Ravens stop Steelers, vault into No. 2 seed in AFC
Football Betting Lines
12/24/2006 - Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Steve McNair threw three touchdowns as Baltimore moved in to the second seed in the AFC with a 31-7 shellacking of the Pittsburgh Steelers at Heinz Field.
McNair went 21-of-31 with 256 yards and two interceptions, and Mark Clayton had seven receptions for 108 yards and a touchdown for the Ravens (12-3), who have won their last three games and, thanks to Indianapolis' 27-24 loss to Houston, now find themselves right on the heels of 12-2 San Diego for No. 1 in the AFC.
San Diego is currently underway at Seattle.
Ben Roethlisberger went 15-for-31 for 156 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions, and Santonio Holmes had five receptions for 90 yards for the Steelers (7-8), who had a three-game winning streak snapped and were all-but knocked out of the playoff chase, ending any hopes of defending their Super Bowl title.
The Baltimore defense sacked Roethlisberger five times and only allowed Pittsburgh across midfield twice in the second half.
Orchard Park, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rookie Vince Young threw for 183 yards and two touchdowns, and also ran for 61 yards and a score, as Tennessee edged Buffalo, 30-29, to keep its slim playoff hopes alive. Young, who completed 13-of-20
<< New England clinches AFC East with win over Jacksonville
Jacksonville, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tom Brady threw for 249 yards and a
touchdown as New England edged Jacksonville, 24-21, to win its fourth
consecutive AFC East title at Alltel Stadium.
Brady completed 28-of-39 passes for t
<< Vick sets running record, but Falcons fall to Panthers
Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Michael Vick became the first quarterback in
NFL history to top 1,000 yards rushing, but did little else as the Atlanta
Falcons continued to fade out of the uninspiring NFC wild-card picture, losing
10-3 to
<< Bucs beat Cleveland for only road win of season
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Michael Pittman ran for 86 yards and a
touchdown, as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers battered Cleveland, 22-7.
Derrick Brooks returned an interception for a touchdown for the Buccaneers
(4-11), who snap
<< Brown's FG lifts Texans past Colts
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ron Dayne rushed for a career-high 153 yards
and scored two touchdowns, and Kris Brown booted a 48-yard field goal as time
expired, as Houston stunned Indianapolis with a 27-24 victory, the first win
in 10 a
East Rutherford, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Reggie Bush rushed for a career-high 126 yards with a score, as New Orleans moved one step closer to a first-round bye after a 30-7 win over the fading New York Giants. Bush recorded the first 100-y
Gould, Bears rally past Lions >>
Detroit, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Robbie Gould kicked four field goals, including
three in the final quarter, as the Chicago Bears rallied for a 26-21 win over
the Detroit Lions.
Rex Grossman completed 20-of-36 passes for 197 yards and was in
Action Jackson: Rams top Redskins in OT >>
St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Steven Jackson ran 21 yards to the end zone
with 8:27 left in overtime, as the St. Louis Rams kept their slim playoff
hopes alive with a 37-31 victory over the Washington Redskins.
After both teams h
Vikings to cut Marcus Robinson >>
Eden Prairie, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Minnesota Vikings informed veteran
wide receiver Marcus Robinson that he will be released.
According to a report in the Minneapolis Star Tribune, Robinson received a
call from Vikings VP of p
Leinart sprains shoulder >>
San Francisco, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Arizona Cardinals quarterback Matt
Leinart sprained his left shoulder in the first half against the San Francisco
49ers on Sunday.
Leinart got sacked by Roderick Green just under the two-minute mark of th
Big 12 Conference betting odds
Work left to do: Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Kansas State
Texas joins Texas A&M and Kansas as locks after getting league win No. 11. Texas Tech greatly helped its own hopes and crippled OK State's with the two-point win Saturday. Is K-State the last reasonable hopeful? Could be an elimination match in Stillwater on Tuesday, at least for the Cowboys.
Work left to do:
Texas Tech [18-11 (7-7), RPI: 44, SOS: 12] A critical two-point win over OK State leaves the Red Raiders with Baylor and at Iowa State left. Get both and the Red Raiders likely are good to go. Get one and there could be some interesting comparisons with a K-State team that could finish two or three games "ahead" of them in the standings but doesn't have any of the quality wins Texas Tech has. Not a lot in nonconference play (against Arkansas in Little Rock being the best win, by far) to lean on.
Oklahoma State [18-9 (5-8), RPI: 50, SOS: 35] Still without a road win, the Cowboys now need to win two on the road just to get to .500 in conference play. It's hard to recall a team (OK, other than Clemson) falling so precipitously from lock status to almost certainly out of the NCAAs at this point. There are wins to be had in the last three, including a very big home game against K-State on Tuesday, but this team is reeling. Can you tell the pressure to win is getting to them with the way the final possession played out at Texas Tech? There are some good nonconference performances to lean on, specifically beating Missouri State and Syracuse on neutral floors and Pitt in OK City, but if the Pokes don't right this very, very soon, that won't be enough.
Kansas State [20-9 (9-5), RPI: 56, SOS: 96] It pays to be in the Big 12 North. The nine league wins are Colorado (twice), Missouri (twice), Iowa State (twice), Baylor, Nebraska and (a good one against) Texas. That helps explain the middling computer profile. The win over USC is nice, but the nonconference leaves a lot to be desired. The game at OK State in Stillwater on Tuesday is huge, as it could KO the Cowboys and leave K-State with a home date against Oklahoma with which to work.