Kyle Boller filled in for an injured Mark Bulger, and the St. Louis Rams improved to 2-1 on the NFL preseason with a 24-21 victory over the host Cincinnati Bengals. The Rams led 24-14 heading into the fourth quarter, but a Bengals TD early in the frame made for some drama down the stretch. The Bengals couldn’t close the deal, however, and dropped to 1-2 on the NFL preseason.
Boller did withstand a hard hit from linebacker Keith Rivers that knocked his helmet off his head. Rather than leave the game, he calmly picked up his helmet and finished the drive. After the game, he talked about the play:
“I could have slid a little earlier. It is what it is. My chin strap hit just above my eyes. It was a good scramble, but maybe if I can get down a little sooner, the coaches would like that.”
Rivers insisted the hit wasnt intentional:
“I was just trying to get to the ball. It wasn’t anything intentional.”
Boller had struggled last week after starting QB Bulger was forced to leave the game with a broken pinkie finger but played well this week. Rams coach Steve Spagnuolo gave him credit in his postgame media comments:
“He moved the team. He drove us down there after the bad start. When you score on a drive, the quarterback deserves the credit.”
Bengals second string QB J.T. O’Sullivan didnt have it quite so easy”he was sacked three times, lost a fumble and had two passes deflected by linemen. The lost fumble added to the Bengals NFL preseason turnover woes”theyve lost five fumbles and thrown three interceptions for eight turnovers in three games. He spoke of his performance and the need to minimize turnovers afterwards:
“We’ve just got to find a way to eliminate it. It puts you in such a disadvantage any time you turn the ball over. That’s one of the things that has to change immediately.”
Head coach Marvin Lewis concurred:
“When you turn the football over, you have a difficult time winning, whether you’re playing in the regular season, the preseason, junior high, sixth grade, whatever it is.
The Bengals conclude their NFL preseason slate next Thursday as they host the Indianapolis Colts. The Rams play at home on the same night, welcoming the Kansas City Chiefs to the Edward Jones Dome.
Ross Everett is a widely published freelance writer experienced in travel, casino gambling and . He is a consulting handicapper for Anatta Sports where he is responsible for providing daily . In his spare time he enjoys fine dining, fencing and scuba diving. He lives in Southern Nevada with four dogs and a pet coyote.
There’s not much ‘middle ground’ when it comes to the desirability of betting NFL preseason games. The overly conservative handicappers suggest that its a poor wagering opportunity, while the ‘boiler room’ sports touts try to suggest that short of a fixed game there’s no more sure thing than preseason football. There’s a degree of truth in both views. Handicapping preseason NFL football is a unique discipline unto itself, but with knowledge and caution it can be a profitable endeavor.
The most compelling argument against preseason wagering is simply that the games don’t count. While there are often spots during the regular season where teams may seem more or less motivated, in theory they all want to win. That’s not something that can be taken as a ‘given’ during the preseason, however, as the individual agendas of NFL coaching staffs can very widely. Some might want to win games to establish a winning attitude, others might put a greater focus on working in a new offensive or defensive scheme. Others may prioritize evaluating talent at key positions, while others may simply want to make it through to the regular season without any significant injuries. With all of the uncertainty swirling around preseason football, handicapping wins and losses against the pointspread can be exceedingly difficult.
But like the old saying goes “every dark cloud has a silver lining”. And the divergent agendas at play in preseason football can be seen as precisely why it is a good wagering opportunity. For example, say the Superbowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers are set to play an ‘also ran’ team like the Houston Texans. By regular season standards, the Steelers would almost certainly be favored. In the preseason, however, they’ll often have a different agenda for the individual game. A “better” team has more concern about protecting key players. and usually has fewer personnel decisions to deal with. They don’t need to worry about implementing coaching changes, or creating ‘team chemistry’. As a result, ‘better’ teams frequently approach preseason games as a mere annoyance.
