Browns lose Quinn for season

Football Betting Lines

11/26/2008 - Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Cleveland Browns head coach Romeo Crennel announced on Wednesday that Brady Quinn's broken index finger on his right hand will end the quarterback's season.

"Brady is going to need time or surgery for his finger to heal," said Crennel. "Brady will make a determination in the near future whether he'll take the time or have surgery to heal the finger."

Quinn injured the finger in his second career start, a 29-27 victory over the Buffalo Bills on November 17.

But Cleveland's 2007 first-round pick haphazardly played through the pain in a sub par effort on Sunday, hitting just 8-of-18 passes for 94 yards with two interception before being pulled for Derek Anderson in the second half of the 16-6 setback to Houston.

The 24-year-old went to renowned doctor James Andrews on Tuesday and it was determined that Quinn should shut it down for the rest of the season to avoid damaging the tendons in the finger.

Anderson is expected to start for the Browns against the Colts on Sunday with Ken Dorsey the backup and Joshua Cribbs as the emergency quarterback.

Crennel stated on Wednesday that the team has not yet placed Quinn on injured- reserve and that the plan is to sign quarterback Richard Bartel to the practice squad.

Online-wagering-casino Football Betting News

<< Light, Crowder fined by NFL for fight
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Offensive tackle Matt Light of the New England Patriots and linebacker Channing Crowder of the Miami Dolphins have been fined $15,000 apiece by the NFL for what the league called "a verbal and physica

<< Nabokov set for return as Sharks host Blackhawks
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - San Jose goaltender Evgeni Nabokov will return from his seven-game layoff, as the Sharks try to defeat the Chicago Blackhawks for the 13th straight time in a battle between the clubs tonight at HP Pavilion. Nabokov has bee

<< Kings hope to rebound in Edmonton
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Kings' first game in Alberta wasn't one the club would like to remember. They hope for better luck tonight, as they head north to take on the Edmonton Oilers at Rexall Place. The Kings have played an NHL-lo

<< Coyotes carry six-game slide into Columbus
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Phoenix Coyotes will try to end their free fall tonight, when they visit the Columbus Blue Jackets for a battle at Nationwide Arena. The Coyotes have lost six straight games, posting an 0-4-2 record in that span. It's

<< Blues streak into Denver for battle with Avs
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Without two of their best offensive players, goals figure to be hard to come by for the Blues. The way Chris Mason played last night, that shouldn't matter. The Blues aim for a season-high fourth straight win tonight, when

Norfolk recalls Henley from Augusta >>
Norfolk, VA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Norfolk Admirals recalled forward Brent Henley from their ECHL affiliate, the Augusta Lynx. The 28-year-old Henley appeared in two games for the Lynx after being assigned on Nov. 12 and was score

Siedlecki steps down as Yale coach >>
New Haven, CT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jack Siedlecki announced his retirement as Yale's football coach on Wednesday and that he has accepted a position as assistant athletics director. Over the past 12 years, Siedlecki has coached

Jennings and Williams highlight Big South All-Conference Team >>
Charlotte, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Liberty running back Rashad Jennings and Gardner-Webb linebacker Jeffrey Williams have been voted the 2008 Big South football Offensive Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year, respectively, by the C

MLS Deputy Commissioner Gazidis named CEO of Arsenal >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Major League Soccer announced early on Wednesday that Deputy Commissioner Ivan Gazidis has accepted the position of Chief Executive Officer at Arsenal of the English Premier League. "Ivan Gazidis wa

Brees, Barber, Douglas earn NFC weekly honors >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, Tampa Bay Buccaneers cornerback Ronde Barber and Atlanta Falcons punt returner Harry Douglas have been selected as the NFC's top players for Week 12 of the NFL sea

Horse Betting

(This is an update of a sportsbook for the May 4th issue of ESPN The Magazine).

The Kentucky Derby's post-position draw happened on Wednesday. And, as is always the case, shortly afterwards, a buzz raced around Churchill Downs. It was a low rumble at first, nothing that the squares in the mint julep crowd pick up right away. But by the time the sun set over the twin spires, the chatter was impossible to ignore. Everyone -- sharps, trainers, owners -- was talking about one thing: the wise guy horse, the pre-draw long shot us mopes didn't have on our radar until it was too late.

