The countdown continues to the start of the NFL betting season, and here at Bankroll Sports, we are focusing in on the Top 10 quarterbacks for 2012 and which ones we would want to be leading the biggest drive of the game if our season was on the line.

1: Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints: Brees isn’t the biggest guy in the world, but he is one of the smartest quarterbacks that the game has to offer. The Purdue Boilermaker essentially revived football in the Bayou, bringing a Super Bowl to a city that had just been through absolute tragedy just a few years before with Hurricane Katrina. Not only is his bond with TE Jimmy Graham as good as the bond that any receiver has with his QB in the league, but Brees can also say that he is the only man in the league’s history to throw for 5,000 yards twice in a season.

2: Tom Brady, New England Patriots: It’s only going to take a few throws into the 2012 season before Brady has 40,000 passing yards for his career, and he ended last season at a nice round 300 TDs as well. Brady just keeps getting better with age, and he put together yet another impressive year in 2011, throwing for 5,235 yards and 39 TDs. He has a great crop of receivers, including the best tight end duo in football, and as long as all of that stays intact and he remains upright, Brady is one of the best in the biz.

3: Eli Manning, New York Giants: What really impresses us about Peyton’s little brother is that he has the moxie to be able to win regardless of his situation. Manning’s biggest throw of his career went to WR David Tyree, who was basically nothing more than an average fourth receiver on most teams. When he lost WR Plaxico Burress and WR Amani Toomer in the same season, all he did was go out and make a Pro Bowler out of Hakeem Nicks and a big time receiving out of Mario Manningham. Baby Manning might not have the longevity or the career numbers of his brother, but those two rings speak awfully, awfully loudly.

4: Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers: We really might be screwing Rodgers over here, as he probably should be higher up on the list than this. After all, he took a team with no running game and no defense whatsoever to a 15-1 record last season, and it wasn’t his fault that his defense could stop the Giants in the playoffs. Rodgers easily led the league in quarterback rating last year at 122.5, smashing the NFL record in the process, and he is deserving of being called one of the Top 5 quarterbacks in the NFL.

5: Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers: Remember that this isn’t a fantasy football list. This is a list of quarterbacks that we would want leading our team in real games. Big Ben is as tough as they come, and assuming that his head is screwed on straight, there aren’t many quarterbacks that we would rather have down four with 80 yards to go. Roethlisberger is going to throw the ball more this year under new OC Todd Haley, and when he throws for upwards of 5,000 yards, it should be a reminder that the Steelers didn’t win two Super Bowls by accident under Roethlisberger’s direction.

6: Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions: We finally saw what Stafford was able to do when he was fully healthy. The former No. 1 overall pick threw for 5,038 yards and 41 TDs in 2012, and he proved that he can really lead a team. He chucked the ball a whopping 663 times last year, easily the most in the league, and he made up for a team that had no rushing game and no defense, just like the situation that Rodgers was in with the Pack. More importantly though, Stafford got the Lions to the playoffs, and the last man that was able to say that was Barry Sanders. If you’re in the same discussion with Barry, regardless of what the context is, you’ve done something truly special.

7: Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers: This can’t possibly all be Rivers’ fault. The Chargers have had all of the talent in the world over the course of the last six or seven years, yet they perennial underachieve even though Rivers puts up some amazing numbers. Remember that this is a man that has thrown for nearly 25,000 yards already in his career. Still, the lack of big wins in big games and the fact that he has never sniffed the Super Bowl keeps Rivers out of the Top 5, but there is no denying his skill and the fact that he is a legitimate Top 10 quarterback in this league.

8: Joe Flacco, Baltimore Ravens: Mock Flacco if you must, but remember how many playoff wins that he has over the course of the last several years. It’s not like this is just a running team with RB Ray Rice either. Flacco threw the ball 542 times last year, and he had 3,610 yards through the air with 20 scores. Those are pedestrian numbers when you compare them to some of the other big names out there, but we have to remember that the Baltimore defense often shut down opposing offenses, giving Flacco the chance to hand the ball off more. He’s not a waste though, and we think that he is one of the Top 10 QBs in football.

9: Cam Newton, Carolina Panthers: One year definitely doesn’t make a quarterback, but when it is the best year that a rookie has ever had in the league, it definitely is worth noting. Newton looks like a bigger, stronger Michael Vick on the field, and that’s why Newton is on this list and Vick isn’t. We still want to see whether Newton can win games that matter at this level like he did at Auburn, but we have more confidence in him than we do in some of the other quarterbacks that you might think should be in the Top 10.

10: Andrew Luck, Indianapolis Colts: Sure, we hear the complaints right now over Tony Romo, Matt Ryan, and Matt Schaub, but how many playoff wins do those quarterbacks have combined? Zero. Plus, we know that the Colts gave up on Peyton Manning when the opportunity arose to get Luck in the NFL Draft. Manning has too many risk concerns with his neck and he is at the end of his career. Luck is considered an absolutely can’t miss, once in a generation type of prospect, and though we haven’t seen him throw a pass yet at the NFL level in a game that counts, we know that he has the goods to get the job done, and we would expect nothing but a smashing success of a career from the Stanford product.

