Boys and a girl, have at it in 2012
Autoracing Betting Lines
02/16/2012 - Daytona Beach, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - From Trevor Bayne's stunning win in the Daytona 500 to Tony Stewart beating Carl Edwards for the championship in a tiebreaker, NASCAR indeed had an unforgettable season in its premier series in 2011. Now the burning question is: Can this upcoming season in NASCAR top the one from last year.
One thing is for sure. The much-anticipated arrival of Danica Patrick to the Sprint Cup Series is upon us. The hype began the moment Patrick announced her intentions to run in the series last August, and it will continue throughout the season.
And don't be surprised if we have another year of temper tantrums and other shenanigans from Kyle and Kurt Busch on and off the track.
Yes, this should be another eventful year in NASCAR.
DANICUP
Danica-mania is now at an all-time high. All eyes will be on Patrick next week when she makes her Sprint Cup debut at Daytona International Speedway. Thanks to Tommy Baldwin Racing's alliance with Stewart-Haas Racing and therefore a transfer of owner points to Patrick's No.10 team, the former IndyCar star is guaranteed a starting position in the February 26 season-opening Daytona 500.
In addition to her full-time duties with JR Motorsports in the Nationwide Series, Patrick is expected to compete in at least 10 Sprint Cup races this season.
Nine of Patrick's races have already been determined. In addition to Daytona, she is slated to compete at Darlington (May 12), Charlotte (May 27), Bristol (August 25), Atlanta (September 2), Chicagoland (Sept. 16), Dover (Sept. 30), Texas (November 4) and Phoenix (Nov. 11).
"I'm excited about the season, and I'm excited about the racing," she said. "I'm a little bit nervous, too, because I want to do well. Any time you feel like you want to do well, whether it's on the track or doing your job, you get a little nervous, because you feel a little pressure to want to do it. But I'm very happy with where I am. I'm very fortunate to have the opportunity I do with two fantastic teams. That's all you can ask for as a driver - to have good racecars and good crew chiefs."
Will the July 29 Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway be her 10th one?
"It would be great to go there and do the big NASCAR race and be around," she noted. "I love that track. It's my favorite track. So that's a great idea."
Patrick will not compete in this year's Indianapolis 500, which is scheduled on the same day as the 600-mile race at Charlotte.
While Patrick might be very popular and highly marketable, perhaps more so than Dale Earnhardt Jr. right now, she will have her work cut out on the racetrack in both Sprint Cup and Nationwide this year.
NEW FACES AT STEWART'S TEAM
After a host of personnel changes to his team during the offseason, Stewart is ready to begin his title defense. Stewart did not have much time to celebrate his third Cup championship during the winter break, as he spent a lot of his time getting new crew chief Steve Addington up to speed.
Following the completion of the 2011 season, Addington left Penske Racing and came on board with Stewart-Haas Racing to take over the crew chief role formerly held by Darian Grubb.
"Personality-wise, Steve and I get along really well, and it's similar to where Darian and I started out," Stewart said. "When I say it's a little loose, it's a question of what a little loose means to him. And Steve's worked with different drivers, so he knows how to go through that process too. So, it's literally trying to figure out what that combination is going to be like."
Greg Zipadelli has also joined SHR after spending the past 13 years as a crew chief at Joe Gibbs Racing. Zipadelli will serve as SHR's director of competition and Patrick's crew chief in her 10 scheduled races.
Stewart had a phenomenal ending to the '11 season by winning five of the 10 championship Chase races. Will his momentum carry over into the new season?
"Honestly, I think it's easy to keep that intensity up," he said. "The difference is, there are some variables that have changed. So you realize it's a different focus than necessarily what we had at the end of the season last year. There is always something when you get three or four races from the end of the year, and you know you've got a shot at it, that there is a redirected energy. It's like nothing else matters.
"Now, everybody's hit the reset button. We're all starting at zero again. You go down to Daytona and start at day one just like everybody else. You realize that intensity is still there, but you realize there is a learning process that's going to go on with learning a new crew chief. It's just part of the process, but you still keep that focus as high as you can."
Stewart has yet to win the Daytona 500 in 13 starts. How ironic would it be if the driver of the No.14 wins NASCAR's biggest race of the season in his 14th attempt.
RECLAIMING THE TITLE
Jimmie Johnson's record string of championships came to an end this past year. After winning five straight titles from 2006-10, Johnson endured a somewhat disappointing '11 season by finishing a career-worst sixth in points.
