10/05/2008 - Baltimore, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Alge Crumpler caught the game-winning touchdown pass with just under two minutes to play, as the Tennessee Titans remained unbeaten with a thrilling 13-10 victory over the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium.
Kerry Collins completed 17-of-32 passes for 163 yards with a touchdown, and overcame two first-quarter interceptions as Tennessee (5-0) continued the best start in franchise history. Bo Scaife had seven receptions for 72 yards and Rob Bironas hit both his field goal attempts in the win.
Tennessee mustered only 69 yards of offense in the first half, but Collins was able to put together an 80-yard drive to win the game late in the fourth quarter. The team ended up with 210 total yards -- its lowest output of the season.
Joe Flacco was 18-of-28 passing for 153 yards, while throwing two interceptions for Baltimore (2-2). Willis McGahee ran for 64 yards on 22 carries and Todd Heap caught four passes for 41 yards. Le'Ron McClain scored the Ravens' lone touchdown.
Following a punt, Tennessee got the ball back with 6:07 to play on its own 20. Collins threw an incomplete pass on 3rd-and-10, but a roughing-the-passer penalty gave the Titans a first down. A few plays later on 3rd-and-3, Collins found Chris Davis for a 10-yard completion to the Ravens' 48.
After getting another first down, Tennessee faced a crucial 3rd-and-5 from the Ravens' 26 with 2:24 to go, as Collins hit Scaife for 15 yards down to the 11- yard line. On the very next play Collins found Crumpler in the end zone for an 11-yard touchdown with 1:56 to go, giving the Titans a three-point lead.
The Ravens were unable to respond, as Flacco threw an interception on the second play of the ensuing drive. The Titans ran down most of the remaining time, giving the ball back with 25 seconds to go. Baltimore couldn't do much with the ball, and the game ended on a 10-second runoff due to a false start penalty.
Tennessee appeared to stop the Ravens on their first offensive drive, but an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty gave Baltimore new life on the Titans' 41. Flacco led the team down to the 20, and Matt Stover made a 38-yard field goal with 5:52 to go in the opening quarter.
Collins couldn't work any magic in the first quarter, throwing two interceptions in as many drives. But Tennessee finally forced an interception of its own, giving the Titans the ball on Baltimore's 17 with 8:44 left in the half. The drive went nowhere, however, and Bironas knotted the game with a 35-yard field goal.
The Ravens put together a two-minute drill at the end of the half, but Stover missed a 45-yard field goal with 10 seconds left to keep the game tied.
Baltimore scored on the opening drive of the second half. Flacco found Demetrius Williams for 22 yards on 3rd-and-10 from the 29, and Clayton rushed for nine yards to get into Titans territory. Later, on 1st-and-goal from the one, McClain punched it in for a 10-3 Ravens advantage less than six minutes into the quarter.
Bironas added a 26-yard field goal for the Titans to cap a 13-play, 81-yard drive, making it 10-6 with 12:49 to play.
Game Notes
The all-time series between the teams is tied, 8-8...Titans running back LenDale White failed to score a touchdown for the first time all season... Tennessee has now won eight straight regular season games dating back to last season, the longest current streak in the NFL.
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Is there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL?
I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.
Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said.
There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans.
Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal.
For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though.
A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup.
The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games.
Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff.
So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action.
Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns.
“I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said.
Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season.
“Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said.
It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties.
Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples.
The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left.
“The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits.
“These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.”
Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough.
The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday.
“Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.”
Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach?
“It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.”
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines.
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