Written by :
Published on :
Did you ever think, at the start of the year, that the Houston Texans and Atlanta Falcons, by season's end, might be engaged in a battle for the #1 pick in the NFL Draft? It is safe to say that no Price Per Head bettor would have been thinking in that direction.
The Texans vaulted themselves into the "race" with their loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday, and they'll have a chance to reaffirm their intentions on Thursday, December 5, when they play again. Could that loser get the first pick? Maybe, and most pro football bettors would have to believe that a quarterback might be the main target. We're just supposing that Houston would go in that direction, considering that Matt Schaub has made everybody angry and Case Keenum's honeymoon appears to be over.
Is #1 too high to take Texas A&M's Johnny Manziel? Maybe. Louisville's Teddy Bridgewater seems to be the popular #1 at the moment, at least among quarterbacks.
Maybe the more appropriate question for WagerHome sportsbook betting customers to consider is whether the Texans would fire a coach who just suffered a stroke, albeit a mini-stroke. This is a team that has Super Bowl designs as training camp started, with All-Pro Brian Cushing coming back on defense, to be joined by a free agent headed to the Hall of Fame (Ed Reed) AND a dangerous wide receiver to put opposite another future Canton enshrinee (that is to say, rookie DeAndre Hopkins joining Andre Johnson).
Things looked good, didn't they? Well, not now. Houston has now lost nine straight games. Schaub developed "Pick Six Disease." Cushing is out for the year - again. And as for Reed, his tenure in Houston was short-lived, and out the door, WagerHome customers heard some mutterings about how the team was being outcoached, which generally carries more weight when it comes from an eight-time All-Pro than it would from a rookie.
Maybe Reed was bitter about the possibility that he may not be what he once was. And his jabs were directed at defensive coordinator Wade Phillips, not head coach Gary Kubiak. But as most NFL bettors know very well, when a head coach succeeds, the staff rides on those coattails. And when he's shuffled out the door, the staff usually goes with him.
Kubiak has never been an overachiever, given the talent that would seem to have been at his disposal. And how else could team ownership possibly react to a nine-game losing streak, especially what has happened over the last couple of games, where the Texans lost at home to a team starting an undrafted rookie QB for the first time (Oakland, with Matt McGloin), then lost again, AT HOME, to Jacksonville.
Consider that the Texans could conceivably be winless. In their two wins, they had to put together a 17-point fourth quarter against a very permissive San Diego team, with a field goal at the final gun, then had to scramble to get to overtime against Tennessee before winning.
This has not been a success story. Maybe it's time for another story to start. And, not to sound cold about it, but perhaps it's time for Kubiak to be afforded more of a rest than he would have originally anticipated. Most PPH bettors at WagerHome, leaving feelings aside, might agree.
Are you one of those people? Join the conversation - http://www.twitter.com/wagerhome
In conclusion, there seems to be so much in the way of controversy, especially those who placed football wagers, regarding the non-call on the last play of the Patriots-Panthers game last Monday night. If you recall, Rob Gronkowski was in the end zone and being tackled by Carolina linebacker Luke Kuechly as Tom Brady was sailing a ball toward him.
The referee Clete Blakeman, overruled one of his colleagues, who had originally ruled pass interference. If the penalty had been called, the Pats would have had the football on the one-yard line. But Blakeman's opinion seemed to be that the ball was uncatchable, and that opinion, which he refused to clarify or explain, may have made the difference in the game. It certainly made a difference for many PPH football bettors playing with WagerHome.
Actually, neither the non-call, nor the pass interference, would have been the right way to go. Interestingly, few people, if any, have brought up the idea that Kuechly may have been guilty of defensive holding, which would have been a five-yard penalty and an automatic first down - the first down being somewhat moot since the only result would have been to give the Patriots one untimed down to conclude the game.
Maybe you have an opinion on this. Join up with us and let us know - http://www.twitter.com/wagerhome
“How pathetic,” said a law enforcement source.
Spata was charged with petty larceny and criminal possession of stolen property, according to a spokesman for Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes. Both charges are misdemeanors that carry a maximum jail sentence of one year.
The arrest couldn’t come at a worse time for Spata, who married into mob royalty.
Spata is free on $1 million bail in a separate federal racketeering case and is scheduled to be sentenced next month. Federal prosecutors are expected to seek revocation of his bail because of the shoplifting arrest, sources said.
Defense lawyer Sarita Kedia did not respond to emails and calls seeking comment.
