Detroirlions NCAA Football Betting News

<< Wozniacki rolls into third round in Flushing
Flushing Meadows, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Top-seeded Caroline Wozniacki was an easy second-round winner Thursday at the 2010 U.S. Open. The 2009 runner-up Wozniacki double-bageled Taipei's Kai-Chen Chang 6-0, 6-0 in a mere 47 minutes at Ashe

<< Fish stays hot at U.S. Open
Flushing Meadows, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Surging American Mardy Fish was an easy second-round winner Thursday at the 2010 U.S. Open. The 19th-seeded Fish recorded his 18th win in 20 matches with a comprehensive 7-5, 6-0, 6-2 two-hour victory

<< Oak Tree to race at Hollywood Park in 2010
Inglewood, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 2010 Oak Tree racing meet will be conducted at Hollywood Park. The announcement became official on Thursday. "It's an honor to run the Oak Tree stakes races at Hollywood Park," said Martin

<< Beckham targets Sept. 11 clash vs. Crew for return to MLS
Carson, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Los Angeles Galaxy star David Beckham, who has been out all season after he tore his left Achilles tendon on March 14 while playing for AC Milan, is nearing his return to Major League Soccer. "The doctors' o

Montreal inks G Price for two years >>
Montreal, QC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Montreal Canadiens signed goaltender Carey Price to a two-year contract on Thursday. Per team policy, financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. The 23-year-old veteran of three seasons appeared in

Sabathia dominates as Yanks sweep A's >>
Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - CC Sabathia became baseball's first 19-game winner with a one-hitter over eight innings as the Yankees completed a four- game sweep of Oakland with a 5-0 win. Sabathia (19-5) now has a streak of 21 unbe

Neely headlines Lester Patrick recipients >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Former Boston Bruin great Cam Neely was among four recipients of the 2010 Lester Patrick Trophy named Thursday. Also presented with the award were college coaches Jack Parker and Jerry York and American Hoc

Federer rolls into third round at the Open >>
Flushing Meadows, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Five-time champion Roger Federer was an easy second-round winner Thursday at the U.S. Open. The second-seeded former top-ranked Federer cruised past German Andreas Beck 6-3, 6-4, 6-3 at Ashe Stadium.

Football Betting

The San Francisco 49ers (5-11 SU, 5-10-1 ATS in 2007; 1-1 SU & ATS in pre-season) found some offensive life last week, and they will try to build some momentum on Thursday night as they travel to the Windy City to take on the Chicago Bears (7-9 SU & ATS in 2007; 0-2 SU, 0-1-1 ATS in pre-season) in an NFL matchup that is set to get underway at 8 PM ET at Soldier Field (natural turf) in Chicago.

Thursday, August 21

NFL betting odds: CHICAGO -3 (-120), Total 37

NOTABLE STAT: San Francisco was last in points, last in total offense in 2007
KEY NFL BETTING TREND: SF has lost its last seven SU on pre-season road

In the BetUS NFL pre-season football betting odds, the Bears are listed as a three-point favorite (laying -120), with the total posted at 37 points.

Here are some NFL football betting trends as they relate to this matchup (reflecting numbers going into the 2008 season):

* SF has lost 11 of its last 14 games SU
* SF has covered three of its last 11 games
* SF has lost six of its last seven road games SU
* SF has covered one of its last seven road games
* CHI has covered five of its last eight games
* CHI has played five of its last seven games OVER the total
* CHI has covered four of its last 13 home games
* SF has lost its last seven pre-season road games SU
* CHI has covered two of its last seven home pre-season games

Well, I guess we should congratulate the Bears on making their quarterback choice for the season's opening game, as they have designated Kyle Orton the starter against Indianapolis. The Bears obviously have lost patience with Rex Grossman, and what they do with him at this point is anybody's guess. But suffice it to say that there isn't a quarterback competition anymore, at least in training camp.

Meanwhile, the quarterback competition may also be settled in San Francisco, where the Niners bounced back from a lackluster 18-6 loss to the Raiders, in which they turned the ball over four times, to execute a 34-6 rout of the Packers last Saturday. However, coach Mike Nolan has stopped short of saying that, insisting that the job is still open. But J.T. O'Sullivan, the longshot of the trio of Niner signal-callers who opened camp, will start his third straight pre-season game here. Against Green Bay, O'Sullivan was only 8-for-17, and was intercepted, but he also threw for 9.1 yards an attempt, which included a 59-yard TD pass to Josh Morgan. The others struggled.

Some offensive cohesion is badly needed, in light of the Niners' dismal 2007 campaign, in which they were dead last in the NFL in scoring, with just 13.7 points a game. And O'Sullivan is the guy who is most familiar with offensive coordinator Mike Martz's exacting system, because he learned it last year in Detroit. O'Sullivan will go at least the entire first half and may even last longer. He'll be relieved by Alex Smith, with Shawn Hill doing the mop-up work. Three receivers who were out last week - Bryant Johnson, Ashley Lelie and Arnaz Battle - will miss this game too.

That may hurt a little here, especially since the Bears will be using a lot of their defensive starters. And it's the defense that has been keeping the Bears in games thus far. In fact, the defense and special teams were responsible for the first 19 points Chicago scored against Seattle last time out, as the offense really struggled with Grossman at the controls. But maybe the first-team offense has a chance to settle a little bit as it works more with Orton at the helm.

Certainly we have concerns about the Bears' offensive line, but we like the scenario for them here, especially if O'Sullivan doesn't make some bis plays. The Niners may have nowhere else to turn right now, and they have lost seven straight road games in the pre-season. Let's take Chicago, the three-point favorite in the NFL football betting odds.

CHICAGO -3 (-120) **
(Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)

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