Blogy

The offensively struggling Kansas City Chiefs have finally found a way to win-play a team with a more stagnant offense than their own. The Chiefs gave Todd Haley his first win as a NFL head coach on Sunday with a—6 win over the Washington Redskins. Kansas City won despite not scoring a touchdown, compiling their– points via 4 Ryan Succop field goals and a game ending safety.

To successfully bet on NFL football you occasionally have to put aside W/L records and look at the underlying statistics. Those who did that found reason to take Kansas City as +6′ road underdogs and were rewarded with the outright victory. Kansas City is now 2-4 against the NFL pointspread and has covered two straight while Washington is a dismal 1-5 versus the money. The 20 combined points went well UNDER the posted total of 36′.

After the contest, Haley sounded more relieved than excited about finally putting a “W” on the board:

“We made it pretty difficult, right down to the end. We’ve pushed through a very difficult period. We needed to get some positive reinforcement with a win.”

Kansas City QB Matt Cassel also won for the first time since coming over from New England in the off season. His postgame comments were more upbeat:

“There’s been a lot of change, but this has definitely been special. We rose to the occasion. We made some big plays. We put ourselves in a position to score points.”

Embattled Redskins’ coach Jim Zorn was stripped of his offensive play calling duties by team management after the contest. In one of his last decisions in that role, he pulled starter Jason Campbell at halftime and went with Todd Collins. He explained his move as follows:

“I felt the need to create a spark on our football team offensively and went with Todd. I think the guys responded well. We kept our spark, at times, and then we refizzled.”

The Redskins have managed to win only two of their first six games despite being the only team in NFL history to play their first six games of the season against winless opponents. They’ll get another chance to silence their doubters next Monday night as they host the Philadelphia Eagles. The Skins are +6′ home underdogs with the total set at 38′. They’ll have a bye the next week and return to action on November 8th against the Atlanta Falcons at the Georgia Dome. Kansas City will try to string together back to back wins as they host the San Diego Chargers on Sunday.

Ross Everett is a freelance sports writer who has written on sports gambling and how to successfully bet on NFL football. He has appeared on TV and radio talking about boxing, hockey and NFL pointspreads. He lives in Southern Nevada with three Jack Russell Terriers and a wombat.

The retirement of Brett Favre is becoming an annual rite of the NFL preseason, and this year is no different. A few months after retiring from football after playing last season with the New York Jets, The Gunslinger is back in the NFL and will play for the Minnesota Vikings.

Favre made his announcement at a Tuesday press conference where he spoke of the decision to come back for another NFL season:

“I felt I did everything I possibly could do to get where I need to be. You’re 39, your arm may not feel like it did at 21. But the pieces are in place that you don’t have to do that much and I agree with that. If they were willing to take that chance, I was, too. I don’t know how I’ll feel a year from now, five years from now, but I didn’t want to say what if.

The Vikings will pay Favre $12 million this season and $13 million next season. If he makes the opening day roster in either year, he gets the full amount of the contract though the payments themselves will be deferred. If his level of play isn’t up to par, or should he get injured in training camp the Vikings are still on the hook for $6 million.

Favres mother was even asked for her thoughts on the matter:

“I have mixed emotions, but I have always loved to watch him play. This time, however, I thought he would stay retired and stay home. I guess he could not do it. They Minnesota seem to have a good team in place, and he liked that. I guess I need to get a Vikings jersey now.”

Favre initially decided to not return to the NFL due to a torn rotator cuff but after consulting with noted sports physician James Andrews, he had a change of heart:

“I just kept thinking I didn’t want to go through what I did last year. Between three weeks ago and the phone conversation yesterday [with Vikings coach Brad Childress], I talked to Dr. [James] Andrews and he assured me it wouldn’t be an issue. I felt if everyone was going to take that chance, I was to. As friends and family has told me, you never know until you take the chance,”

Favre said that he’s optimistic that the Vikings can make a deep run in the NFL playoffs:

“I felt from my standpoint that I could offer some experience and leadership, and I have to admit through this whole process after I said no three weeks ago, sometimes I was OK with it, and other times I said. I can really help this team.”

Less happy with Favres signing were Viking QBs Sage Rosenfels and Tarvaris Jackson who were competing for the starting job and will now be relegated to backup status.

Ross Everett is a staff oddsmaker for Sports-1 Sportsbook as well as a widely published freelance sportswriter specializing in MMA, boxing and how to bet on NFL football. He is a well known authority on Internet sports betting, fine dining and fencing. He lives in Las Vegas, Nevada with three Jack Russell Terriers and a pet wallaby.

Former Chicago Bears running back Cedric Benson got revenge on the team that let him go in the best possible way. Benson amassed 189 yards rushing and led his new team, the Cincinnati Bengals, to a 45-10 rout over the visiting Bears on Sunday. Carson Palmer threw for five touchdowns with no interceptions in the blowout victory.

The Bengals also made short work of the NFL pointspread, easily covering as +1′ home underdogs. Cincinnati improved to 4-3 against the number while Chicago evened their ATS mark at 3-3.

A happy Benson described his feelings after the win:

“Everybody knew it was going to be an emotional day. Everybody knew. What a wonderful day and a wonderful thing, to go out there and strut your stuff.”

Despite the evidence to the contrary, Benson downplayed the motive of revenge:

“I continue to be as graceful as I can be. I’m not shoving anything in anybody’s face. Like I say, it wasn’t a revenge day for me. I just wanted to take advantage of the opportunities.”

He said his biggest problem was trying to keep his emotions in check and play under control:

“There were a few times where I may have gotten a little too hyped up, a little too antsy. A couple of drives, I found myself having to calm myself down and gather my emotions to stay poised. Once I got past that, we were good to go. Keep it rolling.”

Bengals’ receiver Chad Ochocinco had 10 catches for 118 yards and two touchdowns. He shared his thoughts postgame:

“I don’t understand why it went this way today and why it didn’t go that way last week or the week before that. The offensive line played unbelievable. For Ced to run the way he did today and for us to be able to throw, we could have done what we wanted to do.”

Chicago gave up more points than in any game all season, a fact that left defensive end Alex Brown looking for answers:

“That was pretty embarrassing. It’s embarrassing to come out and play like that. I tip my hat to their whole team. Cedric ran the ball like crazy. They did whatever they wanted to do.”

The Bengals will enjoy a bye week before hosting the Baltimore Ravens on November 8. They’ll then play two games on the road at Pittsburgh and Oakland. Chicago will try to get back on track this Sunday as they host the Cleveland Browns. The Bears are -13′ home favorites with the total set at 40. They’ll host the Arizona Cardinals the following Sunday before heading west for a Thursday night game against the San Francisco 49ers on November 12.

Ross Everett is a widely published freelance writer specializing in casino gambling, travel and sports betting. He has appeared on a number of TV and radio programs offering strategies for successful NFL football betting. He lives in Southern Nevada with three Jack Russell Terriers and a pet llama. He is currently writing a biography of former NFL quarterback Jim McMahon.