Will Colin Kaepernick be with an NFL Team in 2019?
Yes +350 (7/2)
No -500 (1/5)
Rob Gronkowski – Total Starts in the 2018 Regular Season
Over/Under 13.5
Jordan Reed – Total Starts in the 2018 Regular Season
Over/Under 10.5
Which running back will have the most rushing yards in 2018 for the New England Patriots?
Rex Burkhead 2/3
Sony Michel 8/5
Jeremy Hill 5/1
James White 5/1
Mike Gillislee 25/1
Data provided by Bovada
Normally GLHF stands for “Good Luck, Have Fun,” a positive message in often-toxic game chats. It’s a statement that represents gaming in the best way and is emblematic of what the owners of GLHF Game Bar were hoping for when the venue hosted a Madden Classic Qualifier attended by many of the best players in the world.
Instead, the bar experienced one of the worst tragedies in gaming history. On Sunday, a competitor in the Madden tournament at the bar in the Jacksonville Landing Complex took out a handgun and opened fire.
Three people are dead, including the gunman. The other two victims were Eli “Truboy” Clayton and Taylor “SpotMePlzzz” Robertson who were both competing at the event. Robertson, best known as “SpotMe” in the community was the Madden Classic 2017 Champion, the event the two players were trying to qualify for in this tournament.
11 other attendees were injured according to the Jacksonville Police Department. The injured people included oLarry2K, a player for Bucks Gaming in the NBA 2K League who underwent surgery Monday after being shot three times. He is unsure whether he will be able to continue playing video games after the surgery.
https://twitter.com/oLARRY2K/status/1034067296883548160
Other Madden players were also injured including Complexity Gaming’s Drini Gjoka who was hit in the thumb. There is a video of the incident that includes a horrific moment with one of the victims competing in the game when a red dot from a laser sight appears on his chest. I will not link the video because of its graphic nature.
I will never take anything for granted ever again. Life can be cut short in a second
— Drini (@Drini) August 26, 2018
The motive is not yet clear, but the shooter – David “Bread” Katz of Baltimore – won Madden tournaments in 2017 and considered himself one of the “best players in the game.” He competed for the Buffalo Bills in the 2017 season of the Madden Club Championship.
EA CEO Andrew Wilson released a statement Monday afternoon that said in part:
“First and foremost, it is an unthinkable tragedy that Taylor Robertson and Elijah Clayton, two of our top Madden competitors, lost their lives in this way. They were respected, positive and skilled competitors, the epitome of the players and personalities at the heart of our community. Their love of competition was evident through their participation in our events over the past few years. We are committed to supporting Taylor and Elijah’s families through this difficult time, and we send our deepest sympathies to their loved ones, to those injured yesterday, and everyone affected.”
The statement went on to say that the subsequent Madden Classic Qualifiers have been canceled until the company runs a comprehensive review of safety protocols.
After the event, an outpouring of support has surfaced for the families of the victims. A GoFundMe was set up by esports organization Gankstars and non-profit Joint Forces Operative to help cover medical and funeral expenses. In addition, Optic Gaming will be holding a Madden live stream from 2 PM to 8 PM CT on Friday with all donations going to aid the families of the victims.
To support the families of those affected in yesterday's tragedy in Jacksonville, we will be doing a Madden charity live stream this Friday from 2PM-8PM CT
All donations made during the live stream will go to aid families of the victims.