There are a number of big time rookies on the defensive side of the ball that have a lot of potential this year, and NFL betting fans are going to have a tough time sorting out who should win the Defensive Rookie of the Year award. Check out these NFL betting futures odds on which player will walk away with this illustrious defensive honor.

The top defensive player drafted this year was Morris Claiborne (Odds To Win Rookie of the Year: 6 to 1 @ WagerWeb Sportsbook). We know that Mo has a heck of a lot of talent; just ask his college coach, Les Miles. Claiborne has the potential to step right into the secondary of the Dallas Cowboys and make a big difference, especially knowing that he is already on a ‘D’ with some talent. That being said, it is usually awfully difficult for a rookie DB to come in and win the Rookie of the Year honors, knowing that interceptions don’t usually come as often as sacks, and certainly not as often as tackles. It would take a yeoman’s effort this year for Claiborne to win the Rookie of the Year honor.

And that’s why we think that the top linebacker that was taken in the NFL Draft, Luke Kuechly (Rookie of the Year Odds: 5 to 1 @ WagerWeb Sportsbook) could be the man that walks away with the honor. Kuechly was a tackling machine in college for the Boston College Eagles, and though we think that he was drafted a good 6-8 spots too high, we do have a real appreciation for what his new team, the Carolina Panthers are trying to do. The Panthers play a heck of a lot of defense, and teams usually try to run the ball down their throats with their weak defensive line. That’s how Kuechly set all sorts of records in college with tackles. He has a nose for the football, and when he gets going, there might not be a lineman in the league that can keep him from getting his hands in on the tackle on a running play up the gut. Don’t be all that shocked if Kuechly ends up with well over 100 tackles for the season, and if that turns out to be the case, he’ll be the Defensive Rookie of the Year.

We feel like the Tampa Bay Buccaneers made a great selection when they took Mark Barron (Top Rookie Safety To Win Rookie of the Year: 12 to 1 @ WagerWeb Sportsbook) with the sixth pick in the NFL Draft. Barron just knows how to win. He can come up and make tackles against the run, and he is a ball hawker in the secondary as well. Barron is the man that was picked by Head Coach Greg Schiano thanks to his leadership and his skills, and he could end up bringing that sense to the Tampa Bay secondary, just as John Lynch did when the Bucs were at their best in franchise history. We don’t know if those intangibles will end up helping Barron win the Rookie of the Year Award, but we definitely want to keep a close eye on his stats, which might be good enough at the end as well.

Defensive linemen this year might be a tad tough. We’d be willing to give a shot to Bruce Irvin (Defensive Rookie of the Year Betting Lines: 20 to 1 @ WagerWeb Sportsbook) of the Seattle Seahawks. We think that Irvin and Whitney Mercilus have the best chance to lead all rookies in sacks this year. Head Coach Pete Carroll has been looking for pass rushers for quite some time, and Irvin might be the man that is able to do that. A lot of these West Virginia defenders have proven to be vicious at the next level, and Irvin might be the next in line to really make an impact at the NFL level. Carroll, a defensive specialist, believes that picked the best pass rusher in this draft, and if that really is the case, this could be the Defensive Rookie of the Year at a very, very nice price.

Odds To Win Defensive Rookie of the Year @ WagerWeb Sportsbook (as of 7/26/12):
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Bruce Irvin20 to 1
Casey Hayward 15 to 1
Chandler Jones 8 to 1
Courtney Upshaw 10 to 1
Dont’a Hightower 10 to 1
Dontari Poe 15 to 1
Dre Kirkpatrick 10 to 1
Fletcher Cox 10 to 1
Harrison Smith 15 to 1
Janoris Jenkins 15 to 1
Jerel Worthy 25 to 1
Luke Kuechly 5 to 1
Mark Barron 12 to 1
Melvin Ingram 18 to 1
Michael Brockers 18 to 1
Morris Claiborne 6 to 1
Mychal Kendricks 15 to 1
Nick Perry 10 to 1
Quinton Coples 15 to 1
Stephon Gilmore 15 to 1

It was only five years ago that the Stanford Cardinal, a tiny little team that was on the upswing coached by Jim Harbaugh, came into the LA Coliseum and shocked the USC Trojans as 39-point underdogs. Since that point, these two have played back and forth football, including some tremendously competitive games. Now that USC is back from its probation, this could be a heck of a clash in the Pac-12, and it might be a preview of the Pac-12 Championship Game if the chips end up falling right for both teams. Coaches on both sides have changed, and both teams have gone through some massive overhauls, but in the end, the results should still be the same. There is a reason that this is the No. 9 game in our list of the Top 25 college football matchups of the season.

