Desperate Bengals Welcome Bolts to Queen City

Football Betting Lines

11/10/2006 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cincinnati Bengals will try to battle their way back into the AFC playoff picture when they host the San Diego Chargers this Sunday at Paul Brown Stadium.

The Bengals have dropped back-to-back games and have a 4-4 record at the midway point of the season. Cincinnati is currently eighth in the conference standings, and is two games behind Baltimore for first place in the AFC North division.

The Bengals were in Baltimore last week and were handed a 26-20 setback by the Ravens. Baltimore scored its only two touchdowns in jumping out to a 14-0 first-quarter lead, and was able to hold on for the win.

Cincinnati has suffered setbacks in three of its last four games, and the losses in that span have come by a combined nine points.

Meanwhile, the Chargers have won two straight and are in good shape in the AFC playoff standings. At 6-2, San Diego is locked into a four-way tie for second place in the conference, and is also even with Denver in the AFC West.

The Chargers' latest victory came last Sunday against the visiting Cleveland Browns. LaDainian Tomlinson had a huge game for San Diego and ended with three touchdowns.

It was also the first of four contests for San Diego without Pro Bowl linebacker Shawne Merriman, who is serving a suspension for violating the league's steroid policy.

SERIES HISTORY

The Chargers lead the all-time regular season series with the Bengals, 17-10, but were 34-27 home losers when the teams last met, in 2003. San Diego had won the previous matchup, taking a 34-6 decision in the Queen City in 2002. The Bolts are 2-0 in Cincinnati since last losing there in 1997.

In addition to the regular season series, the teams played a memorable playoff contest, with Cincinnati earning a 27-7 home victory in the 1981 AFC Championship. The recorded temperature for that game was nine degrees below zero with a -59 wind chill, making it the second-coldest NFL game on record behind the fabled "Ice Bowl," between the Packers and Cowboys in 1967.

San Diego head coach Marty Schottenheimer is 7-6 against the Bengals all-time, including 3-2 in Cincinnati. The Bengals' Marvin Lewis is 1-0 against both the Chargers and Schottenheimer.

CHARGERS OFFENSE VS. BENGALS DEFENSE

Chargers running back LaDainian Tomlinson has been prolific since entering the league, and he's been at the top of his game in recent weeks. The last four games have been an absolute scoring party for LT, as he busted into the end zone on 11 occasions in that span, including nine times on the ground. Last week against the Browns, Tomlinson (828 yards, 12 TD) rushed for 172 yards and three TDs on 18 carries. He is second in the NFL and first in the AFC with 828 rushing yards and is first in the NFL with 14 total touchdowns (12 rushing, 2 receiving). As a team, the Chargers are second in the NFL with 161.8 rushing yards per game.

The Bengals run defense has struggled all season long and is 24th in the NFL with 129.2 rushing yards per contest. They hit that average on the nose last week when they surrendered 129 yards on 38 carries to the Ravens. The Bengals did hold Jamal Lewis to 72 yards on 24 carries, but Musa Smith made up for that with 46 yards on only three attempts. Defensive end Justin Smith (50 tackles, 6 1/2 sacks) had a very busy day with 10 tackles, and outside linebacker Landon Johnson (54 tackles, 1 INT) made nine stops. The Bengals were without middle linebacker Brian Simmons (29 tackles, 1 INT), who missed the game with a neck injury. He is listed as doubtful for this week's game.

While prolific is a good word to describe Tomlinson, steady would be the proper way to sum up quarterback Philip Rivers. The former first-round pick in the 2004 draft is in his first year as a starter and is third in the AFC with a 96.7 passer rating. However, Rivers (1,747 yards, 10 TD, 3 INT) has thrown for 250 yards or more just twice in eight games this season. Last week against Cleveland, Rivers completed 19-of-28 passes for 211 yards with no TDs and no interceptions. Eric Parker (29 catches, 434 yards) had five catches for 65 yards and Keenan McCardell (27 catches, 315 yards) turned in an almost identical performance with five receptions for 64 yards. The Chargers are 14th in the NFL with 209.9 passing yards per contest.

Cincinnati has done a decent job against the pass this year, allowing 214.5 yards per game through the air. Last week Steve McNair threw for 245 yards, but was kept out of the end zone. Free safety Madieu Williams (55 tackles, 2 INT) led the team with 11 tackles, while cornerback Deltha O'Neal (31 tackles, 1 sack) added five stops. The Bengals have had trouble getting pressure on the quarterback this season and failed to sack McNair last Sunday. Cincy has just 17 sacks all year and 12 1/2 have come from Smith (6 1/2) and fellow defensive end Robert Geathers (6).

