Detroitlios Football Betting News

<< Pierzynski takes one for the team in Chicago's win over Cleveland
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Roberto Hernandez hit AJ Pierzynski with a pitch to force in the winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning as Chicago edged Cleveland, 4-3, to avoid a sweep in the finale of the season-opening set for bot

<< Dice-K dazzles Royals
Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Japanese sensation Daisuke Matsuzaka lived up to all the hype in his regular season debut, striking out 10 in seven innings of one-run ball as Boston downed Kansas City, 4-1, in the finale of a three g

<< Report: Huggins leaving K-State
Manhattan, KS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Bob Huggins is heading back to his alma mater as he is leaving Kansas State to take over the men's basketball team at West Virginia. According to the Wichita Eagle, Huggins will be introduced as the 21st

<< Petrova, Jankovic, Venus reach Amelia Island quarters
Amelia Island, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Top seeds Nadia Petrova of Russia and Jelena Jankovic of Serbia and former world No. 1 Venus Williams were a trio of third-round winners Thursday at the $600,000 Bausch & Lomb Championships. The five-ti

Redskins ink CB Macklin >>
Washington, D.C. (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Washington Redskins signed cornerback David Macklin on Thursday. Macklin spent the last three seasons with the Arizona Cardinals, after spending the first four years of his NFL career with the Indiana

McBraves sweep Phils >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brian McCann drove in two more runs and Kelly Johnson highlighted a six-run fifth inning with a two-run homer, as the Atlanta Braves completed a three-game series sweep of the Philadelphia Phillie

Masters week is never easy for Charles Howell >>
Augusta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Charles Howell III was in the middle of a swing change when he shot 80-84 in the first two rounds of last year's Masters to finish dead last before the cut. It was Howell's fifth trip to the Masters, and Au

'07 Preview: Crew looking to go from worst to first >>
Columbus, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It's pretty obvious that the Columbus Crew would like to improve on its 2006 season. Last season, the Crew finished with the worst record in Major League Soccer at 8-15-9 in head coach Sigi Schmid's first s

Betting Football

Is 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.