NFL Handicapping Articles

Detroit Lions vs. Seattle Seahawks Expert Betting Picks for Best Props on Board
by Chris Vasile - 1/5/2017

Game 2 of wild-card Saturday sees the Detroit Lions travel to CenturyLink Field to take on the NFC West Champion Seattle Seahawks. The Lions could have avoided this matchup by beating the Green Bay Packers last week in the regular season finale, but failed to do so and failed to capture what would have been their first NFC North Title since 1993.

Oakland Raiders vs. Houston Texans Expert Betting Picks for Best Props on Board
by Chris Vasile - 1/4/2017

The NFL Playoffs get underway Saturday with what is expected to be the worst matchup of wild-card weekend. The Raiders come into this game with a 12-4 record and are in the postseason for the first time since 2002, the year they lost Super Bowl XXXVII to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Raiders had the AFC West title in their grasps until a slip up in Week 17 allowed the Kansas City Chiefs to jump over them, steal the division and a first-round bye.

2017 Expert NFL Wild-Card Picks and Predictions Against the Spread
by Chris Vasile - 1/3/2017

The NFL Playoffs are set to kick off this weekend with a pair of wild-card games on both Saturday and Sunday. This postseason will mark the first time in 13 years that last year's Super Bowl teams will miss this year's 12-team tournament. Taking that a step further, this rare occasion has only happened four times prior, in 2002, 1999 and 1988. But what's done is done, and we must now turn our attention to the teams that were fortunate enough to secure a playoff spot.

NFL Odds: Week 17 Line Movements & Last-Minute News
by Alan Matthews - 12/30/2016

While on "Black Monday" we are likely to see a handful of coaches fired, joining Jeff Fisher, Gus Bradley and Rex Ryan as those currently unemployed, let's take a look at which coaches did a fantastic job this year and could be looking at nice extensions or a raise -- not to mention the AP Coach of the Year Award.

Free NFL Picks: Green Bay Packers at Detroit Lions Odds and Expert Predictions
by Alan Matthews - 12/29/2016

Welcome to my final regular-season NFL preview for the 2016 season, although I'll certainly be here right through the Super Bowl as will other Doc's writers. The NFL doesn't schedule a Sunday night game originally for Week 17 but leaves open a slot for NBC to flex into prime time. Needless to say, the goal is to have the most playoff relevant matchup for the biggest potential audience. And there's clearly no more important Week 17 game than Packers at Lions (both 9-6). By the time this game kicks off, the teams will know if the loser will miss the playoffs.

Expert NFL Picks: New Orleans Saints at Atlanta Falcons Odds and Predictions
by Alan Matthews - 12/28/2016

Sunday is the final regular-season NFL game ever in Atlanta's Georgia Dome as the team is moving to the spectacular Mercedes-Benz Stadium for next season. That's one thing the Falcons and Saints have in common: their stadiums will be sponsored by the same company starting in 2017.

NFL Handicapping: How to Bet on Eliminated Teams
by Trevor Whenham - 12/28/2016

There are 19 teams eliminated from the NFL playoffs with a week to go in the season (technically it is only 18, but Tampa Bay needs such an impossible set of circumstances to get in that I am already counting them as out). That means that each of these teams has absolutely nothing to play for in this final week - and some of the teams have been in that position for weeks already.

Free NFL Picks: New England Patriots at Miami Dolphins Odds and Betting Predictions
by Alan Matthews - 12/27/2016

Do you think that Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Pace is kicking himself right now for letting former offensive coordinator Adam Gase get away? Gase worked wonders with Jay Cutler last year, but the Bears weren't going to fire Coach John Fox after just one season and move Gase up to the top job. So the Dolphins swooped in this past offseason and hired Gase. He's a Coach of the Year candidate in leading Miami (10-5) to the playoffs for the first time since 2008.

NFL Playoff Scenarios and Expert Predictions
by Trevor Whenham - 12/27/2016

It is almost playoff time. Before we get there, though, we have to have the matchups all set. In the AFC we know that Houston, Pittsburgh and Miami are in, and what they do this week has little meaning for their playoff fates. In the NFC the Cowboys have already clinched home-field advantage, and the Giants are a wild-card team no matter what they do.

NFL Betting Predictions: Week 17 Opening Line Report and Picks
by Alan Matthews - 12/26/2016

It's not impossible to win a Super Bowl after losing your starting quarterback late in the regular season to an injury. The 1990 New York Giants saw Phil Simms go out with a foot injury and backup Jeff Hostetler led the team to a title. But that New York team had a great defense. I can't say the same for this year's Oakland Raiders. They beat Indianapolis on Saturday but lost quarterback and MVP candidate Derek Carr to a broken leg.