USC Trojans vs. Stanford Cardinal Picks & Info
USC Trojans vs. Stanford Cardinal Date: Saturday, September 15th
USC Trojans vs. Stanford Cardinal Location: Stanford Stadium, Palo Alto, CA
USC Trojans vs. Stanford Cardinal Spread: USC Trojans -11.5

After last year’s loss to Stanford in overtime at the Coliseum, the Trojans figure to be out for blood. They have actually lost three in a row in this series, and this is a part of the reason why QB Matt Barkley has come back to school for his final year. Barkley is one of the many future NFLers that will be on the field in this game on both sides, and a lot of them are going to be wearing the colors of the Trojans. Still, you have to go back to 2008 to find the last time that USC was able to come into “The Farm” and post a victory, and at that point, Stanford was still a team that was up and coming. The defense is what is going to be challenged for USC, as the Cardinal have dropped 56, 37, and 55 points on the board against the Trojans over the course of the last three seasons, something that Head Coach Lane Kiffin is surely going to be pointing out to his team when this one comes up on the schedule.

USC Trojans vs. Stanford Cardinal Past Games (Since 1995)
2011: Stanford 56 – USC 48
2010: Stanford 37 – USC 35
2009: Stanford 55 – USC 21
2008: USC 45 – Stanford 23
2007: Stanford 24 – USC 23
2006: USC 42 – Stanford 0
2005: USC 51 – Stanford 21
2004: USC 31 – Stanford 28
2003: USC 44 – Stanford 21
2002: USC 49 – Stanford 17
2001: Stanford 21 – USC 16
2000: Stanford 32 – USC 30
1999: Stanford 35 – USC 31
1998: USC 35 – Stanford 9
1997: USC 45 – Stanford 21
1996: Stanford 24 – USC 20

We haven’t spoken a heck of a lot about the Cardinal this year, but we still think that they are going to be a dangerous team in spite of the fact that QB Andrew Luck is now playing with the Indianapolis Colts. QB Brett Nottingham is a heady player, and he learned at the feet of Luck to be able to come into this position. This might be the time for him to shine. He has a great offensive line in front of him even though OL David DeCastro elected to go to the NFL early. There are four returners, and a heck of a lot of tight ends that know what they are doing both in the passing game and the blocking game. RB Stepfan Taylor could be in for a massive game this time around, almost like what RB Toby Gerhart was able to do to the Trojans a few years ago when these teams played here in Palo Alto.

USC @ Stanford Free Picks^^: The hype that has surrounded USC over the course of the last few months has been out of this world. There is no doubt whatsoever that the Trojans have the superiorly talented team, but we have to remember that Stanford has covered nine out of the last 13 here in this series. That’s definitely not a mistake. Especially for a game that is being played here “On the Farm,” it could be a heck of a challenge for the Men of Troy. We definitely want the points on our side, and we wouldn’t be all that shocked if there is an upset that is in the cards.

^^Please Note: The USC @ Stanford picks listed above on our sports betting blog are made by our staff writers. These football picks are based upon the betting lines listed in August 2012 and do not reflect the actual expert handicapping picks at Bankroll Sports. Click Here to receive our premium expert handicappers NCAA Football Picks for the 2012 campaign.

You can purchase our premium USC vs. Stanford picks from our experts on Saturday, 9/15

Another day, another Top 10 list for NFL betting fans to enjoy here at Bankroll Sports. Today, our countdown to the 2012 NFL season continues with a look at the Top 10 running backs in the NFL for the upcoming season.

1: Ray Rice, Baltimore Ravens: The things that Rice does for the Ravens are out of this world. This is a man that has played just four seasons in the league and has started for just three full seasons, yet he already has over 6,600 total yards from scrimmage. Rice has at least 60 receptions and at least 250 carries in each of the last three years, and he has accounted for at least 1,775 yards from scrimmage per season in that time. Forget about the touchdowns; others can do that. But no back moves the ball up and down the field like Rice does, and that clearly makes him the most valuable running back in the league.

2: LeSean McCoy, Philadelphia, Eagles: McCoy does a lot of the same things for the Eagles that Rice does for the Ravens, except this is a man that has a nose for the end zone as well. The Pitt Panther is a surprisingly bruising back even though he is just 5’11” and 208 lbs. He had 1,309 rushing yards and 17 scores last year in just 15 games, and he is clearly one of the up and comers that this league has at the running back position.

3: Maurice Jones-Drew, Jacksonville Jaguars: We’ve heard him referred to as a “Little Ball of Hate” and the “Human Bowling Ball,” but whatever you want to call him, MJD is the real deal. He led the league in rushing last year on a Jacksonville squad that literally had no offensive line and zip for a passing game. We think that Jones-Drew is absolutely right to be holding out, especially knowing that he has run the ball an average of 20.7 times per game over the course of the last three years, accounting for a whopping 4,321 yards and 28 scores on the ground with over 1,000 more yards as a receiver in that stretch. If not for his holdout and the fear of a “Chris Johnson-esque” drop off, we would definitely have MJD rated at No. 1.

