NFL Handicapping Articles

NFL Football Predictions: Week 3 Opening Line Report and Picks
by Alan Matthews - 9/21/2015

Well, that was no fun! I made four picks in this space for Week 2 of the NFL season and didn't get a single one right. I should have known better than to trust the Buffalo Bills against New England. I need to stop listening to Rex Ryan bloviate! And I'm already off the Philadelphia Eagles bandwagon. I am stunned Chip Kelly's offense struggled so much in Sunday's loss to the Dallas Cowboys. And what is up with DeMarco Murray? What a crazy bust he has been thus far, rushing 21 times overall for 11 yards.

NFL Odds and Betting Week 2: Line Movements & Last-Minute News
by Alan Matthews - 9/19/2015

Handicapping Week 1 in the NFL is the hardest. But I would argue that Week 2 is when you can really capitalize on the public bettors. That's because they tend to overreact to what happens in the opening week. For example, you can bet next-week line in Las Vegas before the previous week's games have been played. Tennessee was a 4-point underdog at Cleveland for Week 2 before the Titans went to Tampa and destroyed the Buccaneers last Sunday, with Marcus Mariota looking like Dan Marino (and Jameis Winston like Vinny Testaverde).

Free NFL Betting Picks: Seattle Seahawks at Green Bay Packers Odds
by Alan Matthews - 9/16/2015

The Packers are now the betting favorites to win Super Bowl 50 at +500 at Bovada. The Seahawks have slipped to third-favorites (also behind New England) at +750. From what I saw in Week 1, I see no reason why these two won't play in the NFC title game again, although there were some worrisome signs for Seattle. After all, Dallas lost superstar receiver Dez Bryant for perhaps 12 weeks. Philadelphia looked overrated in a loss in Atlanta. No NFC South team is better than either Seattle or Green Bay. Arizona? St. Louis? Not sold on them yet despite some impressive Week 1 victories.

NFL Props Odds with Expert Betting Picks and Predictions
by Dave Schwab - 9/16/2015

Each week of the NFL regular season Bovada releases its betting odds for a number of team and player props in conjunction with the games themselves. Every so often it will add a few NFL Specials to the mix that concentrate of some of the pressing issues that particular week. A perfect example is this week's special player prop odds on the "over/under" on Peyton Manning's fantasy football points in Thursday night's game against Kansas City according to Yahoo Sports.

Expert NFL Betting Picks: Weekly NFC East Predictions Week 2
by Dave Schwab - 9/16/2015

The reigning NFC East Champion Dallas Cowboys took the early lead in this year's title race as the only team in the division to win in Week 1. That fast start will be put to the test this Sunday with the Cowboys making the trip east to Philadelphia.

NFL Totals Betting: Week 2 Over and Under Predictions
by Dave Schwab - 9/16/2015

Week 1 in the NFL is in the books, and betting the total line was a mixed bag with nine games going "over" and seven staying "under" on 5Dimes' closing NFL betting odds. As far as my top three picks for this past Sunday's game, I ended the day 1-2 after the Baltimore at Denver game stayed well under the 49-point line.

NFL Basic Strategy Teasers: Best Betting Options for Week 2
by George Monroy - 9/16/2015

Basic strategy teasers opened the year with a 2-1 record, and the only matchup to not cover the spread was the New Orleans Saints losing by 12 points on a +8.5-point teaser to the Arizona Cardinals. The wager needs to win at a 72-percent mark in order to become profitable, and last week's 66-percent clip would have lost bettors money if they had bet each teaser round-robin style. For Week 2, there are only three teasers on the board-two underdogs being pushed up past the seven-point mark and one favorite being pushed down toward the 1.5-point mark.

NFL Picks Good & Bad Bet: Underdogs with the Best Week 2 Betting Value
by George Monroy - 9/16/2015

Week 1 of the NFL season had five underdogs win their respective games outright, with the biggest two being the Buffalo Bills dominating the Indianapolis Colts and the St. Louis Rams pulling off an overtime victory against the defending NFL champion Seattle Seahawks. Many betting experts already had their eyes on these two matchup as possible underdog value, along with San Francisco's matchup as a home underdog against the Minnesota Vikings. Heading into Week 2, there are a few underdog situations that stand out for either being very good or very bad.

Free NFL Picks: Denver Broncos at Kansas City Chiefs Odds and Predictions
by Alan Matthews - 9/15/2015

I clearly should have done my homework last week because I generally don't like previewing the same NFL team two weeks in a row if avoidable. I picked the Ravens-Broncos game in Week 1 because it was a potential playoff preview, but I didn't bother looking ahead to Week 2, and it's Denver at Kansas City on Thursday night, the first NFL Network/CBS Thursday telecast of the season. So I'll try and focus more on the Chiefs here if possible.

