Gronkowski: 'Almost isn't enough' on Hail Mary pass

Football Betting Lines

02/06/2012 - Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It took Rob Gronkowski nearly an entire half to make his first catch in the Super Bowl.

Later, the injured Patriots tight end was several tortured inches away from snaring a Hail Mary pass that would have won the game.

"We almost had it," Gronkowski said, sullen after his team's 21-17 loss to the New York Giants on Sunday night. "But almost isn't enough."

Gronkowski played despite suffering a high ankle sprain in the AFC title game two weeks ago and had two catches for 26 yards.

But the bigger plays ended up being two catches he couldn't make, including a Tom Brady heave on the second play of the fourth quarter that was intercepted by Giants linebacker Chase Blackburn.

On the game's final play, after the Giants had taken the lead with 57 seconds remaining, Brady let loose from beyond midfield on a pass that tracked toward tight end Aaron Hernandez in the end zone.

Hernandez was socked in, surrounded by three Giants defenders as he leapt for the pass, and Gronkowski was in front of the pack.

"It was a jump ball," Gronkowski said. "Aaron did a good job."

But Gronkowski didn't react quickly enough -- or couldn't react quickly enough -- after the ball was deflected. He stumbled forward and reached, but the ball fell incomplete just out of his grasp.

A picture showed Gronkowski's white-gloved hands tantalizingly close to the football in the middle of the end zone, with a referee nearby ready to make a call.

It could have been an all-time great moment in the NFL. Instead, the ball hit the turf and New York celebrated its second Super Bowl win over the Patriots in five seasons.

"I kind of saw it at the last second and I was close," said Gronkowski. "But that doesn't matter. I didn't get it."

Gronkowski set single-season NFL records for tight ends with 1,327 receiving yards and 17 touchdowns. The only real mystery leading up to Sunday's game was how healthy he would be.

His first catch of the game was a 20-yarder for first down during a 96-yard touchdown march near the end of the first half that tied a Super Bowl record for the longest drive.

Later, Gronkowski flashed open and waved his hand to get Brady's attention as three defenders closed on the quarterback. But he just wasn't able to recover in time to get position on Blackburn, who picked the pass off at the Giants' eight-yard line.

"He just made a good play," Gronkowski said. "He backed me up pretty well and went up and made a good play."

Gronkowski, who was wearing a walking boot up until earlier in the week, shook off questions about his injury after the game, saying he was ready to play.

"I was out there," said Gronkowski. "I was 100 percent."

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MySportsbook.com: New College Football Clock Rules Examined

Coaches and bettors alike are desperate to make sense of the new time-keeping rules on the NCAA gridiron. One of the big stories to come out of the Ohio State-Texas clash last weekend was Texas coach Mack Brown's criticism of the NCAA's new clock rules that are intended to shorten the duration of college football games, therefore affecting college football betting.

"They scored with six minutes left and the game was over before we had a chance to do anything," Brown told ESPN.com. "I really hope whoever made these changes will go back and look them over."

Sure, it might be sour grapes; the Buckeyes thoroughly trounced the defending national champion Longhorns 24-7. However, Brown isn't alone in giving the changes their due thought. Bettors are also wondering about them, albeit for a completely different reason. Most experts agree that the changes will result in games being shortened by anywhere from 10 to 20 plays. The obvious consequence is lower scores, with more time rolling off the clock during changes of possession. (The Ohio State-Texas game flew well under the total of 52.)

According to research at the online sportsbook MySportsbook.com, more than 18 plays a game disappeared last weekend into thin air. That's a 10-percent reduction. In 2005, a typical game had 168.58 plays. For 2007 already, it's down to 150.26.

As a result, teams combined to gain an average of about 100 fewer yards a game last weekend versus the 2005 openers. Scoring was also down by about 4.5 points (attention Las Vegas sports lines).

Of course, oddsmakers were able to adjust to the changes before the season started. Proof of that came as the over went a balanced 8-9 at My Sportsbook on Saturday.

Other angles to consider:A shorter game should theoretically result in shorter lines. Whereas Team A might have been a 14-point favorite in a 168-play game (last year), if there are 10 percent less snaps in 2007, the line should also be reduced by 10 percent (to 13 or 12.5). Of course, this is an over-simplification of the matter, but something to keep in mind.
Less possessions means a better chance the game will be decided by three or seven points. For example, what might have been a 20-10 final score in 2005 may end at

17-10 in 2007. Granted, a 24-17 game last year might end at 21-17 these days, but the former - a three- or seven-point advantage being preserved as opposed to created - is the most likely scenario.

*UPDATE* - Sept. 25, 2007

New Clock Rules Boon for online bookmakers

By adjusting the time-keeping rules to shorten the duration of college football games, the NCAA hoped to make its product more enjoyable for the fans. While the NCAA's success in this regard is still up for debate, bookmakers couldn't be happier with the results.

"We are seeing a massive jump in college football betting," noted the MySportsbook.com management team. "With all the early Saturday games (12 a.m. ET) ending before the second wave begins (3:30 p.m. ET) - something that didn't always happen before the changes - bettors are now able to re-invest their winnings from the morning session in the afternoon games."

While not all bettors will choose to roll over their winnings, it doesn't take much for an impact to be seen on the bottom line. "Not all of the millions of dollars in morning payouts get re-bet. In fact, it's probably only 10 to 20 percent," noted the sportsbook management team. "Still, the increased football betting lines window will create a ton of growth for us over the course of the season."

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