BENGALS OFFENSE VS. CHARGERS DEFENSE

Carson Palmer had a difficult game against the Ravens last week, throwing for 195 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. Palmer (1,879 yards, 12 TD, 6 INT) also completed just 12-of-26 passes and ended with a season-low quarterback rating of 52.6. It ended a stretch of four straight games with 240 passing yards or more for the former Heisman Trophy winner. T.J. Houshmandzadeh (39 catches, 488 yards, 5 TD) caught the touchdown pass and finished with three receptions for 66 yards. Fellow wide receiver Chad Johnson (40 catches, 483 yards, 2 TD) led the team with four catches, but had just 32 yards. The Bengals had one of the top passing offenses in the league last season, but have fallen to the 11th this year with 216.4 yards per game.

The Chargers were supposed to struggle in the pass rush department last week, since the club was forced to play Cleveland without Merriman (32 tackles, 8 1/2 sacks) and his fellow outside linebacker and the team's second-leading sacker Shaun Phillips (25 tackles, 6 sacks). However, San Diego did a solid job of creating pressure and finished the game with five sacks. Phillips is questionable for this week's game with a calf injury. Defensive end Jacques Cesaire (16 tackles, 2 sacks) led the way with a pair of sacks, and Merriman's replacement, Marques Harris (12 tackles, 2 sacks), dropped Charlie Frye once. Frye threw for 236 yards and a touchdown, but was also intercepted by middle linebacker Donnie Edwards (56 tackles, 1 sack, 2 INT). Cornerback Quentin Jammer (36 tackles, 2 INT) led the secondary with seven tackles. San Diego is allowing 183.8 passing yards per game and is eighth in the league in that category.

Rudi Johnson found rushing yards hard to come by last week against the Ravens, and could be in the same situation this Sunday against a tough Chargers defense. Johnson (629 yards, 6 TD) wound up with 77 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries. It was the fifth time in the last six games that Johnson was held to under 100 yards on the ground. A great deal of Cincy's struggles on offense this season can be attributed to injuries on their offensive line. Center Rich Braham has been out since late September with a fractured tibia, and tackle Levi Jones has missed the last three games while recovering from arthroscopic knee surgery. Both players are listed as out for this Sunday's game.

San Diego's run defense has been very stingy this season, allowing just 85.2 yards on the ground per game (4th in the NFL). The Browns found that out last week when they were able to gain just 89 yards on 28 rushing attempts (3.2 yards per carry). Defensive tackle Jamal Williams (32 tackles, 2 sacks) did an excellent job clogging up the middle and wound up with six tackles. Edwards posted a team-high nine stops, while fellow middle linebacker Randall Godfrey added eight tackles. The Chargers have allowed just one 100-yard rusher this season. That performance came on October 22 against Larry Johnson of the Chiefs.

OVERALL ANALYSIS

Few teams have been able to slow down Tomlinson and the Chargers rushing attack this season, and Cincinnati has given little reason to believe it will be the defense to do so. San Diego's defense has also encountered few offenses that can run the ball against it this year and the Bengals' makeshift offensive line isn't equipped to win the battles in the trenches. Palmer will also be under a great deal of pressure from San Diego's pass-rushers (even without Merriman), and that should lead to some turnovers for the Chargers defense.

Sportsbook Betting Lines Predicted Outcome: Chargers 24, Bengals 17

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2007 online football betting Preview

My fellow Americans, as tempting as it may be to don the coat and HD-ready tie in order to deliver this State of the Game address before the cameras, I know better. As Brad Paisley sings on his latest album, "I'm so much cooler online."

The ideas for this annual essay to kick off the MySportsbook.com college football betting preview flowed like frat-house beer, which is to say they were cheap and spilled all over the floor. The 2007 season will be better than 2007, if only because there will be more of it. A year ago, the NCAA Football Rules Committee made two rule changes in the interest of speeding up the game. These changes went over like Kobe burgers at a vegan banquet.

To its credit, the rules committee rectified its mistakes. This season the clock once again will start when a kickoff is received, rather than when it is kicked, and the clock will not start so quickly on a change of possession.

However, kickoffs have been moved back five yards, to the 30, which will force more returns. (Thus forcing the clock to run. Clever, huh?) Special teams might decide a lot of games, because coaching strategy will come straight out of another new Paisley lyric (almost), I'd like to check you for kicks.

Paisley sings with a twang, which is why he's appropriate for this college football season. The sun coming up over the 2007 college football betting lines season rises from the south. It's a Southern football world. As the Southeastern Conference begins its 75th year, the power shift is noticeable.

