I blinked this weekend and when I opened my eyes, the superstars were lying on the mat like they had been mugged in the alley. Shawne Merrimen and Osi Umenyiora were the two big defensive studs to go down with knee injuries. Meanwhile Chad Johnson has a strained labrum, which is going to be more of a pain to the Bengals football betting faithful than him.

So how does this affect our NFL betting futures for the Super Bowl? Even more pertinent, what immediate impact does this have? Let’s gun down a weekend review and get you caught up to speed!

Shawne Merrimen (DE) – San Diego Chargers (+450 to win AFC)

Those perceived mighty at one time don’t just fall hard – they fall fast. Since the whole steroids debacle from a few years back, Merrimen’s numbers have dropped off slightly. Last season he had 68 tackles and 12.5 sacks with two forced fumbles. His fierce leadership is half the reason that people lump in so heavily when they bet on the Chargers, who went 11-5 ATS last season.

Now this team’s defense needs a new leader and it’ll be hard to expect them to pin their opponents to only 17.8 points per game like they did last year. No Merrimen? No dice.

Osi Umenyiora (DE) – New York Giants (+800 to win NFC)

From doing what he does to girls’ chests (and you really should know if you don’t already) to the shelf in a matter of one pre-season. The Giants went from Superbowl champions to nearly hopeless to make their playoffs with a few snaps of Umenyiora’s knee. Even if Strahan comes back – and that’s a very big “if” – don’t bet on the Giants doing anything too productive this season. Of course, the last time we didn’t expect anything from the New York Football Giants…well, you know the story.

Cincinnati Bengals (+3000 to win AFC)

If you believe in omens, then this weekend must have been a frightening one for the Bengals betting investor. Carson Palmer broke his nose, while Chad Johnson has a strained labrum. While neither injury is of major concern, they are signs that the rough and tumble Bengals aren’t entering the season at 100%. They were 8-8 ATS and the oddsmakers are going to be all over the map trying to gauge the Bengals. Don’t get caught in the maelstrom.

Carson Palmer is the kind of quarterback who can persevere. However, Chad Johnson’s health is of more immediate concern. He had 1,440 receiving yards last season, along with eight touchdowns. Considering that he can play this season with the injury is good news. However, being totally unaware of what to expect from him is as much of a sign that doom is on the horizon for the Bengals once again. Talk about a sinking ship…

Quarterback Injury Report

Trent Edwards is reportedly fine and will play this Thursday when they face the Detroit Lions as 3-point favorites. The Bills were decent at protecting their backers’ investments last season, going 10-6 ATS. I still expect the oddsmakers to fall asleep on the Bills again this season, giving them a strong chance to repeat.

Brett Favre of the New York Jets (still a very strange thing to write) is seemingly wearing down as the pre-season wears on. It’s essentially a combination of age, and perhaps the flurry of activity that whirled around Favre this entire summer. He’ll be fine for the regular season, and will do everything inhumanly possible to protect those that chance on the +2000 odds the Jets have of winning the AFC Championship.

Peyton and Brady are returning to active duty in the next two weeks. Sony rejoiced over the former, while hot supermodels rejoiced for the latter.

WEEKEND ROUND-UP

The Arizona Cardinals have gone with Kurt Warner over Matt Leinart, who was miserable against the Oakland Raiders this weekend. Leinart threw three picks against Oakland, and basically cost himself the job. If Arizona can retain a frustrated Anquan Boldin, Warner is the best option for the Cardinals (8-7-1 ATS last season). That, however, doesn’t mean that he’s a good option if you know what I mean.

There is no doubt the Minnesota Vikings are a force be reckoned with due to their dominant defensive line. The team had 80 tackles on Saturday, and harassed Ben Roethlisberger and Willie Parker all day. Parker was shut down to 18 yards, while Big Ben had only 65 yards passing. So the good news for Minnesota is that their defensive line is fitting the bill. The bad news is that their offense is still atrocious. The rushing attack averaged 1.5 yards per carry, and their quarterbacks combined for 131 yards passing in a loss to the Steelers.

For Atlanta, the future is now. The Hawks pegged Matt Ryan as the starter for the 2008 NFL betting season, meaning that they’re not going to wait for the fruit to ripen. Ryan threw for 102 yards and one touchdown with 15-of-21 completions. Whether he can handle the rigors of the NFL remain to be seen. But he did a lot with so little in Boston that I wouldn’t be surprised if he succeeded despite the odds being piled up against him.