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09/11/2007 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The offense of the Baltimore Ravens tried its best to give Cincinnati a win in its opener Monday night.
When that failed, the officials effectively tried to gift wrap the victory for them.
That didn't work either, but when Ravens tight end Todd Heap failed to hold a rocket of a pass from backup quarterback Kyle Boller in the waning moments, the Bengals had finally been coerced into accepting a 27-20 win that helped kick off their season at 1-0.
Despite committing five turnovers in the game's first three-plus quarters, Baltimore found itself clinging to a 20-19 lead after Ed Reed returned a punt 63 yards for a surprisingly easy touchdown early in the fourth quarter.
The Bengals rebounded, cashing in that fifth turnover, an interception by end Robert Geathers, into a touchdown pass from Carson Palmer to T.J. Houshmandzadeh to give Marvin Lewis' club the lead back.
That score would ultimately prove the game-winner, but not before some high drama kept the contest from reaching overtime.
After Boller relieved an injured Steve McNair, what looked like a one-yard touchdown pass to Heap on fourth-down at the 1:54 mark was negated by a highly questionable offensive pass interference penalty on the tight end.
Baltimore was bailed out in part by an equally suspect defensive holding call against Madieu Williams on the next play, but the Ravens got no further than the Cincinnati 2-yard line before Boller's next pass to Heap ended up resting harmlessly in the hands of defensive tackle Michael Myers in the end zone.
And so it was that the Bengals kicked off 2007 with a win, not that it came as easy as perhaps it should have given the circumstances.
"We'll take it," said Palmer, who connected on 20-of-32 passes for 194 yards and a pair of touchdowns on the night. "Any time you get an ugly win, or a pretty win - a win is a win against that team, against that defense...[Our defense] kept giving us opportunities. You feel bad because we didn't take advantage of all the opportunities. But we did enough, I guess, to get a win."
Though star receivers Houshmandzadeh and Chad Johnson both scored touchdowns to help fuel the win, it was indeed the work of the defense that ultimately won the game for Cincinnati.
Newcomers to the lineup were essential to the operation, with ex-Broncos tackle Michael Myers (three tackles, 1 INT), ex-Redskins linebacker Lemar Mashall (three quarterback hurries, 1 forced fumble) and new starting middle linebacker Brooks (6 tackles, 1 sack, 1 forced fumble) all making a tangible impact in the victory.
Geathers, who had a monster game with the interception, a sack, a forced fumble, and a recovery, also justified his presence on the first-team.
"We did some good things on defense, and we did some good things on offense, noted Lewis. "The biggest disappointment was that we weren't consistent.
"We made a lot of plays tonight. Our defense played well."
HURTS
The Bengals looked to come away from Monday's game without much in the way of new injuries, though some banged-up members of the team were unable to participate at all against Baltimore.
Tackle Levi Jones (knee) was active but did not play versus the Ravens, with Andrew Whitworth taking his spot in the lineup and doing a solid job. The Bengals allowed just one sack against Baltimore, and shut ends Terrell Suggs and Trevor Pryce out of that category altogether.
Strong side linebacker Rashad Jeanty (leg) was inactive for the contest, and is expected to miss another month. Marshall should continue to start in place of Jeanty following Monday's strong performance.
Cornerback Johnathan Joseph (foot) played against the Ravens, making two tackles, but gave up his starting job to rookie Leon Hall due to the limitations of his injury. Hall, the club's first-round draft choice out of Michigan, was credited with four tackles and two pass deflections in the triumph.
Finally, kicker Shayne Graham (hip) was able to play after re-aggravating his injury early on Monday night. Graham was not available for a point-after that followed Cincinnati's first touchdown (punter Kyle Larson's try was blocked), but returned to kick a field goal of 40 yards and an extra point.
CLASS OF THE DIVISION?
The Bengals have now won five of their last six meetings with the Ravens, including three straight in Cincinnati, and are 6-3 against Baltimore under Lewis, the Ravens' former defensive coordinator.
The Ravens and Bengals will meet at M&T Bank Stadium on Nov. 11th, which will be a short week for Baltimore following a scheduled trip to Pittsburgh on the preceding Monday night. Cincinnati plays the Buffalo Bills the week before it heads to Charm City.
NEXT UP: ANOTHER RIVALRY
The first installment of the Battle of Ohio is scheduled for this Sunday in Cleveland, with the Bengals looking to continue their recent string of dominance against their in-state rival.
Cincinnati leads the all-time series with Cleveland, 34-33, breaking a deadlock in the series with a 30-0 thrashing of the Browns on the road in Week 12 of last season. The Bengals, who were also 34-17 home winners over the Browns in Week 2 of '06, have now won five straight in the series. Cleveland's last win in the series was a 34-17 triumph at home in 2004.
Lewis is 6-2 against the Browns in his career, including 3-1 in games held in Cleveland.
<< This Week in Auto Racing September 14 - September 16
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - NASCAR begins the "Chase for the Nextel
Cup" this Sunday in New Hampshire, while across the pond, the Formula One
championship heats up both on and off the track.
