posted December 26, 2007 at 15:57 in NFL Betting Trends

This was one of the more interesting sports’ years in recent memory. First, there was Peyton Manning and the Colts finally winning the Super Bowl. Then, came the Spurs destroying the Cavs in the NBA betting Finals, and Dice-K and the BoSox, and the NFL coup of the New England Patriots - - we’ll take Donte Stallworth, Wes Welker, and Randy Moss? Are you kidding me, Becky?

College football betting had one of its most memorable years in history with Michigan losing to Appalachian State, the USC Trojans losing to the Stanford Cardinals, and chants of “Rock, Chalk Jayhawk” being heard in the Kansas’ football stadium instead of historic Allen Fieldhouse.

Let’s not forget the epic horse racing battles between Street Sense, Hard Spun, and horse of the year Curlin. Then, of course, there was Rags to Riches, a filly, winning the Belmont Stakes.

There was the rise…and fall…of Mixed-Martial-Arts…and, maybe…rise again. Finally, how could I not mention this, the word steroids became just as popular as the two letters “DH” in Major League Baseball.

But the main stories, the one that all of us really care about have to do with betting lines and records against the spreads and whether or not we had a chance to pad that bankroll for 2008! Let’s take a look at those stories!

1. The Gods of Gambling Smiled on Boston = Forget about it, kids. There wasn’t a single angle better in the art of sports handicapping this year than throwing money on a team from Boston! The Red Sox win the World Series, after resiging G.M. Theo Epstein, and then…well, look at these stats: The New England Patriots are 10 and 5 against the spread this year. That’s a 50% profit margin…on a football team! The Boston Celtics, so far, are 17-7-1 against the spread this year…a basketball team! And, the Boston Red Sox? Heck, they were 96 and 66 against the spread this year for + 459 units. Whoa, Nellie! Boston was truly a sports’ bettors dream this year!

2. BetUS Decided to Become a Real Horseplayers’ Paradise = This is number two on my list because I don’t think that anybody can downplay the fact that BetUS is now offering Pick 4 and 6 wagers as well as superfecta wagers and 12 horse parlay bets. There is absolutely no way to get around it, folks, if you want to show a profitable bottom line in your sports betting career, you have to institute horse race betting into the mix. The reason is simple - - - there is no other sport in the world that offers the type of odds like horse racing. Take that to the bank! BetUS understands that and has made it easy for football, baseball, and basketball bettors to get into horse racing. Make that a resolution, non-horse race bettors! Take a look at the ponies in 2008.

3. Boxing Got Knocked Down…and Then Rose From the Grave = Right when Mixed Martial Arts started to get big, boxing, led by golden boy Oscar De La Hoya, came back into the mainstream with some of the best match-ups in recent memory. Not only were these great boxing matches, but they were also great betting matches: Rafael Marquez vs. Israel Vasquez, Jermain Taylor vs. Kelly Pavlick, Miguel Cotto vs. Shane Moseley, Floyd Mayweather vs. Ricky Hatton, Marco Antonio Barrera vs. Manny Pacquiao. Wow.

4. College Football Equaled Crazy = It was difficult for any sports bettor to get a real feel for college football betting this year. Why? Because the talent level appears to have finally spilled into the smaller, lesser teams like Appalachian State and Delaware. Why, just the other day Boise State, a traditionally great against the spread team, lost outright to East Carolina as an 11.5 point favorite. Crazy? Yes, I think so.

5. NASCAR Betting Became Vogue This Year = Believe it or not BetUS was offering unbelievable NASCAR Match-Up bets this year. I know it’s funny to use the term “vogue” in the same sentence as the word “NASCAR”, but, hey, this is my article, kids! Do yourself a favor in 2008 and pay attention to the BetUS NASCAR match-ups. No matter what you may believe taking a + side on a driver like Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson is a better wager than giving up 22 points to the Jets or Dolphins. Trust me on that one. In the long-run that + sign is going to offer way more profits than any other wager you can make. And, NASCAR has the longest sports’ season of any major sport in the United States. So go for it!

Until next week, good luck!

The 2007 NFL betting season is here in full force! 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 futures, and you will also find NFL lines up for early games as well. Join BetUS today and we'll help guide you right through to Super Bowl XLII and beyond!