Clausen lands in Carolina

Football Betting Lines

04/23/2010 - New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jimmy Clausen waited longer than anticipated to hear his name announced during the 2010 NFL Draft, as the Notre Dame quarterback was taken with the 48th overall pick by the Carolina Panthers.

The Panthers, who did not pick in the first round, waived longtime signal- caller Jake Delhomme in March after he guided the club to a disastrous 8-8 campaign last season.

Clausen opted to leave school a year early after tossing 28 touchdowns with just four interceptions last season for the disappointing Fighting Irish.

The selection was the 16th in the second round of the NFL's 75th annual draft, which kicked off for the first time in primetime on Thursday with the Rams taking Oklahoma quarterback and 2008 Heisman Trophy winner Sam Bradford as the first overall pick.

The second round commenced Friday with St. Louis selecting what it hopes will be a stalwart in protecting its newest commodity in Rodger Saffold, a 6- foot-4, 316-pound offensive tackle from Indiana.

The Vikings were next on the clock, and they added depth to a wounded defensive backfield with the addition of Virginia cornerback Chris Cook.

Minnesota acquired the 34th overall selection, along with the 100th and 214th overall picks from Detroit in exchange for the 30th overall pick, which was California running back Jahvid Best, and the 128th overall pick.

Brian Price, a defensive tackle out of UCLA, was taken next by Tampa Bay. The 2009 Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year will team with Gerald McCoy -- the No. 3 overall pick and another vaunted defensive tackle out of Oklahoma -- to anchor a Buccanneers defense that allowed the sixth most yards in the league last season.

The Kansas City Chiefs took Ole Miss running back Dexter McCluster with the 36th overall pick. McCluster finished No. 2 on the Rebels' career all-purpose yardage list with 4,089 yards.

The Philadelphia Eagles, who obtained the 37th pick from Washington via a trade involving quarterback Donovan McNabb earlier this month, opted for South Florida safety Nate Allen, who finished his collegiate career with 226 career tackles.

Oregon safety T.J. Ward was next off the board when Cleveland chose him to patrol the secondary alongside Florida safety Joe Haden, who was the Browns' first-round choice.

Tampa Bay acquired the next pick from Oakland and took Illinois wide receiver Arrelious Benn.

Miami followed with linebacker Koa Misi, who finished his three-year career at Utah with 206 total tackles, 26.0 TFLs and 10.5 sacks. With the ninth pick in the second round, the Bills landed Torell Troup, a 6-foot-3, 314-pound defensive tackle from UCF.

Arizona tight end Rob Gronkowski then went to New England. The 6-foot-6, 264- pound receiving threat recorded 47 receptions for 672 yards and 10 touchdowns in 2008 but missed the 2009 campaign after going through back surgery.

Sergio Kindle, whose stock faded recently due to injury concerns, was taken next by the Baltimore Ravens. The Texas product became first ever player to be named a finalist for the Butkus (nation's top linebacker) and Hendricks Awards (nation's top defensive end) as a senior in 2009.

Another Longhorn fell by the wayside with the following pick, as the Oakland Raiders took Lamarr Houston, who had seven sacks last season for the Big 12 champions.

With the 45th overall pick, Denver got some extra protection for its quarterback carousel in Utah's Zane Beadles, a 6-foot-4, 310-pound guard that could also play tackle.

The Giants followed with East Carolina defensive tackle Linval Joseph, and the Arizona Cardinals traded up to acquire TCU linebacker Daryl Washington with the 47th overall pick.

After the second and third rounds are held on Friday, the remainder of the draft will occur on Saturday, beginning at 10:00 a.m. (et).

Offsmaker Football Betting News

<< Vanek out for Game 5
Buffalo, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Buffalo Sabres forward Thomas Vanek will not play in Game 5 of his club's playoff set against the Boston Bruins due to a high ankle sprain. Earlier Friday in his post-practice press conference, Sabres he

<< Storms end play in New Orleans
Avondale, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Heavy storms forced the suspension of Friday's second round of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. Two-time U.S. Open champion Lee Janzen (66), last week's Heritage playoff loser Brian Davis (66) and Ale

<< Tebow eager to work with, repay McDaniels
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) -Tim Tebow looked out the foggy window as his weather-delayed flight dropped through the dark clouds and descended into Centennial Airport on Friday afternoon.He saw the snow-covered city, the wind-whipped pines and the snarled

<< Nate Allen has big shoes to fill
PHILADELPHIA (AP) -Nate Allen is going to hear the names of Donovan McNabb and Brian Dawkins in his sleep.The Philadelphia Eagles used the 37th overall pick to select the South Florida defensive back in the second round of the NFL draft on Friday.Th

<< Clausen to Carolina in 2nd round
NEW YORK (AP) -Some big stars came out for the second round of the NFL draft, in front of a nearly full Radio City Music Hall.Unfortunately, Jim Brown, Dan Marino, Ray Lewis and Floyd Little were announcing the selections, not being picked.Instead o

