Marshall's four TD catches lifts AFC over NFC

Football Betting Lines

01/29/2012 - Honolulu, HI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dolphins wide receiver Brandon Marshall caught a Pro Bowl-record four touchdown passes, as the AFC downed the NFC, 59-41, Sunday at Aloha Stadium.

Marshall had six catches for 177 yards -- the second-most in Pro Bowl history, hauled in a pair of dazzling second-half touchdown passes from Bengals rookie Andy Dalton and earned MVP honors for the effort.

Ben Roethlisberger, elevated to AFC starter due to Tom Brady's upcoming Super Bowl appearance, threw for 182 yards, two touchdowns and an interception for the victors, while Philip Rivers had a pair of TD passes and a pick.

Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees both threw two touchdowns without and interception for the NFC, while the Saints' signal caller went 0-for-1 on extra point attempts.

Panthers rookie Cam Newton, pitted against Dalton for the entire second half, threw two touchdowns but had three interceptions -- two to San Diego's Eric Weddle -- in a rough Pro Bowl debut. Arizona's Larry Fitzgerald nearly matched Marshall, reeling in six passes for 111 yards and three scores in defeat.

Footballgambleguide Football Betting News

<< Clippers rally past Nuggets
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chauncey Billups scored a season-high 32 points as the Los Angeles Clippers rallied in the fourth quarter to take a 109-105 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Sunday. Chris Paul added 25 points, six rebound

<< Morgan leads U.S. over Canada in CONCACAF final
Vancouver, BC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Alex Morgan scored twice and set up two goals for Abby Wambach, leading the U.S. women's national team to an easy 4-0 win on Sunday over Canada in the final of the CONCACAF Olympic qualifying tournament. The

<< Lakers continue dominance over T'Wolves
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kobe Bryant scored 35 points and pulled down 14 rebounds, as the Los Angeles Lakers recorded their 16th straight victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves with a 106-101 decision. Pau Gasol added 2

<< Mavericks sneak past Spurs in OT
Dallas, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Dallas Mavericks squandered an 18-point third-quarter lead, but Jason Terry scored four of his 34 points in overtime to lead the Mavericks to a 101-100 victory over the San Antonio Spurs at America

<< Teague leads Hawks past Hornets
New Orleans, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jeff Teague netted a career-high 24 points, leading the Atlanta Hawks to a 94-72 drubbing of the struggling New Orleans Hornets at New Orleans Arena. Willie Green finished with 16 points off the bench a

The Top Super Bowl XLVI Prop Bets >>
Philadelphia, PA (The Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Every year around this time I harp on how folks should not wager on a touchdown being the first score of the Super Bowl. Even though Aaron Rodgers and Jordy Nelson hooked up for a TD pass for th

Sixers entertain reeling Magic at WFC >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia 76ers shoot for their third straight win this evening when they continue a seven-game homestand against the Orlando Magic at the Wells Fargo Center. Philly has been incredible at home this season at 10-2 a

Santos downs Tijuana to take Clausura lead >>
Tijuana, Mexico (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Cristian Suarez and Juan Rodriguez scored in the second half as Santos downed Tijuana, 3-1, on Sunday to move into sole possession of first place in Mexico's Clausura. Santos entered the week level on po

Missouri visits Texas in pivotal Big 12 affair >>
Austin, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Missouri Tigers and Texas Longhorns square off for the second time this season, when the two meet in a Big 12 Conference clash tonight in Austin. Missouri is an impressive 19-2 on the season, and both losses

Heat finish homestand against hapless Hornets >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Miami Heat are coming off a big win over Chicago and hope that they can keep the momentum going tonight versus the New Orleans Hornets in the finale of a three-game homestand. In what could have been an early playoff p

FOOTBALL BETTING : Crabtree's base deal: six years, $32 million

Football Betting

In the wake of the news that the 49ers have signed receiver Michael Crabtree after an extended holdout, there has been not a hint of the dollars to be paid to Crabtree.

And since this means that his agent hasn't leaked the numbers, it means that his agent feels no specific motivation to do so.

Possibly because his agent isn't all that thrilled to have his name on the deal.

So the numbers will come from sources other than Crabtree's agent. And we've gotten our mitts into them.

Per a league source, Crabtree has signed a six-year, $32 million contract. (The total includes guaranteed money, base salaries, and the one-time incentive based on achieving minimum playing time.)

The deal also includes $17 million in guaranteed money.

As reported elsewhere, the deal can void to five years based on performance triggers, wiping out a final year base salary of $4 million. But they won't be easily reached.

The source tells us that, in his first four seasons (including 2009), Crabtree must either qualify for two Pro Bowls, or he must qualify for one Pro Bowl in one year and he must participate in 80 percent of the offensive snaps in a separate year in which the team makes the playoffs.

In other words, if in 2010 he qualifies for the Pro Bowl and the team makes the playoffs and he participates in 80 percent of the snaps, he'll still need to make it to the Pro Bowl or achieve the 80-percent/playoffs in another season.

Since the chances of Crabtree making the Pro Bowl or participating in 80 percent of the offensive snaps this year is roughly zero percent, he'll have three years to get it done.

And it won't be easy. Frankly, he'll be hard pressed to make it to one Pro Bowl in three years with the likes of Larry Fitzgerald, Calvin Johnson, Anquan Boldin, Steve Smith, the other Steve Smith, Hakeem Nicks, DeSean Jackson, Johnny Knox, Percy Harvin, Greg Jennings, Roddy White, T.J. Houshmandzadeh in the same conference for sportsbook betting.

So, by all appearances, it's a six-year deal. And at $17 million in guaranteed money, the per-year guarantee is a tepid $2.83 million per year.

There's another problem with the deal -- it has no mid-tier incentive package. Instead, the additional $8 million that Crabtree can earn (pushing the max value to six years, $40 million) requires the kind of unrealistic, mega-star performances that no rookie is likely to ever achieve.

So while the contract paid to Packers defensive tackle B.J. Raji covers five years and pays $22.5 million, he has the ability (if he's a solid player) to make up the difference between his base deal and Crabtree's five-year, $28 million haul via the mid-tier incentive package in Raji's deal.

And unless Crabtree meets the performance thresholds necessary to void the sixth year, he'll be stuck under contract for another year at a base salary of only $4 million.

There's one other area of concern with the deal. Crabtree, per the source, received no option bonus. Instead, he has significant money tied to a fairly new device known as a "discretionary salary advance," which unlike an opition bonus is subject to forfeiture if Crabtree decides in a year or two that he wants to hold out for a better deal. (We're also told that the 49ers have included language that would make certain escalators subject to forfeiture, too.)

Meanwhile, the deal falls well short of the mark for which Crabtree and agent Eugene Parker were aiming -- the five-year, $38.25 million contract paid by the Raiders to receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey, the seventh overall pick in the draft.

Even if Crabtree successfully voids the final year, he'll make more than $2 million per year less on average than Heyward-Bey.

Thus, as we explained earlier in the day, this is a deal that Crabtree could have done in July, which would have given him a much better chance of making a contribution to the 49ers during his rookie year.

So while the final outcome can be described as win-win, the broader view suggests that it's really a lose-lose situation.

NFL Betting Lines

To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your college football betting needs.