Almost every time the Dallas Cowboys snatch defeat from the jaws of victory, the scapegoat is quarterback Tony Romo, whether he deserves to be or not.
Betting
In an era when so many NFL coaches seem drained of personality, it’s cool to see how Pete Carroll handles the Seattle Seahawks. He has a college-type enthusiasm and an ability to think outside the box.
The Breeders’ Cup offers two of the best betting days of the year for horseplayers. The Daily Racing Form Breeders’ Cup Advance edition is available in all race books. You’ll need a week to get familiar with 172 horses that pre-entered into 15 championship races.
It’s not quite the halfway point of the NFL season, and what happens from here will be as unpredictable as a drunken night on Bourbon Street. Still, it’s safe to say quarterback Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints are wholly relevant again.
Every once in a while, a football game lives up to extreme hype and maybe even exceeds it. Lately, most of those games involve Peyton Manning.
While all eyes are focused on his big brother this weekend, Eli Manning is staring down a big game of his own. The New York Giants are winless, and no team wants to wear that black eye into late October.
What’s most important to bettors is how to cash tickets this week and, in the big picture, how to handicap explosive offensive teams such as Oregon. The Ducks scare the heck out of bookmakers, who are not setting lines high enough, and sharp bettors, who usually prefer to buy underdogs when the price appears inflated.
A game up for grabs came down to an unlikely play. A perfectly thrown ball into the back of the end zone, a great catch and a comeback win. Drew Brees had pulled a rabbit out of his helmet and beat the New England Patriots again.
It has been bad, it can get worse, and it could become humiliating. How low can Ben Roethlisberger and the Pittsburgh Steelers go?
The Lakers hosted a preseason game Thursday night at the MGM Grand Garden, but there was no Bryant and a definite lack of buzz. Imagine the E Street Band showing up to play without Bruce Springsteen.
Tony Romo, after the finest performance of his career, was destined to lose. “You were almost waiting for it to happen,” South Point oddsmaker Jimmy Vaccaro said, “and it happened.”
In the absence of coach Sean Payton, the New Orleans Saints were stumbling down the stairs in the dark, with last season turning into a lost cause before it even got started.
The Denver Broncos’ popularity with the betting public is so over the top, South Point sports book executive Jimmy Vaccaro was compelled to tweet, something he rarely does. “The magic carpet ride continues. Denver is now America’s team,” he posted Wednesday @JimmyVaccaro.
As if you hadn’t seen enough drama last weekend, this weekend offers up 20 more graded stakes. Included are eight Grade 1 races as racing’s super stars prepare for the Breeders’ Cup at Santa Anita Park on Nov. 1 and 2.