No end in sight for LT's dream season

Football Betting Lines

12/20/2006 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - LaDainian Tomlinson has been busy shattering records all season long, but this year it is clear that the superstar running back's ambitions go well beyond personal achievements.

Tomlinson's legend is growing with each passing week, and there is no better way to cement a legacy than by winning a Super Bowl. That team goal is what drives not only Tomlinson, but also the rest of his teammates.

The Chargers (12-2) have won eight straight contests, and each victory in that stretch has helped solidify San Diego's status as the team to beat in the NFL this season. San Diego also has the best record in the AFC, and is still fighting to seal up homefield advantage throughout the playoffs.

The relentless running of Tomlinson is the most obvious reason San Diego may be headed to its first-ever Super Bowl championship season, and LT didn't disappoint in his most recent game against the Kansas City Chiefs.

Tomlinson rushed for 199 yards and a pair of touchdowns to lead the Chargers to the 20-9 triumph over the visiting Chiefs this past Sunday.

It was another day of record-breaking for Tomlinson, who snapped an NFL record that stood for 46 years. His two TDs this week gives him 186 points on the season, breaking the mark of 176 set by Green Bay Packers halfback/placekicker Paul Hornung in 1960.

Also, he scored multiple touchdowns for the eighth straight week, breaking the tie he held with Washington's John Riggins, who originally set the standard in 1983.

And we can't forget Tomlinson now has 31 touchdowns (28 rushing, 3 receiving) on the season to further improve upon the mark of 28 set by Seattle's Shaun Alexander last year.

"It's happening so much now, I can't keep up anymore," Tomlinson said of the record-breaking season. "To be honest, I don't want to keep up. I'll let everyone else do that. I just want to keep rolling."

Tomlinson's 199-yard day also gave him a good shot at something LT surprisingly can't currently claim on his resume, a rushing title. At this point he leads the NFL with 1,626 rushing yards, and is 110 yards ahead of Kansas City's Larry Johnson.

WHAT ABOUT THE DEFENSE?

While Tomlinson garners the majority of the accolades and headlines, the Chargers defense has become one of the most-feared units in all of football and is another big reason San Diego has become this year's Super Bowl favorite.

San Diego displayed its stingy defense this past week, as it held the Chiefs to just 241 yards of total offense. The Chargers were also able to limit KC running back Larry Johnson to just 84 yards on the ground.

However, the Chargers were most impressive this week in their ability to get to the quarterback. San Diego, which leads the NFL with 54 sacks, dropped KC quarterback Trent Green six times in Sunday's contest.

"We added a few wrinkles that put pressure on the quarterback and created some errant throws and gave us a chance to make some plays in a timely fashion," said head coach Marty Schottenheimer.

Chargers outside linebacker Shawne Merriman was held without a sack, but that's just fine with the second-year star, because that meant more for his teammates.

"They had a pretty good scheme in keeping the outside pass rushers from getting to the quarterback," Merriman said. "Like I've said all along, double- team me and someone else is going to make a play. We saw some of that [Sunday] night. I was proud of the way our guys got after them."

RIVERS RUNS DRY

It was a good thing Tomlinson had another huge day on Sunday, because Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers had his worst game of the season.

Rivers, a first-year starter, completed just 8-of-23 passes for 97 yards and two interceptions. That gave the young QB a dismal 12.4 passer rating on the day.

"The passing game wasn't very good," Rivers said. "The first thing that has to be good to have a good passing game is I have to be throwing it well, and I wasn't. But I tell you what, we won and that's what's most important."

Overall, it's been a very good year for Rivers, who is seventh in the NFL with a 91.5 passer rating.

UP NEXT

The Chargers head north next Sunday, when they visit the Seattle Seahawks at Qwest Field.

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Online Sportsbook Football Betting

The NFL preseason is approaching. Time for players, coaches and teams to turn over a new leaf. General managers have hired some new coaches, while coaches have added some offensive and defensive assistants to try and improve things. Here’s a look at some changes to look for in the preseason.