More info coming soon.— OpTic Gaming™ (@OpTicGaming) August 27, 2018
As we prepare for the final week of preseason, bettors have their last chance to put some money down on wildly unpredictable games. But remember, even the oddsmakers don’t have great reads on the preseason so if you’re in tune with a specific team, you might be able to find more value in the preseason. Check out our guide to betting on the preseason for more helpful tips. Here are the spreads:
| Indianapolis COLTS |
34
|
||
| Cincinnati BENGALS | – 2½ | ||
| Miami DOLPHINS |
36
|
||
| Atlanta FALCONS | – 3 | ||
| New York JETS | – 2 |
36½
|
|
| Philadelphia EAGLES | |||
| Cleveland BROWNS |
35½
|
||
| Detroit LIONS | – 2½ | ||
| New England PATRIOTS |
38½
|
||
| New York GIANTS | – 2½ | ||
| Washington REDSKINS |
36
|
||
| Baltimore RAVENS | – 4½ | ||
| Carolina PANTHERS |
36½
|
||
| Pittsburgh STEELERS | – 2½ | ||
| Jacksonville JAGUARS |
36
|
||
| Tampa Bay BUCCANEERS | – 1½ | ||
| Buffalo BILLS |
37
|
||
| Chicago BEARS | – 3 | ||
| Minnesota VIKINGS |
36
|
||
| Tennessee TITANS | – 1 | ||
| Los Angeles RAMS |
38
|
||
| New Orleans SAINTS | – 4 | ||
| Dallas COWBOYS |
34
|
||
| Houston TEXANS | – 4 | ||
| Green Bay PACKERS |
38½
|
||
| Kansas City CHIEFS | – 4 | ||
| Denver BRONCOS |
35½
|
||
| Arizona CARDINALS | – 3 | ||
| Los Angeles CHARGERS |
35½
|
||
| San Francisco 49ERS | – 3½ | ||
| Oakland RAIDERS |
35
|
||
| Seattle SEAHAWKS | – 3 |
Data provided by Westgate Superbook
From network to Amazon to everything in between, these are the most popular options that allow streaming of football games. All providers offer a minimum of a 7-day free trial but do require proof of payment (e.g. credit card). This list was curated by ExpressVPN.
FREE? The only legal free options are streaming via Twitch or the Verizon/Yahoo apps with limitations: Twitch only carries 11 games, all on Thursdays, and Verizon/Yahoo limits the user to watching on a phone, showing only local, in-market games of national broadcasts on Thursday, Sunday and Monday nights. There are some less-than-legal streaming options but I won’t be linking them here. Google is your friend, just make sure you keep your adblocker on.
CBS All Access (U.S.)
$5.99 USD/month with limited commercials (One-week free trial available)
$9.99 USD/month with no commercials (One-week free trial available)
NFL Game Pass (U.S. and International)
$239.99 USD/year – season pass with all games live (7-day free trial available)
$154.99 USD/year – all games for one team live
$99.99 USD/year – live preseason, a replay of every NFL game on demand
DirecTV (U.S.)
$40 USD/month – CBS, Fox, NBC, ESPN and NFL Network. Games on CBS and Fox on Sunday afternoons, Sunday Night Football on NBC, Monday Night Football on ESPN and Thursday Night Football on Fox. (7-day free trial available)
Sling TV (U.S.)
$40 USD/month – Thursday and Sunday games on Fox, NBC and the NFL Network. Monday night games on ESPN. No CBS. (7-day free trial available)
Hulu (U.S.)
$40 USD/month – CBS, Fox, NBC and ESPN but not NFL Network. Games for Sunday afternoon (CBS and Fox), Sunday night (NBC), Monday night (ESPN) and 11 Thursday night games (Fox). (7-day free trial available)
YouTube TV (U.S.)
$40 USD/month – CBS, Fox, NBC and ESPN but not NFL Network. (7-day free trial available)
PlayStation Vue (U.S.)
$50 USD/month – CBS, Fox, NBC, ESPN and NFL Network. (7-day free trial available)
DAZN (Canada)
$20 CAD/month or $150 CAD/year – NFL Game Pass, RedZone, and Network (30-days free)
Amazon (U.S.)
Amazon Prime users ($119 USD/year or $12.99 USD/month) get all Thursday Night Football games free. (30-day free trial available)
Twitch (U.S.)
Free – Twitch users will get 11 Thursday Night Football games free, no need to use Amazon Prime.
NFL App and Yahoo Sports app (U.S.)
Free – limited to watching on your phone, only local, in-market games and the national broadcasts on Thursday, Sunday and Monday nights.
