Irony abound on Championship Sunday

Football Betting Lines

01/23/2012 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Francisco 49ers had been living off turnovers and stellar special teams play all throughout their tremendous 2011 season. Tom Brady had been bailing out a condemned New England Patriots defense time and time again over that same time frame.

Which makes it all the more harder to explain how the former's championship dreams died because of a pair of disastrous mistakes from the NFL's best "third phase" unit over the course of this campaign, or how Brady's maligned mates on the other side of the ball saved their star quarterback's bacon in the first of a strange and spellbinding two games that determined this year's Super Bowl contestants.

Then again, in a season where close contests and rousing comebacks have been anything but uncommon, such puzzling twists of fate probably shouldn't seem all that peculiar.

Still, to have Sunday's NFC Championship nail-biter between the 49ers and New York Giants decided on a second botched punt return by San Francisco's Kyle Williams was a bit weird, a circumstance almost as eerie as the similar sequence of events that unfolded to make Rex Ryan's worst nightmare come true -- a rematch between the Giants and Patriots for all the marbles on the grandest stage of them all four years after the teams put on one of the most dramatic Super Bowl shows ever.

While the lasting image from the Patriots' 23-20 outlasting of Baltimore in the AFC title match will be Ravens kicker Billy Cundiff's shocking shank of a chip- shot field goal in the final seconds that would have forced overtime, that moment of infamy wouldn't have taken place if not for the contrastingly clutch performance of a New England defense universally viewed to be along for the ride for the club's journey to the conference championship. A rag-tag mixture of castoffs, inexperienced unknowns and offensive defections had by far its finest three hours, continually rising to the occasion and keeping a game on the verge of slipping away in several spots within reach before Brady shook off a few uncharacteristic stumbles to engineer one of his trademark late comebacks.

Cundiff's unfortunate initiation into the dreaded fraternity made famous by Scott Norwood and Gary Anderson came about after a game-saving play by New England cornerback Sterling Moore, an undrafted rookie released back in mid- December before being promoted back off the practice squad just prior to the regular season's penultimate week. The green 21-year-old looked like an established veteran, however, in successfully jarring the football out of the unsteady hands of Ravens receiver Lee Evans in the closing seconds, preventing a would-be game-winning touchdown catch and redeeming himself for a costly miscue earlier in the afternoon, when the backup defender whiffed on a tackle that turned into a 29-yard score for Baltimore's Torrey Smith late in the third quarter.

Moore wasn't the only unlikely hero. Right after Smith's touchdown put the Ravens up by a 17-16 count, Baltimore recovered a Danny Woodhead fumble at New England's 28-yard line on the ensuing kickoff. But the defense stood its ground and forced a successful Cundiff field goal when safety James Ihedigbo (an ex- Jet, no less) buried Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco on a third-down blitz.

Baltimore was able to make the most of every break that came its away in last week's hard-earned 20-13 victory over Houston, converting three Texans' turnovers into 17 points. The Ravens induced three more on Sunday, including two interceptions of a surprisingly-shaky Brady, but came away with nothing more than a pair of Cundiff three-pointers off those errors. Four times Baltimore invaded the red zone, but only one of the trips resulted in a touchdown.

"They're the real MVP of this game, without a shadow of a doubt," Patriots guard Brian Waters said of the defense. "You look at how many bad situations they were put in today and they held their own. They create a turnover and we give it right back. We get a turnover on special teams and they hold [the Ravens] to three. They did an unbelievable job of creating pressure, but yet tackling guys."

While Moore, pressed into an increased role after starting cornerback Kyle Arrington sustained an eye injury in the second quarter (which in turn landed another unsung performer, reserve wide receiver Julian Edelman, as the team's primary nickel back), managed to atone for his previous mistake, Williams couldn't capitalize on his opportunity for restitution. The second-year receiver, handling punts with regular return man Ted Ginn Jr. unavailable due to a knee problem, set the Giants up in scoring position early in the fourth quarter by failing to get out of a way of a short kick and watching the opponent recover the loose ball. Less than three minutes later, New York quarterback Eli Manning connected with Mario Manningham for a 17-yard touchdown that loomed large in a game that ultimately went into overtime.

Williams' second fumble, stripped away by Giants' rookie linebacker Jacquian Williams deep in San Francisco territory after the Niners' sturdy defense created a quick three-and-out in the extra period, would be even more pronounced. Shortly after two hard Ahmad Bradshaw runs gave Big Blue a first down inside the 10-yard line, kicker Lawrence Tynes did what Cundiff couldn't and knocked home a 31-yard try for the deciding points in a 20-17 triumph that sparked its share of deja-vu visions from onlookers everywhere.

The kick was one of the two biggest in Tynes' life. The other came four years ago, also in the NFC Championship. On the road. In overtime. In rough weather conditions. Just after the Giants came up with a pivotal turnover. Against the conference's No. 2 seed. Just one week after they upset the No. 1 seed.

And of course, to bring about a showdown with the Patriots in the Super Bowl.

Notice the symmetry here?

Now, the historical correlations between this upcoming matchup and the one that took place between these two tradition-rich foes in Arizona's University of Phoenix Stadium during February of 2008, when the underdog Giants pulled off a stunning 17-14 upset of the then 18-0 Pats in Super Bowl XLII, won't at all guarantee a duplicate outcome. But it certainly ensures that the onslaught of media that will be descending upon Indianapolis in the coming weeks won't be scraping for material to promote a game that had a few fascinating storylines already built in.