New York Jets: The Jets were one of the surprise teams in the NFL last season, making the playoffs under hard-driving first-year coach Eric Mangini. Mangini rebuilt the offensive line with rookies D'Brickashaw Ferguson (the No. 4 pick in the 2007 Draft) and Ohio State center (the 29th pick in the first round). This season he upgraded the defense with rookie linebacker David Harris (Michigan) while the secondary picked up a much needed top-notch corner in Pitt CB Darrelle Revis (No. 14 overall).

The Jets have added balance to the offense for QB Chad Pennington with RB Thomas Jones, essentially stolen from the Bears. He will upgrade a New York ground game that was 20th in rushing with a weak 3.5 yards per carry. They have their first true feature back since Curtis Martin. Offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer prefers ball control, like his father Marty. In preseason, behind Pennington you’ll see second-year QB Kellen Clemens and mobile newcomer QB Marques Tuiasosopo.

Jacksonville Jaguars: The heat is on Jack Del Rio in Jacksonville as the Jaguars flopped last season despite a ton of talent. Keep in mind that under Del Rio the Jaguars have been outstanding in preseason with a 12-4 SU, 11-5 ATS August mark. online football betting Their defense is loaded, it’s the offense that has been stuck in first gear the last few years.

Enter a new offensive coordinator in Dirk Koetter, the former Boise State and Arizona State pass-happy coach. He will try and upgrade a passing game that ranked 24th last season. Del Rio has criticized wide receivers and Matt Jones this summer, both of whom have battled injuries. It will be interesting to watch the “new” Jaguars passing game in preseason.

Arizona Cardinals: Word out of Arizona is that the players like new coach Ken Whisenhunt, who was the Steelers offensive coordinator last year. We think of Arizona as all-passing because their running game has been awful of late because of a poor offensive line. However, keep an eye on the running game in preseason as they’ve made a lot of changes.

The new coach brings in Russ Grimm to coach the offensive line (Grimm did a marvelous job building the Steelers line). They took Penn State OT Levi Jones in the first round and signed two offensive linemen, Mike Gandy and Al Johnson, to provide depth. Reggie Wells was moved from right tackle to left guard and they want more speed out of the offensive line for pulling and traps, a Pittsburgh staple under Bill Cowher.

Atlanta Falcons: While all the attention has been focused on QB Mike Vick’s off-field problems, new coach Bobby Petrino is revamping the Falcons from an all-running team to a more balanced one. Petrino likes the experience of backup QB Joey Harrington and he has veteran backup Chris Redman, who used to play for Petrino at Louisville and knows his offenses better than anyone. Petrino wants Vick to be more of a pocket passer.

The addition of FB Ovie Mughelli is a sign Petrino wants a power rushing attack behind a physical fullback and newcomer WR Joe Horn should upgrade what was a below average wideout corps. Petrino is changing their old zone-blocking scheme to a more traditional in-line blocking scheme and the offensive line is bigger. Rookie DE Jamaal Anderson was grabbed in the first round and the secondary got younger with former Auburn cornerback David Irons, who the Falcons think was a steal as a sixth-round pick.

Cleveland Browns: The 2007 Browns look like a double-edged sword. There was the excitement of the offseason, trading for RB Jamel Lewis, upgrading the offensive line with Wisconsin’s Joe Thomas (the No. 2 pick in the draft) and free agent LG Eric Steinbach, then trading for Notre Dame QB Brady Quinn when he fell to No. 22. GM Phil Savage and head coach Romeo Crennel feel they have a talented, balanced offense with these new pieces, plus TE >Kellen Winslow and WR Braylon Edwards.

However, were these moves made in desperation? And were they foolish ones? The Browns gave up their 2008 first-round pick for Quinn and we all know QBs take time to develop. And even first-round QBs can be busts (Joey Harrington, Akili Smith). We also don’t know if the offensive line is that much improved (31st in rushing in 2007) and they did nothing to improve a defense that was awful against the run (142 yds pg allowed).