The buzz around the Browns preseason has moved them from the worst odds at 100/1 to now being a reasonable 66/1 for a team that didn’t win a game last season. Replacing them at the bottom of the totem pole are the Arizona Cardinals, Buffalo Bills and Miami Dolphins all at 150/1. The Jets aren’t far behind at 100/1 so the AFC East has three of the four teams with the lowest odds to win the Super Bowl and, of course, the best odds with the Patriots at 6/1. Check out the rest of the teams with how odds have shifted through many of the major moments of the offseason:
2/5/18 3/22/18 5/1/18 Current: 8/24/18
New England Patriots 5/1 5/1 5/1 6/1
Los Angeles Rams 18/1 14/1 9/1 17/2
Minnesota Vikings 12/1 9/1 12/1 19/2
Pittsburgh Steelers 12/1 12/1 10/1 19/2
Philadelphia Eagles 9/1 17/2 8/1 10/1
Green Bay Packers 9/1 14/1 12/1 11/1
New Orleans Saints 18/1 18/1 22/1 14/1
Atlanta Falcons 18/1 20/1 30/1 15/1
Los Angeles Chargers 33/1 33/1 35/1 16/1
Houston Texans 25/1 22/1 25/1 18/1
Jacksonville Jaguars 28/1 22/1 35/1 18/1
San Francisco 49ers 20/1 14/1 15/1 22/1
Dallas Cowboys 18/1 28/1 30/1 26/1
Oakland Raiders 33/1 22/1 30/1 28/1
Kansas City Chiefs 28/1 33/1 40/1 33/1
Baltimore Ravens 40/1 50/1 40/1 40/1
Carolina Panthers 25/1 33/1 35/1 40/1
New York Giants 50/1 50/1 75/1 40/1
Denver Broncos 33/1 25/1 30/1 45/1
Tennessee Titans 50/1 50/1 45/1 45/1
Seattle Seahawks 28/1 25/1 30/1 55/1
Detroit Lions 40/1 50/1 60/1 65/1
Cleveland Browns 100/1 66/1 100/1 75/1
Washington Redskins 50/1 66/1 80/1 75/1
Chicago Bears 100/1 80/1 100/1 80/1
Indianapolis Colts 33/1 60/1 40/1 80/1
Cincinnati Bengals 66/1 90/1 100/1 90/1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 40/1 50/1 65/1 90/1
New York Jets 66/1 100/1 100/1 100/1
Arizona Cardinals 50/1 66/1 80/1 150/1
Buffalo Bills 66/1 66/1 100/1 150/1
Miami Dolphins 66/1 70/1 100/1 150/1
Data provided by Bovada
While the offensive rookie of the year award is often more talked about, the defensive award is just as important. Right now, Broncos DE Bradley Chubb is the favorite. Chubb definitely has the talent, but maybe more importantly, he also has a favorable situation with teams focusing blocking on Von Miller. Check the odds below and let us know who you like a value bet this year:
Odds to win Defensive Rookie of the Year
Bradley Chubb 4/1
Roquan Smith 11/2
Tremaine Edmunds 19/2
Minkah Fitzpatrick 14/1
Derwin James 14/1
Denzel Ward 14/1
Leighton Vander Esch 15/1
Jaire Alexander 18/1
Marcus Davenport 18/1
Rashaan Evans 18/1
Harold Landry 18/1
Josh Jackson 20/1
Terrell Edmunds 28/1
Vita Vea 28/1
Carlton Davis 33/1
Donte Jackson 33/1
Darius Leonard 33/1
Da’Ron Payne 33/1
Jessie Bates 35/1
Taven Bryan 35/1
Uchenna Nwosu 35/1
MJ Stewart 35/1
Kemoko Turay 35/1
Mike Hughes 40/1
Maurice Hurst 40/1
Isaiah Oliver 40/1
Breeland Speaks 66/1
Tyquan Lewis 70/1
PJ Hall 85/1
Data provided by Bovada
The Round Mound of Rebound and entertaining commentator on Inside the NBA has become the new spokesperson for DraftKings national ad campaign. In addition to advertisements, Barkley has also helped with a series of videos “Barkley Knows Bets,” which released on August 13th.
