10/07/2008 - Knoxville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tennessee Volunteers head football coach Phillip Fulmer announced at his Tuesday news conference that offensive linemen Darius Myers and Ramone Johnson have been suspended for two weeks and will miss upcoming contests versus Georgia and Mississippi State.
"Darius Myers and Ramone Johnson are suspended for two weeks of practice and two games for lack of academic effort and violation of team rules," stated Fulmer.
The Vols (2-3, 0-2 SEC) will really miss Johnson, a sophomore left tackle who has played in every game this season as a backup to starter Chris Scott.
<< NFC North: Rodgers up, but Packers falling down
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Aaron Rodgers did his best Brett Favre impression this past
Sunday, but the new Green Bay Packers quarterbacks gutsy effort under center
still wasn't enough to prevent his team from enduring a revealing 27-24 loss
at home to
<< Saints CB Porter out for season
New Orleans, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New Orleans Saints cornerback Tracy
Porter had risen to the top of the depth chart in his rookie season only to
see it all come to an abrupt end Tuesday as the team placed him on injured
reserve
<< Stars place D Zubov on IR
Frisco, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Dallas Stars placed defenseman Sergei Zubov
on the injured reserve list Tuesday.
The 38-year-old Zubov is out indefinitely while recovering from hip surgery.
Injuries limited the veteran blueliner to
<< Kings, O'Sullivan reach deal
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Kings and center Patrick
O'Sullivan agreed on a three-year contract Tuesday. Per club policy, terms of
the deal were not disclosed.
A restricted free agent, O'Sullivan registered 22 go
AFC West: Chargers treated rudely in South Beach >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Luckily for the San Diego Chargers, Oakland and Kansas City
are still in their division.
The Chargers headed to Miami for a showdown with the supposedly-overmatched
Dolphins this past Sunday and came back home with a 2-3 r
Lakers coach Jackson misses preseason opener with leg discomfort >>
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Los Angeles Lakers head coach Phil Jackson
missed the preseason opener against Utah because of minor discomfort in his
lower legs.
Kurt Rambis took over the head-coaching duties in Jackson's absence. Jackson
d
NFC West: Cardinals show there's no place like home >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Much has been made of Arizona Cardinals head coach Ken
Whisenhunt's decision to keep his team on the East Coast following its road
loss to the Washington Redskins in Week 3. Needless to say, the second-year
sideline boss lear
Wallace, Allmendinger replace Carpentier at GEM >>
Statesville, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Canadian Patrick Carpentier has been
released from his driving duties of the No.10 Dodge in the Sprint Cup Series,
Gillett Evernham Motorsports officials announced Tuesday. Mike Wallace will
drive
The San Francisco 49ers (5-11 SU, 5-10-1 ATS in 2007; 1-1 SU & ATS in pre-season) found some offensive life last week, and they will try to build some momentum on Thursday night as they travel to the Windy City to take on the Chicago Bears (7-9 SU & ATS in 2007; 0-2 SU, 0-1-1 ATS in pre-season) in an NFL matchup that is set to get underway at 8 PM ET at Soldier Field (natural turf) in Chicago.
Thursday, August 21
NFL betting odds: CHICAGO -3 (-120), Total 37
NOTABLE STAT: San Francisco was last in points, last in total offense in 2007
KEY NFL BETTING TREND: SF has lost its last seven SU on pre-season road
In the BetUS NFL pre-season football betting odds, the Bears are listed as a three-point favorite (laying -120), with the total posted at 37 points.
Here are some NFL football betting trends as they relate to this matchup (reflecting numbers going into the 2008 season):
* SF has lost 11 of its last 14 games SU
* SF has covered three of its last 11 games
* SF has lost six of its last seven road games SU
* SF has covered one of its last seven road games
* CHI has covered five of its last eight games
* CHI has played five of its last seven games OVER the total
* CHI has covered four of its last 13 home games
* SF has lost its last seven pre-season road games SU
* CHI has covered two of its last seven home pre-season games
Well, I guess we should congratulate the Bears on making their quarterback choice for the season's opening game, as they have designated Kyle Orton the starter against Indianapolis. The Bears obviously have lost patience with Rex Grossman, and what they do with him at this point is anybody's guess. But suffice it to say that there isn't a quarterback competition anymore, at least in training camp.
Meanwhile, the quarterback competition may also be settled in San Francisco, where the Niners bounced back from a lackluster 18-6 loss to the Raiders, in which they turned the ball over four times, to execute a 34-6 rout of the Packers last Saturday. However, coach Mike Nolan has stopped short of saying that, insisting that the job is still open. But J.T. O'Sullivan, the longshot of the trio of Niner signal-callers who opened camp, will start his third straight pre-season game here. Against Green Bay, O'Sullivan was only 8-for-17, and was intercepted, but he also threw for 9.1 yards an attempt, which included a 59-yard TD pass to Josh Morgan. The others struggled.
Some offensive cohesion is badly needed, in light of the Niners' dismal 2007 campaign, in which they were dead last in the NFL in scoring, with just 13.7 points a game. And O'Sullivan is the guy who is most familiar with offensive coordinator Mike Martz's exacting system, because he learned it last year in Detroit. O'Sullivan will go at least the entire first half and may even last longer. He'll be relieved by Alex Smith, with Shawn Hill doing the mop-up work. Three receivers who were out last week - Bryant Johnson, Ashley Lelie and Arnaz Battle - will miss this game too.
That may hurt a little here, especially since the Bears will be using a lot of their defensive starters. And it's the defense that has been keeping the Bears in games thus far. In fact, the defense and special teams were responsible for the first 19 points Chicago scored against Seattle last time out, as the offense really struggled with Grossman at the controls. But maybe the first-team offense has a chance to settle a little bit as it works more with Orton at the helm.
Certainly we have concerns about the Bears' offensive line, but we like the scenario for them here, especially if O'Sullivan doesn't make some bis plays. The Niners may have nowhere else to turn right now, and they have lost seven straight road games in the pre-season. Let's take Chicago, the three-point favorite in the NFL football betting odds.
CHICAGO -3 (-120) **
(Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)
The 2008 NFL betting lines season is almost upon us! If you like to bet on the NFL, you are in the best possible place for online betting. The sportsbook has NFL odds up on a ton of futures, and you will also find NFL lines up for early games as well. Join sportbook today and we'll help guide you right through to Super Bowl XLIII and beyond!
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting odds .
Sports Betting News: NFL Team History | Football Betting | Baseball Betting | Basketball Betting | Hockey Betting | Golf Betting | Tennis Betting | Auto Racing Betting | Horse Racing Betting | Soccer Betting