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FloridaPatsFan said:He used to work for a mob bookie and knows how this stuff works. Yes, the Colts were pre-ordained to go to the SB but Pitt played well enough to overcome some of the most blatant one-sided refereeing any of us can recall seeing. We as Pats fans, know what its like to have to beat a team and OVERCOME blatant poor officiating. I am saying that the game was supposed to go to the Colts. The game was not on the level. However you want me to say it. My friend did not have inside information on this game but he has proven time and again to me that he knows what he is talking about.
I will give you a tip on the Seahawks/Panthers game. Anytime a betting line moves down 2 points (The Hawks were 5.5 point faves on monday and its down to 3.5 by friday) says one thing.....A MOUNTAIN of money moves the line 1 point so there is more than that being bet on Carolina. Now, some of this money is bet on Carolina covering the spread, but its mostly bet on who will win the game. If the Seahawks win(or cover the spread), Vegas wins HUGE. If I were a betting man on this game, I would take the points and the Seahawks now. As for the other part of the NFL picking who will go to the superbowl, The Panthers have Steve Smith (not yet a household name), the Hawks have Shawn Alexander, the NFL MVP and TD's recordholder....People will want to see him in the SB. Now Carolina could overcome the Hawks and the officiating and win the game but my bet says that the refs call the game in favor of the Seahawks.
You are partially right, but mostly wrong. Lines move when too much money comes in for one particular team. The reason the lines move in any direction is to even off the money that has been placed. The bookmakers goal is to have all of the money evenly split between both clubs, then they win by the "vigorish" , the "vig", the percentage the house takes from each bet it charges for making book. The games cannot easily be fixed, especially at the pro level. Sure, occasionally, a ref or a player can be reached by your "mob" but that is a very rare occurance in the NFL. Fixed games do happen in college a little more frequently as it is easier to reach fringe college players that may be needy or be in trouble. Their influence is limited to a play or two and coudl be enough to affect the outcome of a game if the player or ref is in a position at the right time to do something.
The edge that certain bookmakers get is from information gathering. A good bookmaker is adept at gaining information about many facets of the game and using that information to set his line and make his decisions as to which way to lay down and influence the flow of capitol to bring about the 50/50 split.
To summarize, the game is NOT fixed, no way, it is a hugely popular sport with an enormous honest and above board cash flow. Their is no clear cut real beneficiary of a 'fixed" game that you can come up with. The Patriots lost because in this game they were not able to overcome the adversity that came their way in this game.