In a matter of days the Super Bowl 45 betting lines have been some of the closest in recent memory, as the spread between the Green Bay Packers and Pittsburgh Steelers is only two and a half points. Two of the most storied franchises in NFL betting history, the 2010-11 edition of the Packers and Steelers are almost carbon copies of each other. Here are two factors that will be on full display come game time Sunday.

• Defense – The old adage of defense wins championships has never been truer in 2010-11. Dom Capers and Dick LeBeau the defensive coordinators of the Steelers and Packers are essentially identical to one another. Capers came up with the run defense that Pittsburgh has employed since 2003. As a result, in the last five years the Steelers have won two of the five potential Super Bowl trophies. What’s more, the 2010-11 Steelers emerged as one of the top five best defensive units since the NFL merger in 1970.

Conversely, the Green Bay Packers under Dick LeBeau, have adopted the Steelers model of defense, and have gone from being lit up by teams, to containing them to 16 points a game. Linebacker Clay Matthews has shown in the last year and a half that the days of Brian Urlacher and the Chicago Bears receiving all the praise in the NFC North, are over as Green Bay is the standard setter now.

• Experience vs. Inexperience – In sports we as fans look at all the statistics and at the end of the day the only statistic that really matters is the win and loss column. For the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Super Bowl is familiar territory, as since 2005, no team has been more dominant in the NFL.

On the contrary, the Green Bay Packers have finally built a winning team, and for the first time in 15 years they will be entertaining the possibility of winning the Super Bowl. Green Bay has yet to face adversity in these playoffs, while the Steelers narrowly defeated the Baltimore Ravens. When looking at these two teams, the safe bet is Pittsburgh because of their recent dominance.

NFL betting fans deciding on who should be this season’s most valuable player were influenced by Eagles quarterback Michael Vick on Christmas Eve. It was during practice on Friday, that football betting reporters asked Vick who he thought should be named MVP of the 2010 season. Vick’s response was one for the ages as he said “Give me that spot”. While Vick’s season has been admirable, we’d like to think that Tom Brady in the AFC should also be considered for MVP title.

It’s hard to believe that almost two years ago, Michael Vick was just getting out of prison and praying and pleading that the NFL would let him back into the league. After 18 months away from football, Vick caught on with the Philadelphia Eagles as the third string quarterback, behind Donovan McNabb. This past offseason, McNabb was traded to the rival Washington Redskins and Vick was supposed to be the backup for relatively unknown quarterback Kevin Kolb.

However, by the end of week one against the Green Bay Packers, Kolb was out due to injury. What happened next as we have seen, is one of the best single season performances in the history of the NFL. Michael Vick stepped in as Philadelphia Eagles starter and essentially never looked back. He’s thrown for over 2,000 yards while running for 600. Vick’s shown that he can be a complete quarterback but is he MVP worthy?

On the other hand in the AFC fans have loved every minute of the 2010 version of Tom Brady. After battling the last two seasons with a nagging knee injury, Brady looks like the 2004 Super Bowl winning Brady. He’s thrown for over 3000 yards and his touchdown to interception rate is amongst the best in the league. While Vick has an amazing defensive team, Brady is working with rookies. However, both men have had incredible seasons, and really we’ll only be able to decide who wins the MVP by which man’s team wins the Super Bowl.

Entering week 13 of the NFL betting season and things are beginning to take shape as the contenders for the Super Bowl make appear more evident than they did a week or two ago. Here are three teams whose Super Bowl odds have football betting analysts licking their chops.

• New England Patriots Five to One - Going into the season, many fans stayed away from the Patriots on the Super Bowl Futures odds, as they felt the team was overrated. With a star studded line up of Tom Brady, Wes Welker and Randy Moss, who could blame them? Then New England got sick of Randy Moss and Wes Welker decided to have a lackluster year. The result? New England and Tom Brady along with Welker and several unknowns appear in the same way the 2008 Patriots did, a team with one star and a bunch of unknowns. Since the Moss trade, the team has won seven games and is an incredible nine and two through 12 weeks.

• Philadelphia Eagles Six to One - Going into 2010/2011, many Super Bowl betting sites had the Eagles finishing at the bottom of the league with odds of 20 to one or higher, however with the emergence of Michael Vick as an all world quarterback the odds have become more favorable. At six to one, the Eagles have the best odds of the NFC, and for the first time since 2002, the Eagles look poised to contend for a Super Bowl. Can the Eagles win the 2011 Super Bowl, and cap off Michael Vick’s dream season?