The idea of Manning attempting to win a second Super Bowl -- or one more than big brother Peyton -- in the city where his elder sibling carved out his legendary career is pure gold for writers and broadcasters, as is the underlying rivalry between the unflappable Giants quarterback and Brady that was unintentionally stoked when Manning confidently commented that he belonged in the same class as his two-time league MVP counterpart over the summer.

There's also a sentimental angle that adds to New England's revenge motive, with the Patriots having dedicated the season to beloved owner Robert Kraft's late wife Myra after she passed away from a long and courageous battle with cancer in July.

Or how about the connection between Bill Belichick and Tom Coughlin, two of the game's premier head coaches and former co-members of the Giants' staff under Bill Parcells, who once roamed the sidelines of both franchises and is one of this year's finalists for induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, with the class to be announced the night before the Super Bowl?

Bring on the hype.

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Academy Award Betting Odds for Best Picture Offer Great Value

If there is any category that is not an obvious win for any one nominee in this year's Academy Awards, it would be for Best Picture.  Sure the Departed is a 5/7 favorite, but that's hardly anything when we look at Helen Mirren and her "out-of-reach" 1 to 40 odds (which means you would win a whopping $1 for every $40 bet).

For value, take a look at MySportsbook.com Oscars betting odds on my personal favorite, The Queen - a remarkable 12 to 1 long shot.  The film hasn't won any pre-awards for Best Picture (compared to The Departed and Little Miss Sunshine), but there is a tremendous following and it is a strong enough film to warrant a surprise win.

TV Guide advises Oscar watchers should be cautioned not to discount the  drama "Babel" with its strong social themes about overcoming communication gaps among people of different cultures.

"While 'Babel' lost several guild awards to 'Sunshine' and 'Departed,'  it still enjoys loyal support, and historically Oscar voters favor dramas with social messages over comedies like 'Sunshine' and violent crime movies like 'Departed'."

"It hasn't done well in the guilds, which means there isn't much industry support," said Tom O'Neil of awards site TheEnvelope.com, "But several critics are expecting it to win, and that gets my attention." Babel had 7 to 2 odds at press time.

Who is to say independently produced Little Miss Sunshine won't be this year's Crash.  Last year, Crash won for Best Motion Picture, shocking those who bet on gay cowboy flick, Brokeback Mountain, as the favorite to win. 

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MySportsbook.com: NBA Championship Odds

With the playoffs about two months away, the top two teams in the Western Conference are the clear cut leaders to win the NBA Championship. The Dallas Mavericks have the best record in the NBA (44-9) and have been absolutely scorching since the second week of the season.  What makes the Mavs’ record more impressive is the fact that they dropped their first four games of the season.  Currently they have won 17 out of their last 18 and are MySportsbook.com’s favorite (2-1) to win it all.  Right behind the Mavs are the Pacific leading Phoenix Suns (39-13).  Last season, the Suns lost in the Conference Finals to non-other then the Mavericks four games to two.  Of course the Suns were without center Amare Stoudemire who has is averaging 19.9 PPG and 9.5 RPG since coming back from his knee injury.  Unlike the Mavs, the Suns have struggled a bit lately having lost their last three and four out of their last seven.  Of course the main reason for their three straight loses is due to the absence of two time MVP Steve Nash, who is out with a shoulder injury.  Heads-up, the Mavs have beaten the Suns in both of their meetings this season.

In the Eastern Conference, the Pistons (32-19) are the favorites to win it all at 6-1. The addition of Chris Webber seems to have been a good move for the Pistons.  Since coming over from the 76ers, Webber has averaged 13.1 PPG and 7.3 RPG and the Pistons are 11-4.  Even though the defending champion Heat are currently on the playoff making cusp, they are the Eastern Conference team that is getting the most action to win it all (9-1).  The fact that Shaquille O’Neal is back in the starting lineup after missing 39 games probably has something to do with this.  No doubt, Shaq makes a difference when in the lineup as their winning six out of their last seven would indicate.

Just because it is the All-Star break doesn’t mean that you can’t bet on NBA hoops this weekend.  Be sure to log onto MySportsbook.com to bet on who you think will cut down the nets this July. Also, be sure to check out all of the lines and props for All-Star weekend.  With the highest credit card acceptance rate in the industry, there are plenty of ways to cash in on the NBA this weekend.

MySportsbook.com’s NBA Championship odds:

Atlanta Hawks 1000-1

Boston Celtics 5000-1

Charlotte Bobcats 5000-1

Chicago Bulls 20-1

Cleveland Cavaliers 20-1

Dallas Mavericks 2-1

Denver Nuggets 25-1

Detroit Pistons 6-1

Golden State Warriors 250-1

Houston Rockets 12-1

Indiana Pacers 60-1

Los Angeles Clippers 45-1

Memphis Grizzlies 5000-1

Miami Heat 9-1

Milwaukee Bucks 1000-1

Minnesota T-Wolves 200-1

New Jersey Nets 50-1

New Orleans Hornets 150-1

New York Knicks 150-1

Orlando Magic 75-1

Philadelphia 76ers 1000-1

Phoenix Suns 5-2

Portland TrailBlazers 1000-1

Sacramento Kings 250-1

San Antonio Spurs 9-1

Seattle Sonics 5000-1

Toronto Raptors 35-1

Utah Jazz 20-1

Washington Wizards 25-1

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