NFL Handicapping Articles

NFL Handicapping: Possible Value Teams
by T.O. Whenham - 10/25/2012

There is still a whole lot of football left to play in this regular season in the NFL. For some teams, though, any hopes or dreams — however slim — of playoff contention are long gone. It’s not even the end of October, and for teams with one or two wins the season might as well already be over in most cases.

NFL Handicapping: What to Make of Ravens after Devastating Loss
by T.O. Whenham - 10/23/2012

I’m guessing that when the Baltimore Ravens drew up their plans for how they wanted Sunday’s game at Houston to turn out, it didn’t look much like the 43-13 debacle that transpired at Reliant Stadium. If anything, the game wasn’t as close as the score suggests. It was 29-3 at the half, and both teams played the second half like they both knew exactly how it was going to end.

NFL Week 7 Team Props Odds and Betting Picks
by Alan Matthews - 10/19/2012

I don’t know about you, but I still act like a 10-year-old when the NFL schedule is released -- i.e., I go through each game and project wins and losses for my team. Of course, it always ends in at least 11 wins and a Super Bowl, but that’s just me (clearly I’m not a Browns fan). With that said, I’m about to do something similar in projecting which NFL team finishes with the worst record this season. Only you can bet on this, thanks to Bovada.

NFL Betting Results of San Francisco Declined Safety
by T.O. Whenham - 10/19/2012

The Seattle Seahawks can’t seem to avoid games that end with strange and controversial twists. What happened on Thursday night in San Francisco was nothing compared to the Golden Tate touchdown to beat the Packers, but it was still bizarre. It also left a lot of bettors angry, and bookmakers pretty happy.

This Week in NFL Betting by the Numbers
by Ricky Dimon - 10/18/2012

From replacement refs, to wild finishes, to impossible comebacks, to standings turned upside down, this NFL season has been even crazier than usual. “Everything just starts snowballing and that’s a great feeling,” Denver safety Jim Leonhard said after his team erased a 24-0 deficit to beat San Diego 35-24 on Monday night. “There’s no better feeling in sports when you know you have completely stole the momentum from a team and it’s going to be very hard for them to come back from. You can’t beat it.”

NFL Picks: Seahawks at 49ers Betting Predictions and Odds
by T.O. Whenham - 10/17/2012

A few weeks ago it seemed as if the 49ers were going to run away with the NFC West. They have proven that they are mortal, though, and, as a result, the division is totally wide open. That makes this game huge for this time of the year. These two teams are tied with the Cardinals atop the division at 4-2, but Arizona looks like a team that has peaked and is on the decline already. That makes it likely that one of these two squads will win the division, and the winner here will have scored an important victory in that war.

This Week in NFL Betting by the Numbers
by Ricky Dimon - 10/11/2012

The next time I’m inclined to cheer when a player on a team that I support goes down with an injury, I’m going to think long and hard about doing it. After all, I don’t want to be on the bad side of a 6-foot-7, 300-pound offensive tackle who’s spitting fire in the locker room.

NFL Handicapping: Vikings a Legit Super Bowl Contender?
by T.O. Whenham - 10/11/2012

If you had asked me six weeks ago to guess which team would be in first place in the NFC North at this point in the season, I would have needed four guesses before I picked the Vikings. At least. Yet here we are on Oct. 11, and the Vikings are sitting at 4-1, have already exceeded their three wins from last year, and are tied with the Bears at the top of the division.

NFL Picks: Steelers at Titans Predictions and Betting Odds
by T.O. Whenham - 10/10/2012

Back in 2008 this would have been an epic contest. Back then the Titans were tops in the NFL at 13-3, and the Steelers were just a step behind at 12-4. Looking at these two teams on the field this year you realize just how long ago that was. The Titans have already exceeded their loss total from that season at 1-4, and at 2-2 the Steelers have been just a shadow of what they were in their best years. The problems for neither team are permanent or fatal, but both squads are in a funk — one that would really be helped out by an impressive win here.

