Weekly Q&A with Doc's Sports Expert Handicapper Raphael Esparza 8/2/2016

by Doc's Sports - 8/2/2016

The 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio get underway this Wednesday, and in this week's discussion with Doc's Sports expert handicapper Raphael Esparza we will get his thoughts on a few of his top Olympic sports when it comes to betting on the Summer Games.

Raphael enjoyed a long and successful career in the Las Vegas sportsbook industry, and at one point the former Vegas Sports Informer held the prestigious position as the Director of the Race and Sports Book for MGM Grand's Aria until his retirement in 2013. These days, he still keeps close ties to the sportsbook industry in Las Vegas while expanding his successful and diverse sports investment service to also include the Big Easy in New Orleans. The following is this week's Q&A with one of Doc's most interesting handicappers.

Doc's Sports: The Summer Olympics only comes around once every four years and it offers a number of diverse betting options across a wide spectrum if sporting events. If you had to narrow things down, which sports do you primarily focus on when it comes to handicapping the Summer Games?

RE: That is a tough question to answer since I love the variety the Summer Olympics offer as a betting event. I will definitely be focusing quite of bit of my efforts on soccer and beach volleyball for both the men and the women's teams. Badminton is another favorite sport of mine as is archery. My ultimate goal is to find the best betting value in any Olympic competition with posted odds.

Doc's Sports: We all know that football is king when it comes to which sport generates the biggest handle in Las Vegas with the sportsbooks, but just how big will the Summer Olympics be this year when it comes to generating some betting action in town?

RE: This will be the first time that the Las Vegas sportsbooks will be able to offer betting lines and odds for any Olympic competition, so it will be interesting to see how they react to the opportunity. Both William Hill and Westgate have taken the lead with some of their early futures and prop offerings, but I not sure that every book in town is going to go all out for the Summer Games.

Doc's Sports : Now that it is official that New England quarterback Tom Brady will serve his four-game suspension by the NFL at the start of the 2016 regular season, how much of an impact do you think it will have on the Patriots' chances to win yet another AFC East Division title?

RE: I still think that New England ends up 3-1 after the four games; maybe 2-2 at the worst. If the Patriots did happen to fall to 1-3 it could make things interesting. There is still a pretty wide gap between New England and the rest of the teams in the AFC East, so I do not see Brady's suspension keeping the Patriots from winning another division title.

Doc's Sports : Moving to the division race in the NFC East, the Dallas Cowboys are the preseason favorites to win the 2016 title almost across the board with the sportsbooks. Is it the Cowboys' race to lose or is there another team in the NFC East that has the inside track to winning this division?

RE: I would have a tough time betting on Dallas to win the NFC East given its issues on the defensive side of the ball. The Cowboys lost more than they gained on defense this offseason, especially when it comes to their pass rush. This could actually open the door for Washington to repeat as division champs. Either way, it will probably only take nine wins to win the NFC East in 2016.

Doc's Sports: We have talked a lot about the importance of the MLB trade deadline as far as improving a team's betting odds to win a World Series title. Which MLB team in your opinion did the most with its player personnel moves over the past week or so to best improve its chances to win it all this year?

RE : It would be tossup between Texas and Cleveland in the American League, and since I already picked the Rangers to win the AL Pennant this season I will give them the slight edge. I would have liked to seen Texas add another starter, but it might be able to outscore the competition all the way to a MLB title with the addition of Jonathan Lucroy and Carlos Beltran to an already-formidable batting lineup.

Click here to visit Raphael Esparza's Insider's Page at Doc's Sports for more information on his amazingly-profitable sports handicapping picks. Also, get $60 worth of Esparza's member's picks absolutely free - no obligation, no sales people - you don't even have to enter credit card information. You can use this $60 credit for any sport Esparza handicaps. Click here for $60 worth of free picks from Raphael Esparza .

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