On the other hand, consider the ‘lesser’ team in a preseason matchup. They often have a number of key starting positions they need to fill, along with backup positions up for grabs. They may have new coaching staffs that players want to impress, new offensive or defensive schemes to implement. Most significantly, ‘lesser’ teams often view the preseason as an opportunity to build team chemistry or create a winning attitude. A team trying to rebuild can benefit from winning *any* games, regardless of whether or not they count in the standings. For a league doormat, a win over an elite level opponent can serve as a rare highlight of a losing season.
While some teams could care less about the result of preseason games, few want to enter the regular season having lost them all. In light of this fact, a successful preseason situation that has stood the test of time is to bet on teams that lost their first two exhibition games outright. This situation has produced a winning percentage right around 60%.
There may be no greater determining factor of a team’s preseason success than the philosophy of their head coach. Some coaches just don’t like to lose *any* game, and usually these hyper-competitive teams are good preseason bets. Bill Parcells, for example, was legendary for his serious approach to preseason games. The coaches that he mentored like the NY Giants’ Tom Coughlin have to some extent carried on this legacy. While the “good” preseason coaches are often reflected in the pointspreads assigned to their team, a motivated team is almost always worth a look.
The smart preseason handicapper makes use of the Internet, and more specifically uses it to follow the local sports media of NFL teams. During NFL preseasons, teams’ beat writers are anxious to write stories and need to fill articles but have little in the way of “real” news to write about. As a result, a handicapper can frequently find valuable details like a coach’s goals for the game, playing time for key players, and specific strategies that will be implemented. Occasionally, coaches will come out and say that they’re more interested in evaluating certain players for certain positions than they are in the outcome of the game. A thorough evaluation of this type of media coverage can often produce not only teams to play “on”, but teams with priorities other than winning to play “against”.
In conclusion, there are certainly strong opportunities for profit in NFL preseason wagering but its essential to understand that it cannot be approached in the same manner as the regular season. And, as always, its important to remember that there will be more strong opportunities down the road and that discipline and rigor in handicapping is just as crucial in the preseason NFL as it is at any other time of the year.
Ross Everett is a respected freelance writer experienced in travel, poker and . He is a consulting handicapper for Anatta Sports where he is responsible for providing daily . In his spare time he enjoys fine dining, fencing and scuba diving. He lives in Southern Nevada with four dogs and a pet coyote.
“I must have a Lego Darth Vader!” I heard my nephew proclaim “What?”, I asked. I had the pleasant job of watching him for a bit while my sister worked. I do not keep up with all the “in” toys. But, my little angel was going to give me the “down low”.
“Darn, Auntie Felicia, do you not know anything about toys?” I was starting to feel ignorant. “I have wanted them for a very long time!” A long time? He was just five years old. What did he know about a long time? But, he knows what he wants. He was going to share his knowledge with me.
“Have you seen any of the Star Wars movies?”, he questioned. Yes, I had seen a few of them. But, I did not know anything about the desires of a little boy. I have no children of my own and he is the only one I can rely upon.
I have to admit, I have no knowledge about what kids like. I figured girls would much rather have dolls and tea cup sets. I thought little girls also liked to play dress up. Well, I have been proven wrong.
“I saw the greatest ship ever! It is right from the Star Wars movies! I have been thinking really hard about what I want Santa to bring me this year. I would love to have the ship the dark side uses. It is so awesome!” Her eyes sparkled with delight!
“I would love to have Count Dooku and Boba Fett. The Boba Fett has his own weapon! It would be great to have this for my collection. I would have so much fun when Aaron comes to play!” I could not deny his desire.
I will have to talk to Santa and hear what he has to say.
A great from the popular Star Wars LEGO sets is the .
Ingemar Johannson died in a Swedish nursing home in January 2009 at the age of 76. He’d lived in the nursing home in the Swedish coastal city of Kungsbacka since the mid’90’s when he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and dementia, and had suffered from a tough case of pneumonia immediately prior to his death.