It’s a big move for DraftKings who get one of the most popular sports personality voices on television. Emory Marketing professor Mike Lewis believes DraftKings receives two main benefits.
“First, [DraftKings] gets some publicity benefits. Barkley is a major sports personality that the media loves to cover. It’s almost like a stadium naming deal in that it generates massive sports press coverage,” Lewis explained through an email. “Second, there is likely a brand benefit. Sports fans perceive Charles as cool, irreverent and smart. The draft king brand likely gets “some” of this cool by association.”
These are the kind of partnerships allowed by the Supreme Court decision last April. Betting is still the massive business it was before but now is being pushed out through mainstream channels.
For Barkley he is able to align himself with DraftKings who appears poised to be a major player in the new US sports betting landscape. Barkley has been appearing on more advertisements recently, a move that may in part come from him sharing the Inside the NBA desk with Shaq, a notorious brand spokesman.
[In addition to the payday], I also suspect that Barkley is trying to follow the Shaq business model,” Lewis wrote. “Shaq has created a business empire through being an interesting pitchman. My guess is that the plan is use these types of partnerships to also build the Barkley brand. Both these guys are verbally adept and have charisma so it’s a natural way to build their brands.”
Expect to see more mainstream crossover from large sportsbooks with retired household athletes. In addition to “Good News, Bad News” above, DraftKings has also released “Something’s Wrong.” If you are a new bettor who wants to get the basics for sports gambling, who better to provide the lesson than Barkley. The full series of “Barkley Knows Bets,” can be found here.
The history of the NFL is littered with poor deals that sent future stars packing for modest returns. Every team has it’s own horror story of sending a player away only for them to become a star on another franchise. We took to Twitter to ask our followers what was the most bone-headed decision their GM or coach made that they can remember. Here are some of the best responses:
Randy Moss to Oakland for Napoleon Harris and the 7 pick
— JRose (@J_B_ROSE) July 10, 2018
Moss was undoubtedly a star for Minnesota but character concerns saw him traded to Oakland in 2005. In return the Vikings received Harris a linebacker who played two seasons in Minnesota with only 60 total tackles. The 7th pick of the draft was used on Troy Williamson, a WR who was expected to fill the void left by Moss. Here’s how that went:
Oof.
Denver trade future 1st round draft pick to Seattle for Alphonso Smith. Seattle use that pick on Earl Thomas
— Steve Williams (@steve1981) July 11, 2018
Alphonso Smith was a heralded corner from Wake Forest who was falling on draft day. The Broncos stopped the fall by trading next year’s first to Seattle to pick Smith at 37. The CB played exactly one season for Denver recording just nine tackles and no interceptions despite starting 14 games. Seattle selected Earl Thomas with the Denver pick who went on to become a core member of the Legion of Boom and one of the best safeties in the league.
I know the worst one they didn’t make. 1999. Ditka offers all the @Saints picks to move up to grab Ricky Williams. @Bengals decline & choose Akili Smith….Being a Cincy fan hurts so bad
— Todd Zureick (@TAZ33254) July 10, 2018
Going the other way, this is the worst trade a team didn’t make. It’s ludicrous to think of a coach/GM giving up all of the teams picks for one player but that is exactly what Ditka did. The Bengals declined, opting for Oregon QB Akili Smith instead. Ditka found another suitor in Washington at pick #5 and, after the Saints struggled that year, he lost his job. If someone were to offer that trade now, every single team would take it without hesitation, no matter the pick or who is on the board.
Check out the rest of the responses and chime in with your favorite team. There are enough options to do another follow up post so put a comment down and we might feature your tweet next time.
