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Joe Flacco went 23-for-34 through the air for 226 yards and two scores, but was intercepted twice in the third quarter as the Ravens (10-4) had their four-game win streak snapped.
Baltimore was guaranteed a playoff spot prior to the game, though, thanks to losses by the Jets and Titans earlier on Sunday.
The Chargers then marched down the field in 11 plays, converting the lone third down they saw with a nine-yard grab by Randy McMichael before Mike Tolbert capped the drive by rumbling into the end zone from two yards out.
Baltimore responded with a 13-play, 75-yard drive that stretched into the second quarter to tie the game at 7-7. Rice carried the load on the march, reeling off six runs for 30 yards before Flacco found Ed Dickson for a 15-yard score.
Nick Novak split the uprights from 45 yards out to put the Chargers up by three before Vincent Jackson's 58-yard reception down the left sideline set up Mathews' one-yard TD run in the final minute of the second quarter.
The Ravens then drove into San Diego territory to try and answer, but Flacco failed to see Chargers linebacker Takeo Spikes on a pass over the middle and Spikes picked the ball off, returning it across midfield.
Three plays later, San Diego's Shaun Phillips grabbed a short pass intended for Rice at the Baltimore 27, but Novak's 37-yard field goal try bounced off the right upright to keep the score the same.
Game Notes
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Two of the most successful teams of this 2011 NFL season will go head-to-head under the Monday night lights when the defending AFC champion Pittsburgh Steelers pay a visit to Candlestick Park to take on the playoff-bound San Francisco 49ers, though some of the luster of this otherwise marquee matchup may be removed due to the potential absence of a pair of star players. The Steelers will enter this high-profile showdown with quarterback Ben Roethlisberger a question mark due to an ankle sprain he suffered in the team's most recent win, while All-Pro outside linebacker James Harrison is guaranteed to sit out the contest after being handed a one-game suspension by the league office for an illegal hit on Cleveland quarterback Colt McCoy during Pittsburgh's 14-3 triumph over the Browns on Dec. 8.
"I'm going to do everything I can to be out there; it's probably more on [the coaches]," said Roethlisberger, who finished 16-of-21 for 280 yards with two touchdown strikes and one interception in the gritty performance. "If I'm not out there it's probably because they didn't feel comfortable with me being out there to protect myself or whatever it is. They know better than I do."
Harrison, on the other hand, has no chance of suiting up after the NFL upheld its ban on the hard-hitting defender on Friday for his helmet-to-helmet shot on McCoy. The 2008 Defensive Player of the Year was fined four times by the league last season for violations of safety rules.
The Steelers prevailed for the fourth straight game and eighth time in nine outings with their Week 14 decision over Cleveland, and now hold a half-game edge on rival Baltimore for first place in the AFC North standings after the Ravens' loss at San Diego on Sunday. Pittsburgh also clinched a playoff berth for the fourth time in five years due to Sunday's happenings and would be in the driver's seat for the conference's No. 1 overall seed if able to down the 49ers.
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Muller Place Smash Salvage Over Club
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Underdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.
Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.
Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.
If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.
Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.
By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.
In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.
So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.
While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.
There, they played spoiler to New England’s bid to become the first 19-0 team in NFL history and cemented their place in sports betting lore with a 17-14 win as a 12.5-point underdog.
In other words, the Cardinals appear to have their work cut out for them as a mid-range underdog. But in homage to the spread beaters who have come before them, here is a brief look back at recent colossal upsets in the Super Bowl:
SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.
XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.
XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.
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