Action Jackson: Rams top Redskins in OT

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12/24/2006 - St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Steven Jackson ran 21 yards to the end zone with 8:27 left in overtime, as the St. Louis Rams kept their slim playoff hopes alive with a 37-31 victory over the Washington Redskins.

After both teams had punted, Marc Bulger hooked up with Torry Holt for five yards, Jackson carried twice for five yards, and Stephen Davis had an eight- yard run. Jackson then broke free down the middle for the 21-yard game-winning touchdown.

Bulger completed 25-of-38 passes for 388 yards and four touchdowns for the Rams (7-8), who won their second straight. Isaac Bruce had a season-high 148 receiving yards and now has 13,310 receiving yards to pass Andre Reed (13,198) for seventh all-time. Jackson rushed for 150 yards on 33 carries, and also had six receptions for 102 yards, passing Marshall Faulk (87) for the franchise record for receptions by a running back in a single season with 88.

Jason Campbell completed 13-of-26 passes for 160 yards and a score for the Redskins (5-10), who are one of the few NFL teams that have been officially eliminated from postseason contention. Ladell Betts rushed for 129 yards on 29 carries with two scores, and tied Rob Goode (1951) for most consecutive games with at least 100 yards rushing in franchise history. This was his fifth straight game at the century mark, and first 1,000-yard rushing season. Chris Cooley caught seven passes for 77 yards and a score.

After a pair of false starts, the Rams had to settle for a 21-yard field goal by Jeff Wilkins to take a three-point lead with just under eight minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.

After Washington punted, Jackson fumbled and Lemar Marshall recovered for the Redskins, who tied the score at 31 with a 52-yard Shaun Suisham field goal.

After St. Louis had punted, Betts broke free downfield but Oshiomogho Atogwe punched the ball loose and the Rams recovered it at the two-minute mark. Out of the shotgun, Bulger then found Kevin Curtis for 18 yards, Holt for 14 yards, and Jackson for 24 yards to set up a 41-yard field-goal Wilkins attempt that hooked left, as the game went into overtime.

Washington got on the board on its first drive courtesy of T.J. Duckett, who rushed for 11 yards and then scored from five yards out for an early 7-0 lead with 6:41 remaining in the opening quarter.

The Rams responded right away in the second quarter. Bruce got his 80th career reception on a 10-yard touchdown pass from Bulger to cap an eight-play, 85-yard drive. Dominique Byrd then notched his first NFL reception on a 27- yard touchdown pass from Bulger with 9:49 remaining.

Washington capitalized on a blocked punt by Vernon Fox, as Betts needed just two plays to score from eight yards out for a 14-14 tie with 6:14 left. Cooley then caught a nine-yard touchdown pass from Campbell with 21 seconds left for a 21-14 Skins lead at halftime.

Betts kept it going in the second half, scoring on a seven-yard run with 8:49 remaining to cap an 11-play, 72-yard drive.

St. Louis answered when Jackson broke free for a 64-yard touchdown pass to cap a five-play, 82-yard drive with 6:30 remaining. Davis then caught his first touchdown pass as a Ram on a 10-yard shuffle pass to tie the score, 28-28, with 1:49 left in the third.

Game Notes

Washington cornerback Shawn Springs broke a shoulder blade in the first quarter...Bulger, Jackson and wide receiver Torry Holt were selected to the 2006 NFC Pro Bowl roster earlier this week...The Redskins hold a 20-7-1 lead in their all-time series with the Rams, but had a three-game winning streak snapped...Washington was a 24-9 road winner when the teams last matched up, in Week 13 of last season. The Rams' previous win in the series was a 23-20 road victory in 1997, and their most recent home victory against Washington came by a 10-6 count for the then-Los Angeles Rams in 1993...The Rams are 1-4 against the Redskins in St. Louis all-time. Washington had a seven-game winning streak in the city of St. Louis snapped since last losing there, to the Cardinals, in 1984.

