Nrwyorkjets Soccer Betting News

<< Gunners warn Gallas over salary demands
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - William Gallas may have played his last game for Arsenal after stunning the club with "extravagant" salary demands, according to chairman Peter Hill-Wood. The 32-year-old France international is ou

<< Kingston shoots 65 to lead in Spain
Son Servera, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - South Africa's James Kingston fired a five-under 65 to take the first-round lead Thursday at the Iberdrola Open Cala Millor. Kingston mixed six birdies with one bogey on the Pula Golf Club course to

<< Russia downs Belarus at Worlds
Cologne, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Semyon Varlamov stopped 19 shots to lead Russia to a 3-1 victory over Belarus Thursday at the 2010 World Championship. Sergei Mozyakin had a goal and an assist while Artyom Anisimov and Alexander Ovech

<< Western Conference Finals Preview - LA Lakers vs. Phoenix
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Both the Phoenix Suns and Los Angeles Lakers must have thought they were getting paid by the hour in the second round of the NBA playoffs. The result was a pair of sweeps with the Suns besting their long-time nem

Samaras committed to Celtic >>
Glasgow, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Celtic striker Georgios Samaras has dismissed reports of a summer move to Palermo. The Italian side have recently admitted their interest in the Greece striker, who found starting opportunities at

Slovakia's Skrtel optimistic about World Cup >>
Liverpool, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Liverpool's Slovakia defender Martin Skrtel is optimistic of his chances of being fit for the start of the World Cup. Skrtel has been sidelined since February with a broken metatarsal but was

England's Zamora explains World Cup omission >>
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Fulham striker Bobby Zamora has revealed his fears over breaking down through injury were behind the decision not to include him in England's World Cup squad. Zamora was a surprise omission from pr

Solid dozen for Preakness >>
Baltimore, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 2010 Triple Crown traveling carnival takes up residence in Baltimore this Saturday for the 135th running of the $1 million Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Race Course. The 1 3/16-mile race has attract

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.