The Browns have a new offensive coordinator in Rob Chudzinski. This is a young offense and Quinn looked tentative, indecisive and inaccurate early in camp. Crennel will play Charlie Frye, Quinn and Derek Anderson in preseason. And there is a mixed bag for rookie QBs receiving significant starts: Tim Couch (14), Kerry Collins (13), Ben Roethlisberger (13), Vince Young (13), Joey Harrington (12), Matt Leinart (11) and Kyle Boller (nine). While all the focus will be on the Browns new-look offense, I’m more concerned with the defense.

Carolina Panthers: Coach Jon Fox loves the ground game, but Carolina has made some interesting changes for 2007. Fox fired offensive coordinator Dan Henning and brings in Jeff Davidson to run the offense. Davidson has brought in zone-blocking schemes to the Panther offense, a dramatic change for a system that's been built around a power-running style.

In zone-blocking, offensive linemen are responsible for blocking any defender who appears in their zone, instead of focusing on one defender. The Broncos and Falcons have had success with the system, which features smaller, more athletic offensive linemen and can create running lanes on the inside and outside. Keep an eye in preseason on how Carolina adjusts as it will take time to learn the system. Fox has been one of the top coaches in preseason, with a 15-5 SU, 12-7-1 ATS August record.

Dallas Cowboys: WR Terrell Owens is still here, but QB Drew Bledsoe and Bill Parcells are gone. New head coach Wade Phillips takes over, replacing Parcells. He ran the Chargers defense last season. Phillips was chosen by teary-eyed owner Jerry Jones partly because he is one of the best 3-4 coaches in football and the Cowboys have loaded up on players for that scheme.

Remember that Phillips was blitz-happy with the Chargers last season and early reports out of the Dallas camp have mentioned how the Cowboys have been blitzing a lot, a departure from Parcells. The theme of the 2007 Dallas defense appears to be one of attack.

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Dallas Cowboys Super Bowl Odds

Will he or won't he?  Now that the Dallas Cowboys have a new head coach in Wade Phillips, the big question will be: Does Terrell Owens stay with the team.

Jerry Jones continues to suggest that Terrell Owens will remain with the team.

"I've said that he's back, he's here, he's under contract," Jones said. "In the interviews I've just been through (to hire a new coach), it was very clear to me how highly he's thought of and how much of an impact he had on our offensive success."

Just to be sure though, Terrell Owens cleared out his locker and removed his name plate.

Terrell Owens was among the Cowboys most productive players this past season, catching 85 passes for 1,180 yards and a league-best 13 touchdowns.

But T.O. is due a $3 million roster bonus in June, then a $5 million salary this season. Cutting him before then would save a lot of money and headaches.

Aside from the questions surrounding Terrell Owens, the oddsmakers at MySportsbook.com have concerns over starting quarterback Tony Romo's state of mind and whether he will remain a starting quarterback.  It is also not known how players will adjust to new head coach, Wade Phillips.

Here are the football odds as seen at MySportsbook.com and subject to change after February 10, 2007 if not locked in prior to that date.
Arizona Cardinals 60-1


Atlanta Falcons 50-1


Baltimore Ravens 15-1


Buffalo Bills 50-1


Carolina Panthers 18-1


Chicago Bears 10-1


Cincinnati Bengals 15-1


Cleveland Browns 100-1


Dallas Cowboys 15-1


Denver Broncos 15-1


Detroit Lions 100-1


Green Bay Packers 50-1


Houston Texans 100-1


Indianapolis Colts 6-1


Jacksonville Jaguars 30-1


Kansas City Chiefs 30-1


Miami Dolphins 40-1


Minnesota Vikings 75-1


New England Patriots 10-1


New Orleans Saints 18-1


New York Giants 20-1


New York Jets 30-1


Oakland Raiders 100-1


Philadelphia Eagles 18-1


Pittsburgh Steelers 10-1


Saint Louis Rams 60-1


San Diego Chargers 6-1


San Francisco 49ers 75-1


Seattle Seahawks 20-1


Tampa Bay Buccanneers 75-1


Tennessee Titans 40-1


Washington Redskins 50-1

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