Hearn keeps lead at South Georgia Classic >>
Valdosta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - David Hearn shot a three-under 69 to remain on top Friday after two rounds of the Nationwide Tour's South Georgia Classic. Hearn, who carried a three-stroke lead into the round, finished 36 holes on the Ki

Colts' Hughes eager to start learning new style >>
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -Jerry Hughes wouldn't dare start spinning on his first full day as a Colt.By the season opener, he might not have a choice.The Colts introduced their newest defensive end Friday, and Hughes wasted no time in comparing himself to I

Northern Arizona's Jones declares for NBA Draft >>
Flagstaff, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Northern Arizona guard Cameron Jones declared his intentions to forego his senior season of eligibility and enter the NBA Draft. Jones, a junior, will not hire an agent and has until May 8 to withdraw fr

Mets' Maine leaves game >>
Flushing, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New York Mets pitcher John Maine departed Friday's game against Atlanta with muscle spasms and pain in his left elbow. He is listed as day-to-day. Maine got through 3 2/3 innings, allowing just a ru

Temple F Allen declares for NBA Draft >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Temple Owls forward Lavoy Allen announced Friday his intentions to skip his senior season of college basketball and enter the 2010 NBA Draft. Allen will not hire an agent, giving him the opportunity

SPORTS BETTING: NFL Football Sportsbook Betting

NFL owners, already life's biggest winners, want to try their luck with the lottery.


That was the news out of their meetings last week, where team bosses voted unanimously to allow stamping state and local lottery tickets with franchise logos, if, ahem, any governments wanted to do a deal.

A shocker: Within days the Pats announced they'd be sponsoring the Massachusetts state lottery, the Skins said they'd slap their sticker on Virginia scratch-offs and the Ravens admitted they were talking to Maryland lottery bosses. In all likelihood, it won't be long before every team is a presenting sponsor of scratch-offs or just plain old pick fives. "The change in policy was approved 32-0," said NFL spokesman Greg Aiello. "So you can expect to see more deals soon."

It's a branding opportunity too big for the owners to ignore, and one a couple of dozen baseball franchises have enjoyed for years. The fact the NFL has been slower to act than those slack-brained Seligites is indicative of its complicated relationship with all forms of gambling. Consider this: Last Thursday, as the Pats and the Redskins finalized their new lottery deals, a lawyer representing the NFL argued before Delaware's Supreme Court that the state's newly signed sports betting law should be repealed.

The NFL betting is the face of opposition to sports gambling . And as much as it would like to share that responsibility with other leagues, that's not going to happen as long as more than 40% of all money legally wagered on games is bet on football. That's why the Brewers can do a multi-million dollar deal with a local casino, or the Celtics can make their own pact with the Mass lottery, and the response is, "Sweet, let's play." But when the NFL does it the stakes are higher, and everyone from NPR's Frank Deford to the Associated Press to the guys blogging at Deadspin will line up to play gotcha.

So I asked Aiello, who surely knew there'd be piling on, how the league can rail against being bait for sports bettors, then allow its franchises to be just that for lotteries, the most insidious and addictive form of gambling around. He emailed me this response: "We are not moral crusaders. NFL personnel are permitted to engage in legal forms of gambling, except for betting on NFL games. We are making a distinction here between the spread of gambling on the outcome of our games and supporting state lottery scratch-off games, that have nothing to do with the outcome of our games."

Here's where I should rip him. But, the thing is, he's right. Not to get Obama on you, but this is a complicated, nuanced issue. As much as lotteries are considered a tax on the poor, the NFL isn't a socially obligated government program -- it's just a business. Scratch-off's help the bottom line, sports betting doesn't. Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors … But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal.

Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors. And it's okay to mutter something obscene when the league pretends gambling doesn't help drive TV ratings and fan interest and put money in owners' pockets. But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal. The Bears should put an orange "C" on every deck of cards dealt at Harrah's in Joliet; the Eagles should slap their logo on roulette wheels at the Borgata in Atlantic City; the Dolphins should hold training camp at the El San Juan in Puerto Rico.

Seriously.

The NFL's problem, when it comes to the gambling world, isn't hypocrisy, it's worse: The bosses lack vision. That's why the league is picking unwinnable fights in Delaware and taking pot shots from critics after making smart sponsorship deals. Roger Goodell and his gang are acting and thinking locally rather than globally, which is rare for them, especially compared to their professional (and amateur) counterparts.

The NBA held its All Star game in Las Vegas and David Stern's kingdom didn't crumble (although the town did bring plenty of players to their knees.) I'd say it's 6 to 5 and pick 'em that Lebron will make a road swing through Sin City before his career is over.

Even the NCAA College Football Betting is more progressive on this issue than the NFL. Several years ago Rachel Newman Baker, college sports' gambling czar, opened a dialogue with Vegas bookmakers to learn about how they do business. She's visited Nevada sports books, studied their operations and listened to how they regulate action. Now she knows she can expect a call from bookmakers, who lose money when sports are fixed, if they think something sketchy is going on in NCAA games. She's not in favor of sports betting, but, as she once told me, "I know it's not going away, either."

The NFL can't seem to accept that. And until it can find peace with the idea, it'll get flack, even when it's right.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts MasterCard needs.