JJ Watt 5/1
Joey Bosa 11/2
Aaron Donald 11/2
Khalil Mack 11/2
Von Miller 9/1
Jalen Ramsey 14/1
Luke Kuechley 22/1
Cameron Jordan 22/1
DeMarcus Lawrence 22/1
Chandler Jones 30/1
Calais Campbell 33/1
Fletcher Cox 33/1
Myles Garrett 33/1
Harrison Smith 33/1
Bobby Wagner 35/1
Tyrann Mathieu 40/1
Xavier Rhodes 40/1
Bradley Chubb 50/1
Jadaveon Clowney 50/1
Myles Jack 50/1
Marshon Lattimore 50/1
CJ Mosley 60/1
Deion Jones 66/1
Eric Berry 75/1
Everson Griffen 75/1
Malik Hooker 75/1
Telvin Smith 75/1
Marcus Peters 75/1
Stephon Tuitt 80/1
Kwon Alexander 85/1
Roquan Smith 85/1
Keanu Neaul 90/1
Other players available on request
Data provided by Bovada
Notes: Two of the top four players still do not have contracts. (Aaron Donald, Rams; Khalil Mack, Raiders)
Jalen Ramsey is the only secondary player with odds better than 33/1 where safeties Harrison Smith and Bobby Wagner sit.
Data provided by Bovada
2018 College Football Quarterback Stats (Bowl games and Conference Championship games do not count towards wager.)
2018 Regular Season – Total Passing Yards – Justin Herbert (Oregon)
Over/Under 3100.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Passing TD’s – Justin Herbert (Oregon)
Over/Under 25.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Passing Yards – Will Grier (West Virginia)
Over/Under 3900.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Passing TD’s – Will Grier (West Virginia)
Over/Under 35.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Passing Yards – Nick Fitzgerald (Mississippi State)
Over/Under 2449.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Passing TD’s – Nick Fitzgerald (Mississippi State)
Over/Under 21.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Passing Yards – Trace McSorley (Penn State)
Over/Under 3450.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Passing TD’s – Trace McSorley (Penn State)
Over/Under 25.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Passing Yards – Khalil Tate (Arizona)
Over/Under 2550.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Passing TD’s – Khalil Tate (Arizona)
Over/Under 20.5
2018 College Football Running Back Stats (Bowl games and Conference Championship games do not count towards wager.)
2018 Regular Season – Total Rushing Yards – Rodney Anderson (Oklahoma)
Over/Under 1150.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Rushing TD’s – Rodney Anderson (Oklahoma)
Over/Under 13.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Rushing Yards – J.K. Dobbins (Ohio State)
Over/Under 1374.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Rushing TD’s – J.K. Dobbins (Ohio State)
Over/Under 12.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Rushing Yards – Nick Fitzgerald (Mississippi State)
Over/Under 990.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Rushing TD’s – Nick Fitzgerald (Mississippi State)
Over/Under 13.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Rushing Yards – Myles Gaskin (Washington)
Over/Under 1400.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Rushing TD’s – Myles Gaskin (Washington)
Over/Under 18.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Rushing Yards – Bryce Love (Stanford)
Over/Under 1900.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Rushing TD’s – Bryce Love (Stanford)
Over/Under 17.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Rushing Yards – Khalil Tate (Arizona)
Over/Under 1400.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Rushing TD’s – Khalil Tate (Arizona)
Over/Under 13.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Rushing Yards – Johnathan Taylor (Wisconsin)
Over/Under 1900.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Rushing TD’s – Johnathan Taylor (Wisconsin)
Over/Under 15.5
2018 College Football Wide Receiver Stats (Bowl games and Conference Championship games do not count towards wager.)
2018 Regular Season – Total Receiving Yards – A.J. Brown (Ole Miss)
Over/Under 1300.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Receiving TD’s – A.J. Brown (Ole Miss)
Over/Under 13.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Receiving Yards – N’Keal Harry (Arizona State)
Over/Under 1100.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Receiving TD’s – N’Keal Harry (Arizona State)
Over/Under 9.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Receiving Yards – David Sills V (West Virginia)
Over/Under 1100.5
2018 Regular Season – Total Receiving TD’s – David Sills V (West Virginia)
Over/Under 15.5