Johannson rocketed to international fame and rock star like superstardom in Sweden by virtue of his 3rd round knockout victory over Floyd Patterson on June 26,’59 to become only the 5th heavyweight champion born outside of the US. Johannson was considered the underdog going into the matchup, and due to the perception that he wasn’t training particularly hard entered the bout a 5/1 underdog. Johansson was frequently seen in Catskill nightspots during his training camp with his attractive young secretary in stark contrast to Patterson’s disciplined regimen in preparation for his title defense.
While his training methods may not have been particularly disciplined, his performance in the Yankee Stadium fight made up for it. After a tentative first two rounds, Johannson floored Patterson with a quick right hand early in the third. As there was no ‘three knockdown’ rule in effect, Johannson would eventually knock Patterson down a total of seven times before referee Ruby Goldstein stopped the fight and awarded him the victory.
Johannson would hold the title for just under a year before he lost it back to Patterson in a rematch at the Polo Grounds in New York City. Patterson was the aggressor from the opening bell, and would eventually regain his title as he knocked Johannson out cold in the fifth round with a looping left hook. Displaying the class for which he became famous, Patterson was less concerned about celebrating his victory as he was for the well being of his opponent.
The two men would fight for a third time nine months later in Miami Beach, Florida. Though Johannson appeared to be out of shape entering the battle, he fought bravely in an exciting slugfest that saw both men taste the canvas at various points in the bout. The first round was particularly epic, with Patterson down twice and Johannson once. Soon after, however, it became apparent that Johannson knew an early assault was his only real chance at victory. The superior conditioning of Patterson took over, and he put his opponent away for good in the 6th round. Johannson would fight four more times , posting victories in Sweden before retiring from the ring in’63.
Patterson and Johannson remained close lifelong friends and would travel to visit each other every year until the American champion died in 2006. While it is commonplace today for former in-ring adversaries to become close personal friends(eg: Oscar De La Hoya and Shane Mosely, Mickey Ward and Arturo Gatti), it was less common in the’60s. Johannson remained a big star in Sweden, occasionally appearing in movies and enjoyed good health well into his 60’s when old age began to take its toll.
Ingemar Johansson is considered one of Sweden’s greatest sports heroes, and was a crucial element in fueling the popularity of boxing in Europe and Scandinavia. He was married and divorced twice, and is survived by five children.
Ross Everett is a freelance sports writer and noted authority on sports betting . He writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sportsbooks and sites. He lives in Northern Nevada with three Jack Russell Terriers and an emu. He is currently working on an autobiography of former energy secretary Donald Hodell.
I’ve been a blogger for several years now, and I’m always open to the idea of trying out new blogging platforms. I’ve blogged about a wide range of topics, and my friends often laugh at me about this. From the to , I’ve blogged about just about everything.
I try to get the best variety of options available, as I know that whatever I choose to blog with is something that I want to be convenient, rich with features, enjoyable, and attractive looking to my viewers.
While many were great, there are some that I’ve liked more than others. Generally, I stick to three now and what I go with really depends on the needs of the blog. Here are my top three, as I’m sure that one of these will be a great fit for you.
First of all, I’d definitely recommend taking a look at Blogger, which is offered free of charge by Google. It’s very easy to set up a blog this way, and you get the benefits of having your content indexed shortly after it’s published.
2. Wordpress. I absolutely love Wordpress as a platform because of all of the plugins available. There are really so many of them to choose from.
One of the best things about Wordpress is just how detailed these plugins are in terms of what they do. With very little Internet knowledge, you can easily have a robust website thanks to Wordpress.
The last one I’ll mention is a more recent addition to the blogosphere, and it’s called Posterous. This is a great service that allows you to post to your own blog without ever having to set it up. As long as you email them your post, they’ll have it up automatically for you in less than a minute.
The best part is the fact that you can upload videos and pictures directly to the blog via email, and they’ll post those too.
