GAMBLING RECAP
Want to bet? Let's play a game of quarterback guess who
Jan 24, 2018, 8:02 am
Case Keenum's season ended in Philadelphia. Twincities.com
Imagine this; You walk into a sportsbook before the games last Sunday and are presented a prop sheet. The objective is to match the quarterback with his performance in the Championship round.
26-of-38 for 290 yards / two touchdowns
23-of-36 for 293 yards / one touchdown
26-of-33 for 352 yards / three touchdowns
28-of-48 for 271 yards / one touchdown/ two interceptions / one fumble
Case Keenum
Tom Brady
Blake Bortles
Nick Foles
Although some would think they can figure this out pretty easily pregame,the inscrutability of Sunday's results made this impracticable to solve.
Who am I?
Behind door #1
In College, I attended Michigan State for a year and was redshirted when I transferred, forcing me to sit out the 2008 season. For my new alma mater, I would go on to throw for over 10,000 yards and 66 touchdowns in three years. I was the 88th overall pick selected in the fourth round in my draft. I would tell you who drafted me, but I've been on a total of three teams since entering the league. On Nov. 3, 2013, I punished the Raiders for seven passing touchdowns, something only seven other quarterbacks have been able to do. I guess you can say I'm pretty special, that same year I made the Pro Bowl and was named the Pro Bowl Offensive MVP (thanks for the GMC Truck). Not to brag, but this isn't my first rendezvous in the postseason where I've thrown five times more touchdowns than interceptions, and I hold a 116.4 passer rating. Sunday, my final stat line was 26-of-33 for 352 yards and three touchdowns. Guess Who?
Behind door #2
I redshirted as a true freshman in 2010, but I would only need three years to tally 56 touchdowns. In 2013, I led my team to a BCS bowl, Tostitos to be exact. In my final game, I was named the Offensive MVP and helped my team win its first major bowl in school history. Although this was my first postseason, I've done fairly well throwing three times more touchdowns than interceptions. Also, I’m a pretty decent runner. This postseason I had 121 yards on 17 carries (7.1). Sunday my final stat line read 23-of-36 for 293 yards and one touchdown. Guess who?
Behind door #3
Im also a journeyman, and I've led the huddle on four different NFL teams. In college, I was a monster. I’m the NCAA's all-time leader in total passing yards, touchdowns, and completions. I was the conference MVP in 2009 and 2011. It would have been three consecutive years but I tore my knee in the third game of the year vs. UCLA. Luckily, I was granted my 6th year of eligibility, and I led my team to a 12-0 season. That year I spanked Penn State in the TicketCity Bowl. My final numbers were 532 yards and three touchdowns passes. In my pro career, it has been a struggle. Starting with my rookie year where I spent all of 2012 on the practice squad. The following year I got my first start in week seven after an injury to the starting quarterback. No big deal but I did go 15 of 25 passes for 271 yards and a touchdown, along with a 110.6 passer rating, the highest by a quarterback on my team that season. Overall, I've thrown for 8,771 yards in 5 years while tossing 46 touchdowns and 27 interceptions. Sunday my final stat line was 28-of-48 for 271 yards with a touchdown, two interceptions, and one fumble. Guess Who?
Behind door #4
I've always loved football, at the age of 4, I attended a game in CandleStick Park in which Dwight Clark had "The Catch." In college, I was the backup my first two years to some guy named Brian Griese. I guess he was pretty good; he led our team to an undefeated season and a national title before I took over. In two years I threw for over 4500 yards while holding a 30-17 touchdown to interception ratio. I was the 199th overall pick, and I would only have to wait until my second season to get my first start. One year, in our teams season opener, I managed to tear my ACL and MCL causing me to miss the entire season. The following year I came out with a vengeance, in the first game I pulled off a miraculous comeback while throwing for 378 yards and two touchdowns. That year I would also set the record with most touchdown passes in a single quarter (5). This postseason I had a 5-0 touchdown to interception ratio. Sunday my final stat line was 26-of-38 for 290 yards and two touchdowns. Guess who?
The Championship round left us with a few surprising box scores. But only two teams could advance. Congratulations to the Patriots and the Eagles.
Play action or Pass went 1-7. Bringing our yearly record to 58-53-3.
For Sportsbooks, it was one of the biggest weekends ever. In the first game, many sharp bettors were on Jacksonville, but the Public was huge on Patriots-7.5 and Jaguars money line +300. This was great for the guys taking the bets, and they were able to cash off both crowds.
In the late game, Joe Public was still suffering from the Minneapolis Miracle. People really wanted to see a team host a Super Bowl but that illusion will have to wait. The Vikings booked 64% of the bets leading into kickoff and again the books feasted.
Sunday was one of the best day for books in years. The only game the books lost was on the Las Vegas Golden Knights route of the Hurricanes.
