Seahawka NCAA Football Betting News

<< Redskins place Kelly on IR
Ashburn, VA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Washington Redskins have placed wide receiver Malcolm Kelly on injured reserve because of a hamstring problem. Kelly, in his third year out of Oklahoma, was bothered by the hamstring issue for the

<< CFL Western Division: Eskimos finally play some defense
Toronto, Canada (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Week nine of the CFL season belonged to Alberta, as both Calgary and Edmonton found the win column. Calgary's victory was expected, but the Eskimos' three-point win over the Saskatchewan Roughriders was, quite

<< AC Milan acquires Robinho from City
Milan, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - AC Milan acquired Brazilian striker Robinho on Tuesday from Manchester City for an undisclosed fee, just two years after City signed him for a British record transfer fee of $50 million from Real Madrid. Robin

<< Calgary's Rambo highlights CFL weekly awards
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Calgary Stampeders wide receiver Ken-Yon Rambo, Saskatchewan Roughriders safety James Patrick, Edmonton Eskimos kicker Noel Prefontaine and Calgary running back Jon Cornish were selected as the CFL's top per

Ravens' Cody sidelined after surgery >>
Owings Mills, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Baltimore Ravens rookie defensive tackle Terrence Cody underwent surgery last week to have torn meniscus in his knee repaired. Ravens head coach John Harbaugh said Cody will likely be sidelined fo

Islanders bring back captain Weight >>
Uniondale, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Islanders signed captain Doug Weight to a one-year contract on Tuesday. Financial terms of the deal were not announced. "Doug has played an important role in helping to develop our young

Wigan adds Chelsea's Di Santo, United's Cleverley >>
Wigan, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Wigan acquired striker Franco Di Santo from Chelsea and signed him to a three-year contract, and also added midfielder Tom Cleverley on loan from Manchester United on Tuesday. Di Santo, 21, spent last seaso

Lloyd tears off redshirt, will start against UM >>
STORRS, Conn. (AP) -Connecticut's coaches have scrapped plans to make linebacker Greg Lloyd Jr. take this season off, using a redshirt year to recover from the serious knee injury he went down with in November.Lloyd, the son of the former Pittsburgh

Betting the NFL preseason

Rule No. 1 in the gamblers' handbook states, "Avoid sports betting on meaningless games."

When you're drowning in a sea of baseball monotony, however, things change. Even a hint of pro football betting can persuade the most disciplined bettor to break a few rules. 

The NFL preseason is around the corner, with a tempting Hall of Fame match kicking off on Sunday. But bettors must stay vigilant. Wagering on NFL exhibition games is an entirely different beast than the regular season. Most fans don't recognize the players on the field because starters get as much action in August as Warcraft fans get on Prom night.

The only certainty about the NFL this time of year is uncertainty – and yet there are some who say betting in August can be a gold mine.

“I actually feel the NFL preseason presents solid profit opportunities for sharp bettors and handicappers,” Sports Expert Steve Merril explains. “My experience has been that the sportsbooks fear the preseason, which is evident by lower limits and massive moves.”

The line moves are attributed to the limited knowledge available regarding playing-time distribution. One team’s top unit out on the field for one more series has an impact on the pointspread. Setting lines in the preseason often is a shot in the dark.

“We base the betting lines mostly on public perception,” Pete Korner, founder of the Sports Club in Las Vegas, says. “It’s very tough to predict, almost a guessing game.”

The preseason is all about figuring out who’s in and for how long.

“It becomes a race between bettors and oddsmakers to find out how long the quarterbacks are going to stay in,” Korner admits. “If a sharp gets the information first, he could exploit an early line. I’m a full believer in moving the line in the preseason if the books find out something late in the week.”

Determining what each team’s motive is can help bettors handicap. To do this you must pay close attention to the philosophies head coaches employ in exhibition play.

“You need to know what a coach is trying to accomplish,” says Covers Expert Bryan Leonard. “Sometimes a new coach will want to instill a winning attitude. Others just want to make sure their starters don’t get hurt."

So how do you distinguish who’s playing scared and who’s playing for keeps?

“Head coaches on the hot seat or new coaches trying to implement a winning attitude usually try harder to win in the preseason,” Merril says.

Cleveland Browns head coach Romeo Crennel fits this criteria. He’s entering his third season as the sideline boss and has yet to lead the Browns to more than six wins.

Cleveland is an enticing bet as well because of the unresolved quarterback situation. General manager Phil Savage sacrificed the Browns’ first-round pick in next year’s draft for Brady Quinn, but the former Notre Dame quarterback hasn’t signed or reported to training camp yet.

Charlie Frye and Derek Anderson split time at QB last season and it looks like either player (or even Quinn) could be the opening-day starter.

“If a team has quarterback depth and the pecking order hasn’t been decided, it’s a big advantage,” Leonard says.

Even in the third week of the preseason when starters generally play the most, the final outcome of the game is in the hands of fringe players. A team's talent, all the way down to the last man on the roster, is something to consider.

The New England Patriots have long been considered one of the deeper teams in the NFL and coach Bill Belichick has said in the past he’s unafraid of stars getting hurt in games with nothing on the line. He shocked his colleagues in 2003 by playing some of his starters on special teams in the preseason.

“We want to have the team ready to play a tough, physical game and preparation has to go into that and I imagine a certain amount of injuries go with it,” Belichick told the Providence Journal in August 2003.

Bettors can only hope to find more teams that share the Pats' business-like approach to the preseason (New England is 17-9-3 against the spread since 2000) and take advantage of teams who detest the exhibition schedule.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on football needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.