No doubt, Johnson, crew chief Chad Knaus and the No.48 Hendrick Motorsports team have spent extra hours at the race shop this winter, gearing up for what they hope will be a comeback season. Knaus was on vacation in South Africa during last month's preseason testing at Daytona, but hey, all of us need to take a break every once in a while.
"Not winning last year has been a good thing for the race team," Johnson said. "It's really tough to strip things down and critically evaluate yourself, your team, the guys around you, when you have great success. We had a great run, and things were amazing, but having lost this last championship, I think we've all looked at ourselves differently. There's been a lot of great conversation and bonding that's taken place. There has been a lot of growth."
In a NASCAR media poll released on Thursday, Johnson was selected as the preseason favorite to win the Sprint Cup championship. He received 147 votes, just two more than Edwards, who finished second in last year's point standings. Defending champ Stewart trailed Johnson by three votes.
CAN THE BUSCH BROTHERS BEHAVE THIS YEAR?
The 2011 season was a "rowdy" one for Kyle Busch and his elder brother, Kurt, and their actions during the tail end of the season cost them dearly.
In wake of his retaliation against Ron Hornaday Jr. in last November's truck race at Texas, NASCAR suspended Kyle for the Sprint Cup and Nationwide events there. The sanctioning body later fined him $50,000.
"Certainly, we went through a lot during the first few weeks and months after the Texas incident, but since then, it's been good," Kyle said. "We're back to a new year and starting off fresh and being able to get to Daytona, race how I need to race in order to get wins."
Kurt's inappropriate hand gesture and use of foul language while waiting to be interviewed by an ESPN reporter during the season-ending race at Homestead, FL not only led to a $50,000 fine from NASCAR but his dismissal from Penske Racing as well.
This year, Kurt has a one-year deal with Phoenix Racing. But he's hoping it will end up being a long-term relationship with the team.
"Phoenix Racing could be a place that I stay forever, with the amount of fun I know we're going to have," Kurt said. "It's been that way already. And now we just go to each race and settle in."
According to a recent poll from Forbes, Busch was voted as America's 10th most-disliked sports figure.
One thing the Busch brothers can look forward to this year is sharing driving duties at Kyle's new Nationwide team. Kyle will drive the car in the first five races this season, starting at Daytona. Kurt is also running a limited Nationwide schedule for Phoenix Racing.
NEW RIDES IN '12
In addition to Kurt Busch, Kasey Kahne, Clint Bowyer, A.J. Allmendinger and Mark Martin are among a long list of drivers with new teams this year.
Kahne is now the driver of the No.5 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports after a "lame duck" season with Red Bull Racing, though he did win at Phoenix three months ago. Kahne has settled in well with Hendrick and is figured to be a strong contender to make this year's Chase.
"The Daytona test [last month] was the first time I started to feel like kind of part of the team, and it's been really good," Kahne said. "It's been everything that I expected up to this point. I still am pretty fresh with the whole deal, so I think it only gets better from here."
After driving the No.5 car full-time the past three years, Martin begins a new chapter in his Cup career by running a limited schedule for Michael Waltrip Racing. MWR has beefed up its operation with the addition of Bowyer.
David Reutimann became the odd-man out at MWR, but Reutimann will team up with Patrick at Tommy Baldwin's team. He will drive the No.10 car in the races that she is not entered.
Busch's departure at Penske opened the door for Allmendinger in the No.22.
Aric Almirola moves up from the Nationwide ranks to replace Allmendinger in Richard Petty Motorsports' No.43, while David Ragan landed a ride at Front Row Motorsports after spending five seasons with Roush Fenway Racing.
A WIN FOR JUNIOR?
One other burning question for the '12 season: Will Earnhardt Jr. finally get back into victory lane? It's sure been a long time -- 129 races to be exact -- since Earnhardt Jr. has taken the checkered flag.
It's time for him to get another win.
It's also time to say gentlemen and a lady, start your engines and have at it.
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia Flyers have acquired defenseman Nicklas Grossman from the Dallas Stars in exchange for two draft picks, the team announced Thursday. Grossman has five assists in 52 games this seas
<< Eskimos ink WR Carr
Edmonton, AB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Edmonton Eskimos signed wide receiver Greg
Carr on Thursday.
Carr caught 46 passes for 648 yards and four touchdowns last season with the
Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
"We're very pleased to sign Greg," Es
<< Lions agree to terms with Byron Parker, Stu Foord
Vancouver, BC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The BC Lions agreed to terms with defensive
back Byron Parker and running back Stu Foord on Thursday.