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SPORTS BETTING: NFL Football Sportsbook Betting

NFL owners, already life's biggest winners, want to try their luck with the lottery.


That was the news out of their meetings last week, where team bosses voted unanimously to allow stamping state and local lottery tickets with franchise logos, if, ahem, any governments wanted to do a deal.

A shocker: Within days the Pats announced they'd be sponsoring the Massachusetts state lottery, the Skins said they'd slap their sticker on Virginia scratch-offs and the Ravens admitted they were talking to Maryland lottery bosses. In all likelihood, it won't be long before every team is a presenting sponsor of scratch-offs or just plain old pick fives. "The change in policy was approved 32-0," said NFL spokesman Greg Aiello. "So you can expect to see more deals soon."

It's a branding opportunity too big for the owners to ignore, and one a couple of dozen baseball franchises have enjoyed for years. The fact the NFL has been slower to act than those slack-brained Seligites is indicative of its complicated relationship with all forms of gambling. Consider this: Last Thursday, as the Pats and the Redskins finalized their new lottery deals, a lawyer representing the NFL argued before Delaware's Supreme Court that the state's newly signed sports betting law should be repealed.

The NFL betting is the face of opposition to sports gambling . And as much as it would like to share that responsibility with other leagues, that's not going to happen as long as more than 40% of all money legally wagered on games is bet on football. That's why the Brewers can do a multi-million dollar deal with a local casino, or the Celtics can make their own pact with the Mass lottery, and the response is, "Sweet, let's play." But when the NFL does it the stakes are higher, and everyone from NPR's Frank Deford to the Associated Press to the guys blogging at Deadspin will line up to play gotcha.

So I asked Aiello, who surely knew there'd be piling on, how the league can rail against being bait for sports bettors, then allow its franchises to be just that for lotteries, the most insidious and addictive form of gambling around. He emailed me this response: "We are not moral crusaders. NFL personnel are permitted to engage in legal forms of gambling, except for betting on NFL games. We are making a distinction here between the spread of gambling on the outcome of our games and supporting state lottery scratch-off games, that have nothing to do with the outcome of our games."

Here's where I should rip him. But, the thing is, he's right. Not to get Obama on you, but this is a complicated, nuanced issue. As much as lotteries are considered a tax on the poor, the NFL isn't a socially obligated government program -- it's just a business. Scratch-off's help the bottom line, sports betting doesn't. Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors … But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal.

Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors. And it's okay to mutter something obscene when the league pretends gambling doesn't help drive TV ratings and fan interest and put money in owners' pockets. But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal. The Bears should put an orange "C" on every deck of cards dealt at Harrah's in Joliet; the Eagles should slap their logo on roulette wheels at the Borgata in Atlantic City; the Dolphins should hold training camp at the El San Juan in Puerto Rico.

Seriously.

The NFL's problem, when it comes to the gambling world, isn't hypocrisy, it's worse: The bosses lack vision. That's why the league is picking unwinnable fights in Delaware and taking pot shots from critics after making smart sponsorship deals. Roger Goodell and his gang are acting and thinking locally rather than globally, which is rare for them, especially compared to their professional (and amateur) counterparts.

The NBA held its All Star game in Las Vegas and David Stern's kingdom didn't crumble (although the town did bring plenty of players to their knees.) I'd say it's 6 to 5 and pick 'em that Lebron will make a road swing through Sin City before his career is over.

Even the NCAA College Football Betting is more progressive on this issue than the NFL. Several years ago Rachel Newman Baker, college sports' gambling czar, opened a dialogue with Vegas bookmakers to learn about how they do business. She's visited Nevada sports books, studied their operations and listened to how they regulate action. Now she knows she can expect a call from bookmakers, who lose money when sports are fixed, if they think something sketchy is going on in NCAA games. She's not in favor of sports betting, but, as she once told me, "I know it's not going away, either."

The NFL can't seem to accept that. And until it can find peace with the idea, it'll get flack, even when it's right.

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