4: Chris Johnson, Tennessee Titans: There’s no way that Johnson can drop out of our Top 5. He had a bad season last year, but that doesn’t mean that he isn’t one of the most feared backs in the league. It wasn’t a mistake that he had a 2,000-yard campaign two seasons ago. CJ2K is the real deal, and he’ll be back in the saddle this year as one of the best backs in the league now that he isn’t facing the pressure of living up to his new contract out of a holdout.

5: Matt Forte, Chicago Bears: Forte is another one of these running backs that does it on the ground and in the passing game. He was rewarded with a new contract in the offseason by the Bears, and it’s a good thing that they did that. This is a man that has accounted for an average of 103.6 total yards per game over the course of his four years in the Windy City. The Tulane product is coming off of an injury that cost him the final four games of last season, but we think that Forte is going to be primed and ready to go for a big time 2012.

6: Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings: The only thing that is keeping All Day out of our Top 5 running backs is that ACL injury that he is coming off of that might cost him the very start of the season. Peterson is as talented of a back as there is, but we are just very cautious over this knee injury, one of the many knocks that he has suffered in his career.

7: Darren McFadden, Oakland Raiders: Here is another man that is capable of being the best running back in football if given the opportunity to do so. Run DMC, just like Peterson, has all of the talent in the world, and he was leading the league in rushing last year before suffering what turned out to be a season-ending injury. Of course, there is a question as to whether it is McFadden or the Oakland offensive line that made him look that good, knowing that Michael Bush was able to step into the fold and do basically all of the same things that Run DMC was able to do in the second half of the season.

8: Trent Richardson, Cleveland Browns: We might not see it this year, but Richardson is going to be every bit as good of a back as any on this list. He’s big, he’s strong, he can run between the tackles, and that speed burst that he was able to show when he got into space in college was no mistake; he’ll do the same thing at the NFL level. The only question is whether Richardson can really do this game in and game out in the NFL right away as a rookie on a team that is still atrocious. We think that he will.

9: Arian Foster, Houston Texans: Sure, we hear you. Foster had 1,200+ yards last season in a year that he was injured, and he is perennially one of the Top 5 picks in fantasy football. So how can he be down at No. 9 on our list of the Top 10 running backs in the league? The same reason that McFadden is down so low. When Foster was out of the fold, Ben Tate was able to really do some damage, and in the end, both guys almost ended up being 1,000-yard backs. We still aren’t all that convinced that Foster, who was an undrafted rookie just a few years ago, is the more talented of the two backs, but we do recognize that this Houston offensive line is the real deal and is the best unit in the league.

10: Michael Turner, Atlanta Falcons: Ryan Mathews, Marshawn Lynch, Frank Gore, Steven Jackson, and Willis McGahee all want to know why they aren’t on this list at all, but we think that Turner has proven over the years that he is worthy of being called a Top 10 back in the NFL. Last year, he was third in the league in rushing 1,340 yards. Remember that this is a man that is only 5’10”, but he does weigh 247 pounds. He started as a bit of a scat back behind LaDainian Tomlinson in San Diego before coming to Atlanta, and since that point, he has been awesome. “The Burner” has averaged 20.2 carries for 89.5 yards and 0.85 touchdowns per game as a rusher over the course of the last four years, and short of Jones-Drew, no back can say that. Still, Turner isn’t a valuable blocker in the passing game, nor is he a great receiver, which is why he is down on this list against some of the other more versatile RBs in the NFL.

The 2012 college football betting campaign is officially more than a week old, and here at Bankroll Sports, we are going to be keeping tabs on the Week 2 schedule, chock full of all of our Week 2 CFB picks and an NCAA football odds analysis.

The week begins on Thursday in the Big East with the first game of the year for the Cincinnati Bearcats. They have some high hopes that this will be a year in which they can get back to the BCS. However, the team that they are playing against, the Pitt Panthers, know that they badly need to make a comeback after getting embarrassed by Youngstown State last week in the home opener. Needless to say, it wasn’t the opener that Head Coach Paul Chryst thought that he was getting into. The Bearcats probably wouldn’t have been favored by all that much had this game been played last week, but after watching U-Pitt get trashed by an FCS team, UC is getting the nod by 3.5 points.

On Friday, it’s off to the Beehive State, where the Utah Utes and the Utah State Aggies are going to square off with one another. Both teams were able to beat FCS opponents last week, but we really probably didn’t learn all that much from those games. What we do know is that the Aggies haven’t won a game in this series in a dozen tries, and that is a streak that they will hope to end when they host the Utes in what might be the closest game that these two have played in years. Utah State is going to be hyped for this one on national television, and it is only an underdog by a touchdown.