With the Superbowl on the horizon, we will be getting more into the game the following week. Prop bet extravaganza coming soon......
1)Foles
2)Bortles
3)Keenum
4)Brady
For any questions or comments reach me at @JerryBoknowz on twitter
Most Popular
SportsMap Emails
Are Awesome
Listen Live
After finishing up with the Guardians the Astros have a rather important series for early May with the Seattle Mariners heading to town for the weekend. While it’s still too early to be an absolute must-win series for the Astros, losing the series to drop seven or nine games off the division lead would make successfully defending their American League West title that much more unlikely.
Since their own stumble out of the gate to a 6-10 record the Mariners have been racking up series wins, including one this week over the Atlanta Braves. The M’s offense is largely Mmm Mmm Bad, but their pitching is sensational. In 18 games after a 4-8 start, the Mariners gave up five runs in a game once. In the other 17 games they only gave up four runs once. Over the 18 games their starting pitchers gave up 18 earned runs total with a 1.44 earned run average. That’s absurd. Coming into the season Seattle’s starting rotation was clearly better on paper than those of the Astros and Texas Rangers, and it has crystal clearly played out as such into the second month of the schedule.
While it’s natural to focus on and fret over one’s own team's woes when they are plentiful as they have been for the Astros, a reminder that not all grass is greener elsewhere. Alex Bregman has been awful so far. So has young Mariners’ superstar Julio Rodriguez (though not Breggy Bad). A meager four extra base hits over his first 30 games were all Julio produced down at the ballyard. That the Mariners are well ahead of the Astros with J-Rod significantly underperforming is good news for Seattle.
Caratini comes through!
So it turns out the Astros are allowed to have a Puerto Rican-born catcher who can hit a little bit. Victor Caratini’s pedigree is not that of a quality offensive player, but he has swung the bat well thus far in his limited playing time and provided the most exciting moment of the Astros’ season with his two-out two-run 10th inning game winning home run Tuesday night. I grant that one could certainly say “Hey! Ronel Blanco finishing off his no-hitter has been the most exciting moment.” I opt for the suddenness of Caratini’s blow turning near defeat into instant victory for a team that has been lousy overall to this point. Frittering away a game the Astros had led 8-3 would have been another blow. Instead, to the Victor belong the spoils.
Pudge Rodriguez is the greatest native Puerto Rican catcher, but he was no longer a good hitter when with the Astros for the majority of the 2009 season. Then there’s Martin Maldonado.
Maldonado’s hitting stats with the Astros look Mike Piazza-ian compared to what Jose Abreu was doing this season. Finally, mercifully for all, Abreu is off the roster as he accepts a stint at rookie-level ball in Florida to see if he can perform baseball-CPR on his swing and career. Until or unless he proves otherwise, Abreu is washed up and at some point the Astros will have to accept it and swallow whatever is left on his contract that runs through next season. For now Abreu makes over $120,000 per game to not be on the roster. At his level of performance, that’s a better deal than paying him that money to be on the roster.
Abreu’s seven hits in 71 at bats for an .099 batting average with a .269 OPS is a humiliating stat line. In 2018 George Springer went to sleep the night of June 13 batting .293 after going hitless in his last four at bats in a 13-5 Astros’ win over Oakland. At the time no one could have ever envisioned that Springer had started a deep, deep funk which would have him endure a nightmarish six for 78 stretch at the plate (.077 batting average). Springer then hit .293 the rest of the season.
Abreu’s exile opened the door for Joey Loperfido to begin his Major League career. Very cool for Loperfido to smack a two-run single in his first game. He also struck out twice. Loperfido will amass whiffs by the bushel, he had 37 strikeouts in 101 at bats at AAA Sugar Land. Still, if he can hit .225 with some walks mixed in (he drew 16 with the Space Cowboys) and deliver some of his obvious power (13 homers in 25 games for the ex-Skeeters) that’s an upgrade over Abreu/Jon Singleton, as well as over Jake Meyers and the awful showing Chas McCormick has posted so far. Frankly, it seems unwise that the Astros only had Loperfido play seven games at first base in the minors this year. If McCormick doesn’t pick it up soon and with Meyers displaying limited offensive upside, the next guy worth a call-up is outfielder Pedro Leon. In January 2021 the Astros gave Leon four million dollars to sign out of Cuba and called him a “rapid mover to the Major Leagues.” Well…
Over his first three minor league seasons Leon flashed tools but definitely underwhelmed. He has been substantially better so far this year. He turns 26 May 28. Just maybe the Astros offense could be the cause of fewer Ls with Loperfido at first and Leon in center field.
Catch our weekly Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast. Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and I discuss varied Astros topics. The first post for the week generally goes up Monday afternoon (second part released Tuesday) via YouTube: stone cold stros - YouTube with the complete audio available via Apple Podcast, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.