• Atlanta Falcons Seven to One - The Atlanta Falcons are the NFL’s hottest team. At 10 wins and two losses, Atlanta has come to play this season. The Falcons could be this year’s New Orleans Saints, in that nobody gave them a good shot, but now they are being considered as a real threat.

NFL betting enthusiasts have grown both in numbers and in complex strategies since the league merged with the AFL in 1970. Back then, you could take the home underdog on a Monday night when football betting and make a decent amount of money.Now year’s later handicappers are stuck spending countless hours on betting strategies that aren’t necessarily guaranteed to work. Whatever happened to keeping it simple? Here is a look at one of the easiest strategies that literally takes a matter of moments to figure out.

In essence all you have to do is either look at your local newspaper’s sports standing section or online sports site for a standings column. Once finding the standings simply search for the highest scoring teams and the lowest scoring teams in the NFL.

Over the past five seasons, it has been determined that if you bet on the five highest scoring teams to go over the spread, you could accumulate a record of 279 – 186. Meanwhile, taking the five lowest teams to cover the spread would get you a record of 202 – 265.

Breaking each record into percentages, you will be winning at over 60 percent if you take the highest scoring teams to win the games, while losing at 48 percent taking the lowest scoring teams. Now there isn’t much of a guarantee that these numbers will continue to be so different, however this season is proving to be headed in that direction.

Also it is important to keep in mind that most sportsbooks will try to compensate for low scoring teams by moving point in their favor. For instance, if the Houston Texans the league’s highest scoring team, take on the Buffalo Bills the league’s lowest scoring team, the line may open at – 10 when it should be -15.

Since the NFL was first formed in the late 1960s to early 1970s, NFL betting has been a huge moneymaker for sportsbooks around the world. One of the main ways to win at betting on NFL games is by handicapping and creating systems. Here is a look at the late 1980s classic betting system known as the Ultimate NFL betting system. This system is a proven winner, accumulating a record of 11 wins and one loss since 1989. However, as we just noted, the system has such a low win total, because it is used very rarely.

In essence the goal of the ultimate NFL betting system is to bet against any team that has scored over 30 points in each of its last two games while giving up 10 points or fewer. The other stipulation is that the game you are about to bet on, must involve at least one team meeting the previously mentioned criteria, while they play a non divisional team.

When games fell under the guidelines of ultimate NFL betting system, from 1989 to 2008, the system was a successful 11 and one. Here are two examples of the system in progress.

1. 2008 Washington Redskins +6 lost to Baltimore Ravens – In this game, bettors using the UBS would have lost as the Ravens met the criteria but were able to beat the struggling Redskins. The final score of the game was Ravens 24 and Redskins 10 which exceeded the six point spread.

2. 2006 Arizona Cardinals +12 lost to Chicago Bears – During the 2006 matchup between the Cardinals and the Bears, the 12 point dog Cardinals were pulling off the upset, by leading the Bears 20 to nothing after the first half of the game. Unless the Cardinals managed to lose by more than 12 in a Bears comeback, the system would be a winner. By the end of the game, the Bears had come all the way back and won the game 20-23 making the system a winner.

NFL betting cappers are looking to change their 2011 Super Bowl predictions only two weeks after the start of the regular season. Whether you took Minnesota or Dallas to win the 2011 Super Bowl, betting and predicting the right team has proven rather difficult. Here are six things to help you break down your Super Bowl prediction.

• The Lost Causes – Sure, it’s possible that one of these teams may in fact have all the pieces fall into place and go on to be this year’s Super Bowl Champions, but that is as likely as the Baltimore Orioles winning the 2010 World Series.

The lost causes are the longest of the long shots. You can find these teams as the bottom seven of the league each and every year for the last five years. The bottom three teams will be the St. Louis Rams, Detroit Lions and Oakland Raiders. Getting rid of John Kitna, JaMarcus Russell and Mark Bulger are all steps in the right direction, but these teams are still a few years and pieces away. The latter group made up of the KC Chiefs, Cleveland Browns, Tampa Bay Bucs and Buffalo Bills are all teams used as punch lines for a joke, but still manage to be better than the previous three.

• The Underwhelming Teams – These are the teams that look like they could make a serious push at least on paper, but then make up the middle of the pack. Teams like Atlanta, Jacksonville, Seattle, New York Giants and Tennessee. They all have the makings of letting loose, but one injury and they are down to the bottom of the pack.