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Saturday’s college football schedule really doesn’t have all that much in the way of featured games. There isn’t a game on the docket in which two teams that started hte season ranked in the Top 25 are going to be playing each other, and that isn’t likely to change when the new rankings come out. Maybe the marquee game pits the Florida Gators against the Texas A&M Aggies in the first game for the Aggies in the SEC. A&M had its game cancelled against Louisiana Tech last week, while the Gators really didn’t look all that sharp against the Bowling Green Falcons. QB Jeff Driskel has been named the starting quarterback for the Gators, but it isn’t impressing the oddsmakers. Texas A&M, in its first game with a new head coach (Kevin Sumlin) and a new quarterback (Johnny Manziel) is favored by 1.5 points.

This is also the week for the first SEC game for the Missouri Tigers. The Tigers probably have the toughest transition into a new conference in the country, but at least they get their first SEC game in Columbia. It’ll be a tough task as well for the Georgia Bulldogs, who are amped up and ready to go, ranked in the Top 10 in the nation. Head Coach Mark Richt and the crew are thinking about a National Championship this year, but they are only laying 3.5 on the road in this one.

One of the top mid major teams in the nation this year, the UCF Knights are going to have a chance to put themselves on the map when they go into the Horseshoe to take on the Ohio State Buckeyes. Both of these teams looked awfully impressive in their openers, but this is going to be a better litmus test for both than what we saw last week when Ohio State trounced the Miami Redhawks and UCF beat up the Akron Zips. Many think that this could be a game in which the Bucks are on upse alert, but the college football odds suggest differently. UCF is getting 17.5 points.

That’s really the theme this coming Saturday, though. There are currently 43 games on the board for this coming week. Of those games, 14 feature college football spreads of at least 21 points, whereas just 15 games have point spreads of seven points or fewer.

There definitely are some storylines to watch, though. The Alabama Crimson Tide are laying 40 againts the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers in what amounts to be the biggest point spread of the week between two FBS teams. Of course, the biggest favorite is going to be the Florida State Seminoles against the Savannah State Tigers. The FCS reps were smashed 84-0 by the Oklahoma State Cowboys last week, and the Big XII reps opened up as 67.5 point favorites. Florida State will likely be the biggest favorite that we have ever seen in college football when this line comes out over the weekend.

Meanwhile in Evanston, both the Vanderbilt Commodores and the Northwestern Wildcats are going to be hoping to build off of positive starts to their seasons. The ‘Dores were beaten in a gritty game on opening night against the South Carolina Gamecocks, but the Wildcats won the game of the week after figuring out how to take care of the Syracuse Orange at the Carrier Dome after blowing a huge lead. Vanderbilt is laying a field goal, but you can bet that there will be bowl mania at Ryan Field, as the Wildcats are a bowl hungry team, and the crowd has to be excited with what QB Kain Colter is bringing to the table.

The Texas State Bobcats are going to be playing their first game at home in their FBS history, and they have a lot to be thrilled about. They were able to go on the road and beat the Houston Cougars last week as humongous underdogs, and this week, they are catching 17.5 at home against the Texas Tech Red Raiders.

Other notable games on the Week 2 college football schedule… LSU is laying 23.5 to Washington… Oregon State is going to have its work cut out for it playing against Wisconsin at Reser Stadium, where the hosts are catching 7.5 points… Notre Dame, fresh off of its romp of Navy, gets to come home, where it is laying 14.5 to Purdue… Massachusetts will be playing its first home game since becoming an FBS team this weekend, and it gets as easy of a draw as it could ask against an Indiana team that hasn’t beaten many FBS teams over the course of the last few seasons. The Minutemen are still 13.5 point underdogs, though.

2012 NCAA Football Week 2 Odds @ 5Dimes Sportsbook (as of 9/6/12):
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Week 2 Betting Lines for Thursday, 9/6/12

