Weekly Q&A with Doc's Sports Expert Handicapper Raphael Esparza 1/31/2017

by Doc's Sports - 1/31/2017

Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning

It is Super Bowl week. And while most handicappers are busy putting their final touches on their top selections for Sunday's big game, rest assured that Doc's Sports expert handicapper Raphael Esparza is also cooking up a few top plays for some props that might just be a bit off the main grid for your average sports bettor.

Known as the Vegas Sports Informer during a long and successful career in the Las Vegas sportsbook industry, Raphael rose through the ranks to hold the prestigious position as the Director of the Race and Sports Book for MGM Grand's Aria until his retirement in 2013. He continues to run a successful and diverse sports investment service from his home base in Las Vegas as well as from 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 betting spread for Super Bowl LI opened at three points, and it has held steady across the board with both the Las Vegas and the offshore sportsbooks. Where do you see most of the money in town going in this matchup as we get closer and closer to kickoff?

RE: The early word in town is that the public's money is on Atlanta and the wiseguys are betting on New England. I do not see the spread moving off three points as most books are just adjusting the juice right now. That could change if some six-figure bets are placed between now and kickoff, but I am not counting on it.

Doc's Sports: The total line for Super Bowl LI has also remained fairly steady since opening at 58.5 points. Do you see this game turning into the high-scoring shootout that most bettors are expecting, or can New England's top-ranked scoring defense keep the wraps on the highest-scoring offense in the NFL?

RE : This game could easily go either way. I probably will not have an official play on the total line in this game, but if you put me on the spot I would lean towards the "under". High-scoring Super Bowls of more than 58.5 total points have not been the trend in recent years with the exception of Baltimore's 34-31 victory against San Francisco in Super Bowl XLVII in 2013.

Doc's Sports: Last week you mentioned that you were waiting on some of the more 'off-the-wall' prop bet odds to be released in conjunction with Sunday's Super Bowl. Are you betting on Lady GaGa's attire for the halftime show or did you come up with something even better than that?

RE: I like to reserve the halftime of the Super Bowl to finally sitting down and getting something to eat, so the Lady GaGa props are not at the top of my list. The one prop I really like is the over 1.5 on the number of Peyton Manning commercials that will be aired during the game. I am also on the lookout for a prop that has odds on Eli Manning possibly appearing in one of them.

Doc's Sports : You have always been interested in cross-sport props in conjunction with the Super Bowl, especially when it comes to the NBA or NHL. What have you come up with this year as one of your top cross-sport prop picks?

RE: There are some really interesting props out there for the NBA involving Boston's Isaiah Thomas's total points in Sunday's game against the Los Angeles Clippers verses New England's total points and Oklahoma City's Russell Westbrook's total points, assists and rebounds against Portland on Sunday verses the total number of points in Super Bowl LI. My top cross-sport play might be Manchester City's total goals in Sunday's match at -130 verses Tom Brady's total touchdown throws.

Doc's Sports : Last weekend's focus when it came to your betting radar was on both boxing and the UFC with a number of great bouts on the card in each sport. Turning to 'Raphael's Betting Radar' for this week, has anything else interesting caught your eye besides the Super Bowl props?

RE: Right now I am looking at Saturday night's UFC Fight Night 104, which also happens to be in Houston as part of all the Super Bowl festivities this weekend. This is not one of the bigger UFC cards in recent weeks, but I am leaning towards the under 1.5 rounds in the lightweight bout between James Vick vs. Abel Trujillo in what could be a very quick fight.

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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