Did you know that we spend about a third of our lives in bed? It’s absolutely true, so you can understand how important it is to our sleep and to our health, to have a good supportive mattress and comfortable sheets and linen to sleep on.
The first thing to consider when purchasing bed sheets is the thread count of those sheets. The higher the thread count, means more threads per square inch. And the more threads per square inch makes that fabric strong, more durable and longer lasting.
The highest quality and thread count is found in the King of cotton, the Egyptian cotton, which is grown along the Nile.
Pima or Suprima is another fine choice of long fiber staple, high thread count quality fabric. This fiber is grown in the American Southwest as the Egyptian fiber is grown along the Nile. It is certainly another luxury fabric high in thread count perhaps not as costly as its counterpart.
Next choice is Pima or Supima which is compared to the luxury of Egyptian sheets. The difference is geographical; Egyptian is just that and the cotton is grown along the Nile River in Egypt. Pima is American and is grown in the Southwest.
Your lower quality but more affordable is percale sheets. The thread count is not as high, typically around’0 to 200 and can be found as 100% cotton or a mix blend of 50/50 cotton and polyester blend. Your 200 thread count of course will give you a softer feel.
Before the bed sheets you’ll want to have a supportive yet comfortable mattress to sleep on. First shop the mattress stores so that you can lay on them to find your perfect comfort level. You’ll find soft, firm, and hard mattresses, so do your homework. Consider your climate in which you live as a determining factor. And remember to take your spouse with you so that you are both happy with your decision.
Don’t forget about the mattress pad or cover with your mattress purchase. It will not only protect your mattress from sweat or stains, but will also prolong the life of your mattress. Also you’ll need to rotate and turn your mattress every six months to maintain the life of your mattress.
A high-end goose down comforter is much like the high-end Egyptian sheets, in that it will give you more years of enjoyment. You know the old saying, you get what you pay for, is certainly true when it comes to thread count and luxurious quality bedding.
See resource link: homes book for more relating to today.
Call it a fashion statement. Call it a new outlook. Call it an obsession. There is a hot new trend in personal fashion and home decor. Pink lovers everywhere are taking decorating to the next level and surrounding themselves with the colour pink.
The story of Pink – Surprisingly, prior to World War II, the colour pink was more often associated with baby boys than girls. Red was viewed as a masculine colour, and baby boys were expected to wear the diluted colour red. Baby girls were often dressed in blue! However, things began to change starting sometime after the second World War, and pink began the rise to feminine dominance that would continue for decades.
As women began to return from the wartime factories into the home in the 1950s, there was a rise in consumer goods, which prompted women to purchase more pink products. (Pink represented the blush of health and vitality, and was particularly popular as a make-up color.) Audrey Hepburn, the great icon of 1950s femininity, appeared in the film “Funny Face” in 1957, which included the song “Think Pink.” The pink-clad Barbie doll was also introduced in the 1950s, further linking the color pink to girlishness. In the 1960s, pink became the color of anti-masculinity in film “The Pink Panther”. In the 1980s, songs like “Pink Cadillac” and “Pretty in Pink” played with the idea of pink femininity, and in 2000, the singer Pink emerged on the scene with a shock of hot pink hair.
What Started the Current Pink Obsession? – The real cause of the current pink obsession may be the 2001 film “Legally Blond.” In the film, Reese Witherspoon stars as Elle Woods, a law student with a pink-clad Chihuahua who manages to overcome the sexism of her cruel boyfriend and the legal system by pluckiness and a love of the colour pink. The film, which depicts how a woman can simultaneously be intelligent and sexy, was so popular that it was even turned into a Broadway musical. The popularity of pink climbed as women began to embrace the colour as the perfect symbol of modern femininity.
Pink Home Decor – Pink began to make its way out of the make-up bag and into a wide range of products for decorating the home in pink things. Home decorators can now consider using pink not only for cute accent accessories but as the dominant colour for an entire room. For the bed room, the pink lover can find pink sheets, pink blankets, and even a pink shag carpet. For the bathroom, there are now pink toothbrushes and shower curtains to create a fun and pretty colour scheme. Pink kitchen accessories are also now becoming available. Decorators and pink lovers can even find pink kettles and toasters, or a pink microwave oven.
