Sports News

Beyond the competitions for starting quarterbacks, the NFL will feature a number of intriguing position battles that could shape the 2018 season.

Keep reading this sports article on USA Today - NFL Top Stories.

Keep reading this article on NFL Gridiron Gab.

It’s hard to believe, but the NFL season is just over a month away, with the first preseason game, the Hall of Fame game, kicking off on August 2nd. One of our favorite preseason betting markets, aside from futures, is season win totals. They allow bettors with strong NFL knowledge of acquisitions and utilizing line shopping to find some profitable bets. If you are new to pro football betting you should read NFL Betting Guide to get ready for the NFL season.

Cleveland Browns Over 5.5 Wins

Yes, the Browns have been a perennial laughing stock and they did go 0-16 last season. However, they did get a competent quarterback in Tyrod Taylor this offseason and a Pro-Bowler in Jarvis Landry at wide receiver. But, that’s not the main reason why this team will be better. Cleveland came close to winning plenty of games last season. Hue Jackson is at fault for many of those, but he won’t be coaching the offense. It will be former Pittsburgh Steelers-coordinator, Todd Haley, who will take the reins of the offense.

Haley has been successful at every stop as a coordinator. Furthermore, the Browns don’t have a terrible roster, despite going 0-16 season. They have an excellent offensive line. Their pass rush is strong. Their secondary is just mediocre. And, they upgraded their offense. Call me crazy, but I don’t think it’s insane to envision this team winning 7-9 games if things go right.

Chicago Bears Over 6.5 Wins

The Bears were one of the most frustrating teams last season. They were seemingly in most games but finished with just five wins. However, I think a lot of that had to do with their offensive scheme under head coach, John Fox. Well, Fox is now gone. Matt Nagy, the former offensive coordinator of the Kansas City Chiefs, has taken control of the offense, which also added, wide receiver, Allen Robinson, in the offseason.

They also don’t need much help on defense. With Nagy at the controls on offense, we will no longer see Fox simply to play games “not to lose.” Instead, the offense will get a true game planner and an aggressive coach. The defense doesn’t need any help. The Bears should easily be a 7-win team this season with the change in coaching staff and the improved personnel.

Jacksonville Jaguars Over 9 Wins

The Jaguars are one of the most underrated teams in the league right now. This team was a half away from winning the AFC Championship and advancing to the Super Bowl but ultimately fell to the Patriots. They improved this offseason, adding Andrew Nowell, from the Panthers to the largest contract signed by any guard in history.

They lost Allen Robinson, but added Donte Moncrief, and held onto their core of solid receivers, including Marqise Lee, Dede Westbrook, and Keelan Cole. They already have an elite defense and we saw plenty of strides from Bortles last season, including a wonderful late-season and playoff stretch. This team almost made it to the Super Bowl this season and their win total is set at 9 wins? I’d take the over, without question.

Joseph Falchetti is the author of the blog, most picks, and the majority of content on Safest Betting Sites. Joe has an extensive background as a writer and gambler of all types. He was a professional poker player and sports bettor for eight years until he decided to make the switch to writing gambling content after the Black Friday seizures.

The post Three NFL Team Totals You Should Bet This Season appeared first on NFL Gridiron Gab.

Keep reading this article on NFL Gridiron Gab.

While the Philadelphia Eagles are looking to defend their Super Bowl title, there’s going to be plenty of challenges from other teams.

One thing that those other teams will look at closely for the 2018 season is how effective the Eagles were in scoring in each quarter, and you can see from the inforgraph below how the Eagles along with a number of other NFL teams who made the postseason scored during the 2017 campaign.

As you can see from the infograph provided, the Eagles most effective quarters were the second and fourth quarters, showing that the was good before the half as well as in the final quarter when the big money is on the line.

The best team to score in the NFL in the second quarter was the Patriots as well as the Rams and the Vikings being right at the top.

The Patriots made it to the big game but fell to the Eagles, but again you can see from the infograph that they were very good in putting points on the board in the second quarter.

The Rams, a team that a lot of people seem to think that will be at or near the top of the NFL in 2018, were also very explosive in the second quarter, showing again that they might be ready to take that next step this upcoming season.

You want to be good in the NFL? Use that infograph above and see just how good the top teams in the NFL were when it came to scoring in the second and fourth quarters, something  that a lot of teams should stress in the upcoming campaign.

The post Want to Be a Top NFL Team in 2018? Put Stress on Scoring in the Second and Fourth Quarters appeared first on NFL Gridiron Gab.

Keep reading this article on NFL Gridiron Gab.

The NFL is full of inspiring stories, ranging from out-of-nowhere players making names for themselves and becoming stars, to in-their-prime players proving that some things are bigger than the sport. That being said, here are 5 inspirational NFL stories that will be told forever.