• The Overrated – Similar to underwhelming teams, these are teams that have that ‘it’ factor, yet they do nothing. Team’s such as the Baltimore Ravens, who have an all world defense, but find their offense letting them down, will be in this boat. Same as the San Francisco 49ers that have a lot of defensive tools, but tend to drop the ball because of their quarterback being more hyped than he deserves.

• The Sleeper – These are teams that could either go all the way and make a serious splash or be in the underwhelming teams section. This year, we feel that two teams in the AFC East fall into this group, the New York Jets and Miami Dolphins. Both teams had an awesome offseason, so they could surprise some teams.

• Serious Contenders – These are teams that year in and year out, you just know will always make the playoffs, yet can’t go all the way for one reason or another. Teams like the Indianapolis Colts, New Orleans Saints, Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings come to mind.

• The Pick – Finally you’ve arrived at the pick, after going through all the requirements you are left with one team to win it all. For us that team is the Houston Texans. Critics for years have been saying they are one or two players away from going over the hump. In week one they finally defeated the Colts, a feat they’d yet to accomplish. What’s more, Arian Foster and Andre Johnson are the two pieces Matt Schaub has been waiting for. As well that Texan defense is amongst the league’s best. February 2011 will be the month of the Texans.

There is no worse feeling when NFL betting, than having your team get absolutely obliterated by their opponent. When betting on the Super Bowl, football betting handicappers have come to expect rather close games. A battle of offense verses defense in a low scoring affair. Yet occasionally, there will be a rather dull Super Bowl game in which one team makes the other look silly. Here are five of the worst Super Bowl games of all time.

• Chicago Bears vs. Indianapolis Colts 2007 Super Bowl XLI – As many fans will recall, this is when Colts future hall of famer Peyton Manning won his first championship. The overall final of the game was 17 – 29 for the Colts. But to be honest the Bears were never in control of this game.

Led by current Washington Redskin backup quarterback Rex Grossman, the Bears known more for their defense, became the latest victim to an all out Colts attack. The Colts defense made Grossman look incompetent. What’s more, the only offense the Bears had was from a pair of kick returns by Devin Hester. Manning made the Bears defense look foolish.

• Pittsburgh Steelers vs. LA Rams Super Bowl XIV 1980 – As we noted in the opening sentence, obliteration of your team is never a good feeling. Let’s just say, if you took the Rams in this game, you better not have wagered that much.

Going into the game, the Rams were a lousy nine and seven and squeaked through the playoffs to the final. On the other hand, the Steelers led by Terry Bradshaw and Lynn Swann, went into Super Bowl 14 and ate the Rams for dinner. Steelers would cap off the dynastic 70s with a 31 to 19 victory.

• San Francisco 49ers vs. San Diego Chargers Super Bowl XXIX 1995 – The final score in this game was an astounding 49 – 26 for the Steve Young led 49ers. Fans wagering on the game, were surly disappointed as the game was perhaps the most hyped of any Super Bowl.

The game was done by halftime, with Steve Young finally emerging out of Joe Montana’s shadows. Young threw six touchdowns, with three of those going to Montana’s former favorite target, Jerry Rice.

• Denver Broncos vs. Washington Redskins Super Bowl XXII 1988 – For hall of famer John Elway, it might be best if we never made this list of the five worst Super Bowls of all time. Elway was the only bright spot to a rather awful Broncos team.

The 2010 NFL betting season is getting underway, and it is unclear who will be the next Super Bowl Legend. Throughout the NFL’s 40 year history, there have been many greats to hoist Vince Lombardi’s trophy. Yet as many fans betting on the NFL know, becoming a legend in the game is far harder than many expect. One legend that became known as Mr. Super Bowl was San Francisco 49ers legend Joe Montana.

Joe Montana

From his first professional snap, fans and experts alike just knew there was something magical about Joe Montana. Today, Montana is known as Mr. Super Bowl, as no quarterback has ever taken it to another level during the big game, the way he has.

Montana won all four of the Super Bowls he participated in and had the highest passer rating of any Super Bowl quarterback. What’s more, he was the most valuable player in three of the four Super Bowls.

Perhaps the most impressive feats that make Joe Montana our Mr. Super Bowl King, is that in those four games, he set records for most passing completions and total yards. No quarterback has even come close to what Big Joe accomplished.

Montana’s two biggest Super Bowls were Super Bowl XXIII versus the Cincinnati Bengals and Super Bowl Super Bowl XXIV against the Denver Broncos. In the first game against the Bengals, Montana orchestrated one of the greatest drives in Super Bowl history. With just over three minutes to go, the Bengals led 16 to 13 and to say the tension was high in the 49ers offensive huddle would be an understatement. Montana was able to break the tension by moving the ball from the 49ers eight yard line all the way down to the Bengals end zone where he connected with John Taylor for the game winning pass.

