The Key for the week of April 21, 2005
Bengals are on the clock
Pre-ESPN, the NFL Draft was conducted on phones in offices, and potential draft picks waited at home for their phones to ring. Then came the New York spectacle with helmet phones on desks and the New York Jets fans in the audience, ready to boo whomever the Jets picked. Now, the draft is on the road, this year in Green Bay. And while the Bengals won’t picked until the middle of the round (17th, to be exact) it’s expected that defense will continue to be an emphasis, especially since the status of Trey Hendrickson is still up in the air. Look for edge rushers (like Georgia’s Mykel Williams) or defensive tackles (Derrick Harmon, Oregon is often mentioned) to be high on the Bengals’ board when it’s their turn.
You’re hot then you’re cold…
Katy Perry wasn’t necessarily singing about the Reds, but certainly could have been. A day after scoring two touchdowns and a field goal against the Orioles, the Reds could only squeeze out three in a 6-3 loss to the Marlins on Monday. Oh, if baseball were like “The Weakest Link” where you could bank some of those runs. A bit of good news for the Redlegs: Despite the loss, Nick Lodolo had a solid outing after returning from paternity leave, and catcher Tyler Stephenson has started rehab workouts as he looks to get back with the big club at the end of this month or the beginning of next.
Ben’s Best Bet
For the NHL and the NBA, it’s playoff time which will stretch well into June. Last week’s odds with the Thunder as NBA favorites haven’t changed. In the NHL, the Carolina Hurricanes are slight favorites to win the Stanley Cup according to BetMGM, followed closely by the Avalanche, winners three years ago. (defending champion Florida are sixth favorite to repeat) And in hockey, it’s usually the team that goes into the playoffs with the hot hand and hot goalie that has the edge. This year it’s the Toronto Maple Leafs, the fourth favorite according to BetMGM. They’re facing Ottawa in the first round, and have been strong closing out the regular season. Ben says it might we worth to take a flyer on Toronto, at least through the early rounds.