Way, way back in 1969, The New York Jets upset the mighty Baltimore Colts and won Super Bowl III by a score of 16-7. Led by Quarterback Joe Namath, the Jets stunned the entire country with their surprise victory , a win which led directly to a merger between the NFL National Football League and the AFL American Football league.

The Colts, led by legendary Johnny Unitas, were favored by more than 17 points that day. And yet, the Jets did the unimaginable, they not only covered the spread, they won the game, easily!

The problem that has plagued New York since then is that theyve never won another Super Bowl and, in fact, have not won very many playoff games as might be expected for a team from New York. Bad management and other factors have contributed to their long term malaise.

In the early 1980s, the Jets, behind their famed and ferocious sack exchange, led by Mark Gastineau and Joe Klecko tore up the league during the regular season, but fizzled in the playoffs against the Miami Dolphins. More recently, with Hall of Fame Head Coach Bill Parcells in control, the Jets became road warriors winning lots of games away from the Meadowlands , made their way into the playoffs , and, in the AFC Championship Game against John Elway and the Broncos, enjoyed a surprising halftime lead.

And then the New York Jets forgot how to score , or perhaps the Broncos defense stepped up. Either way, Denver put up a big second half, won the game , and then won the Super Bowl.

The 2008-2009 edition of the New York Jets, under Head Coach Eric Mangini was expected to make a run at the playoffs. Then even before the season began, Brett Favre became available. The Jets pulled off a trade with Green Bay and Favre became the Jets starting quarterback, their first marquee QB since Joe Namath took snaps from under center.

With Favre playing like he was 10 or 15 years younger, the Jets won 8 of their first 11 games and sat atop the AFC East Division, a first place team. Then, the roof caved in. New York went on a losing streak behind poor play from Favre and finished the season 9-7 , and out of the playoffs.

After that during off-season, Favre retired and the Jets moved up on Draft Day to pick a top college Quarterback, Mark Sanchez of USC. Although Sanchez started relatively few games for the Trojans, he was highly thought of by most scouts and is expected to be the Jets starting QB, possibly as soon as opening day 2009-2010. To get the job, however, he will have to outperform another young quarterback, Kellen Clemens.

But, even if Clemens is the opening day starter, it will be just a matter of time before Sanchez takes over. He is destined to be the second coming of Joe Namath.

Will Sanchez help you win a bet better then Clemens? Who knows , the Jets are expected to have a big-time defense and that can mask any rookie deficiencies from Sanchez. The advice here: if you bet the Jets, start with small wagers.

In 2007-2008, the New York Giants stunned the NFL and fans all across America when they beat the unbeatable New England Patriots on a late 4^th Quarter Hail Mary pass from Eli Manning, kid brother of superstar QB Peyton Manning, that led to a shocking game-winning, and Super Bowl winning, touchdown , and the unbelievable loss to the Patriots that abruptly cut short an unbeaten season.

It was an incredible turn of events , totally unexpected by sports fans and by pundits and experts of the game. And yet, Eli and the Giants pulled it off.

In the 2008-2009 Season, The New York Giants stunned themselves. They turned into overnight losers. The season started off well, but went bad when star wide receiver Plaxico Burress accidentally shot himself in the leg while out on the town in Manhattan. That was the gunshot heard all around the NFL and it totally upset the Giants promising season.

To begin, Burress had broken a New York City law by carrying a loaded gun into a night club and, as a result, ran into trouble with law enforcement. Additionally, the NFL immediately suspended Burress , as did the Giants themselves.

That was clearly the right response to a felony, but it really hurt the Giants offense. Burress was their deep threat , the one wide receiver they had that made it difficult for opposing teams to defend against them. With Burress off the field, for the remainder of the season, no other Giants wide receiver stepped up. As a result, opposing defenses found it easy to stop the Giants , and to beat them.

And thats what happened , with depressing regularity. Plaxico Burress is now an ex-Giant. And team executives, most notably General Manager Jerry Reese, tried to address the offensive shortcoming caused by the loss of Burress, by drafting wide receivers to replace him.

The 2009-2010 edition of the team will have a new cast of long ball threats on offense, but they are rookies , and there is no guarantee that their new first-year players will be able to step up immediately and fill the void left by the departure of Plaxico.

However, The Giants are also loaded on Defense and may have enough to carry their suspect offense. Time will tell. Several recent college drafts have produced a bunch of starters for the Giants defensive line , linebackers , and even their defensive secondary. This is a tough outfit.