301 Pittsburgh Panthers +5.5
302 Cincinnati Bearcats -5.5
Over/Under 49

Lines for Week 2 for Friday, 9/7/12

303 Utah Utes -8
304 Utah State Aggies +8
Over/Under 52.5

Week 2 Odds for Saturday, 9/8/12

305 Penn State Nittany Lions +10
306 Virginia Cavaliers -10
Over/Under 45

307 Indiana Hoosiers -14
308 Massachusetts Minutemen +14
Over/Under 49

309 Air Force Falcons +21.5
310 Michigan Wolverines -21.5
Over/Under 60.5

311 New Mexico State Aggies +21.5
312 Ohio Bobcats -21.5
Over/Under 58.5

313 Kent State Golden Flashes +7
314 Kentucky Wildcats -7
Over/Under 44

315 UCF Knights +18
316 Ohio State Buckeyes -18
Over/Under 50.5

317 Idaho Vandals +16.5
318 Bowling Green Falcons -16.5
Over/Under 50

319 Ball State Cardinals +27.5
320 Clemson Tigers -27.5
Over/Under 65.5

321 Rice Owls +10
322 Kansas Jayhawks -10
Over/Under 62

323 Toledo Rockets +3
324 Wyoming Cowboys -3
Over/Under 57.5

325 North Carolina Tar Heels -10.5
326 Wake Forest Demon Deacons +10.5
Over/Under 54

327 Georgia Bulldogs -2.5
328 Missouri Tigers +2.5
Over/Under 54.5

329 Miami Hurricanes +7
330 Kansas State Wildcats -7
Over/Under 56

331 Michigan State Spartans -20
332 Central Michigan Chippewas +20
Over/Under 48

333 USC Trojans -26
334 Syracuse Orange +26
Over/Under 62.5

335 Purdue Boilermakers +14
336 Notre Dame Fighting Irish -14
Over/Under 52

337 South Florida Bulls +2
338 Nevada Wolf Pack -2
Over/Under 54.5

339 Wisconsin Badgers -7
340 Oregon State Beavers +7
Over/Under 51.5

341 Fresno State Bulldogs +35
342 Oregon Ducks -35
Over/Under 77.5

343 East Carolina Pirates +21
344 South Carolina Gamecocks -21
Over/Under OTB

345 Iowa State Cyclones +4.5
346 Iowa Hawkeyes -4.5
Over/Under 48.5

347 Washington Huskies +24
348 LSU Tigers -24
Over/Under 53

349 UTEP Miners +7.5
350 Ole Miss Rebels -7.5
Over/Under 56

351 Auburn Tigers +3
352 Mississippi State Bulldogs -3
Over/Under 47

353 Texas Tech Red Raiders -18
354 Texas State Bobcats +18
Over/Under 60.5

355 Maryland Terrapins +10
356 Temple Owls -10
Over/Under 45.5

357 New Mexico Lobos +38
358 Texas Longhorns -38
Over/Under 52

359 Florida Gators +1.5
360 Texas A&M Aggies -1.5
Over/Under 50

361 Louisiana Tech Bulldogs -3.5
362 Houston Cougars +3.5
Over/Under 60.5

363 Nebraska Cornhuskers -6
364 UCLA Bruins +6
Over/Under 60.5

365 Army Black Knights +6
366 San Diego State Aztecs -6
Over/Under 50

367 North Carolina State Wolfpack -4.5
368 Connecticut Huskies +4.5
Over/Under 48.5

369 Tulane Green Wave +25.5
370 Tulsa Golden Hurricane -25.5
Over/Under 56.5

371 Vanderbilt Commodores -3.5
372 Northwestern Wildcats +3.5
Over/Under 54.5

373 Duke Blue Devils +15
374 Stanford Cardinal -15
Over/Under 57

375 Oklahoma State Cowboys -10
376 Arizona Wildcats +10
Over/Under 69.5

377 Illinois Fighting Illini +3.5
378 Arizona State Sun Devils -3.5
Over/Under 48.5

379 Akron Zips +24
380 Florida International Golden Panthers -24
Over/Under 54

381 Louisiana Lafayette Ragin’ Cajuns +3
382 Troy Trojans -3
Over/Under 62

383 Florida Atlantic Owls +9.5
384 Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders -9.5
Over/Under 47.5

385 Memphis Tigers +23
386 Arkansas State Red Wolves -23
Over/Under 59.5

387 Louisiana Monroe Warhawks +30.5
388 Arkansas Razorbacks -30.5
Over/Under 60.5

389 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers +39
390 Alabama Crimson Tide -39
Over/Under 54

101 New Hampshire Wildcats +12.5
102 Minnesota Golden Gophers -12.5

103 Southern Illinois Salukis +18.5
104 Miami Redhawks -18.5

105 Maine Black Bears +20.5
106 Boston College Eagles -20.5

107 Austin Peay Governors +49
108 Virginia Tech Hokies -49

109 North Dakota State Bison +3.5
110 Colorado State Rams -3.5

111 Southern Utah Thunderbirds +29.5
112 California Golden Bears -29.5

113 Weber State Wildcats +38.5
114 BYU Cougars -38.5

115 Cal State Sacramento Hornets +21.5
116 Colorado Buffaloes -21.5

117 Missouri State Bears +28.5
118 Louisville Cardinals -28.5

119 Eastern Washington Eagles +11.5
120 Washington State Cougars -11.5

121 Howard Bison +45
122 Rutgers Scarlet Knights -45

123 Savannah State Tigers +64
124 Florida State Seminoles -64

125 Morgan State Bears +28.5
126 Buffalo Bulls -28.5

127 Western Carolina Catamounts +29
128 Marshall Thundering Herd -29

129 Nicholls State Colonels +17
130 South Alabama Jaguars -17

131 Presbyterian Blue Hose +39.5
132 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets -39.5

133 Texas Southern Tigers +38
134 North Texas Mean Green -38

135 Eastern Illinois Panthers +24
136 Western Michigan Broncos -24

137 Tennessee Martin Skyhawks +26
138 Northern Illinois Huskies -26

139 Florida A&M Rattlers +51.5
140 Oklahoma Sooners -51.5

141 Georgia State Panthers +49.5
142 Tennessee Volunteers -49.5

143 Illinois State Redbirds +3.5
144 Eastern Michigan Eagles -3.5

145 Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks +17.5
146 SMU Mustangs -17.5

147 Grambling Tigers +53
148 TCU Horned Frigs -53

149 UC Davis Aggies +20.5
150 San Jose State Spartans -20.5

151 Northern Arizona Lumberjacks +13.5
152 UNLV Runnin’ Rebels -13.5

The wide receiver position in the NFL is one that has been growing quite a bit over the course of the last few years, as there are some legitimate stars that are really shining in this next generation. Here at Bankroll Sports, as a part of our countdown to the 2012 NFL season, we are taking a look at the Top 10 Wide Receivers in Football.