Eight-figure budgets, glamorous settings -- and that's just for the head coaches. The SEC has four coaches who have won national championships -- the greatest aggregation of coaching know-how since Eddie Robinson dined alone.

Steve Spurrier, Phil Fulmer, Nick Saban and Urban Meyer have given lie to the idea that a conference championship game is too daunting a hurdle on the road to No. 1. In six of the past 10 seasons, the national champions played and won a conference championship game -- three of the six (Tennessee, 1998; LSU, 2003; Florida, 2007) from the SEC.

2007 College Football Betting Preview

There will be more of the same this season, if the preseason prognostications are correct. Six SEC teams are in the preseason coaches' poll, more than from any other conference. Only one conference has talent so deep that a team with 15 returning starters, including the best quarterback in the league, from an eight-win season is considered an afterthought. That may speak more to Kentucky's losing legacy than to the wisdom of the predictions, but there you have it. And seriously, keep an eye on Wildcats QB Andre' Woodson.

The reach of the South extends all the way to No. 1. Take a look at the team that is a consensus pick to win the national championship. The quarterback is from Shreveport. The best wide receiver is from Nashville. The top recruit is from New Orleans.

So what's the campus doing in Los Angeles? Hey, it is the University of Southern California.

USC lost two Pacific-10 Conference games a year ago, the first time that had happened in five seasons, and university officials withstood the urge to form blue-ribbon panels to unearth the cause of such a disaster. Instead, the Trojans gathered themselves and routed Michigan, 32-18, in the Rose Bowl.

USC's losses at Oregon State and at UCLA last year should have given pause to those who question the Pac-10's football prowess (such as, without naming names, L.M. from Baton Rouge). The league only got deeper this season; Dennis Erickson is taking over an Arizona State team that never quite got out of its own way under his predecessor, Dirk Koetter.

Erickson will resume his quest to become the first coach to win a national championship at two schools. Both he and Spurrier, now in his third season at South Carolina, returned to college football at schools with lower profiles than where they won their titles.

That isn't the case for the third coach looking for the national championship double. You may have missed this, but NASA reported the astronauts on the space shuttle last spring made contact with what can only be described as beings from another galaxy.

The leader of the aliens said, "We come in peace," followed by, "So how do you think Nick Saban will do at Alabama?"

The public is reacting to the new Crimson Tide coach as if he is the Barry Bonds of college football -- beloved at home for what his fans believe he is going to do, hated on the road for his intimidating attitude and for what his detractors believe he did (bend NCAA recruiting rules). I made this comparison from the dais at a charity dinner in Mobile, Ala., last month, and the chill that washed over me didn't come from the air conditioning.

Saban will attempt to prove that he can remake in Tuscaloosa what he built in Baton Rouge, much like another member of the national championship fraternity. Bobby Bowden is attempting to remake at Florida State what he built at, um, Florida State. Bowden rebuilt his offensive staff, bringing in four new coaches led by Saban's former offensive coordinator, Jimbo Fisher, to jump-start an offense that has been dead for a couple of years.

Las Vegas Sports Lines

The Atlantic Coast Conference is expected to show new signs of life, too. That is said with no disrespect toward last season's champion, Wake Forest, which provided one of the best story lines of 2007. The Demon Deacons begin this season in their customary position, overshadowed by the Virginia Techs, Miamis and Florida States.

It's not that Wake will find it difficult to duplicate its success in 2007 as much as the feeling that success engendered. Surprising success is the narcotic of sport. It never feels quite so euphoric the next time. Big East commissioner Mike Tranghese has figured this out. He refers to 2007, when a league looked down upon by fans and foes alike took three undefeated teams into November, as "Cinderella."

The fairy tale may be over, but the Big East has four genuine Heisman Trophy candidates in Louisville quarterback Brian Brohm, West Virginia tailback Steve Slaton and quarterback Pat White, and Rutgers tailback Ray Rice. Rutgers, as did Wake Forest and, of course, Boise State, proved last season that the have-nots in college football occasionally have quite a lot.

The Broncos' rousing 43-42 overtime victory over Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl has raised the profile of all schools in conferences that don't get automatic BCS bids. This season, TCU and Hawaii are the preseason favorites to burst through the BCS doors and earn an at-large bid. The Warriors return 14 starters from an 11-3 team, including quarterback Colt Brennan.

Brennan not only broke the single-season record with 58 touchdown passes in 2007, but he also led Division I-A in passing efficiency (186.0). The senior is expected to contend for the Heisman Trophy, and neither his success nor the rise of his team should come as any surprise in the 2007 season.

After all, Hawaii is the southernmost team in the country.

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