The Giants' NFL rank in Defensive Yards Per Point, dead last, could be a sign of better things ahead. (AP)
With the NFL bye weeks having concluded last Sunday, one of the major handicapping variables has been minimized, that being scheduling. With that said, many people get back to the bare bones basics for the rest of the season, using statistics, trends, systems, and power ratings. Of course, FoxSheets offers up analysis on all of those factors, but one of the things I want to look into in this article is stats that may or may not be misleading when it comes to gauging the actual strength of a team. Two particular stats that I thought might qualify are Yards Per Point (YPPT) & Turnover Differential (TO Diff.).
Boise State Needs Blowout for BCS and Backers CFB - Boise State continues its quest for perfection, playing its final road game of 2009. The Broncos failed to impress two weeks ago at Louisiana Tech in televised tilt and their impressive win over Idaho was largely seen as highlights. Boise State needs gigantic blowout and to keep winning to set up possible Fiesta Bowl date.
Marc Lawrence's Look Out Below System CFB - When teams on a win streak reach the final game of the regular season, it’s frequently with a sigh of satisfaction. Contentment, though, often turns to bitter disappointment when they enter the season finale off a straight-up underdog win. One team on this week's college football board fits into a solid system from Playbook.
Last race betting opportunity of 2009 at Ford 400 NASCAR - The 2009 Sprint Cup Championship will be decided on Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway and at this point, the naming of the champion seems to be merely a formality. Jimmie Johnson has opened up a 108-point lead over Martin with just the Ford 400 remaining on the season schedule. Johnson can clinch his record-setting fourth consecutive championship by finishing 25th or better. Of course, in sports, anything can and has happened, so it would be premature to just hand the trophy over to him without at least running Sunday’s 267 laps around HMS. Oddsmakers don’t expect Johnson to coast in this race, as they’ve establish him & Martin as co-favorites, at 6-1 odds.
NBA Back-to-back Team Tendencies NBA - One of the most trying factors for handicappers when considering NBA basketball is the back-to-back scenario. Schedules aren’t as routine in the NBA as they are in baseball and football, so naturally, fatigue is a more prominent variable that the bettor has to consider. For that reason, I’m going to be dedicating the next two Platinum Sheet feature articles to studying back-to-back performance angles. In this first part, I will be looking at each individual team, while next week I will be focusing on league wide systems. Hopefully, we’ll uncover some nuggets you can employ the rest of this NBA season and beyond.