1: Calvin Johnson, Detroit Lions: Simply put, the Megatron is awesome. He led the league in receiving with 1,681 yards, and he found the end zone 16 times, tops amongst wide receivers. This is a talented specimen of a receiver that can burn you down the sidelines just as easily as he can go into traffic and catch a ball in a crowd or out-jump a DB in the end zone. Simply put Johnson is the best, and he is really the reason that Detroit has one of the most dynamic offenses in the league.

2: Andre Johnson, Houston Texans: The other Johnson really could stake a claim to being the best receiver in the league, but there definitely is a concern about injuries. AJ spent not just one, but two different stints out of the lineup last year with hamstring problems, and his groin has been acting up in the preseason. That being said, when Johnson is out there, there isn’t anything that he can’t do either. He put the nail in the coffin for the first playoff game in Texans history with his long touchdown catch against the Bengals in the playoffs, arguably the biggest play at this point in Houston’s brief history.

3: Larry Fitzgerald, Arizona Cardinals: A future Hall of Famer, Fitzgerald has had a great career with the Cardinals. Last year was just another ho hum year for the former Pitt Panther, as he had 80 receptions, 1,411 yards, and eight TDs on a team that had nothing in the way of quarterback play. Fitzgerald was able to make both QB Kevin Kolb and QB John Skelton look good, and that’s hard to do. Can you imagine what he would be able to do if his team actually had a quarterback to count on that could get the ball down the field?

4: AJ Green, Cincinnati Bengals: This is going to be probably the most controversial selection for our Top 10 wide receivers in the NFL this year. Green had a great rookie campaign, catching 65 passes for 1,057 yards with seven TDs, and we think that he is in for even more progress this year. This is a receiver that has huge hands, something that is tremendously important in a West Coast offense. Yards after the catch are something that Green prides himself on, and he is big enough and strong enough to get those yards. Don’t be shocked if he is in for a 1,400-yard season in 2012.

5: Wes Welker, New England Patriots: Welker just keeps on producing at the wide receiver position, and he is the most fearless receiver in the league. A slot man by nature, Welker does a lot of the dirty work for a New England offense that doesn’t run the ball all that much. Four and five yard passes to Welker are the equivalent of the running game for the Pats, and that has been the case for years. Now all of a sudden, Welker has 650 career receptions for 7,226 yards, and he might one day be considered for the Hall of Fame.

6: Steve Smith, Carolina Panthers: It looked like Smith’s career was basically over a couple of years ago when he and the Panthers were at odds over the fact that the team just didn’t have a quarterback. However, things are better now that QB Cam Newton is playing on Tobacco Road, and Smith is a happy camper again. He had 1,394 yards in what amounted to be one of the better years of his career, and the lifelong Panther is now in the elite 10,000-yard club after his last campaign.

7: Roddy White, Atlanta Falcons: Sure, there is a lot of clamoring for sure that Julio Jones is the best receiver on the Falcons, but we just don’t see it yet. Yes, Jones stretches the field a lot further than White does, but if you want a receiver to run the proper route for you and make the solid catch, White is your guy. The UAB product has put together five straight seasons with at least 1,100 yards and at least 80 receptions, and there are few in the league that can say that. He’ll be a force once again in the Atlanta offense, which is turning into quite the aerial assault as the years go on.

8: Marques Colston, New Orleans Saints: There aren’t many receivers that have made more out of less than Colston has in his career. The Hofstra product never figured to catch on as a receiver in this league, yet he has figured out how to become a stalwart with his play in the slot. Colston isn’t quite a Wes Welker type, knowing that he often does his work up the seam and not in the short passing plays, but he is the man that QB Drew Brees turns to first in one of the most talented offenses in the league. Colston is surely one of the best 10 receivers that the NFL has to offer.

9: DeSean Jackson, Philadelphia Eagles: Jackson had an awful year in 2011, catching just 58 passes, but he also had 961 yards and four scores as well. D-Jax is one of the fastest receivers in the league, and he routinely figures out how to get behind defensive backs for huge plays. There will be plenty of games where Jackson has just a few looks at the football, but when QB Michael Vick uncorks one down the field, you can bet that more often than not, Jackson is going to catch up to it. If he ever figures out how to catch 100 passes in a season, he might be good for over 2,000 yards and 20 scores.