Handicapping NFL Teams Under .500
by T.O. Whenham - 10/9/2012

Through five weeks of the NFL season there are 15 teams with records below .500. We know from past experience that being in that boat isn’t ideal at this point of the year, but it isn’t yet fatal. Teams can turn things around if they play much better. Sometimes, though, a bad start is just a clear sign of a bad team.

NFL Handicapping: Green Bay Packers Tough Start
by T.O. Whenham - 10/9/2012

Coming off one of the best seasons we have seen in years, few would have expected the Packers to stumble out of the gate like they have. Their season certainly isn’t lost or anything, but at 2-3 they are in a tougher position than they would have liked to have been through five games — probably by a wide margin.

NFL Picks: Cardinals at Rams Predictions and Betting Odds
by T.O. Whenham - 10/4/2012

When this game first popped up on the NFL schedule, my first reaction was that it would be nice to have a free Thursday evening because this game wasn’t going to be worth watching. Turns out I was wrong. This isn’t the game of the week or anything, but it is far more interesting than it could have been.

This Week in NFL Betting by the Numbers
by Ricky Dimon - 10/4/2012

You think October is for baseball? Think again. It’s been an absolutely insane NFL season so far; for players, fans, officials, wanna-be officials…everyone. And there’s no reason to think that’s about to change anytime soon. Heading into Week 5, here are some numbers to prove it:

Weekly Philadelphia Eagles Betting Picks: Week 5 vs. Steelers
by David Schwab - 10/3/2012

The Philadelphia Eagles will take the PA Turnpike west this week to battle it out with the Pittsburgh Steelers at Heinz Field on Sunday afternoon in a showdown for state bragging rights. All the action is set to get underway at 1 p.m. (ET) and the game will be broadcast nationally on FOX.

NFL Betting: Recapping the First Quarter of Season
by T.O. Whenham - 10/2/2012

With the exception of Pittsburgh and Indianapolis, all teams in the NFL have now played a quarter of their NFL schedule. All have survived, some have thrived, and some probably wish they could start over again. For bettors, there have surely been some highs and some lows — hopefully more of the former.

NFL Handicapping: Any Value in Saints Futures Odds?
by Ricky Dimon - 10/2/2012

Bounty-gate was never expected to end well for the New Orleans Saints, but few could have imagined that it would have turned out like this through four weeks of the 2012 NFL season. The Saints, who went 13-3 last year and had compiled a 37-11 record over the course of the three previous regular seasons, are a shocking 0-4. Is another Super Bowl victory out of the question?

NFL Handicapping: Home Underdogs Very Profitable
by T.O. Whenham - 9/28/2012

I’ve seen a lot of talk recently about how strong underdogs have been early in this NFL season. Of most interest from a betting perspective have been the start that home underdogs have gotten off to. There has been a road favorite in 19 games through the first three weeks of the regular season. In 13 of those games the road dog has covered the spread. Even more impressively, 12 of those 13 underdogs have won outright. For moneyline bettors that means a serious payday.

NFL Handicapping: Can 0-3 Saints Save Their Season?
by T.O. Whenham - 9/28/2012

What a mess. The New Orleans Saints came into this season with high expectations. The NFC is very deep, but the Saints were seen by many as a very legitimate Super Bowl contender — an elite squad. Just three games into the season, though, the season is spinning out of control, and it’s on the verge of being lost.

NFL Handicapping: Ditch the Assumptions
by T.O. Whenham - 9/27/2012

Most sports bettors are lazy. They get an idea about a team or player’s performance and they stick with it — even if it isn’t particularly accurate any more. Getting stuck on assumptions and outdated opinions is a problem when you are having an argument, but when you are using those assumptions to base your betting decisions on it can be downright expensive.

Handicapping Rough Starts for NFL Teams
by T.O. Whenham - 9/26/2012

Teams don’t want to start out 1-2 in the NFL, but this year it seems like that is the “cool” record. Nearly half of the league — 15 of the 32 teams — have started out at this mark. That’s more than we would expect. Some teams at 1-2 are on the road to futility, while others are going to be headed for the playoffs once they get back on track.