11/21/2008 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - They're the same.
Yet they're so very different.
On just a one-time glance at last week's NFL results, the St. Louis Rams and Chicago Bears appear to be on an equal plane of mediocrity heading into their Week 12 matchup along the banks of the Mississippi River in northeastern Missouri.
This week's hosts were trounced, 35-16, in last week's West Coast jaunt to San Francisco, an ugly journey that saw them commit three turnovers while digging a 32-point halftime hole and transforming Mike Singletary from Week 10 locker room punchline to Week 11 sideline genius.
The Bears, meanwhile, were throttled, 37-3, by the Green Bay Packers in their own ill-fated outing away from home, a tumultuous voyage that featured an anemic offense, a bend-and-then-break defense and yet another incarnation of Rex Grossman as the team's answer under center.
Put it all together and it's looking like rain on both sides of the Edward Jones Dome field.
But keep your chin up, Chicago fans...you've still got at least one thing going for you.
At least you're not the Rams.
Regardless of how bad the one-time "Monsters of the Midway" may have looked against the Packers - and they looked plenty bad - the reality is that they enter Sunday's game in a three-way tie for first in the NFC North and will exit no worse than a game off the pace of either Green Bay or Minnesota.
The Rams, though, have no such straws at which to grasp.
Now sated following the initial giddiness of Jim Haslett's rise to head coach - which resulted in incrementally more stunning wins over Washington and Dallas in Weeks 6 and 7 - St. Louis is in the midst of as wretched a reality as encountered by any franchise in calendar 2008.
Not only have the Rams dropped four straight games since the modest win streak, but they've done so while being besieged by injuries, flummoxed by personnel controversies and outscored to the tune of 139-48 - a weekly average of nearly 35-12 - by the Patriots, Cardinals, Jets and 49ers.
And speaking of injuries, lead running back Steven Jackson (thigh) and veteran left tackle Orlando Pace (knee) will each miss this week's game with the Bears as well, with wounds that by now have to be as much emotional as physical.
"They either didn't want to (get better) or they're just not good enough to do it," Haslett said Monday. "Maybe a little bit of both, probably a little bit of both."
SERIES HISTORY
The Bears lead the all-time regular season series with the Rams, 48-34-3, including a 42-27 road victory when the teams last met, in 2006. St. Louis won the previous meeting, a 23-21 affair at Soldier Field in 2003. The Rams' most recent home victory in the series took place in 2002.
In addition to the regular season series, the teams have met twice in the postseason, with the then-Los Angeles Rams winning a 1950 NFL Conference Playoff and the Bears routing the Rams, 24-0, in the 1985 NFC Championship.
The Bears' Lovie Smith is 1-0 in his head coaching career against the Rams, for whom he served as defensive coordinator from 2001 through 2003. The Rams' Haslett was 3-1 against the Bears while serving as head coach of the Saints from 2000 through 2005, and is 0-1 head-to-head against Smith.
WHEN THE BEARS HAVE THE BALL
Though still hobbled as of late by an injured ankle, Bears quarterback Kyle Orton is 17-10 in his career as a starter and has won four of his last six starts overall. His primary weapon has become rookie running back Matt Forte, who leads first-year players with 1,099 scrimmage yards and 51 first downs. He is the only player in the league thus far with three or more rushing (4) and receiving touchdowns (3), has a team-high 43 catches and is one of just two running backs to lead his team in both rushing and receptions. Forte is on pace to join Hall of Famer Walter Payton and Neal Anderson as the only Bears with 1,000 ground yards and 50 catches in a season. In the teams' last meeting, jack-of-all-trades Devin Hester became the sixth player in league history with two kickoff return TDs in the same game. He has 15 career touchdowns - seven on punts, four on kickoffs and four on pass receptions.
Despite the Rams defense having been gashed for an average of 392 yards per week, there are a few bright spots. Safety Oshiomogho Atogwe is tied for third in the league with four interceptions and has all four picks, two forced fumbles and a 75-yard fumble return TD in his last seven games. His 12 interceptions since the start of 2007 are tied for the NFL's best. Elsewhere, defensive end Chris Long, son of Hall of Famer Howie Long, leads all rookies with four sacks. Defensive tackle La'Roi Glover has five sacks in five career meetings with the Bears, while cornerback Jason Craft had a career-best two sacks last week against San Francisco after logging just one in his previous 140 games.
WHEN THE RAMS HAVE THE BALL
Beleaguered Rams QB Marc Bulger has had some career success against Chicago, averaging 314.3 yards through the air in three matchups and throwing for two or more touchdowns in all three games. In his last game against the Bears, Bulger connected for three touchdowns and 356 yards. The absent Jackson, however, made 10 of those catches and accounted for 139 scrimmage yards and a pair of touchdowns. Much of his slack figures to be picked up by youngster Kenneth Darby, who had a career-best eight catches and 83 yards out of the backfield last week. Among the "traditional" aerial targets, wideout Torry Holt has three touchdowns in his last two games against the Bears and aims for his third straight with at least one score. Since 2000, Holt leads the NFL with 791 receptions and 11,488 yards. Another youngster, Donnie Avery, has emerged as a big-play threat with a 14.3-yard average per catch. He is second among NFC rookie wideouts with 34 catches and 485 yards. Against the 49ers, Avery had nine catches for 93 yards.