NFL Odds: Week 16 Line Movements & Last-Minute News
by Alan Matthews - 12/23/2016

We have had a head coach fired in each of the past two weeks. Who is the next to go? If you follow my NFL stories during the year, you know that I love coach firing props. And I'm usually pretty accurate on them. But I was wrong this season for the first one to be fired as I went with Buffalo's Rex Ryan, but it was the Rams' Jeff Fisher. Then Jacksonville's Gus Bradley followed him out the door last Sunday.

Expert NFL Picks: Baltimore Ravens at Pittsburgh Steelers Odds and Predictions
by Alan Matthews - 12/21/2016

Just two games this Sunday on the Christmas holiday: Baltimore at Pittsburgh with a 4:30 p.m. ET kickoff and then Denver at Kansas City in the Sunday night game. I looked at Broncos-Chiefs a few Sunday nights ago in Denver, a crazy Chiefs win, so I want to really examine the Steelers game because they were my preseason pick to win the AFC title. And if Pittsburgh doesn't win this game, it might not be in the playoffs at all.

Free NFL Picks: New York Giants at Philadelphia Eagles Odds & Predictions
by Alan Matthews - 12/20/2016

Hard to believe we already are on the final Thursday night game of the year. I've always said these games tend to favor the home teams with the quick turnaround and the home clubs are 9-4 in the 13 TNF games in 2016 (technically the Week 1 season opener and Thanksgiving night game aren't part of the official TNF package).

NFL Betting Predictions: Week 16 Opening Line Report and Picks
by Alan Matthews - 12/19/2016

Just from a personal standpoint, the game I was least interested in Week 15 was Sunday's Jacksonville at Houston matchup. Two of the NFL's lowest-rated quarterbacks in Blake Bortles vs. Brock Osweiler. No thanks! Yet that's the beauty of the NFL in that even the worst games on paper can end up being interesting.

NFL Odds: Week 15 Line Movements & Last-Minute News
by Alan Matthews - 12/16/2016

Before I dive into some Week 15 news and Bovada special props, make sure you check the weather on any games you plan to wager on that are being played outdoors in the Midwest or Northeast USA this weekend. It's going to be really ugly in some places -- it could be the coldest home Chicago Bears game in history with a potential high of zero on Sunday. I am leaning "under" on just about every game in the affected areas.

Basic Strategy Teasers: Best Week 15 NFL Betting Options
by Chris Vasile - 12/16/2016

Week 15 of the NFL marks the start of the Saturday football. Next week we will be treated to a full day of Saturday games thanks to Christmas, with just two games taking place on Sunday and the Monday-nighter. This week, thankfully, we will be treated to a game that has some meaning behind it. It features a team that is in the playoff hunt, so we won't have to settle for two garbage teams like we have plenty of times with Thursday Night Football.

Expert NFL Picks: Detroit Lions at New York Giants Odds and Predictions
by Alan Matthews - 12/14/2016

I'm not hearing anyone complain about the NFL's TV ratings of lack of quality play at this point. There has been some really intriguing football played for the past few weeks, and that should continue in Week 15. It was an easy call for me to examine Sunday's Detroit at New York Giants game with both clubs at 9-4.

Free NFL Picks: Los Angeles Rams at Seattle Seahawks Odds & Predictions
by Alan Matthews - 12/13/2016

Thank you Rams owner Stan Kroenke! I was struggling to think of a creative story angle for what looks like a pretty lame Thursday night matchup this week between NFC West rivals Los Angeles and Seattle. I doubt this one is very stylistically pretty and the Seahawks are massive favorites.

NFL MVP Betting Advice and Expert Wagering Predictions
by Trevor Whenham - 12/13/2016

This is a fascinating MVP race in the NFL. Most years by now it is pretty clear who is likely to win it. This year it is wide open, with media members taking stands and making strong cases for at least five different players. Every week things shift around, so the race could come right down to the final games of the season. Here's how the race breaks down now heading into Week 15 (odds are from Bovada).

NFL Betting Predictions: Week 15 Opening Line Report and Picks
by Alan Matthews - 12/12/2016

The Miami Dolphins haven't made the playoffs since 2008. They are now 8-5 after blowing a big lead to Arizona on Sunday but then kicking the winning field goal in the south Florida rain as time expired. That's the good news. The bad is that the Dolphins are seventh in the AFC standings and will have to beat out most likely the Denver Broncos or AFC North runner-up between Pittsburgh and Baltimore for that final wild-card spot (Oakland or K.C. will get the first one) without starting quarterback Ryan Tannehill.