Pink Travelling – Pink extends far beyond the home, however. There are not only pink cars but also pink car accessories, such as flashlights, key chains, and even mats for seats and floors. Foreign travellers can also look into purchasing entire luggage systems that are decorated in pink. These not only coordinate with other pink items, but are also easy to spot at the airport.
Pink Princess – A “pink princess” is a woman who has decided to surround herself with a world of pink stuff. She has adopted the colour pink as an identity and as a personal statement. Why would someone do this? It goes back to what pink has come to symbolize: softness, flirtation, and beauty on the one hand, and elegance and high fashion on the other. The budding field of colour psychology suggests the use of pink for soothing, too: there have even been reports of criminals behaving better if their cells were painted pink!
The current obsession with pink may be a short-term trend, but it is also possible that it is part of a rising new view of life. Pink lovers are trying to “see the world through rose-colored glasses,” to surround themselves with one more tool for happiness.
Ian writes how will become your girlfriends perfect
“The ugly duckling. It may be rusty, but it runs better than most newer cars” What things have gone wrong with the car? Headliner falling down.
Driver seat a little twisted and ripped.
Engine valve noise, probably from driving 388,000 KMs.
Fenders and rear quarters rusted as well as other rust spots and peeling paint.
Speakers blown, but still work OK.
Valve cover leak and minor power steering hose leak.
General comments? Bought the truck for $500 and drove it 143 KMs home, and was surprised at how well it was running, and how well it rode for being a rusted cheap Bronco II.
The body is ugly brown on tan with a shade of rust, but still solid. Most of it is just surface rust.
4X4 works great, the manual transmission shifts good, and the clutch seems to be fine.
Heat works amazingly well, and surprisingly so does the A/C.
Handles bumps really well, and you do feel them, but you feel them in most true 44 offroad vehicles.
Carburated engine starts up quick, like as soon as the key hits the start position, it’s running, and very quiet and smooth, you can barely hear or feel the engine running except for the minor valve tick.
I definitely need to put in a tachometer in it so I know it’s running, because it’s so quiet that every time you get to a stop sign or traffic lights and push the clutch in, everything is quiet and it seems like the engine stalled, but it’s still running quiet and smooth.
I am very happy with this vehicle so far, even though it has 388,000 KMs. I would have no problem fixing up the body a little bit to get rid of most of the rust, and if I ever had to replace the engine or transmission, I would, but the way it seems right now, I almost think it would last another 300,000 KMs.
Check Cristian Truers’s buying guide for more information, or read his good tips.
Carmello Anthony scored 41 points and the Denver Nuggets used a second half comeback to give the Portland Trailblazers a rare 97-94 loss at their Rose Garden Arena home venue on Thursday night. The Blazers held a 67-62 lead heading into the final quarter but for the second time in as many games had trouble putting their opponent away. Brandon Roy led Portland with 30 points, and Greg Oden was the high rebounder for the home team with 9 boards.
NBA pointspread players who took Denver as +8 road underdogs enjoyed their outright victory and the ensuing payday. The Nuggets have covered the number in both of their victories this season, while Portland evened their ATS mark at 1-1. The 191 combined points went UNDER the posted total of 200.
After the game, Anthony was happier about the victory than his personal offensive outburst:
“We came out here and stole the win. It wasn’t just an important win. It was a battle.”
Anthony made 7 of 9 shots from the floor and 9 of 10 free throws in the decisive fourth quarter run:
“My shots were going in. I was trying to attack. I got to the rim and the foul line.”
Portland’s Greg Oden was taking the loss hard, as he missed a couple of late game free throws that could have given the Blazers a lead:
“This is a tough one. I definitely stepped up there with confidence thinking I was going to hit both and it didn’t go that way. I put this loss on me. I need to step up and make those.”