They're giving up an uncharacteristically generous 336 yards per week, but the Bears have still been opportunistic to the tune of a plus-6 turnover margin through 10 games, good for third in the NFC. Cornerback Charles Tillman seeks a third straight game with an interception against the Rams. The Bears are 13-5 in games in which he records at least one. In terms of quarterback harassment, defensive end Mark Anderson had two sacks in the teams' last meeting, and defensive end Adewale Ogunleye had one in his lone career matchup with St. Louis. End Alex Brown recorded a sack against the Rams in a November 2003 game, and linebacker Brian Urlacher had one of his own in November 2002.
FANTASY FOCUS
In layman's terms, this game is hands-off. Neither team has a starter on offense who is a slam-dunk to record big points, though Chicago's Forte and the Rams' Holt are certainly capable. Avery may reach that point eventually, but he's probably not a good start this week unless an absolute necessity. Defensively, the Bears may force a Bulger mistake or two and, should things go well, may even record a shutout. The Rams, meanwhile, have been just bad enough lately to make Orton look like Jim McMahon.
OVERALL ANALYSIS
Maybe the return trip home and the emotional scars from a series of one-sided beatings get the Rams fired up enough to stage a big rally in front of their fans. Or, maybe the Bears' defense finds its stride and suffocates St. Louis en route to a painfully drawn-out defeat. Given recent history, option No. 2 seems much more likely.
Sportsbook Betting Lines Predicted Outcome: Bears 17, Rams 7
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Many fans thought it was the best side in the nation by the end of last season. This year, the polls have built on Georgia's momentum and granted it the No. 1 preseason ranking, followed by Ohio State and USC. (The Associated Press has the Buckeyes at No. 2; USA Today took the Trojans.)
"To have people believing we have one of the best teams in the nation going into this thing, it's exciting for us," Bulldogs coach Mark Richt told the AP. "I don't think anything is guaranteed, but we certainly have put ourselves in position where at least the college football world thinks we're pretty good."
Georgia Bulldogs - 9.5 wins
There's no question they're good, but the Bulldogs have one of the toughest 12-game schedules in the nation, mostly because they play in the powerhouse Southeastern Conference. Away games at No. 15 Arizona State, No. 7 LSU and No. 10 Auburn loom large, with contests between the hedges versus No. 24 Alabama and No. 18 Tennessee as well as the World's Largest Cocktail Party in Jacksonville versus No.5 Florida.
Ohio State Buckeyes - 10 wins
Like the Bulldogs, the Buckeyes also have a number of tough road contests in 2008. After two scrimmages dressed up as real games versus Youngstown State and Ohio, it's off to face USC. Other tough away games include No.13 Wisconsin in October and No. 20 Illinois in November. Granted, it should be pretty easy sledding at the Horseshoe. In fact, the only ranked team that travels to Columbus is No. 22 Penn State, in October.
USC Trojans - 10.5 wins
A similarly light schedule awaits the Trojans of Southern California, which is why the oddsmakers' total is one win more and the over is currently commanding -150 odds. Pete Carroll's troops only play three ranked teams in 2008, and all of those games are at home. After what should be an easy trip to Virginia to start things off on Aug. 30, the Trojans get two weeks to prepare for Ohio State in Los Angeles. Their two other ranked opponents, No. 21 Oregon and No. 15 Arizona State, visit in consecutive weeks to start the month of October. After that, the competition eases up. Of course, this is the same highly-touted school that lost to Stanford in 2007 and Oregon State in 2006. And don't discount the fact that USC plays its biggest rivals, Notre Dame and UCLA, back-to-back to close out the regular season. On paper, the Trojans are far superior, but motivation will be high for the Irish and Bruins, especially if their historic foes are in national-title contention.
Odds to Win the Heisman Trophy
Tim Tebow, Florida - 7/2
He won it last year, so it's no surprise he's the favorite to do it again, making him just the second player to go back-to-back. Ohio State's Archie Griffin turned the trick in 1974 and 1975, and Tebow's coach, Urban Meyer, is pretty sure his star quarterback can match the Buckeyes legend.
"There has never been anyone quite like him," Meyer told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "I am very lucky to be his coach."
Chris Wells, Ohio State - 5/1
The man they call "Beanie" was a star recruit out of high school, so it's not like nobody knew who the star tailback was before he rushed for 576 yards as a freshman in 2006 and 1,609 as a sophomore. But perhaps his finest moment came last year versus Michigan when he rumbled for 222 yards and two touchdowns in the Buckeyes' 14-3 victory over the hated Wolverines.
Knowshon Moreno, Georgia - 8/1
If the Bulldogs are to live up to expectations, they'll need a huge effort from their sophomore running back. This might be the last year of college ball for Moreno, who rushed for 1,334 yards and for 14 touchdowns as a freshman, while adding 253 receiving yards on 20 receptions, so expect big things for the man from Belford, N.J.
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