Pats' quick draw stops Texans in their tracks
Football Betting Lines
12/20/2006 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Finally, for the first time in a month, New England played the elusive near-flawless game. The 40-7 blowout may have come against the four-win Texans, but the NFL will allow Bill Belichick's team to list the game in the left column nonetheless.
The last time the Pats won a game like this was when they pasted Green Bay, 35-0, on November 19, and let's face it, the Packers aren't the cream of the NFL crop either.
The opponent may not have been impressive, but the fact that New England thoroughly dominated an NFL team minus its most explosive running back Laurence Maroney (back), its leading pass-catcher, Benjamin Watson (knee), and the center spot of its vaunted defensive line, Vince Wilfork (ankle), was something about which to marvel.
Houston was never in the game, as the Patriots won the turnover battle, picking off David Carr four times, highlighted by Asante Samuel's eighth interception of the season in the fourth quarter, tying him with Denver's Champ Bailey for the league lead.
New England, which didn't turn the ball over after coughing it up 11 times in the three previous games, scored 16 points off Texans turnovers. The Pats were only penalized two times for 10 yards, which was the fewest amount of penalties since the Week 1 Buffalo win, when they were flagged only once for five yards.
"That was a real good, solid team victory for us today," said Belichick. "We're real happy to win. Happy at the way we played. I thought, field position wise, it was kind of the reversal of what we saw last week where [today] we had the ball pretty much of their side of the 50 the whole first half. That was a lot different from what we saw down there in Miami."
Tom Brady completed 16-of-23 passes for 109 yards with a pair of touchdowns, while Kevin Faulk made two trips to the end zone, including a screen pass that went 43 yards for a 17-0 margin. Ellis Hobbs also returned a kickoff 93 yards for a TD, and picked off a pass.
"He was constantly in practice putting pressure on us to prepare well, to ask questions in front of the entire team and make sure we know the opponent we are playing," said Brady referring to Belichick's approach after getting shut out by Miami. "We haven't played these guys in a while. The execution in practice has to continue to pick up. He is very tough on us, especially after a loss. This team responded to it and we will see where we go from here."
After giving up only seven points to the Texans, New England foes are averaging just 13.79 points per game. The Patriots are making a run at eclipsing the franchise single-season record set in 2003, when they allowed 14.88 points per outing.
New England put 17 quick points in the board in the opening frame, which tied its highest single-quarter total of the season. The Pats scored 17 points in the fourth quarter of a 38-13 win against Cincinnati on October 1.
"We started off fast and we kind of finished strong," continued Brady. "We played for 60 minutes. That was really what we needed. That is a pressure defense and I think our offensive line really handled it and ran the ball well. I wish we had had a few more plays in the passing game, but when you are up by however many points it was, I think everyone enjoyed it."
The Patriots' 27 first-half points were their most since scoring 28 points in the first half of a 35-28 victory over the Bengals on December 12, 2004. They also put together their fourth first-half shutout of the season, and recorded their seventh half of scoreless football.
"We definitely needed a win," said linebacker Tully Banta-Cain, who had two of the four New England sacks. "It's a confidence thing but we're not satisfied yet. We're still not where we want to be. We're going to keep working."
They reached the 40-point plateau for the first time since besting Pittsburgh, 41-27, in the 2004 AFC Championship on January 23, 2005. The last time they scored at least 40 in the regular season was against Cleveland in a 42-15 victory on December 5, 2004. This was only the second time New England put 40 points on the board at Gillette Stadium, after tallying 41 points in a 41-38 overtime victory over Kansas City Chiefs on September 22, 2002.
Bottom line is that the Pats reversed a growing trend of making mistakes, but they still need to do it against a respectable team. They'll get that chance when they play Jacksonville on Sunday.
PLAYOFF PICTURE
The Pats have a two-game lead over the New York Jets for the AFC East top spot, and still hold the No. 4 seed in the AFC with two games to play. They can clinch their fourth straight division title with a win against Jacksonville. The Patriots would have to win out and Indianapolis and Baltimore would both have to lose their final two games to reverse positions. Indy plays at Houston and versus Miami, while the Ravens finished the campaign at Pittsburgh and home for Buffalo. The Colts hold the head-to-head tiebreaker, and if Baltimore and New England are tied, the team with the best conference record gets the high seeding (currently 8-2 for the Ravens compared to 6-4 for the Pats).