NFL Football Predictions: Week 2 Opening Line Report and Picks
by Alan Matthews - 9/15/2015

I was 2-1 on my three game picks in last week's Opening Line Report, hitting on Green Bay -6.5 at Chicago, although the Bears played it closer than I expected, as well as Miami -3.5 at Washington. The Redskins appear every bit as bad as they were expected to be. I missed on Indianapolis -2.5 at Buffalo as that Bills defense shut down Andrew Luck and Co. and Tyrod Taylor actually looked like a pretty solid NFL quarterback in his first regular-season start.

NFL Betting Analysis: Dez Bryant Injury and Dallas Cowboys Wagering Odds
by George Monroy - 9/15/2015

The Dallas Cowboys didn't have much time to celebrate after their thrilling come-from-behind victory over the New York Giants during the opening week of the season. Shortly after Tony Romo marched his team 72 yards down the field with a little over a minute on the clock and hit Jason Witten with the gaming-tying touchdown, news broke that Dez Bryant, who was injured earlier in the game, will miss four to six weeks with an broken bone in his foot.

Week 1 NFL Crushes the Vegas Books
by Raphael Esparza - 9/14/2015

It seems like only yesterday I hung up my suit & tie in the Las Vegas corporate world and retired from the Vegas sportsbooks. I will admit there are times I miss working behind the counter and bullshitting with co-workers and customers, but this Sunday I was perfectly happy sitting in my home office watching NFL games.

NFL Betting Advice and Handicapping: Biggest Concerns from Week 1
by Trevor Whenham - 9/14/2015

There were a lot of good things about that opening weekend in the NFL. We don't care about those right now. There were some things that were as bad as expected. Don't care about those either. What we want to focus on here are five situations where there were varying degrees of hope that were, more or less, shattered by what happened in the opening game.

NFL Betting and Wagering Lessons Learned from Week 1
by Trevor Whenham - 9/14/2015

The single biggest thing that bettors need to remember after the first week of the NFL season is that we really don't know much. Casual fans and lazy media members will panic about bad play and embrace strong play in the first week. Smarter people realize that prizes aren't won in September and that it is a long season.

NFL Odds and Betting: Line Movements & Last-Minute News
by Alan Matthews - 9/12/2015

So, have you stopped cursing Pittsburgh Steelers kicker Josh Scobee yet? Scobee, acquired last month in a trade with Jacksonville after the Steelers lost two other kickers to major injury, missed two field goals in Thursday night's NFL Kickoff Game against New England. The Patriots won 28-21. The total in that was 51, and the "over" was taking a huge lean. All Scobee has to do is hit one of those, and presuming all else remained the same obviously the "over" hits.

NFL Props Odds with Expert Betting Picks and Predictions
by Dave Schwab - 9/11/2015

The Pittsburgh Steelers and the New England Patriots kicked off a new season of football in the NFL on Thursday night in a game that ended as a "push" with New England holding on for the seven-point win. Now it is time for bettors to turn their attention to a full slate of games this Sunday.

NFL Betting: Tips and Advice on Using In-Game Wagering
by George Monroy - 9/11/2015

NFL in-game betting is a wagering option that has been around for a few years already and is beginning to gain popularity amongst bettors. The concept is simple yet enticing. During commercials and time outs of NFL football games, new and updated lines are offered for bettors to wager on. For example, if New England begins the game as a seven-point favorite and then scores two straight touchdowns early in matchup, the updated spread would probably have the Patriots as a 10- to 12-point favorite (depending on the opponent).

How to Manage Your Bankroll: Keep Stats and Set Rules for NFL Betting
by George Monroy - 9/10/2015

Bankroll management is one of those boring topics that tends to get overlooked by bettors, but it's of the utmost importance for anyone looking to make a profit by wagering on sports. If you are a serious gambler, managing your money is akin to a business owner managing his or her books. Would you expect any business person to not have detailed records and knowledge of the amount of money they made or lost last year?

Free NFL Betting Predictions: Baltimore Ravens at Denver Broncos Odds and Picks
by Alan Matthews - 9/9/2015

It was tough picking which Sunday NFL game to preview for Week 1. Packers-Bears is always interesting, and Green Bay begins life without Pro Bowl receiver Jordy Nelson. MMQB writer Peter King has the Packers as his Super Bowl champions, and I know a lot of other experts feel the same way despite no Nelson.

Yards Per Point: One Simple Stat, Three Winning NFL Systems
by Robert Ferringo - 9/9/2015

The National Football League is state-sanctioned chaos. It's a weekly ritual of violence and speed featuring carbon-fiber-clad sociopaths with hyperactive pituitary glands mauling and maiming one another. It's a bizarre sport and senseless entertainment that has become a pillar of our national consciousness and economy.