While some might have been surprised with the ending to this year’s NFL opener, there was a fair share of sports betting fans who predicted the Broncos would repeat. While a Broncos win might have been expected, what wasn’t foreseen was how effective Denver would be at replacing a legend.
On paper Trevor Siemian didn’t look that impressive. But the confidence he displayed by the way he conducted himself on the field speaks volumes about the potential of this young star. Sure Siemian threw two interceptions, but what else can you expect when your career start is against the defense that made it to the Super Bowl. But the real headline wasn’t about how Siemian came through for everyone’s bet on NFL’s 2016 opener, no, it was about the injustice the league displayed against Cam Newton.
First off, it’s well known fact by now that officials are much tougher on Cam Newton than they are on Tom Brady. If anyone lays a finger on Brady the first thing you see is sharp yellow blur that flies in the air like fireworks. But because Newton is bigger and known for his toughness officials are hesitant to throw as many flags. There were several hits in Thursday’s openers that should have been called against the Broncos but weren’t because they were banging up Newton – but that’s completely unacceptable. Second, there was one hit in particular that left Newton on the ground. At this point the game should have been stopped by a player, a coach, or a referee in order to check on Newton’s health.
These aren’t the leather helmet days of football and with all the new information that has come out regarding concussions and CTE it’s completely intolerable for this sort of behavior to go on. The NFL introduced new protocols to punish teams who fail to properly take a player out of the game to check on him, but apparently more steps need to be taken. Otherwise players might choose basketball over football and without athletes there won’t be any games, and as a consequence, no sports betting lines. In the fallout following the game the NFL has announced that it will look into the response by medical personnel.
Either way the Panthers will be looking to put this game behind them and focus on their next opponent, the San Francisco 49ers. Let’s check the sports betting odds to see how the reigning NFC Champions fare against one of the worst teams in the NFC West.
Week 2 Sunday, September 18th
San Francisco 49ers +13 (-107) 45 ½ (-110)
Carolina Panthers -13 (-113) 45 ½ (-110)
San Francisco opened the season with a 28-0 home opener. However, more can be said about their opponent, the Los Angeles Rams, than can be said about the Niners. With the conclusion of Monday’s game, the Los Angeles Rams haven’t scored since 1994. The spread favors the Panthers – 13 seems a little low though – and Carolina will be eager to put up a strong showing, especially after how weak they looked against the Broncos. If the Panthers win it won’t do much for their team, due to the tremendous expectations surrounding Newton’s offense. But if the Niners win they’ll no only validate Andy Reid, but they’ll also become the frontrunners to win the NFC West, as long as Seattle doesn’t have anything to say about that.