And toughness is needed, because New York plays in the rugged NFC East Division, home to the Philadelphia Eagles , the Dallas Cowboys , and the Washington Redskins. There are no easy games here.

If youre a fan, youre going to love the intensity that is evident every time any of these divisional rivals play each other. If you bet on these divisional games, cashing a winning bet may be difficult, better call a pro capper.

There was a time when the team from The Big Easy was known as the New Orleans Aints. They were perennial losers , a yearly doormat of a team that other squads routinely slaughtered. Early in their history, they drafted a highly-touted quarterback named Archie Manning, Yes, the father of Peyton and Eli.

Archie was supposed to be the savior , the guy who would lead the Saints to respectability , and maybe even more than that. The problem was that team executives forgot to put a decent offensive line in front of him. So Manning, Sr. ended up running for his life throughout most of his career , at least when he wasnt eating turf after getting sacked.

Those days were tough for the fans of Americas fun city. They wanted a winner badly and came out in droves to root for the home team, but it didnt help all that much. The Saints were losers , they were the Aints.

If its true that the meek shall inherit the earth, than its also true that, in time, NFL doormats will rise up and grow strong. After years of futility, the Saints have reached that pinnacle. They are now one of the better teams in the NFC South Division where the Falcons, Panthers and Buccaneers also reside , and deserve to be called an upper echelon NFL team, as well. Yes , theyre good now.

And it may be that they once again have an excellent quarterback taking the snaps, Drew Brees. Young, talented and definitely in his prime, Brees has turned the Saints into a top offensive team , they can score, on anybody. In fact, theyre considered a quick strike team, which means they can go downfield on an opponent in a hurry.

Yet, the fact remains that New Orleans still hasnt won anything like a Super Bowl , or even a bunch of playoff games. Theyre better than theyve ever been, a good team, but theyre just one of many good NFL teams that have never won a truly big game.

Can they do it in 2009-2010? The smart money says YES. The Saints are basically a young team, especially at the skill positions. They play all of their home games in good weather, another advantage. And now theyve had a taste of playoff football. Added all together, it means that this is one hungry team , perhaps ready to take the next big step.

Fans of the Saints will be holding their collective breaths when the new season launches a few months from now. Most will probably think that this is the year the team takes off. Well see. Fans who like to wager will also be holding their collective breaths and wonder if this team that figures to be a favorite it most games is worth the risk of a win bet.

Or is a win bet on the Saints going to result in a lost wager , more unfulfilled promise, just like way back when Archie Manning was throwing the football.

The best team in the NFL over the last decade won nothing in 2008-2009. The New England Patriots, Winners of three Super Bowls since the year 2000, didnt even win the AFC East Division this past year. They finished second behind surprising Miami.

Naturally, they had excuses. The Patriots all-world, all-star, super-stud quarterback Tom Brady went down in the first game played for real in September , a knee injury knocked him out of action for the entire season. That was a huge blow. Brady, once a sixth-round draft pick, had long ago cemented his legacy as a Hall of Fame caliber quarterback who had led New England to three Super Bowl victories.

Very few quarterbacks in the entire history of the NFL can make that claim. So when Brady went down for the season, it was, clearly, a big blow to the Patriots. But New England has great management and a brilliant Head Coach, Bill Belichick.

As the team once did in finding Brady in a low round of the draft, it repeated with a quarterback they drafted out of USC, a guy who never played a down in college and, in fact, had not taken a snap since High School. This diamond in the rough is, of course, Matt Cassell.

It took a few games, and lots of cautious play, but eventually Cassell, like Brady before him, started to shine , and the Patriots started to win, just about every week. They were running out of games … it was going to be difficult, maybe impossible, to catch the Dolphins, but, if they didn’t, no one would be able to lay the blame at the feet of Cassell. He played brilliantly.

In fact, Cassell was such a revelation that the Patriots, with the knowledge that Brady was coming back healthy, were able to trade Cassell to Kansas City in the off-season for a high second round draft pick. It’s an amazing story. In fact, screenwriters in Hollywood couldn’t create a movie plot any more spectacular than what happened to Cassell in 2008-2009. It actually reads like fiction, but it really happened.

