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Weekly Q&A with Doc's Sports Expert Handicapper Raphael Esparza


by Doc's Sports - 9/18/2018

Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick

It is football season and Doc's Sports is at its best this time of year when it comes to our winning percentage for the high-unit plays we release. Also at his best is Raphael Esparza as one of the top expert sports handicappers in the nation. He rose through the ranks during a long and successful career in the Las Vegas sportsbook industry that finally came to an end in 2013 with him holding the prestigious title of Director of the Race and Sports Book for MGM Resorts' Aria.

Raphael has had a close association with Docs over the years, and he was first known to sports bettors as the Vegas Sports Informer. Offering selection packages for every major sports league as well as some that cater to a very select clientele, his overall return on investment speaks for itself. Every week, we get the chance to tap into his expert opinion on some of the hottest tending topics in the world of sports betting.

Doc's: NFL underdogs posted an 11-5 edge against the spread in Week 2 of the new regular season. We assume that this resulted in another big win for the sportsbooks, both land-based and online. Was that the case, and if so, which Week 2 NFL games provided the biggest gains for the folks booking the bets?

RE: It was a big day for the books all around. Tampa Bay over Philadelphia brought in quite a bit of money as did Kansas City over Pittsburgh and Cleveland covering against New Orleans. The biggest winner for the books in Sunday's late games was Detroit hanging on to cover against San Francisco to break up a number of carryover parlays.

Doc's: Based on what you have seen in the first two weeks of NFL games, are there any general betting tips or a few specific teams that offer a good opportunity to help sports bettors make some money in Week 3?

RE: I would continue to ride the Buccaneers in Monday night's game against Pittsburgh with Tampa Bay listed as a slight home underdog. It sounds funny to say this, but these two teams appear to be headed in opposite directions when it comes to momentum and motivation.

Doc's: The top five college football teams in the nation have pretty much gone chalk through the first three weeks of the season with straight-up undefeated records. Moving further down the list of Top-25 teams in the country, do you have one or two that have gotten you excited with their early results?

RE: I will have to admit that I got it completely wrong about LSU. With last week's upset against Auburn, this is the second-best team in the SEC. That being said, I do not see any team in the country even keeping things close against Alabama if the Tide continue to play like they have the first three weeks. I also like what Stanford has been able to accomplish so far heading into a big Pac-12 showdown against Oregon this Saturday night. If the Cardinal can hold the Ducks to 35 points or less, they should win and cover.

Doc's: It is somewhat unfortunate that baseball takes a backseat to football during the most exiting time of the season. For anyone that is still interested in betting on MLB games, what kind of betting advice would you give them?

RE: While there are quite a few really heavy favorites on the board this time of the year, there is still some excellent value to be found if you take the time to do your homework. There is still quite a bit to be decided as far as the playoffs before the end of the season with more than a few teams still playing hard every game. Teams still fighting for a postseason berth against teams riding out the string is a good place to start your search.

Doc's: Between major prize fights in boxing and the UFC along entertainment props for award shows such as Monday night's Emmy's, there has been quite of bit of betting action going on in your world that has nothing to do with football. Do you have anything else off the beaten track going on this week that you would like to share?

RE: The biggest thing I am excited about this week is the start of Champions League soccer. I am also looking forward to UFC Fight Night from Brazil on Saturday along with an interesting card of boxing in London that same day highlighted by a heavyweight bout between IBF/WBA/WBO Champion Anthony Joshua and Alexander Povetkin.

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 do not even have to enter credit card information. You can use this $60 credit for any sports Esparza handicaps. Click here for $60 worth of free picks from Raphael Esparza.

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