PATS TIDBITS
-The victory was the 16th in Patriots history by at least 33 points, and was the largest in the brief history of Gillette Stadium (2002).
-The Patriots are 4-1 when wearing their silver jerseys.
-Stephen Gostkowski was 4-for-4 on field goals and 4-for-4 on extra points, becoming the first Patriots kicker to make eight combined kicks in a game since Adam Vinatieri accomplished the feat on November 7, 2004.
-In the Bill Belichick era, the Pats are 21-6 in December, including victories in 14 of the last 16 contests. Brady is 19-4 in the final month of the year.
-The last time the Patriots had scored 17 points in the first quarter of a game was on Dec. 8, 2002, in a 27-17 victory over the Buffalo Bills at Gillette Stadium.
-New England has won 10 or more games in four straight, five of the last six and eight of the last 13 seasons since Robert Kraft bought the franchise in 1994. The Patriots are the only team in the NFL to win nine or more regular- season games in each season since 2001.
NEXT UP: WELCOME TO THE JUNGLE
The Patriots close out the regular-season with a pair of road games, and that stretch begins in Jacksonville (8-6), where the Jaguars are fighting for a playoff berth. New England will return to the site where they won Super Bowl XXXIX, 24-21, against Philadelphia.
These two teams meet for the first time since a 28-3 blowout win in last season's AFC Wild Card game. New England leads the all-time series, 5-1, with the Jaguars' lone win coming in the 1998 AFC Wild Card game (25-10).
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Portland Trail Blazers hope to extend their season- long winning streak to five games when they welcome the Houston Rockets to the Rose Garden. Portland plays the middle contest of a three-game homestand. Zach Randol
<< Clippers, Raptors meet at Staples Center
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Clippers try to put the brakes on a four-
game losing streak when they welcome the Toronto Raptors tonight to the
Staples Center.
This is the first of two meetings between the clubs this season. The Rapto
<< Nuggets hope they have the answer against the red-hot Suns
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Denver Nuggets are hopeful that they will have Allen
Iverson in uniform tonight, as they host the red-hot Phoenix Suns at the Pepsi
Center.
The Nuggets made a blockbuster move on Tuesday when they acquired
Iver
<< Heat try to extend winning streak vs. Bucks
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Miami Heat attempt to extend their winning streak to
three games, as they visit the Milwaukee Bucks tonight at the Bradley Center.
On Monday, All-Star Dwyane Wade banked in the game-winning jump shot with 1.3
seconds
<< Spurs host Grizzlies
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The top team in the West meets the worst club in the
conference, as the San Antonio Spurs host Southwest Division-rival Memphis
tonight at the AT&T Center.
The Spurs are in first place in the Southwest Division, while the
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The streaking Dallas Mavericks close out a three-game road trip when they visit the struggling Seattle SuperSonics tonight at KeyArena. Dallas enters tonight's contest on a four-game winning streak. All-Star Dirk Nowit
Status Quo for Lions >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Lions have never beaten Brett Favre in Lambeau
Field, and despite the veteran quarterback's three interceptions, nothing
changed this past Sunday. Detroit lost for the 12th time this season (and
seventh time in se
Bobcats, Knicks battle at MSG >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Knicks continue their homestand tonight when
they welcome the Charlotte Bobcats to Madison Square Garden.
New York is 1-1 on the homestand and defeated Utah, 97-96, in overtime on
Monday night. Stephon Marbu
Nets continue homestand vs. Cavs >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New Jersey Nets continue their homestand tonight
as they welcome the Cleveland Cavaliers to town for a battle at Continental
Airlines Arena.
New Jersey is 1-1 on its four-game homestand and defeated Golden State by a
Jets keep hope alive in Minnesota >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - "Just when I thought that I was out, they pull me back in."
There is not much to like, or remember, about Godfather III, but Michael
Corleone's signature line in that movie pretty much sums up my feelings
towards the New Y
Numerous College Basketball teams take final big step to March Madness betting
So, what turned on the lock spigot? Well, after what felt like weeks of teams treading water and slipping back into the bubble muck, a bunch of them finally decided to say "to heck with parity" and won games that should put them into the Big Dance.
Disagree with some of these? Then here's the challenge. Take all of the "should be ins" and make a legit case that each should be ahead of the team that's a lock. Then find 10 more teams that also should be placed in the bracket ahead of that lock team. Not so easy, is it?