But the Cassell story is now “ancient history” and a new chapter is ready to unfold for the Patriots. There are lots of questions surrounding this team. Is Brady really fully recovered? Will he be the same amazing QB he was before the injury? Has Belichick revamped the team’s aging defense enough to keep them competitive in 2009-2010? Is the team still as talented as it was when winning all of those Super Bowls? And, perhaps most importantly, have the Bills, Dolphins and Jets - the other teams in the AFC East - finally caught up to the mighty Patriots? That’s a lot of questions swirling around one team.

What do you call yourself when youre a playoff-caliber team without a top-notch quarterback to lead you to the playoffs? You call yourself the Minnesota Vikings.

The guys who play their games in the land of cold air and snow of course, unlike their football ancestors, they play indoors need help behind center. They need a field general who can lead them to the victories and a place deep in the playoffs and, maybe, just maybe, a trip to the next Super Bowl.

It could happen , if the Vikings find and get a top quarterback. And this is where it gets interesting. There may be a Hall-of-Fame-to-be quarterback available , a guy who played nearly twenty years for the arch-divisional-rival of the Vikings, the Green Bay Packers. The name of this superstar, super-stud quarterback is, of course, the great Brett Favre.

Favre unretired last year, put on the cleats and took snaps under center at The Meadowlands as the starting Quarterback for the New York Jets. Eleven games into the season in 2008-2009, the Brett Favre-as-Jets-Quarterback was working, big time. The Jets were 8-3 and in first place , and rolling.

Unfortunately, there were still more games to play. And as the weather got colder and the winds picked up at The Meadowlands, Favre started to play like his age , a 39 year old, past-his-prime, QB who no longer could be called the Gunslinger.

Football executives must have short memories. Its a new year, a new season, and the often Quarterback-starved Minnesota Vikings are apparently interested in bringing in Brett Favre or some other vetran to take the snaps for them on offense. Maybe they thing the controlled climate, wind-free environment of indoor home games will help the vikes recapture the glory and skill of his early years in the league.

But they also have to play intra-divisional away games in frigid Green Bay and equally frigid, and often impossibly windy, Chicago. Yes. The Green Bay Packers, Favres team for nearly twenty years, and the ferocious Chicago Bears, plus the rebuilding Detroit Lions are all cities that Minnesota has to visit each winter. And two of those games, the more difficult ones against the Bears and the Packers will be played outdoors.

Can the vikings still play effectively in bad weather conditions even though they are a dome team? If youre a fan of the Vikings, you have to hope that they can lean on peterson who is flat out awsome in the backfield, and their coach grows a set since he in my opinion is a baby playcaller and never calls a good game or is aggresive on offense. If you like to bet, youll have interesting options. It may pay to wager against Minnesota more often then not.

Can any NFL team go from a 1-15 Won-Loss record one season to divisional champion in the very next season? Yes , if that team is the Miami Dolphins. Theyre the squad that pulled off the incredible turnaround, in a single season.

With Hall of Fame former Head Coach Bill Parcells running the front office, and heavily involved in personnel decisions, the Miami Dolphins pulled off the miracle. After finishing the 2007-2008 Season as a divisional and league doormat with a pitiful 1-15 record, south Floridas boys in light blue shocked the competitive AFC South Division, and the entire NFL, by finishing ahead of the powerful New England Patriots playing without superstar quarterback Tom Brady , the Buffalo Bills , and the Brett Favre-led New York Jets.

Yes, the Dolphins finished first and won the division. And, in so doing, they completed the greatest turnaround in league history. So , just how did they do it?

There were a number of contributing factors. One, the Patriots never fully recovered after they lost Tom Brady for the season even though untested Matt Cassell stepped up , and by their aging defense. The Buffalo Bills were simply disappointing , and The New York Jets, after a fast start, were let down by mediocre quarterback play, from future Hall-of-Famer Brett Favre.

Add to that a very creative offense that managed to fool defenses all season by keeping them off-balance and guessing , a good defense , decent special teams, and the amazing Dolphins had just enough to stagger to the finish line in the AFC East, in first place.

While luck played a role in their turnaround, good coaching on the field and good planning in the executive office helped, as well. The Dolphins enjoyed one more very big benefit: in 2008-2009, they played a last place schedule. In other words, they played primarily against teams that were also coming off very poor 2007-2008 seasons. And that helped the resurgent Miami Dolphins a lot.

The new season, still a few months away, could bring dramatically different results to the boys from Miami. For example: they have graduated from a last place schedule to a first place schedule. That means theyll be lining up against teams outside their division that are much tougher than the competition they beat up last season. Additionally, the Patriots will be playing with Tom Brady this year , the Bills have upgraded many of their weaknesses , and the Jets have a dynamic new Head Coach, Rex Ryan, who has promised a Ravens-like attack defense. There will be no easy games for Miami inside their own division , none!

