Sports Betting

Here's a closer look at four of this week's best matchups. Carolina (5-2) at Tampa Bay (5-2) - 1:00 pm EST The Carolina Panthers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers head into Sunday's tilt deadlocked atop the NFC South division, along with the Atlanta Falcons, at 5-2. Despite both teams holding a share of the division lead, they head into Sunday's game in very different situations. The Panthers have won four in a row and have their offense rolling after a 38-13 washing of Minnesota last week. Wideout Steve Smith set a new team record in that game with 201 receiving yards and a touchdown. Smith leads the NFL in both categories with 797 yards receiving while catching eight TD passes. The Bucs, on the other hand, are coming off a 15-10 upset loss to San Francisco. Chris Simms struggled in his first game as Tampa Bay's new starting quarterback, completing only 21-of-34 passes for 264 yards with a pair of interceptions and a costly fumble. Coach Jon Gruden said he plans to stick with Simms and he fully expects him to improve with more experience under his belt. One bright spot for the Buccaneers in this game is the return of defensive end Simeon Rice. Gruden surprisingly sent the Bucs' sack leader home last week after he failed to report for a team meeting. Tampa Bay's defense should be able to put more pressure on Panthers' quarterback Jake Delhomme with Rice back in the mix. Carolina defeated Tampa Bay twice last season and covered the small spread in both games. The Bucs opened as a slim 1-point favorite, but the line moved late in the week with the Panthers now garnering a 1-point edge. Be sure to check for more movement before placing your bets. Cincinnati (6-2) at Baltimore (2-5) - 1:00 pm EST If someone had told you before the season that this week's Cincinnati/Baltimore game would pit first in the AFC North versus last in the division, it wouldn't have been too much of a surprise. It may have bowled you over though if you were told that Cincinnati would be the team in first place. The Bengals are off to their best start in years at 6-2 after their 21-14 win over Green Bay last week. That contest was probably a little closer than it should have been considering that Cincinnati intercepted five passes for the third time this season. Cincinnati currently leads the league with 28 takeaways. If the Bengals can keep that up and quarterback Carson Palmer can continue on his breakout season (2037 yards, 16 TD, 5 int), then the Bengals should have no trouble with the Ravens and grease the skids for a return to the playoffs for the first time in a long time. Brian Billick's Baltimore Ravens can't seem to catch a break this season. After struggling through injuries to offensive weapons Kyle Boller, Jamal Lewis and Todd Heap, the Ravens now have to deal with two defensive leaders on the bench. Ray Lewis and Ed Reed both sat out last week's game as the Ravens lost to the Steelers 20-19. Reed could return from an ankle injury this week, but Lewis is out at least another week if not longer with a thigh injury. The Ravens' shot at the division appears to be gone and if Billick can't at least get Baltimore back into wild-card contention, his job might be gone too. The Bengals edged the Ravens 27-26 as a 6.5-point dog when they last clashed last season. Baltimore took the other game last year, 23-9 as a 2-point road favorite. Not surprisingly the oddsmakers have gone with Cincinnati in this game, opening them as a 3-point favorite. Pittsburgh (5-2) at Green Bay (1-6) - 4:05 pm EST The 5-2 Pittsburgh Steelers paying a visit to the 1-6 Green Bay Packers may look like an easy Steelers win, but with Big Ben missing from the Pittsburgh lineup, anything can happen at Lambeau Field. Steelers' quarterback Ben Roethlisberger will be watching from the sidelines for this game after having arthroscopic knee surgery to repair torn cartilage. The starting nod will fall to former third-stringer Charlie Batch. Tommy Maddox got the start the last time Roethlisberger was sidelined, but he threw that game away and was passed over for Batch this time around. Don't be surprised if Batch is a little rusty early in the game since he hasn't thrown a pass in an NFL game since 2003. Also missing from the Steelers' offense will be running back Jerome Bettis, who is listed as doubtful due to a quadriceps injury. Willie Parker should get the bulk of the carries with Duce Staley backing him up. If the Packers hope to have a chance in this game they need Brett Favre to bounce back from one of the worst games of his long career. Favre threw a career-high five interceptions last week as the Packers feel 21-14 to Cincinnati. The Packers' offense is already in enough trouble without Javon Walker, Ahman Green, and Najeh Davenport for the season, and receiver Robert Ferguson for at least this week. With his offense deteriorating around him and a weak offensive line in front of him, one has to wonder just how much Favre has left to give. Despite missing Roethlisberger, the Steelers opened as a 6-point favorite in this game. That line changed during the week as the injury reports were made public so make sure you take another peek before placing your bets. Philadelphia (4-3) at Washington (4-3) - 8:30 pm EST The Philadelphia Eagles and Washington Redskins clash on Sunday, with the loser heading all the way down to the basement of the NFC East. Both teams are coming off bad losses in which they were severely outplayed and beaten. Washington was routed 36-0 by the New York Giants last week. Quarterback Mark Brunell couldn't get anything going before he was replaced by backup Patrick Ramsey in the second half. Running back Clinton Portis followed up one of his best days in a Redskins' uniform with only nine rushing yards on four carries against the Giants. On the other side of the ball, the Redskins' defense was torched by Giants' running back Tiki Barber for 206 yards. The Eagles couldn't keep up with the Broncos in a 49-21 loss and are banged up heading into Sunday night's game. Donovan McNabb sat out practice during the week with bruised ribs, while Terrell Owens will miss the game after getting suspended by his team on Saturday. The Eagles' defense has its own injury problems with Jevon Kearse plagued by a shoulder injury and nagging injuries afflicting their linebacking corps. The Eagles were victorious in both contests against the Redskins last season, winning 17-14 as an 8-point road dog and 28-6 as a 10-point home favorite early in the campaign. Both games went UNDER the posted total. The Eagles opened as a 1-point favorite early in the week, but the line moved in favor of the Redskins by 3 points later in the week.
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