08/20/2008 - Owings Mills, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Baltimore Ravens will again go with Troy Smith at quarterback to start the team's third preseason tuneup against the St. Louis Rams on August 23.
Smith, who started the team's second preseason game against Minnesota, received the nod over Kyle Boller as the two battle for a starting role in the Ravens season opener with Cincinnati September 7.
Smith played sparingly in a 23-15 loss to the Vikings, completing just 3-of-5 pass attempts for 25 yards with an interception, but did lead Baltimore to its only touchdown drive on the first series. Boller also tossed a pick going 8- for-12 for 40 yards in his time under center.
Rookie signal-caller Joe Flacco out of Delaware saw the majority of snaps, completing 10-of-15 passes for 74 yards. Smith also gained 35 yards on the ground.
Boller was an efficient 11-of-15 for 102 yards as Baltimore slipped past New England, 16-15 in the team's preseason opener but also threw an interception and lost a costly fumble. Smith was 5-of-12 for 74 yards against the Patriots.
Smith saw action in four games last season, including two starts, completing 40-of-76 pass attempts for 452 yards and two touchdowns without recording an interception. The second-year player's mobility could be a factor in winning the starter's job as he also ran for a touchdown, gaining 54 yards on a dozen rushes.
<< Astros claim Castillo on waivers
Milwaukee, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Houston Astros claimed infielder Jose
Castillo on outright waivers from the San Francisco Giants on Wednesday.
Castillo is expected to report to the team Friday after being designated for
assignment
<< Sixers bring back Ratliff
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia 76ers have signed free
agent center Theo Ratliff.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but a report Tuesday in the Philadelphia
Daily News said the 35-year-old Ratliff has accepted a
<< Griffey ties Sosa on home run list
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chicago White Sox outfielder Ken Griffey Jr.
belted his 609th career home run on Wednesday to tie Sammy Sosa for fifth
place on the all-time list.
Griffey drilled a two-out, two-run homer in the
<< Eagles' Curtis out with sports hernia
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Kevin
Curtis will undergo surgery Thursday for a sports hernia.
Curtis suffered the injury during last Friday's preseason game against
Carolina and will "be out
Griffey hits one of Chicago's four homers in rout of M's >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ken Griffey Jr. belted his first home run in a
White Sox uniform and Nick Swisher homered for the third consecutive game, as
Chicago completed a three-game sweep of the Seattle Mariners with a 15-3 rout
at U.S.
Twins activate 2B Casilla from DL >>
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Minnesota Twins activated infielder
Alexi Casilla from the 15-day disabled list after Wednesday's 3-1 victory over
the Oakland Athletics.
Casilla has been sidelined since July 29 with a torn lig
Rox disable P Herges, recall P Speier >>
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Colorado Rockies placed
pitcher Matt Herges on the 15-day disabled list with lower back stiffness
Wednesday and recalled pitcher Ryan Speier from Triple-A Colorado Springs.
The rost
Cards' hurler Lohse suspended >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Kyle Lohse was
suspended five games and fined an undisclosed amount on Wednesday.
Lohse was penalized for an incident in his last start on Sunday, when he threw
a pitch near th
BILLS (+10) at Steelers SPORTSBOOK LINES
It's impossible to gauge how a team will react after something like the Steve Everett situation, and it probably doesn't matter. That being said, the Bills are going to lose several games this year where they keep things close but fall short in the end to superior teams. Ben Roethlisberger and company could have a field day against Buffalo's decimated defense, but I like the Bills to cover.
BENGALS (-7) at Browns SPORTSBOOK LINES
All you can ask out of your NFL team is that it has a plan. You may not always agree with it as a fan, but as long as it appears the organization is going in some sort of direction, you have to go with it. Which brings us to the Cleveland Browns. You flip a coin to determine whether Chuck Frye or Derek Anderson should start the preseason opener. You start Frye in Week 1, but pull him in the first half. And then you deal him to the Seahawks for a sixth-round pick? Hmm... the Bengals could get six turnovers again this week.
COLTS (-7) at Titans SPORTSBOOK LINES
Tennessee signed ex-Colts cornerback Nick Harper in the offseason so that should help slow down Peyton Manning. Just ask Jason David and the Saints. Oh wait... One of these weeks, I'm going to learn to not pick against Tennessee, which has won seven of its last eight games. But it's not happening against Indy.
TEXANS (+6.5) at Panthers SPORTSBOOK LINES
Houston's Mario Williams, the first pick in the '06 draft, has more touchdowns than Reggie Bush after one week. Somehow I don't see that lasting. Meanwhile, Carolina bottled up what was expected to be a pretty high-octane offense in St. Louis in Week 1. Could this be the Panthers' defense everyone expected last year? Maybe. This feels like a 20-16 Carolina win.