NASCAR
Nextel Cup
Sylvania 3
<< Browns deal Frye to Seattle
Seattle, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cleveland Browns have reportedly traded
quarterback Charlie Frye to the Seattle Seahawks.
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer reported the Seahawks actually made a pair of
trades on Tuesday with both invo
<< Offensive mentality critical to growth of MLS
East Rutherford, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Major League Soccer is an up-and-coming
league in the United States, but for it to get to the level Commissioner Don
Garber envisions, the product on the field needs to continue on its current
growth
<< Federer will play in Davis Cup playoff this month
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Roger Federer has decided to play Davis Cup
for Switzerland this month.
The Swiss will face the Czech Republic in a playoff on an indoor carpet in
Prague from September 21-23, with the winner joining ne
Bruins send Walter to Isles >>
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Bruins have acquired center/right
wing Petteri Nokelainen from the New York Islanders in exchange for center
prospect Ben Walter and a conditional second-round draft choice in 2009.
Nokelainen
Tomlin's Steeler Debut a Winning One, Naturally >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - You'll have to forgive the legendarily passionate fan base
of the Pittsburgh Steelers if they're not getting all giddy over this one.
A town that has seen five Super Bowl titles has come to expect a certain level
of greatn
Early Returns Not Promising for Bucs >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It was supposed to be the start of a new era for the Tampa
Bay Buccaneers on Sunday, what with proven ex-Pro Bowler Jeff Garcia at the
helm of an offense that had struggled to get out of its own way in 2006.
Instead, Sunda
Saints look to rebound after Week 1 thrashing >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After falling apart in the fourth quarter of last season's
NFC Championship game against Chicago, the New Orleans Saints came into the
2007 campaign with renewed hopes and a super-charged offense ready to showcase
itself in t
Barry Bonds Watch: Giants Slugger Says He'll Be Back
With only 21 home runs standing between him and Hank Aaron, Barry Bonds is indeed planning on coming back for more in 2007. At least, that's what his agent told the Los Angeles Times.
"Barry's going to play in 2007," Jeff Borris of Beverly Hills Sports Council told the Times on Tuesday. "I've had many discussions with Barry and he's going to play. My intentions are to see to it he's in a big-league uniform next season. Those are my marching orders."
Contract negotiations could get started as early as next week. Let's see which team has the deeper pockets. Will MLB baseball betting lines despite allegations of steroid use? Bet On It at www.MySportsbook.com .
Get all your baseball betting lines, MLB lines and MLB team props at the My Sportbook.
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Sportsbook betting odds favor Europe in Ryder Cup
September 19, – Despite holding a decided edge in the all-time series, with 24 wins, 2 ties and 10 losses, Team USA is the underdog again heading into the Ryder Cup in Kidare, Ireland this weekend, according to MySportsbook.com. The Europeans have captured four of the past five editions, including their largest victory ever, an 18 ½ to 9 ½ thumping in Michigan in 2004. Current Ryder Cup betting odds favor the Europeans to continue their winning ways; they are a 4-5 bet to take the title, compared to 6-5 for the Americans.
Despite being knocked out in the first round of World Match play by Shaun Micheel, Tiger Woods is predicted to lead the US charge and be their highest point scorer for the week, with odds listed at 9-4 that he outpoints all other American players, including Jim Furyk, Phil Mickelson and Chris DiMarco to name a few. Team USA has four relatively unknown players on the roster but all four are 2007 tournament winners and have posted some of season’s best performances, each earning over $1.5 million on the PGA TOUR. They include Zach Johnson, Vaughan Taylor, JJ Henry and Brett Wetterich.
The experienced European squad includes the likes of Luke Donald, Sergio Garcia, Padraig Harrington, Jose Maria Olazabal and Darren Clarke, who’s emotions will be tested after the passing of his wife to a battle with cancer. Donald and Garcia are in particularly good form and each is a 5-1 bet to lead the European squad in the points race. Donald has proven he can go head to head with Woods at a major event after a run for the $1.2 million purse at the PGA Championship. Garcia’s Ryder Cup credentials prove he’s ready for battle too.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your golf sportsbook needs.
Ryder Cup Odds| Europe Tie USA |
4-5 10-1 6-5 |
| Tiger Woods Jim Furyk Phil Mickelson Chris DiMarco David Toms Stewart Cink Chad Campbell Scott Verplank Zach Johnson Vaughan Taylor JJ Henry Brett Wetterich |
9-4 4-1 5-1 7-1 8-1 12-1 15-1 15-1 25-1 30-1 30-1 50-1 |
| Sergio Garcia Luke Donald Padraig Harrington Colin Montgomerie Darren Clarke David Howell Lee Westwood Paul Casey Henrik Stenson Jose Maria Olazabal Paul McGinley Robert Karlsson |
5-1 5-1 6-1 13-2 8-1 9-1 9-1 11-1 12-1 12-1 20-1 25-1 |
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