Montana passed for a then record 357 yards, and two touchdowns while rushing for 15 yards. The next year in Super Bowl XXIV, the 49ers made quick work of the John Elway led Denver Broncos, cruising to a 55 to 10 beat down. Montana was named the MVP for the third time as he completed 22 of 29 pass attempts for 297 yards and five touchdowns.

NFL betting enthusiasts have seen many great Super Bowl moments since the inaugural game in January of 1967. For fans new to NFL betting online, we count down three of the greatest moments in Super Bowl History.

1.   Super Bowl XVIII Marcus Allen TD – Oakland Raiders fans have fond memories of Super Bowl 18 as this was one game where they were doing the destroying rather than getting destroyed. As many NFL fans will remember, this was one of the more one sided games in the history of the sport as the eventual score was 38 to nine for the Raiders over the Washington Redskins.

What makes Marcus Allen’s touchdown so amazing is that he started on his own 26 yard line. Allen took the handoff from legendary quarterback Jim Plunkett and appeared destined for a plethora of Redskin defenders. Instead Allen made a sharp cut to the middle and went 74 yards to the house effectively putting the game out of reach at the end of the third quarter.

2.   Super Bowl XXXII Flying Elway – Denver Broncos clash with the Green Bay Packers in this encounter. What makes this play so incredible is twofold. Firstly, John Elway and the Bronco offense are pinned at their own 12 yard line in a 17 to 17 draw with the ever dangerous Green Bay Packer defense breathing down their necks. Elway takes the snap, but can’t find an open receiver. Yet rather then throw out of bounds, the old guy takes off down the field, eventually making a spectacular dive and getting crunched by two defenders. Elway not only got the first down, but he also inspired his teammates. The drive was capped off two plays later when Elway connected to Terrell Davis for the go ahead touchdown. Broncos victory 31 – 24.

3.   Super Bowl X Lynn Swann Catch – Perhaps the greatest performance in Super Bowl history, was the effort Lynn Swann put in during the Super Bowl 10 match against the Dallas Cowboys. Swann’s biggest play was in the second quarter of the game when he and Terry Bradshaw connected on a 53 yard pass. Swann was covered like white on rice by Dallas Corner Mark Washington. However Swann turned into Super Man when he flew above Washington to make the grab.

During its 40 years of being the most popular championship game in all of sports, many fans Super Bowl betting have been around for some of the most memorable games. Whether it was a romp as in Super Bowl I or a close game in the 2008 Super Bowl, NFL betting fans have seen it all. Here are three of the most memorable Super Bowls football picks in the history of the NFL.

1.  Super Bowl XXXVIII February 1, 2004 New England Patriots v. Carolina Panthers –

Entering the game, the Patriots led by future hall of famer Tom Brady were appearing in their second finals in a three year span. Conversely, this was the Panthers first game in the big show, and they showed no signs of stage fright. To say the game was thrilling would be an understatement. The final score of the game was a 32 – 29 victory for Brady’s Patriots after an Adam Vinatieri field goal with four seconds left sealed the deal. This was the highest scoring Super Bowl at 61 total points. As well it is famous for the halftime show which saw Janet Jackson have a wardrobe malfunction.

2.   Super Bowl XX January 26, 1986 Chicago Bears v. New England Patriots –

Over the last decade many experts will tell you that no team has been as good as these current New England Patriot teams who have won four championships. Enter the 85 Bears, who went 15 and one in the regular season that year. During this time, the Bears laid waste to the rest of the league with their most savage victory taking place at Super Bowl XX. During the game the Patriots got out to the early lead with a field goal. However this proved to be a fatal error as the Bears decimated the 85 Patriots by a final of 45 – 10. This was the first time a team had been absolutely crushed since Super Bowl I when the Packers killed the Chiefs 37 – 10.

3.   Super Bowl X January 18, 1976 Pittsburgh Steelers v. Dallas Cowboys –

Considered one of the most exciting Super Bowls, this was the Steelers led by Terry Bradshaw and Lynn Swann’s second of back to back Super Bowl titles. The final score of the game was close at 21 – 17. In the final minute of the game, Roger Staubach led the Cowboys down to the Steelers five and was a complete pass away from winning the game. Unfortunately for him, his final pass was picked off by Glen Edwards. Lynn Swann was named the MVP of the game for both his 64 yard touchdown catch and 161 yards receiving.