Fans of the Dolphins could find themselves smiling less next season as Miami loses much more often. And, if you bet, be aware that, especially early in the season, the Dolphins may be favored in some games , and they can be a bad favorite. Proceed with caution.

NFL fans know alot about the St. Louis Rams, the team playing its games in the NFC West Division. They know that the Rams were once a real West Coast team , a squad that built its history, and its legend, playing games as the home team in Los Angeles.

Some years ago, however, team ownership made the decision to pick up, lock, stock and barrel, and move halfway across the country, to St. Louis. Was it a strange move , perhaps? Los Angeles is, of course, home to Hollywood and all the glitz that goes with it. St. Louis is … well, Midwestern. In fact, the city has often been called “the gateway to the west.”

While playing in Los Angeles, the Rams were “top dogs” more often than not - winners. As is often the case with most big city professional sports franchises, the Rams management worked hard to put a great team on the field. And, for the most part, they succeeded.

Things have gone much less smoothly for the Rams since they packed the trucks and moved east. While still playing in the so-so NFC West Division, they no longer dominate vs their competition. In fact, this squad has been mostly mediocre … and another NFC West team has surged ahead of everybody else - the Arizona Cardinals. All fans know that the Cardinals played in last season’s Super Bowl. But, only the most rabid NFL fans who don’t live in St. Louis know that happened to the Rams. In a word: nothing.

In 2008-2009, the Rams were terrible, a true “second division” club that was mostly easy pickings for opponents. Clearly, the Rams have fallen on hard times. While the recent past has been mostly dismal for the Rams, what does the future hold in store for them?

The fact is that St. Louis is a rebuilding team, replacing “old parts” with new, younger models. Results from these changes will probably not happen overnight. It takes time to rebuild in the NFL. Moreover, until new players perform on the field, no one knows if they will provide the improvement needed.
So, what can fans expect in the 2009-2010 Season? The best answer to that question is: wait and see. That’s because teams in transition can go either way. They can become good quickly … or the rebuilding process can inch along slowly until it finally takes root.

If you’re a fan of the Rams, try to cut them some slack. Give them a chance to get better … be patient. If you like to bet and are looking “for an edge,” consider this: rebuilding teams, if properly focused and motivated, are often live underdogs. The Rams may not win a lot of games in the upcoming season, but they will sure have a chance to “cover the spread” and help you cash a winning bet. You can’t ask for anything more than that.

There are two ways of looking at the recent on-field play of the NFC West Divisions Seattle Seahawks; theyre an upper echelon team that seems unable to ever catch a break , or theyre a top NFC team that consistently underperforms.

You can draw your own conclusions, but the Seahawks have come into every season in recent years as a highly-touted squad that has been expected to go deep into the playoffs. However, most years, it just hasnt worked out that way.

It could be that Seattle plays soft , that their home games are played indoors and they dont play well in cold weather games outdoors , or that their starting quarterback has been hurt too frequently and missed too many games. In the NFL, every team needs at least solid play from the quarterback position and it is almost always difficult to get that from a back-up player.

Whatever the reasons, the Seahawks have been somewhat of a disappointment to their fans in the Pacific Northwest. Theyve had top talent , theyve been playing in a mostly-mediocre division , and theyve continued to come up short, year after year after year.

In the NFL, windows of opportunity are limited. Core groups of players stay together only for so long , and then changes are made. Its becoming reasonable to assume that the window for the Seahawks — and their current group of star players, is getting ready to close, yet they are expected to dominate their division , and go deep into the playoffs.

An NFC West Division team did go deep into the playoffs, right to the Super Bowl in 09, in fact, but it was the Arizona Cardinals and not the rugged bunch from Seattle.

So, what can fans expect in the upcoming seasons? For starters, their team will have a new Head Coach because longtime team leader Mike Holmgren stepped down after last season. The team will start the new season with all hands on deck, no injured players, including at the all-important quarterback position. And , theyll have lots of questions to answer.

For example: will the new Head Coach make dramatic changes on offense and defense? And if he does, how well will the players adapt? Are the Seahawks going to be a scoring machine , or a defensive juggernaut , or a little of both? Will they be a team that consistently covers the spread , a worthy favorite , or a live underdog? And, in fact, will they be a team that deserves a wager?