Team leader Brandon Roy said that he’d give the Blazers’ big man a pep talk:
“The biggest thing is to let go. We all miss shots, you’ve got to forget about it.”
Roy also added that the choppy pace of the game with a lot of fouls called benefitted Denver playing in back-to-back games:
“I think it benefited them a bit more coming off a back-to-back. They were tired but anytime you slow the game down that much, it gives them a chance to recover.”
The Blazers will head to Texas for a rematch against the Houston Rockets on Halloween night. Portland beat the Rockets to open their NBA season. They’ll play at Oklahoma City on Sunday before returning home for a game at The Rose Garden against the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday. Denver will head back to ‘The Mile High City’ for a game against Memphis on Sunday before an east coast road trip with stops in Indiana and New Jersey early next week.
Ross Everett is a freelance writer specializing in casino gambling, travel and . He serves as a staff handicapper for Sports-1 Sportsbook and is considered one of the world’s foremost authorities on . He lives in Las Vegas, Nevada where he spends his free time researching freemason conspiracy theories.
The Columbus Blue Jackets learned a valuable lesson about NHL hockey on Friday night-it’s dangerous to ’sit on a lead’ and particularly against the defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins. Down 3-1, Pittsburgh tied the game late in the third period as Ruslan Fedotenko and Alex Goligoski each lit the lamp with less than three minutes remaining. After a scoreless overtime period, Sidney Crosby scored the only goal of the shootout to give the Penguins an improbable 4-3 victory. It was the 9th win in ten games for Pittsburgh, who are a perfect 6-0-0 on the road. Columbus lost for the fifth time in six games after a 5-1 start to the NHL season.
NHL hockey betting enthusiasts cashed wagers on the road underdog Penguins, but on the moneyline at +117 and the puckline. Pittsburgh has gotten off to a great start this year, going 11-2-0 in the first month of the season. Columbus is struggling to stay above .500 at 6-5-1. The 7 combined goals scored went OVER the posted total of 5′. The Blue Jackets have gone OVER in 7 of 12 games this season.
Crosby’s game winning score in overtime wasn’t exactly the stuff of highlight reels, with the puck barely trickling over the line:
“It was kind of a fluky. The puck kept going. I don’t know if he lost it or he didn’t know where it was or whatever. I just tried a quick shot. I thought he had the save there. It just trickled in.”
Jackets’ goalie Steve Mason gave this version of events:
“It hit my stick and I didn’t get it settled until it was over the line. It just trickled over and I was too late on it.”
Penguins’ left winger Chris Kunitz scored a shorthanded goal and praised the leadership abilities of team captain Crosby:
“It shows a lot of character from our captain. He goes out and he’s never quitting on anything. Sometimes a team goes packing, down by two with 3 minutes left. But he goes out, he’s on the bench, he’s saying, ‘Let’s get the next one.’ So we go out there and he finds himself the puck and he gets it to Goligoski, he gets a great shot and puts it in the net to get us to overtime.”
Columbus’ Rick Nash suggested that his team is having trouble ‘closing out’ games:
“We’re not closing games. We got the lead in a lot of the games already and just can’t seem to close it out. They are the defending Stanley Cup champions. You can tell why they’re such a good team. We are a team that needs to learn how to play with the lead.”
Pittsburgh will host Minnesota on Saturday night before heading to southern California next week for games against the Los Angeles Kings and Anaheim Ducks. Columbus will play at Washington on Sunday before hosting the San Jose Sharks next Wednesday. That’ll be followed by a game in Atlanta against the Thrashers the next night.
Ross Everett is a freelance sports writer specializing in mixed martial arts, classical music and . He serves as staff handicapper for Sports-1 Sportsbook, and has appeared on numerous TV and radio broadcasts giving advice for how to successfully . He lives in Pahrump, Nevada with three dogs and several beehives.
categories: NHL hockey,hockey,sports,gambling,recreation,hobbies
