worry, though – I have another game for you to look at, too.
Houston (+3) at Cleveland – Cleveland has won four in a row at home. Houston has won two straight, but I’m not convinced that they are for real. They’ve matched up situationally well the last two games, and I am not confident that they will again here. This game opened with a …read more

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