"You think you're hearing the scoop," says handicapper Lane Gold. "Then you get to the window, the odds are short, and you missed it."

Recognizing a wise-guy horse early is as hard as picking a Derby bonnet. That's because handicappers don't like hype (see ya, I Want Revenge). They want Thoroughbreds who look good losing prep races like the Santa Anita Derby. They eye horses who ate up the field after starting wide or made an easy transition from synthetic tracks to dirt. They look for ponies who showed muscle gain race to race and those who ran hard after several weeks' rest.

"A wise guy," says John Avello, a bookmaker at Wynn Las Vegas, "looks for a horse who can improve."

When I first wrote Horse Betting for The Mag, which I turned in a three weeks before Wednesday's draw, I predicted these three horses had wise guy potential:

CHOCOLATE CANDY (15-1 in mid-April, currently 20-1 according to Avello): His second-place finish at Santa Anita, following a seven-week layoff, proved two things: He can run after resting, and -- by losing a high-profile prep race -- he wouldn't be overhyped.

DESERT PARTY (15-1; 15-1): He was upset in the UAE Derby by a horse he had beaten twice. The public remembers his loss, but the wise guys his wins.

PIONEEROF THE NILE (8-1; 4-1): The big favorite at Santa Anita struggled to win, so he initially got less hype than Quality Road and I Want Revenge.

You may have noticed that the odds on Pioneerof the Nile have been cut in half, from 8-1 to 4-1. Which means the wise guys took a shine to him long before the post-position draw. But, to be honest, this is one of those years with four elite horses getting everyone's attention, squares and sharps alike.

"You're not gonna get a lot of chatter about a horse that isn't in that group, which includes Pioneer, I Want Revenge, Dunkirk and Friesan Fire," Avello told me Wednesday. "We don't have a group of horses behind those top four who look like real legit contenders."

Come Derby week, the final two elements in picking a wise guy horse are how he's working out and what gate he's coming out of.

(By the way, picking a Preakness favorite is a whole different bale of hay, partially based on how horses finish in the Derby. You can see my analysis of who has the best shot at Pimlico on Insider Sunday morning.)

Well, early in the week I Want Revenge, Pioneerof the Nile and Friesan Fire were working out better than anyone. Some thought Friesan Fire, currently 6-1, might have run too fast, burning a five-furlong run in :57 4/5. "When you are running that fast you have the sense that it took something out of him," says Gold. "The Derby is longer than any horse has run, and if they need that extra surge you worry they won't have it because they burned it in the workout."

But, Gold points out, Friesan Fire's trainer is Larry Jones, Two years ago his horse Hard Spun did a five-eighths workout in :57 3/5 and then went on to finish second, behind Street Sense, in the Derby. "Every trainer has different methods," says Gold. "And clearly he knows what he's doing."

Now, as for starting position, Gold says to remember this: Churchill Downs traditionally has 14 starting gates. For the Derby, it brings out auxiliary gates and between the original 14th gate and the new 15th gate, there is a little more space than there is between gates 1-14. "That 15 position will give you a precious second or two to sort out what's happening to your inside," says Gold. "Sixteen is also okay because you can follow the horse in front of you."

Dunkirk, one of the race favorites, is coming out of gate 15. In 16 is Baffert's Pioneerof the Nile. I Want Revenge drew 13, where Smarty Jones won from in 2004, and Friesan Fire picked the sixth position. "He doesn't have a lot of speed to the inside of him," says Gold. "So he will get a clear shot to be near the front."

All the jibber-jabber means this: Pioneerof the Nile has leapfrogged from 8-1 to being the second favorite, along with Dunkirk, behind I Want Revenge. Meanwhile, Friesan Fire, with a good trainer, a strong week of training and a decent post position, is still at 6-1. "By Saturday, it's possible he could go from fourth to the favorite," says Gold.

In other words, meet Friesan Fire, your 2009 wise guy horse.

"Now," says Avello, "it's time for action."

To visit this horse betting site go to MySportsbook.com for all your horse racing betting needs.