Case of the Mondays: It was Miller Time-Not the Panthers' Time

by Ricky Dimon - 2/8/2016

Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton

Just about everyone in the world had the Carolina Panthers-six-point favorites-beating the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl 50. How did that work out? Not well! Von Miller and the Denver defense befuddled Cam Newton and the Carolina offense for almost all of 60 minutes on Sunday. And "befuddled" may be putting it nicely. The Panthers turned the ball over an insurmountable four times in a surprising 24-10 loss.

All odds provided by BetOnline Sportsbook .

Cam Newton . Peyton Manning's dream ending (presumably) turned out to be Newton's worst nightmare. Not only did Carolina lose the football game, but it did so in just about the worst possible way for its star quarterback. Newton was sacked a ridiculous six times (a seventh Broncos' sack was credited on a failed halfback pass), took a hit on 13 occasions, and completed a mere 18 of 41 passes. The Panthers' offense could not do enough even though the defense forced two turnovers of its own and limited Denver to a meager 195 yards of total offense. Adding insult to injury, Newton did not help himself in the postgame interview room by borderline refusing to answer questions and walking out in the middle of the press conference. Carolina is a +800 favorite to win Super Bowl LI.

North Carolina . It has not been a good college basketball season for teams ranked No. 1 in the nation. Prior to last week, the Tar Heels had won 12 in a row to reach the top spot in the coaches poll and the second position on the AP chart. They won't be there any longer. UNC dropped both of its contests, as a 71-65 setback at Louisville preceded Saturday's 80-76 blemish at Notre Dame. The Heels led by as many as 15 points in the first half before the Fighting Irish stormed back. Notre Dame is a +2 underdog at Clemson tonight.

Louisville . Speaking of Louisville, its win over Carolina was exactly where the good news ended. Four days later, the school announced a self-imposed ban from postseason play. That means the Cardinals, who are 19-4 overall and 8-2 in the ACC, will not be a part of the NCAA Tournament. At their current rate, they would have been a top-four seed and arguably among the favorites to win it all. Instead, leading scorers and graduate transfers Damion Lee and Trey Lewis will never get a taste of the Big Dance. Louisville is a +3.5 road underdog at Duke on Monday night.

Jimmy Butler . Death, taxes, and the Chicago Bulls getting the injury bug-those are the three certainties of life. Whereas Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah have been known to be fragile, Butler for the most part is one of the few Bulls who have stayed healthy for extended periods of time. No longer is that the case. The star shooting guard suffered a strained left knee in last Friday's loss to Denver. He remained in the game to shoot free throws before being carted off to the locker room. Butler missed Saturday's setback against Minnesota and will not play tonight at Charlotte. There is no timetable for his return. The Bulls are +6 road underdogs against the Hornets.

Jason Spezza . The Dallas Stars' forward was placed on injured reserve last Friday, one day after getting checked headfirst into the boards by Colorado defenseman Francois Beauchemin. There is no timetable for Spezza's return. He had scored his 18^th goal earlier in the game, which the Stars eventually won 4-3 in overtime. The 32-year-old is tied for third on the team in goals, tied for fourth in points (40), and tied for first with five game-winning tallies. Dallas lit the lamp just once its first contest without Spezza, a blowout loss to the Blackhawks this past Saturday. The Stars, who were once 22-5-2, are now five points back of Chicago in the Central Division.They are a +800 third choice to win the Stanley Cup.

Rickie Fowler . It looked like Fowler had the Waste Management Phoenix Open locked up when he stuck his tee shot on famously raucous par-3 16^th on Sunday. With a two-streak lead already in hand, a birdie would have just about sealed the deal. But Fowler missed the putt, inexplicably went for the green in one on the par-4 17^th, drove it into the water, and bogeyed. The American eventually found himself in a playoff with Hideki Matsuyama. They returned to 17 on the fourth extra hole and Fowler once again found the drink off the tee. Matsuyama made par to Fowler's bogey to wrap up an improbable comeback victory. Fowler is +1600 win the Masters; Jordan Spieth is a +500 favorite.

Manchester City . Leicester City is now favored to win the English Premier League. Leicester. City. You cannot make this stuff up, folks. But why shouldn't it be? The Foxes took down Manchester City 3-1 this past weekend, thus padding their lead atop the standings to five points. Despite playing on the road in Etihad Stadium, Leicester City jumped on the home team with a goal in the third minute before extending its lead to 2-0 in the 48^th minute and 3-0 in the 60^th minute. Only a meaningless goal three minutes prior to stoppage time did the Sky Blues manage to avoid a bagel. Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur are in second place with 48 points, with Manchester City wallowing in fourth at 47 points. Leicester is a +200 favorite (tied with Arsenal) to lift the trophy.

Start:	November 23, 2024 @ 2:30 PM
Expert:	Tony George
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