NFL Handicapping Articles

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.

NFL Betting Advice: are the Chiefs Legitimate Super Bowl Contenders?
by Trevor Whenham - 12/12/2016

The AFC West was viewed as a showdown between the Broncos and the Raiders heading into the season, with the Chiefs trailing somewhere behind. Yet here we sit less than two weeks from Christmas, and Kansas City is the squad that sits in first place and controls their own destiny the rest of the way. They haven't backed into their position, either - they have won 10 games and seriously humbled the Raiders last Thursday night.

NFL Odds: Week 14 Line Movements & Last-Minute News
by Alan Matthews - 12/9/2016

With just four games left in the regular season, it looks like we will have a rare year where no NFL head coach was fired during the season. It wouldn't make much sense for a team to banish its coach at this point, although that didn't stop the Philadelphia Eagles from dumping Chip Kelly following a Week 16 loss last year that eliminated the Eagles from playoff contention.

NFL Betting Advice: Detroit Lions Outlook
by Trevor Whenham - 12/9/2016

As with any NFL season there are plenty of surprises that have emerged so far this year - good ones and bad ones. One of the bigger positive surprises so far is unquestionably the Detroit Lions. Their season win total sat at seven heading into the season, and it seemed like they had no chance at all in their division behind Green Bay and Minnesota - two popular preseason Super Bowl picks.

Basic Strategy Teasers: Best Week 14 NFL Betting Options
by Chris Vasile - 12/9/2016

There are only four weeks left in the NFL regular season, and it feels like just yesterday we were getting you prepped and ready for Week 1. Every year there are predictions made and every year there are things we learn that we hadn't previously known.

Expert NFL Picks: Pittsburgh Steelers at Buffalo Bills Odds and Free Predictions
by Alan Matthews - 12/7/2016

A lot of important games to potentially preview on Sunday: Broncos-Titans, Texans-Colts, Saints-Bucs, Seahawks-Packers and Cowboys-Giants to name five. But I think the Steelers-Bills game from Buffalo has some really interesting story lines, so that's the choice.

Free NFL Picks: Oakland Raiders at Kansas City Chiefs Odds & Expert Predictions
by Alan Matthews - 12/6/2016

I don't hear anyone complaining about the NFL's Thursday night schedule now! The last two TNF games have gone down to the wire, and this week's game is arguably the prime-time matchup of the regular season as 10-2 Oakland visits 9-3 Kansas City. The winner, in my opinion, will be the AFC West champion and could be the top seed in the AFC playoffs.

NFL Betting Predictions: Week 14 Opening Line Report and Picks
by Alan Matthews - 12/5/2016

We have our first member of the 12-team NFL playoff field as the Dallas Cowboys clinched at worst a wild-card spot with their comeback win in Minnesota on Thursday night and then Washington's loss in Arizona on Sunday. In fact, the mega-popular Cowboys helped that Vikings game become the highest-rated "Thursday Night Football" telecast ever.