RAMS (-3) vs. 49ers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Absolutely love this game. Everyone's favorite pick for this year's surprise team -- the 49ers -- laid an egg on Monday night (not that anyone was watching with the game ending in the middle of the night for those of us on the East Coast). St. Louis wasn't much better, delivering a lackluster effort against the Panthers that included two Steven Jackson fumbles and panic from his fantasy owners. Jackson rebounds this week, and the Rams get their first win.
PACKERS (+1.5) at Giants SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Do you really trust this guy to win an NFL game if Eli Manning can't go? I say no. I'd feel alot better about this Packers team if it had any semblance of a running game, but I still think Green Bay's defense is good enough to give it a 2-0 start.
JAGUARS (-10) vs. Falcons SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Does it scare me to pick Jacksonville to cover a double-digit spread after it scored just 10 points last week against the Titans? Absolutely. But can I bring myself to pick Atlanta under any circumstances? No. Check out this poll on ajc.com. It asks what Atlanta's most urgent deficiency is: offense, defense, specials teams or all of the above. "All of the above" has 57 percent of the votes. Ouch.
SAINTS (-3) at Buccaneers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
I'm picking way too many road teams this week. Oh well. New Orleans has had some time to reflect on its lackluster showing in the opener, and the Buccanneers just aren't a very good football team. Anyone else surprised Tampa Bay hasn't made a move to sign Byron Leftwich? I thought that's what they do.
VIKINGS (+3) at Lions SPORTS BETTING LINES
Run the ball and stop the run. Minnesota can do both, and that will keep them in a lot of games this season. Even though it was only one week, Adrian Peterson looks like he was a steal at No. 7 in last year's draft. Not only will he produce, but Peterson delivers excitement to what otherwise would be one of the league's most boring teams.
DOLPHINS (+3.5) vs. Cowboys SPORTS BETTING LINES
Lost in the Tony Romo lovefest is just how bad the Cowboys' defense was last week. I know they're banged up, but Dallas' 'D' allowed 438 yards to the Giants' offense, and backup running back Derrick Ward averaged 6.8 yards per carry. Meanwhile, Cam Cameron's decision to split carries between Ronnie Brown and Jesse Chatman sounds about as can't-miss as Larry David's plan to show up to Marty Funkhouser's party a night late. Still, gotta go with Miami to cover at home.
SEAHAWKS (-2.5) at Cardinals SPORTS BETTING LINES
I'm probably missing something, but this game seems too easy. Arizona blew Monday night's game against the 49ers in typical Cardinals fashion, and the Seahawks beat Tampa Bay by two touchdowns. Love Seattle in this one.
BRONCOS (-9.5) vs. Raiders SPORTS BETTING LINES
Special teams was a major story line in Week 1. Take a look at the Broncos. They had to rush on to the field to get a Jason Elam field goal as time expired against the Bills. Denver drove into Buffalo territory on eight of 10 drives but came away with just a pair of field goals and a touchdown. Look for more scoring from the Broncos this week against an Oakland defense that gave up 36 points to Detroit in Week 1.
BEARS (-12) vs. Chiefs SPORTS BETTING LINES
Everyone talks about Rex Grossman when dissecting the Bears' offense, but Chicago's quarterback got no help in last week's loss to the Chargers. Meanwhile, Kansas City confirmed what we all thought while watching Hard Knocks: The Chiefs are going to stink this year. It could be a rough first month for Larry Johnson fantasy owners. Kansas City's RB was limited to 43 yards on 10 carries in Week 1, and the Chiefs face the Bears, Vikings and Chargers the next three weeks, all formidable run defenses.
RAVENS (-10) vs. Jets SPORTS BETTING LINES
A big dose of Willis McGahee and a usual sound defensive effort will give the Ravens their first win. According to Football Outsiders, no team in the NFL rushed only three defenders on pass plays last year more than the Jets. And according to my special Jets correspondent Ben Stauber, New York did the same in Week 1. Whoever starts at quarterback for the Ravens should have all day to throw.
PATRIOTS (-3) vs. Chargers SPORTS TRASH TALK
Friends and I were discussing how Bill Belichick goes about paying his $500,000 fine for cheating. Does he just write one check to the NFL? Do you need some sort of clearance to make such a monstrous financial transaction? I guess I shouldn't complain about the security deposit I have to put down on my new apartment. Anyway, two of the league's best teams square off in what should be a good one Sunday night. The Patriots always respond well just when you think they're in trouble. And their offensive attack was the story in Week 1.
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting.
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