If you want more evidence that these locks should be good to go, check out what our research department dug up. Since the NCAA Tournament went to 64 teams in 1985, only six teams from a "big six" conference have had a record of 10-6 or better in conference play and not been selected: Colorado (2004) and Nebraska (1999) from the Big 12, Boston College and Seton Hall (both 2003) from the Big East, Indiana (2005) from the Big Ten and UCLA, which somehow went 12-6 in the Pac-10 in 1988 and still missed out. (Note: Five teams went 11-7 and didn't get in, the latest being last season's Stanford team, which had a brutal nonconference run.)
Yes, 10 conference wins doesn't always mean what it used to because of unbalanced schedules, but this season, it should be plenty good in all but the extreme cases (see: Iowa).
In a way, this is a welcome development, because this is a bubble watch, not a lock watch. We can finally be done with teams like Maryland and Virginia Tech and start really bearing down on at-large battles such as Syracuse-West Virginia and Appalachian State-Georgia Tech.
Interestingly, all the shifting of teams into lock status appears to be more administrative than impactful. The number of remaining available at-larges didn't change one iota. The only difference is that teams on the bubble now have a clearer idea of which team(s) they are competing with for those precious bids.
| The Bubble Breakdown | |||
| CONFERENCE | LOCKS | SHOULD BE INS | AT-LARGES TAKEN (assuming no auto bid outlier) |
| ACC Betting Odds | 6 | 0 | 5 |
| Big East Betting Odds | 5 | 0 | 4 |
| Big Ten Betting Odds | 2 | 2 | 3 |
| Big 12 Betting Odds | 3 | 0 | 2 |
| Pac-10 Betting Odds | 5 | 1 | 5 |
| SEC Betting Odds | 4 | 0 | 3 |
| MVC Betting Odds | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| MWC Betting Odds | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| TOTAL | 28 | 5 | 25 |
As always, I've tried to be as inclusive as possible while only including teams that would have a reasonable chance of at least being discussed if this were Selection Sunday. If your team's not on here, there's probably a good reason (or three) -- start with the RPI and SOS numbers and work your way down.
(Please remember, per selection committee criteria, that records displayed are Division I only. Next update: Feb. 28)
If you have a legitimate grievance, or just like talking bubble, send an e-mail. Polite ones with fact-based arguments have a much better chance of receiving a response. I apologize in advance if I can't get back to all of you.
Atlantic Coast Conference
Work left to do: Clemson, Florida State, Georgia Tech
The ACC moves to six locks as BC, Va Tech and Virginia all got their 10th ACC wins, which should be more than enough this season, and Maryland rallied past North Carolina to get the final piece the Terps needed. After that? It could end there unless FSU, Ga Tech or Clemson picks things up in a hurry.
Work left to do:
Clemson [19-9 (5-9), RPI: 41, SOS: 42] The Tigers are closer to locking up the collapse of the year award (in a good battle with OK State) than they are to grabbing an at-large. Clemson's been very competitive, but there's no really positive way you can spin nine losses in 11 games. They now cannot get to .500 in ACC play and still must head to Virginia Tech in the season finale (after hosting Miami). Unless the Tigers win both and/or do some serious work in the ACC tourney, they very well could be left out. There are no great nonconference wins, but ODU, App State, Miss. State, South Carolina and Georgia are all respectable W's.
Florida State [18-11 (6-9), RPI: 48, SOS: 14] The Noles got thrashed at Maryland to run their losing streak to five, but then pounded NC State at home to set the table for what likely is an elimination game at Miami. You can at least make a case for the Seminoles at 7-9 in ACC play (and some work in the ACC tourney), but 6-10 is not going to cut it. Wins at Duke and over Florida will resonate, but the computer numbers remain questionable. Beyond Florida, FSU thrashed bubble buddy Providence, but there's not a ton beyond those two games that will help. They didn't show well in big-time opportunities against Pitt and Wisconsin (before the Florida win).
Georgia Tech [18-10 (6-8), RPI: 51, SOS: 46] The Jackets beat Wake on Wednesday but couldn't get it done at UVa on Saturday, which could be a crucial loss with UNC and BC (both at home) remaining and 8-8 almost a certain need for at-large consideration. A nonconference win over Memphis helps, but the RPI and SOS are not at-large quality right now; if you combine those with a sub-.500 ACC mark, that could spell NIT for GT.
For more College Basketball betting lines go to MySportsbook.com
Additional basketball lines can be found at: www.MySportsbook.com
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.