Posted on
5/5/2008 3:32:04 PM
NFL Pro Football Betting – Team Betting Previews – Baltimore Ravens
By Charles Jay
BetUS Sportsbook has posted its 2008 online betting odds to win Super Bowl XLIII (that's 43, for you non-Romans), and it looks like the New England Patriots, Indianapolis Colts, San Diego Chargers and Dallas Cowboys are the favorites, with the defending champion New York Giants getting a little less respect. But we're going to be looking at another team today.
Let's start things out by listing the odds to win the Super Bowl, as they appear in BetUS Sportsbook:
BetUS NFL Futures Odds
To Win Super Bowl XLIII
New England Patriots +325
New York Jets +10000
Buffalo Bills +8000
Miami Dolphins +10000
Baltimore Ravens +6000
Cincinnati Bengals +4500
Pittsburgh Steelers +1750
Cleveland Browns +3000
Indianapolis Colts +700
Tennessee Titans +3500
Jacksonville Jaguars +1400
Houston Texans +6500
San Diego Chargers +700
Denver Broncos +4000
Kansas City Chiefs +10000
Oakland Raiders +10000
Dallas Cowboys +800
Philadelphia Eagles +2000
New York Giants +1800
Washington Redskins +4000
Chicago Bears +4500
Green Bay Packers +1800
Minnesota Vikings +2800
Detroit Lions +7500
New Orleans Saints +2500
Carolina Panthers +5000
Atlanta Falcons +20000
Tampa Bay Buccaneers +4000
Seattle Seahawks +2700
San Francisco 49ers +5000
Arizona Cardinals +5000
St Louis Rams +7500
One wouldn't be surprised if there was, from time-to-time, significant uproar over Brian Billick's offensive game planning (or lack of same) with the BALTIMORE RAVENS (60/1 in the BetUS odds), which eventually led to his ouster this past off-season. After all, Billick had come to the head job in Baltimore after establishing a reputation as an offensive "guru" from his days with the Minnesota Vikings, who put a lot of points on the board under head coach Dennis Green, who employed Billick as his offensive coordinator.
But Billick killed quarterbacks. That is the polar opposite from his Minnesota experience, in which signal-callers Randall Cunningham, Jeff George and Brad Johnson appeared to run the Viking offense with equal efficiency. In Baltimore, one QB after another was used, and not one of them worked in Billick's scheme. The latest casualty was Steve McNair, who had success in Tennessee but was turned impotent by injuries and, well, Billick, before ultimately retiring. Obviously it was time for the Ravens to move on, and in the opinion of some fans, it was long overdue.
Enter John Harbaugh, a long-time special teams coach for the Philadelphia Eagles who is the son of Jack Harbaugh, former coach at Western Michigan, and brother of Jim Harbaugh, currently the head man at Stanford. He picked Cam Cameron, off a 1-15 season with the Miami Dolphins, to lead the offense.
Baltimore made quarterback Joe Flacco of Delaware its first-round draft choice, after dealing down to get additional picks. That move probably signals this as a transitional year for the franchise, which existed without much offensive power while the defense got old. Flacco won't be thrown to the wolves right away; you have to believe Kyle Boller, a failed former #1 pick, and Troy Smith, the Heisman Trophy winner from 2006, will get the opportunity to win the job in training camp, but if things start to slip away as the season progresses, there is no reason to believe Harbaugh and GM Ozzie Newsome will wait much longer before giving Flacco his baptism. Flacco, who has "NFL size," was considered by many scouts to have the best arm of any of the available QB's in the draft, but the Pittsburgh transfer made his bones at a Division 1-AA school, and that will likely increase the learning curve.
Whoever winds up taking the bulk of the snaps will at least have a running game to work with. Willis McGahee is a premier back when healthy, and Baltimore went out and drafted someone they didn't really possess last season - a capable backup - when they took Ray Rice, a productive albeit small runner out of Rutgers, with its second-round pick. On the flip side, protection may be a problem for Raven quarterbacks, as future Hall of fame left tackle Jonathan Ogden has handcuffed management by not letting them know whether or not he will return for another season.
The aging, banged-up defense is a concern. Middle linebacker Ray Lewis, who at one time may have been the most dominant player in the game, is clearly not the player he used to be. The loss of linebacker Adalius Thomas (went to New England) hurt, and Terrell Suggs, a former standout, did not perform well. Defensive backs Chris McAlister and Samari Rolle had injury problems and it is questionable as to how much they can be counted on.
The problem, as we mentioned, has been that the offensive efficiency has never matched the defensive intensity while Billick was in charge. To sufficiently address that is not an overnight process, especially with the salary cap always a consideration. Sure, Todd Heap, a Pro Bowl tight end when healthy, will be back, but the receivers are generally non-threatening. It would be a surprise if one of the three quarterbacks could really establish himself this season and carry the team. Turnovers are likely to be a problem. And there is no offensive "guru" either - Cameron, who lasted only one season as the Dolphins' head coach, had the luxury of a healthy LaDanian Tomlinson in San Diego (where he was the offensive coordinator) that helped him establish a reputation. McGahee is good, but he's not going to have the impact of Tomlinson.
As long as this is the state of affairs, progress will be slow. When looking at where other teams are and what they have done, you would have to say the Ravens, at this moment, lag behind the Steelers, Browns and even the Bengals in the AFC's North Division.
JAY'S PREDICTION FOR 2008:
Baltimore Ravens 6-10, 4th place, AFC North
(+6000 in the BetUS Super Bowl betting odds)
The 2008 NFL betting season is coming, and if you like to bet on the NFL, you are in the best possible place for online betting. The BetUS sportsbook has NFL odds up on a ton of games, totals and propositions, and you will also find NFL future lines up for the Super Bowl as well. Join BetUS today and we'll help guide you right through to Super Bowl XLII and beyond!
(Charles Jay of http://www.ebookies.com is a member of the NFL too - that is, "not for long" if you don't get results. He is now a regular contributor to the BetUS.com Locker Room)