NFL Rookies Are Making Impact This Season

The 2017 NFL Draft was viewed as being deep with talent. Many of those players are already starters in the league and are making a difference for their teams. You can already see how the rookies are impacting NFL betting odds for the games this weekend. 

Rookie quarterbacks Deshaun Watson and DeShone Kizer are already starting games. Watson looks like a future superstar and Kizer is doing his best despite being on a bad team (sorry Browns). The Bears announced they will start rookie QB Mitchell Trubisky this weekend against the Vikings. It looks like the Bears are giving him the job permanently now they saw what QB Mike Glennon could do, which wasn’t much at all.

  • Deshaun Watson (Texans) – 811 passing yards with 9 TDs
  • DeShone Kizer (Browns) – 764 passing yards with 4 TDs

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2017 NFL Week 5 – Betting Picks Against Spread

I went 11-5 last week against the spread.

I hit both Sunday night and Monday night football games and all of the afternoon games. If only I picked the Thursday game and the early games better.

Thursday night games have been my kryptonite. I have only hit on one all season. I am guilty of overthinking those games. It’s a hangover from last year when Thursday games were extremely unpredictable. I’ve taken an unpopular positions on Thursday game, but that will change. 

Let’s talk about how good the Kansas City Chiefs are this year. The addition of rookie RB Kareem Hunt made a huge difference, but he isn’t the only improvement. QB Alex Smith is playing with new life in his arm. Who knew that think could throw passes farther than 12 yards?

Can the Chiefs keep winning and beat the Texans on Sunday night football?

We pick ever NFL game against the spread and throw out a few upsets in Week 5 of the 2017 NFL season.

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2017 NCAA Football – Week 6 Betting Picks Against Spread

I went .500 last week, but hit on a couple moneylines to make up for a few bad beats. A few of those beats came during garbage time, which is always a mood killer.

There are some traditional rivalry games like Florida State/Miami, LSU/Florida and Michigan State/Michigan games that could be tricky. Records can be deceiving when rivals face each other. It’s nice to go back and look at historical data, but only if some impact players have played in those seasons.

We are approaching the time when you can start comparing teams with common foes. If ‘X’ beat ‘Y’ and ‘Y’ beat ‘Z’, ‘X’ should be favored against ‘Z’. It’s not always the case, but it can held you maintain your own rankings.

Can Washington State cover at Oregon?

We at ‘America’s White Boy’ pick 25 college football games against the spread in Week 6 of the NCAA Football season (October 7th, 2017). We also focus on small conference games…our bread and butter!

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2017 NFL Fantasy Football Start/Sit – Week 5

This week is when fantasy football starts to get tricky. Bye weeks start and there will be some heavy hitters on the bench this week.

Atlanta, Denver, New Orleans and Washington are taking the week off. I’ve had a couple fantasy teams decimated from byes since I have TE Jordan Reed, RB Chris Thompson, WR Julio Jones and RB Devonta Freeman on multiple teams. 

There were some unexpected performances last week and some injuries to fantasy studs will make for some deep waiver wire adds in Week 5

What should we expect from Cleveland RB Duke Johnson Jr.? Is he a fantasy stud going forward or will he fall to the curse of being a Browns player?

Here is our Fantasy Football Sit/Start for Week 5 of the 2017 NFL season…and enjoy our sarcastic amazing MS Paint masterpiece of Duke Johnson.

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Ball Games To Get In To When You’re Not A Fan Of Football

When you have an interest in sports, you may be interested in absolutely everything. But that’s not always the case. Sometimes, you just can’t get into a particular sport no matter how hard you try. And when it’s one of the country’s leading spots, as well as one that all of your friends and family get behind, you can often feel like you have to force yourself to like it. But that’s not necessarily your only option. In fact, instead of pushing yourself towards enjoying something that you really don’t like, you need to find an alternative. And when the sport above is football, there are plenty other ball-based sports to explore.

Baseball

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Sweetbob’s Hipster Music Playlist: October 2017

I had fun with this month’s playlist. I have spent a ton of time alone with my Spotify this month. It was a nice distraction while writing some of my gambling posts this month. I let the betting lines marinate in my head a bit before I research games.

This might be the last month I use an ‘overtime’ section to add some extra tracks that missed last month’s playlist. I guess it depends how much new stuff gets released, but the Winter can be a slow time for new music.

I’m loving the new stuff from Alvvays, St. Vincent, Smallpools and Gang of Youths. They have been all-stars the last two playlists. Go check out the new stuff from those bands.

I always keep an ear out for new music. I love discovering new bands/songs, it’s a habit from my days as a music journalist. Even though this is mostly a sports blog, I still add quite a bit of music and pop culture content. Keep sending me tracks via email or Twitter.