There are no pat answers to any of these questions, not yet, anyway. Thats why they play the games , to get the answers. For fans and for those who bet, the first few games will be critical in determining just what kind of team will be playing in Seattle.

It should make for exciting football.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the San Francisco 49ers was the class of the entire NFL. The late, Great Head Coach Bill Walsh was able to put a dynamic team on the field every Sunday , with superstar Quarterback Joe Montana taking the snaps.

The 49ers, representing the NFC West Division, routinely rolled over their competition and Montana, a QB with an average arm, but a way-above-average football intellect, was the star attraction. He had the ability to turn looming defeats into surprise, sudden victories by leading his offense on last minute, even last second drives, to score a game winning touchdown or field goal.

Fans in the city by the Bay loved their team. And who could blame them. San Francisco was competent , capable , had a winning attitude , loads of confidence , and a killer instinct. Coupled with Bill Walshs innovative and out-of-the-box thinking and game-planning for the offense, the San Francisco 49ers were, for the most part, an unstoppable force.

They dominated their division for several years , won a few Super Bowls , and cemented their legacy as one of the greatest teams in league history. But football is no different than any other professional sport when it comes to the athletes who play the game. They get older , their skills diminish , or they suffer injuries that rob them of entire seasons, and the team suffers the inevitable consequences.

In time, that is what happened to the San Francisco 49ers. Their reign as league royalty came to an almost abrupt end. Montana retired from the game and was followed by many of his fellow teammates who had played important roles in the teams success.

New players came on board, of course, but they were not as good as the men they replaced. And San Francisco started sinking in the standings. Its been close to twenty years since the glory days. And the 49ers havent come close to repeating what once came so easily to them.

They have been an ordinary team for the most part , even a bottom-feeder, at times. Poor drafts and trades , injuries , and more have been the factors that have kept this team down. Will they ever recover the lost glory of their great years? Its hard to say.

There are 32 teams in the league , 32 executive offices vying for the same talent every year , 32 teams trying to get better fast. It takes knowledge of player skills and lots of good luck to put a winning team together.

Bay area fans that are starved for a winner may have to wait a bit longer. But those who like to wager may find that the 2009-2010 49ers can put a big smile on their faces , and a little extra cash in their pockets.

What can you say about the Pittsburgh Steelers that hasnt already been said? Winners of more Super Bowls than any other team in the long history of the NFL, including last seasons exciting last minute win over the surprising Arizona Cardinals, the Steelers have been nothing short of a model franchise.

Their long, long history of almost continuous success dates way back to the 1970s when their loaded rosters on both sides of the ball under Hall of Fame Head Coach Chuck Noll won three Super Bowls and terrorized the league

Those great teams had players like Terry Bradshaw as quarterback , receivers like the great and graceful Lynn Swann , and defensive stalwarts like Mean Joe Greene. And that team also had Franco Harris who was the fortunate recipient of the immaculate reception , one of the great catches in football history and a game-turner, as well.

Teams are not supposed to remain great forever, but the Steelers, under the Rooney family ownership, have been as consistently good as any team has ever been. The current crop of Steelers players include young quarterback Ben Roethlisberger who has already proven himself under fire in really big games one of the best and toughest defenses since the 1985 Bears … excellent special teams … and just enough offense to complement all of the team’s other components.

The Steelers have something else - a winning attitude. Consistently good play over a period of years has given this team confidence. They know they can win - against any and all competition - and they do. It seems to prove that success in athletics - regardless of the sport - is at least part mental. In other words, if you think you can win, there’s a good chance that you will win.

There is a downside for being so successful - for fans of the team and for those who enjoy wagering on them. Pittsburgh is almost always the favorite, based on the lines put out every week by Las Vagas odds makers. Frequently, that’s not a problem. The Steelers, especially when playing at home, deserve to be the favorite. But, they are often made the favorite on the road, too. And, from time to time, that makes this team a bad bet.

Keep this in mind: they have never gone undefeated and they have never “covered the spread” throughout an entire season. They lose games … and even when they win, can make you lose bets. The 1972 Miami Dolphins are the only team ever to go unbeaten … and even they did not “cover the spread” in every game they played.
There is no doubt that the Steelers are good and will be good again in 2009-2010, but as Super Bowl Champions they will also be targets. Every team they play will “get up” for them. That knowledge, if you use it, could present you with some great betting opportunities.

You can bet the Steelers this year - carefully!