Vince Papale

Image credit: VincePapale.com

In the late 70s, Vincent Francis Papale was making a living as a bartender in Monkster’s Club in Philly and moonlighting as a substitute teacher at Interboro High School as well. That’s when he tried out for the Philadelphia Bell, of the long-defunct World Football League (WFL), as a wide receiver, doing so without playing even a single snap of college football. The then 28-year-old made the team, playing well enough to secure a private workout from the Eagles’ coaching staff. In 1976, the humble bartender was on an NFL roster, an unheralded 30-year-old rookie who defied the odds. He went on to play 3 seasons for the Eagles, fittingly earning the nickname Rocky for his own, true-to-life underdog story.

Tom Brady

Not too long ago, Brady was but a lightly regarded prospect, as he had been drafted late in the 6th round by the New England Patriots. The former Michigan Wolverine began his career 4th on the Patriots depth chart and got his 1st start only a season later against the Indianapolis Colts. Since then, he has held on to that position, in the process of becoming one of the NFL’s greatest ever. Now 41, Brady’s illustrious career might come to an end 4 years from now, as he playfully implied in his interview with ESPN. And for Brady, those 4 years might be more than enough time for 5-time champ to settle the greatest of all time debate, which we touched on last year in our ‘Is Tom Brady The Greatest Quarterback Of All Time?’ post.

Kurt Warner

“Kurt Warner” by John Trainor (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Much like Brady, Warner was lightly regarded coming out of college, but unlike Brady, Warner was never drafted. He was signed in 1994 as an undrafted free agent by the Green Bay Packers. Warner was buried in the depth chart, with Lottoland reporting that he was the team’s 4th in line QB. With Brett Favre, Mark Brunell, and veteran Ty Detmer already in tow, the Packers eventually released Warner, who then took a job at Hy-Vee grocery store in Cedar Falls on $5.50 an hour. He then took his talents to the Iowa Barnstormers in the Arena Football League, before finally making it back to the big leagues in 1997 via the St. Louis Rams. A few years later, he was leading “The Greatest Show on Turf,” a blistering, way-ahead-of-its-time offense that helped the Rams win in 2000 in what Sports Illustrated once described as the greatest Super Bowl ever. Warner retired in 2009 and is now part of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. For more about Warner, we suggest you revisit our profile of the Iowa all-star.

Pat Tillman

Tillman’s story is one of sacrifice and love for his country. In the midst of a fledging NFL career playing safety for the Arizona Cardinals, Tillman declined a contract offer from the Cardinals in 2002 to enlist in the military and serve for a country reeling from 9/11. The star safety-turned-soldier was deployed in Iraq that same year as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom, then in Afghanistan a year later, where he was killed by friendly fire in 2004. He was just 27 at the time, right about the age where athletes start hitting their athletic primes.

Shaquem Griffin

Griffin is resiliency and determination personified, working tirelessly to become one of the nation’s top linebackers. Now, he has the opportunity to showcase his freakish athleticism and ferocious fortitude on the grandest stage of them all after Seattle Seahawks made him the first one-handed player to be drafted into the NFL. Fittingly, he will be sharing the field with his twin brother Shaquill.

The league has plenty of these inspiring stories, and the ones listed above are arguably the 5 most inspiring. Each, for sure, will be retold time and again, from one generation to the next.

The post 5 Inspirational NFL Stories That Will Be Told Forever appeared first on NFL Gridiron Gab.

Keep reading this article on NFL Gridiron Gab.

Former Buffalo Bills general manager Doug Whaley is taking over as the NFL Players Association’s director of college scouting, the Associated Press reports.

Whaley will oversee the recruitment, evaluation and selection of draft-eligible prospects to compete at the annual NFLPA Collegiate Bowl. He replaces Tony Softli, who left to become the Alliance of American Football’s scouting director.

Whaley was hired Wednesday, a little over a year after being fired by the Bills. He spent eight seasons in Buffalo, including four as GM.

The Bills fired him as part of a major organizational shake-up which began with Sean McDermott replacing Rex Ryan as coach.

Whaley has 22 years of NFL scouting experience, including an 11-year tenure with his hometown Pittsburgh Steelers.

The post Former Bills GM Doug Whaley the New Director of College Scouting for the NFLPA appeared first on NFL Gridiron Gab.

Keep reading this article on NFL Gridiron Gab.

President Donald Trump has called off a visit by the Super Bowl Champion Eagles to the White House Tuesday due to the dispute over whether NFL players must stand during the playing of the national anthem, the Associated Press reports.

Trump says in a statement that some members of the Super Bowl championship team “disagree with their President because he insists that they proudly stand for the National Anthem, hand on heart.”

Trump says the team wanted to send a smaller delegation, but fans who planned to attend “deserve better.”

He says he’ll instead be hosting “a different type of ceremony” with the U.S. Marine Band.

The post President Trump Calls Off Eagles Super Bowl Visit to the White House Over Anthem Dispute appeared first on NFL Gridiron Gab.