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A Look at the World’s Best Surf Spots

Surfing is a truly invigorating sport. It’s an interesting combination of chilled out surfer lifestyle, and adrenaline pumped sport which appeals to many. Surfing comes with many advantages. It’s fantastic exercise and an excellent way to boost your vitamin D levels, it gives you a good chance to meet new people and develop a healthier lifestyle, and it can be an excellent way to travel the world. Many serious surfers spend the year chasing the sunshine and the best waves, experiencing different cultures, meeting new people and seeing the sights as they travel in search of the best surf spots. If you are looking for the best surf or a location for your next event, these seven places are not to be missed.

Bondi Beach, Australia

It’ll come as no surprise to find Bondi Beach, perhaps one of the most famous surf spots in the world on this list. Surf isn’t just a sport on Bondi Beach; it’s a way of life. The word Bondi literally translates as “water breaking over rocks” and it certainly does. This is a must for any serious surfer but also a fantastic place for beginners to learn from the very best.

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2017 NFL Week 4 – Betting Picks Against Spread

I went 9-7 last week against the spread.

As many of you know, I’m a Colts fan. I’m often quite overly negative and pessimistic about the team. I’m not happy that Andrew Luck will miss this marquee game against the Seahawks on Sunday Night Football. Russell Wilson and Luck has only faced each other one other time and it may be a few more years until they play each other again.

When Luck had his shoulder surgery, I never heard a single word that the recovery would eat into the regular season. It wasn’t until the Summer and we heard that hey may not be ready for the start of the season and now it looks like he may be out another few weeks. It just blows that we have to see Jacoby Brissett in Luck’s spot in what I expect to be a blowout.

Can Cam Newton break out of his slump and upset the reigning Super Bowl champions?

We pick ever NFL game against the spread and throw out a few upsets in Week 4 of the 2017 NFL season.

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2017 NCAA Football – Week 5 Betting Picks Against Spread

I finished around .500 last week against the spread. I had trouble in the early games, but the late games bailed me out. There were some unexpected outcomes that I thought came out of nowhere. I thought Penn State and Florida would both cover the spread easy, but Iowa and Kentucky held on tight. I did call the NC State upset over Florida State, so I scored some jellybeans from the moneyline.

A few things I took away from last week was that Georgia is better than I thought, Oklahoma State isn’t bulletproof and USC QB Sam Darnold is still in the middle of a sophomore slump.

Now that it is in the fifth week of college football. Everyone is deep in their conference schedule. A lot more empirical data to use due to more head-to-head history,

Will USC QB Sam Darnold snap out of his slump against Washington State?

We at ‘America’s White Boy’ pick 25 college football games against the spread in Week 5 of the NCAA Football season (September 30th, 2017). We also focus on small conference games…our bread and butter!

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2017 NFL Fantasy Football Start/Sit – Week 4

Week 4 is the last week before the dreaded bye weeks hit our fantasy teams. I feel that there are enough guys on the waiver wire worth streaming if you get into a pickle. There are a lot of timeshares that you could get lucky and pick a guy who ends up in the end zone.

There were plenty of upsets last week, so it made for an interesting fantasy week. Players like QB Case Keenum, WR Sterling Shepard and RB Chris Thompson were near the top of the scoring leaders in Week 3.

Will the backfield logjam in Washington, Seattle and Baltimore get straightened out this weekend?

Will the Jaguars bring their offense back from London or will that luggage item be lost against the Jets?

Here is our Fantasy Football Sit/Start for Week 4 of the 2017 NFL season.

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Love Thy Sport: Staying Interested When Boredom Sets In

OK, we all love sports. We love it unconditionally, and there’s no chance that we’ll ever turn our back on our favorite sports team! However, sometimes we’re not quite as enthused about the upcoming game as we’d like to be. Does that mean that we’ve outgrown the sport? Absolutely not. There’s nothing on earth that is endlessly entertaining, especially if we don’t shake things up! Below, we take a look at a few ways you can reignite your passion for your sport if it’s beginning to become slightly less thrilling.

Focus Down the Pecking Order

The big leagues – the NFL, the NBA, and so on – have all the drama and the best players. You’ll see players who are among the best in the world, and that’s pretty exciting. However, there’s more to sport than just being the best. In any case, sometimes the drama of the big leagues can detract from the sport; we focus too much on the story when we should be focusing on the technical side of the game. You don’t have only to watch the big games. Move further down the leagues, and you’ll see great players, often up close, and get no drama: just people playing for the love of the game.

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The 5 Most Influential Sports Stars of All Time

Sports are more than just great entertainment. Through sports exceptional individuals have not only excelled in their chosen fields, not only pushing the boundaries of achievement but influencing generations. History is rich with figures whose legacy goes beyond their sporting achievements and leaked into the broader popular culture, causing their names to become synonymous with greatness in the field and beyond.

But how have these sporting greats transcended their roots and become pop culture icons? What is it that makes their influence extend to the point that their jerseys become cherished commodities on Hollywood Collectibles? Let’s have a look through some of the most influential sports stars of all time and see how each, in their own way, has helped to change the world.

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