10: Dwayne Bowe, Kansas City Chiefs: The yelling is going to come from Victor Cruz, Mike Wallace, Brandon Marshall, Hakeem Nicks, and perhaps Vincent Jackson that they should be on this list, but Bowe is the significantly better receiver in our eyes. This is a man that is a huge target by the end zone, and that is undeniable. The quarterbacks in Kansas City have been downright bad over the course of the last several years, but Bowe just keeps putting up his numbers and his scores. He’ll reach 5,000 yards in his career right off the bat in 2012, and that’s huge for a man that has only been in the league for five years.

Linebackers are always some of the most crucial players on the field, as they have to anchor their defenses, rush the passer, and figure out how to stop the run. No two linebackers are exactly the same, but here at Bankroll Sports, we are going to be making our complete list of the Top 10 linebackers in the NFL for the 2012 season.

1: DeMarcus Ware, Dallas Cowboys: You would figure that DC Rob Ryan would be able to take advantage of the fact that Ware is probably the best linebacker that the league has to offer. No one is able to get off of the line of scrimmage like Ware can, and he is just all over the place in this 3-4. Again, this is a very difficult linebacker from what we’re used to see, as Ware isn’t the best in coverage; nor is he a traditional run stopper. That being said, he had 19.5 sacks last year, and there is no denying just how special that really is.

2: Patrick Willis, San Francisco 49ers: Build a prototype linebacker on Madden 2012 and you have Patrick Willis.  Willis has amassed a whopping 692 tackles over the course of his career already, and he is just 27 years old.  Nobody has a nose for the football like Willis does and he is constantly all over the field with his sub 4.4 speed. The difference as of late, is that he has a heck of a lot of playmakers on the field with him and his group should continue giving running backs and offensive coordinators fits.  Regardless, the 49ers wouldn’t be the same without Willis, and many football fans think that he is the best linebacker in the game.

3: D’Qwell Jackson, Cleveland Browns: Normally speaking, the man that leads the league in tackles is on a bad team, and that’s no exception for Jackson. That being said, over the course of the last three years, Jackson has had at least 150 tackles twice, and he is one of the pieces to the puzzle that the Browns are building around for the future. He will once again be one of the rising stars at the linebacker position in this league this year.

4: Von Miller, Denver Broncos: Yes, we might be overrating the second-year Miller just a bit; as the 4th best linebacker in the league.  But, we really think that he is in for an even better season this year than he had in his rookie campaign; where he racked up 11.5 sacks and 64 tackles. Miller was truly the difference last year for this team (not QB Tim Tebow).  We expect to see that remain the case again this year now that QB Peyton Manning is in charge of the offense.

5: James Harrison, Pittsburgh Steelers: Perhaps we are being a bit hard on Harrison putting him down here on this list. However, we just aren’t so sure that he hasn’t lost a step, especially after dealing with a knee injury that nearly had him on the PUP list at the start of the campaign. When he comes back, he’ll likely be the high motor, physical beast that he has always been.  At the same time, he still has to prove to us that he is still one of the Top 5 linebackers in the game.

6: Ray Lewis, Baltimore Ravens: Ray Ray obviously isn’t the linebacker that he once was, but he is still the emotional leader for one of the best defenses in the league. But, he can still fly all over the field, and there still isn’t a running back that wants to see this man coming right at him when he has the football.  With the injury to Suggs, Lewis will have to step up one again to anchor this Raven defense.

7: Brian Cushing, Houston Texans: There was a time that DeMeco Ryans was the highlighted linebacker for the Texans, but after switching to the 3-4, Cushing really became the middle linebacker to watch. He led the team in tackles last year and he has made just a ton of tackles in the backfield. Houston’s growth on defense is the reason that this team was able to get into the playoffs last year, and no question, the highly animated Cushing was the star of the show.

8: Rolando McClain, Oakland Raiders: McClain is one of the most underrated linebackers in the league in our eyes. He was drafted to the Raiders to be the anchor of the middle of this defense.  He has done just that. Yes, it hasn’t always been the best for the Oakland defense, but McClain feels like he is in the heart of every single big play that the team makes. He had 99 tackles, five sacks, and a whopping 13 pass deflections last year.  Expect the Raiders to improve on defense with McClain leading the charge.

9: Derrick Johnson, Kansas City Chiefs: As one of the fastest linebackers in the league, Johnson has a major positive on his side. There just isn’t a back or a quarterback in the NFL that can outrun Johnson, and there’s a good reason that he’s routinely one of the league leaders in tackles, just as he was in 2011 when he had 104 solo tackles and a total of 131 stops.

10: Aldon Smith, San Francisco 49ers: This is yet another one of these second year linebackers that really made a huge difference in his rookie year. 49ers fans may prefer to see Navarro Bowman in this spot (as Patrick Willis’s sidekick), but the Niners wouldn’t have been in the NFC Championship game last year if not for Smith’s 14 sacks and 2 forced fumbles as a situational pass rusher.  He came right in and became one of the best pass rushers in the NFL.  The 49ers are very likely to use Smith as an every down player this year, which will likely inflate his numbers even more.