Faulk to retire
Football Betting Lines
03/23/2007 - St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Running back Marshall Faulk has called a news conference for 4:30 p.m. (et) Monday, when it's expected he'll announce his retirement.
Faulk, who is ninth all-time in rushing yards with 12,279 since starting his career in 1994 with Indianapolis, has been derailed by knee problems and was out the entire 2006 season due to surgery.
The 34-year-old Faulk had several knee surgeries during his 12-year playing career. He had minor surgery on both of his knees in 2005, although that only limited his playing time with the Rams. While he played in all 16 games, he only started once and was limited to 292 yards on 65 carries, both career-lows. He also added 44 receptions for 291 yards and a touchdown for St. Louis.
Faulk, the 2000 NFL MVP, was a first-round pick of the Colts in 1994. He spent his first five seasons there before being traded the St. Louis prior to the start of the 1999 season. In his first season in St. Louis, he helped the team to a victory in Super Bowl XXXIV.
The San Diego State product went to seven Pro Bowls, had seven 1,000-yard rushing seasons and was the first player in NFL history to gain 2,000 yards from scrimmage in four consecutive seasons from 1998-2001.
Steven Jackson was drafted by the Rams in 2004 and took over as the starter in place of Faulk. Jackson had over 2,300 yards from scrimmage last season, including 1,528 on the ground.
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Miami Dolphins signed wide receiver Az- Zahir Hakim and guard Chris Liwienski to one-year contracts on Thursday. Hakim began last year with Detroit and signed on with San Diego after the Lions wai
<< BC's Haynes to transfer
Chestnut Hill, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Marquez Haynes, a sophomore guard who
contributed off the bench to Boston College's 21-12 team this past season,
will transfer to an undetermined school in hope of more playing time,
accordi
<< Redskins release WR Patten
Ashburn, VA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Washington Redskins released oft-injured
wide receiver David Patten on Thursday.
After signing with the Redskins as a free agent in 2005, Patten has been
hampered by nagging injuries.
In 2005,
<< Stenson and Allenby lead CA Championship
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Henrik Stenson, the winner of the season's first
World Golf Championships event, the Accenture Match Play Championship, appears
to be making a serious bid at the single-season WGC Grand Slam.
He posted a five-un
<< Colorado State names Miles new hoops coach
Fort Collins, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Colorado State University named Tim Miles
the school's new head men's basketball coach on Thursday.
Miles replaces Dale Layer, who was fired on March 12 after the Rams went 17-13
this past season with
Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Xavier University announced Thursday that men's head basketball coach Sean Miller received a contract extension that will keep him with the school through the 2015-16 season. As per school policy,
Angels' Figgins sustains fractured finger >>
Tempe, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Los Angeles Angels third baseman Chone
Figgins suffered a fractured right middle finger as the Angels defeated the
Arizona Diamondbacks, 8-3, in spring training action Wednesday.
Phoenix Suns ortho
Kentucky's Tubby Smith resigns, headed to Minnesota >>
Lexington, KY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tubby Smith resigned as head men's
basketball coach of Kentucky and will be named the new head coach at the
University of Minnesota at a 1 p.m. (et) news conference on Friday.
The 55-year-old
B. Pappas shoots 60 to lead Louisiana Open >>
Broussard, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brendan Pappas fired an 11-under 60 Thursday
in the first round of the Chitimacha Louisiana Open, grabbing a four-shot lead
and almost becoming the fourth player in Nationwide Tour history to shoot a
59.
Kansas tops So. Illinois to reach Elite Eight >>
San Jose, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brandon Rush scored 12 points on a perfect 6-
of-6 from the field, pulled down five rebounds and dished out five assists as
Kansas edged Southern Illinois, 61-58, to advance to the Elite Eight.
Darrell Arth
Online Sportsbook Football Betting
The NFL preseason is approaching. Time for players, coaches and teams to turn over a new leaf. General managers have hired some new coaches, while coaches have added some offensive and defensive assistants to try and improve things. Here’s a look at some changes to look for in the preseason.
New York Jets: The Jets were one of the surprise teams in the NFL last season, making the playoffs under hard-driving first-year coach Eric Mangini. Mangini rebuilt the offensive line with rookies D'Brickashaw Ferguson (the No. 4 pick in the 2007 Draft) and Ohio State center (the 29th pick in the first round). This season he upgraded the defense with rookie linebacker David Harris (Michigan) while the secondary picked up a much needed top-notch corner in Pitt CB Darrelle Revis (No. 14 overall).
The Jets have added balance to the offense for QB Chad Pennington with RB Thomas Jones, essentially stolen from the Bears. He will upgrade a New York ground game that was 20th in rushing with a weak 3.5 yards per carry. They have their first true feature back since Curtis Martin. Offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer prefers ball control, like his father Marty. In preseason, behind Pennington you’ll see second-year QB Kellen Clemens and mobile newcomer QB Marques Tuiasosopo.
Jacksonville Jaguars: The heat is on Jack Del Rio in Jacksonville as the Jaguars flopped last season despite a ton of talent. Keep in mind that under Del Rio the Jaguars have been outstanding in preseason with a 12-4 SU, 11-5 ATS August mark. online football betting Their defense is loaded, it’s the offense that has been stuck in first gear the last few years.