Parker earned his third All-Star selection last season, tallying a career-high
50 tackles to go with
<< United's Valencia out four weeks with hamstring injury
Amsterdam, Netherlands (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Manchester United winger Antonio
Valencia injured his hamstring Thursday in a 2-0 Europa League win at Ajax,
and will be sidelined four weeks.
The 26-year-old Ecuadorian was injured as he set
<< Roughriders sign LaBatte, Picard
Regina, SK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Saskatchewan Roughriders agreed to terms
with a pair of offensive linemen on Thursday, signing Brendon LaBatte and
Dominic Picard.
LaBatte heads further west after spending the previous four seaso
Daytona Beach, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Forty-nine teams are on the preliminary entry list for this year's Daytona 500. NASCAR released the list on Thursday. Former NASCAR Cup champions Terry Labonte and Bill Elliott have been added to the l
Bulls' Rose out vs. Celtics >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chicago Bulls point guard Derrick Rose will
miss Thursday's game against the Celtics with a sore back.
Rose will sit out his fourth straight game due to the ailing back, though
an MRI on Monday reveale
Trio on top at Bogota Open >>
Bogota, Colombia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Australia's Peter Lonard and Americans
Brian Smock and Billy Horschel each posted five-under 66s on Thursday to share
the first-round lead of the Bogota Open, the 2012 season-opener on the
Nationw
Sharks acquire Moore from Lightning >>
Tampa, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Jose Sharks have acquired forward Dominic
Moore and a seventh-round selection in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft from the Tampa
Bay Lightning in exchange for a second-round selection, previously acquired
from Mi
Wofford to host five, visit South Carolina >>
Spartanburg, SC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Wofford College's football team will play a
particularly tough road schedule this year, including a season-ending road
trip to the University of South Carolina.
In addition to the Nov. 17 game in Columbia,
FOOTBALL BETTING : Crabtree's base deal: six years, $32 million
In the wake of the news that the 49ers have signed receiver Michael Crabtree after an extended holdout, there has been not a hint of the dollars to be paid to Crabtree.
And since this means that his agent hasn't leaked the numbers, it means that his agent feels no specific motivation to do so.
Possibly because his agent isn't all that thrilled to have his name on the deal.
So the numbers will come from sources other than Crabtree's agent. And we've gotten our mitts into them.
Per a league source, Crabtree has signed a six-year, $32 million contract. (The total includes guaranteed money, base salaries, and the one-time incentive based on achieving minimum playing time.)
The deal also includes $17 million in guaranteed money.
As reported elsewhere, the deal can void to five years based on performance triggers, wiping out a final year base salary of $4 million. But they won't be easily reached.
The source tells us that, in his first four seasons (including 2009), Crabtree must either qualify for two Pro Bowls, or he must qualify for one Pro Bowl in one year and he must participate in 80 percent of the offensive snaps in a separate year in which the team makes the playoffs.
In other words, if in 2010 he qualifies for the Pro Bowl and the team makes the playoffs and he participates in 80 percent of the snaps, he'll still need to make it to the Pro Bowl or achieve the 80-percent/playoffs in another season.
Since the chances of Crabtree making the Pro Bowl or participating in 80 percent of the offensive snaps this year is roughly zero percent, he'll have three years to get it done.
And it won't be easy. Frankly, he'll be hard pressed to make it to one Pro Bowl in three years with the likes of Larry Fitzgerald, Calvin Johnson, Anquan Boldin, Steve Smith, the other Steve Smith, Hakeem Nicks, DeSean Jackson, Johnny Knox, Percy Harvin, Greg Jennings, Roddy White, T.J. Houshmandzadeh in the same conference for sportsbook betting.
So, by all appearances, it's a six-year deal. And at $17 million in guaranteed money, the per-year guarantee is a tepid $2.83 million per year.
There's another problem with the deal -- it has no mid-tier incentive package. Instead, the additional $8 million that Crabtree can earn (pushing the max value to six years, $40 million) requires the kind of unrealistic, mega-star performances that no rookie is likely to ever achieve.
So while the contract paid to Packers defensive tackle B.J. Raji covers five years and pays $22.5 million, he has the ability (if he's a solid player) to make up the difference between his base deal and Crabtree's five-year, $28 million haul via the mid-tier incentive package in Raji's deal.
And unless Crabtree meets the performance thresholds necessary to void the sixth year, he'll be stuck under contract for another year at a base salary of only $4 million.
