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12/20/2006 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Zach Thomas was all over the field on Sunday, but his sterling 21-tackle effort went for naught in Miami's 21-0 loss to the Buffalo Bills.
Not only was it Miami's second loss in three games, but it also finished the team's faint playoff hopes. The Dolphins were officially eliminated from postseason contention.
But Thomas could not be faulted. In addition to his 11 solo tackles and 10 assists, he also forced a pair of fumbles. The 21 stops tied his second-best total in the regular season.
"Zach made a lot of plays [Sunday]," said Dolphins head coach Nick Saban on Monday. "He really played extremely well in the game, probably one of his best games of the year actually, and he's played really well and consistently all year long, but [Sunday] he was all over the place."
For Thomas, though, the numbers rang hollow.
"We gave up big plays and we were on the field too long," Thomas said Sunday. "You can't have that. We've got to get off the field on defense."
The Bills were 6-for-15 on third down and two of their touchdowns came on third down -- a 27-yard scoring pass on 3rd-and-8 and a 21-yard TD connection on 3rd-and-6. The other came on 2nd-and-16.
"We were close but we can't have those breakdowns," Thomas remarked. "We had a breakdown in coverage and that's what we haven't done. That's why we've won."
Defensive end Jason Taylor agreed.
"It was three big plays," Taylor said. "We dropped the coverage on one and didn't get enough pressure on the other ones. It's my fault. We've got to do better. We've got to do more."
Taylor doesn't have to apologize. He has been doing more than his share and had a solid game on Sunday with five tackles, a sack and a forced fumble.
Both Thomas and Taylor were named to the AFC Pro Bowl squad on Tuesday, the only Dolphins who were so named.
HARRINGTON MIRRORS BLUTO
It's a number Dean Wormer could appreciate: 0.0. That was Joey Harrington's passer rating on Sunday at Buffalo, matching the grade point average of the infamous character Bluto in the 1970s classic movie "Animal House."
The formula that goes into figuring out a quarterback's passer rating is convoluted at best, but the actual numbers were dismal: 5-of-17 for 20 yards with two interceptions and no touchdowns on a wet and blustery day in Orchard Park.
"Joey didn't have one of his best days [Sunday]," Dolphins head coach Nick Saban said after the game. "It was tough for him with the conditions out there."
Harrington was benched in the fourth quarter in favor of Cleo Lemon with the team down 21-0, and for good reason. He was 4-for-9 for 16 yards after one half and Miami trailing 7-0, but his two interceptions led to both of Buffalo's second-half touchdowns.
"I wasn't playing well. Let's not pretend like it was a huge shock," said Harrington afterward. "We were down by 21-0, I wasn't playing well and [Saban] said he was going to give Cleo a chance to see what he could do."
Lemon, in three possessions, was 9-of-16 for 98 yards. He nearly led the team to a touchdown in the closing seconds, but his pass from the Buffalo one on the final play of the game fell incomplete.
There is no quarterback controversy, however, as Saban said Sunday and reiterated Monday that Harrington will remain the starter.
NEWS & NOTES
-Chris Chambers did not have a catch Sunday and had a string of 60 straight games with at least one reception snapped. The last time he was held without a catch was December 29, 2002 against New England.
-Taylor has 12 1/2 sacks on the season, and his career total of 105 surpassed Neil Smith for 18th on the NFL's all-time list.
-The Dolphins were blanked by the Bills for just the third time overall and for only the second time in Buffalo. The last was a 27-0 setback on November 29, 1987.
-It was just the 17th time the Dolphins have been shut out in franchise history, and it marked the first time the club has been blanked the week after posting a shutout.
-Dolphins tight ends coach Derek Dooley has been named the new head coach at Louisiana Tech.
BUMPS & BRUISES
Running back Ronnie Brown missed his third straight game this past Sunday because of the broken bone in his hand that he suffered against Detroit on Thanksgiving Day. He could return to the lineup this week, as doctors have cleared him to begin practicing.
With Miami out of the playoff mix, Brown should sit the rest of the season to fully heal.
Wide receiver Marty Booker suffered an ankle injury against Buffalo, and could miss the final two games.
