Wceltics Football Betting News

<< NCAA denies UConn waiver request
Storrs, CT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The NCAA has turned down the University of Connecticut's request for a waiver that would allow its men's basketball team to participate in the 2012-13 postseason, the school announced Friday. The waiver

<< Indians re-sign SS Cabrera
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cleveland Indians avoided arbitration with shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera, signing him to a one-year contract on Friday. No financial terms were released, but the Plain Dealer reported it is worth $4.5

<< Western Illinois makes change in football schedule
Macomb, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Western Illinois's football program will host the University of Indianapolis instead of Hampton on Sept. 8, director of athletics Dr. Tim Van Alstine said Friday. The game against Hampton was rescheduled to Aug.

<< Spurs' Ginobili to return Saturday
San Antonio, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Guard Manu Ginobili will return to San Antonio's lineup when the visiting Spurs play New Jersey on Saturday. Head coach Gregg Popovich said Ginobili, who has missed more than a month with a broken lef

Blues place Arnott on IR >>
St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The St. Louis Blues have placed forward Jason Arnott on injured reserve, the team announced Friday. Arnott has not played since suffering a shoulder injury against Los Angeles on February 3. The 37-

Dunfermline out to end dry spell against Rangers >>
Dunfermline, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dunfermline will try to snap a pair of negative streaks on Saturday when the club hosts second-place Rangers. In the last 30 meetings between the two teams, Dunfermline has managed just one win,

Lyon warms up for Champions League against Caen >>
Lyon, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Lyon slipped 10 points behind Ligue 1 leader PSG last weekend, so a visit by Caen on Saturday - ahead of Tuesday's last 16 Champions League match against APOEL - has turned into a must-win match. Since win

Jiracek's brace lifts Wolfsburg over Freiburg >>
Wolfsburg, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Petr Jiracek scored the first and last goals as Wolfsburg downed Freiburg, 3-2, on Friday at Volkswagen Arena in the Bundesliga. Jiracek was one of the many new faces Wolfsburg signed in January, and

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.