Enter a new offensive coordinator in Dirk Koetter, the former Boise State and Arizona State pass-happy coach. He will try and upgrade a passing game that ranked 24th last season. Del Rio has criticized wide receivers and Matt Jones this summer, both of whom have battled injuries. It will be interesting to watch the “new” Jaguars passing game in preseason.
Arizona Cardinals: Word out of Arizona is that the players like new coach Ken Whisenhunt, who was the Steelers offensive coordinator last year. We think of Arizona as all-passing because their running game has been awful of late because of a poor offensive line. However, keep an eye on the running game in preseason as they’ve made a lot of changes.
The new coach brings in Russ Grimm to coach the offensive line (Grimm did a marvelous job building the Steelers line). They took Penn State OT Levi Jones in the first round and signed two offensive linemen, Mike Gandy and Al Johnson, to provide depth. Reggie Wells was moved from right tackle to left guard and they want more speed out of the offensive line for pulling and traps, a Pittsburgh staple under Bill Cowher.
Atlanta Falcons: While all the attention has been focused on QB Mike Vick’s off-field problems, new coach Bobby Petrino is revamping the Falcons from an all-running team to a more balanced one. Petrino likes the experience of backup QB Joey Harrington and he has veteran backup Chris Redman, who used to play for Petrino at Louisville and knows his offenses better than anyone. Petrino wants Vick to be more of a pocket passer.
The addition of FB Ovie Mughelli is a sign Petrino wants a power rushing attack behind a physical fullback and newcomer WR Joe Horn should upgrade what was a below average wideout corps. Petrino is changing their old zone-blocking scheme to a more traditional in-line blocking scheme and the offensive line is bigger. Rookie DE Jamaal Anderson was grabbed in the first round and the secondary got younger with former Auburn cornerback David Irons, who the Falcons think was a steal as a sixth-round pick.
Cleveland Browns: The 2007 Browns look like a double-edged sword. There was the excitement of the offseason, trading for RB Jamel Lewis, upgrading the offensive line with Wisconsin’s Joe Thomas (the No. 2 pick in the draft) and free agent LG Eric Steinbach, then trading for Notre Dame QB Brady Quinn when he fell to No. 22. GM Phil Savage and head coach Romeo Crennel feel they have a talented, balanced offense with these new pieces, plus TE >Kellen Winslow and WR Braylon Edwards.
However, were these moves made in desperation? And were they foolish ones? The Browns gave up their 2008 first-round pick for Quinn and we all know QBs take time to develop. And even first-round QBs can be busts (Joey Harrington, Akili Smith). We also don’t know if the offensive line is that much improved (31st in rushing in 2007) and they did nothing to improve a defense that was awful against the run (142 yds pg allowed).
The Browns have a new offensive coordinator in Rob Chudzinski. This is a young offense and Quinn looked tentative, indecisive and inaccurate early in camp. Crennel will play Charlie Frye, Quinn and Derek Anderson in preseason. And there is a mixed bag for rookie QBs receiving significant starts: Tim Couch (14), Kerry Collins (13), Ben Roethlisberger (13), Vince Young (13), Joey Harrington (12), Matt Leinart (11) and Kyle Boller (nine). While all the focus will be on the Browns new-look offense, I’m more concerned with the defense.
Carolina Panthers: Coach Jon Fox loves the ground game, but Carolina has made some interesting changes for 2007. Fox fired offensive coordinator Dan Henning and brings in Jeff Davidson to run the offense. Davidson has brought in zone-blocking schemes to the Panther offense, a dramatic change for a system that's been built around a power-running style.
In zone-blocking, offensive linemen are responsible for blocking any defender who appears in their zone, instead of focusing on one defender. The Broncos and Falcons have had success with the system, which features smaller, more athletic offensive linemen and can create running lanes on the inside and outside. Keep an eye in preseason on how Carolina adjusts as it will take time to learn the system. Fox has been one of the top coaches in preseason, with a 15-5 SU, 12-7-1 ATS August record.
Dallas Cowboys: WR Terrell Owens is still here, but QB Drew Bledsoe and Bill Parcells are gone. New head coach Wade Phillips takes over, replacing Parcells. He ran the Chargers defense last season. Phillips was chosen by teary-eyed owner Jerry Jones partly because he is one of the best 3-4 coaches in football and the Cowboys have loaded up on players for that scheme.
Remember that Phillips was blitz-happy with the Chargers last season and early reports out of the Dallas camp have mentioned how the Cowboys have been blitzing a lot, a departure from Parcells. The theme of the 2007 Dallas defense appears to be one of attack.
MySportsbook is considered one of the finest football sportsbooks according to several surveys performed by independent industry analysts considering such factors as payout accuracy and timeliness, overall quality of website, and bettor satisfaction.
MySportsbook is a large company with strong financial backing. Considered the best sportsbook for betting football online You will find their customer service is second to none and their web site is extremely user friendly and easy-to-use. All major professional sports games are available. Once you signup with MySportsbook, you may never use another online sportsbook again.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your nfl football betting needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.