UP NEXT
Throw out the records when these two teams meet, as the Dolphins have a Christmas night matchup with the New York Jets. New York is battling for a playoff spot, as an 8-6 record has the Jets tied with Cincinnati, Denver and Jacksonville for the two AFC wild card spots.
The Jets posted a 20-17 victory over the Dolphins in the first meeting of the season on October 15 at the Meadowlands. Miami made a remarkable comeback from a 20-3 deficit in the fourth quarter, but Olindo Mare's 51-yard field goal try in the final minute was wide right.
New York leads the all-time series, 42-39-1, which includes four wins in the last five meetings. The Jets will try for a sweep of the season series for the second time in three years. The Dolphins won last year's meeting in Miami, 24-20 on December 18.
This will be Miami's third game on Christmas Day. The first was a memorable 27-24 double-overtime victory over the Kansas City Chiefs in a 1971 playoff game, and the other was a 27-20 triumph over Detroit in 1994.
<< Inter goes for number 10
Rome, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Numerous midweek Serie A matches will take
place on Wednesday, as the contest at Lazio highlights the 10 games with Inter
Milan heading into Rome to take on the fifth-place Biancoceleste at the Stadio
Giusepp
<< Pirates sign Japanese pitcher Kuwata
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Pittsburgh Pirates agreed to terms with
right-handed pitcher Masumi Kuwata on a minor league contract with an
invitation to major league spring training.
No other terms of the deal were disclos
<< Deal closed: Texas signs Gagne
Arlington, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Texas Rangers signed closer Eric Gagne
to a one-year contract on Tuesday.
The deal, which was originally reported last week, is worth a reported $6
million. Gagne can also earn up to another $5 mi
<< Time for the Falcons to put up or shut up
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Atlanta Falcons were dealt a potentially hazardous loss
over the weekend, a 38-28 setback to the Dallas Cowboys at the Georgia Dome.
Unfortunately that final result, which carries a great deal of significance to
the playo
Cowboys: Beware of Ware >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - I bet Cowboys defensive end Demarcus Ware can cover
teammate Terrell Owens in man-to-man coverage with no problem.
Ware has the speed of a cornerback, and hits harder than most defensive
players in the NFL, which is why fu
Colts get back on track >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Nothin' like a little home cookin' to cure what ails ya.
The Colts can surely attest to that old cliche after Monday's fairly dominant
34-16 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals at the RCA Dome ended a two-game
skid and kep
Mourning Chiefs lose another game >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chiefs wanted to win for the legendary Lamar Hunt this
week, but in the end, it simply wasn't to be.
Hunt, the beloved owner and founder of the Chiefs, died Wednesday evening at
the age of 74. He was credited with coin
Cubs sign Marquis to three-year contract >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Cubs made it official on
Tuesday, signing pitcher Jason Marquis to a three-year contract on Tuesday.
It was reported on Saturday in the Chicago Tribune that the deal would be
worth $
It's less than a month until the NHL hockey betting season opens at MySportsbook.com and preparations are underway for another battle in the race to hoist Lord Stanley's mug in 2007.
As cup crazy fans prepare to place their bets, one online sportsbook ,MySportsbook.com, is offering hockey betting lines on the 2007/2007 Stanley Cup , who will bring it home this upcoming season.
Despite a poor showing in last season's playoffs and the loss of Steve Yzerman to retirement, the Detroit Red Wings are early favourites at this online sportsbook with wagering odds of 6-1. The Wings will look to offensive powerhouse Pavel Datsyuk and newly appointed captain Nicklas Lidstrom to lead one of the league's most prominent franchises.
Always a threat are the Ottawa Senators, with newly acquired goaltender Martin Gerber from the Stanley Cup champion ,Carolina Hurricanes. The Sens are second best in the rankings at a 7-1 bet, and odds makers at this sportsbook are optimistic that the Ottawa squad will fare better than last season's Eastern Conference semi-final upset to the Buffalo Sabres.
Also worth noting are the defending Stanley Cup champs Carolina Hurricanes, a 10-1 bet to repeat. Behind the Canes are the New Jersey Devils, Calgary Flames, Buffalo Sabres, Philadelphia Flyers, and Anaheim Mighty Ducks all sit at 12-1. In the basement are the Washington Capitals, Chicago Blackhawks, and St. Louis Blues who all have 100-1 odds to win.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your hockey betting needs.
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.
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