There's one other area of concern with the deal. Crabtree, per the source, received no option bonus. Instead, he has significant money tied to a fairly new device known as a "discretionary salary advance," which unlike an opition bonus is subject to forfeiture if Crabtree decides in a year or two that he wants to hold out for a better deal. (We're also told that the 49ers have included language that would make certain escalators subject to forfeiture, too.)
Meanwhile, the deal falls well short of the mark for which Crabtree and agent Eugene Parker were aiming -- the five-year, $38.25 million contract paid by the Raiders to receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey, the seventh overall pick in the draft.
Even if Crabtree successfully voids the final year, he'll make more than $2 million per year less on average than Heyward-Bey.
Thus, as we explained earlier in the day, this is a deal that Crabtree could have done in July, which would have given him a much better chance of making a contribution to the 49ers during his rookie year.
So while the final outcome can be described as win-win, the broader view suggests that it's really a lose-lose situation.
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Colts give the ‘D’ its due
The Indianapolis Colts know that winning the Super Bowl last season put a huge target on their backs, and they expect opponents to go all-out to knock them from the top of the mountain.
They’ll get their first test from the New Orleans Saints this Thursday night. The defending champs had nothing but good things to say about the New Orleans defense this past week, praising their opponents’ pass rush and run-stopping abilities.
"They play very aggressively," head coach Tony Dungy told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "They play a lot of man-to-man coverage, and they come after you. They have good pass rushers, and they're going to try to pressure us, I'm sure."
Both center Jeff Saturday and quarterback Peyton Manning gave New Orleans’ front four props, admitting keeping guys like Will Smithand Charles Grant contained would be a tall task for the offensive line.
New Orleans ranked second in total defense during the preseason at a sportsbook, allowing just under 233 yards per game. Last season, the defense finished 11th in the league after giving up 307.3 yards and 20.1 points per contest.
Not so sound on the ground
If Indianapolis' efficient offense has a weakness it has to be its running attack. The Colts one-two-punch of Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai is no longer, leaving the bulk of the carries to Addai, the second-year back out of LSU.
Former Saskatchewan Roughrider Kenton Keith was named Addai’s backup this week after beating out DeDe Dorsey for the second-string position. Indy has only three backs on the roster right now, including fullback Luke Lawton, and coach Dungy is aware of the thinness of his ground game. Sports Betting lines on the game can be found at BettingExpress.com
“We’ll continue to look. Luke Lawton’s done a good job for us too. So probably getting a third true tailback is something that we’d like to do,” Dungy told the Indiana Tribune-Star.
Last season, Addai rushed for over 1,000 yards in his rookie campaign and scored seven touchdowns on the ground.
Brees says bring it on
Opening the season on the road against the defending Super Bowl champions is not the way most teams would like to kick off their year – unless you’re the New Orleans Saints or their quarterback Drew Brees. This internet Sportsbooks had the Saints as the favorites.
Brees told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that he is excited to get the regular season started and the Colts are a great challenge for him and his teammates. The 28-year-old QB, entering his second season with the Saints, is expecting a wild environment in the RCA Dome this Thursday when the franchise celebrates its 2007-2007 championship.
Brees said he sees the opening game scheduling as an honor and a testament to how well New Orleans did last season. The Saints missed facing the Colts in the Super Bowl by one game, losing to the Chicago Bearsin the NFC Championship game.
"I mean, people think we can hang with these guys," Brees told reporters. "Even if they didn't, it wouldn't matter what they thought because as a team we're very confident. We know what we can do. We're not satisfied where we finished the season last year. And we've been looking forward to this opportunity for a long time."
SportsBooks ready for a shootout
Oddsmakers are preparing for some fireworks this Thursday when the NFL season kicks off. online Sportsbooks have Thursday’s total set at a whopping 52 points, accounting for two of the league’s most explosive offenses.
“This is like must-see TV,” Saints cornerback and former Colt Jason David told the Baton Rouge Advocate. “It’s two exciting offenses with great players. You’ve got a lot of star power on offense. At any given time a big play can happen. If I was a fan, I wouldn’t miss a snap.”
New Orleans, who ranked No.1 in total offense last season, can go blow-for-blow with the Colts’ attack. Head coach Sean Payton’s offensive schemes will get even better production out of Drew Brees, Reggie Bush and receiver Marques Colston now that they’ve each had a season of playing together under their belts.
The Saints and Colts were the top two passing teams in the NFL last year, but while Indianapolis managed to put up almost 27 points per game, New Orleans struggled to capitalize on their efforts. The Saints ranked fifth in points per game.
“Yards are great,” running backDeuce McAllister told reporters, “but to be able to score more touchdowns would be important for us.”
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