NFL Handicapping Articles

NFL Odds Released for Every Game of 2013-14 Season
by Robert Ferringo - 5/14/2013

The NBA Playoffs are reaching a fever pitch. The Stanley Cup finals are raging. Major League Baseball is putting its feet up for what will be their annual summer dominance of the sports betting calendar. But one of the biggest stories last week was the release of NFL spreads and odds by Cantor Gaming.

Post-NFL Draft Player Props Odds and Betting Picks
by Alan Matthews - 4/29/2013

How unusual was the 2013 NFL Draft? There was one skill position player taken in the Top 15: West Virginia receiver Tavon Austin. His teammate Geno Smith was once thought to be a potential No. 1 overall pick. Instead, Smith went No. 39 to the Jets. The first quarterback to go was Florida State's E.J. Manuel, who wasn't a first-rounder on anyone's mock draft. The first overall pick was from a Mid-American Conference school, CMU's Eric Fisher. It was all good theater -- I much prefer a draft like that to one where most picks are pre-ordained.

2013 NFL Draft Grades for Round 1
by Robert Ferringo - 4/26/2013

For years, in my NFL Draft previews and analysis, I have been screaming that too much attention has been given to overhyped skill position players. And that one of the keys to building a solid, winning foundation is to use the annual NFL Draft as a place from which to stockpile the largest, strongest, meanest mutants allowed on a football field.

NFL Week 1 Odds Available for Action
by Robert Ferringo - 4/25/2013

It’s always football season. The sport is a juggernaut that dominates the national consciousness and has become a pillar of our economic system. It is so omnipresent that the NFL Draft – which is actually just a mundane selection of guys who will either be cut or sitting the bench next year – is headline news this week.

NFL Draft First-Round Props Odds and Picks
by Alan Matthews - 4/24/2013

Thankfully, we all can stop hearing from Mel Kiper Jr. and Todd McShay by the end of the weekend -- although I'm sure both come out with 2014 Big Boards early next week -- with the NFL Draft set to begin Thursday night with the first round in New York. There are several great options on first-round props spread across Bovada and BetOnline -- too many to list here, so I recommend taking a look. Here are some I liked and my recommendations.

2013 NFL Draft: Props Odds and Betting Picks
by Alan Matthews - 4/17/2013

If you are like me, you are no doubt totally jonesing for football right now. The college season ended a little more than three months ago -- sorry, I don't get too excited about the spring games around the nation since you can't bet on them -- and the NFL a bit over two months ago. NFL camps don't open for another 100 days or so.

2103 NFL Draft Predictions
by Trevor Whenham - 4/17/2013

After months of speculation, we are finally just days away from the start of the NFL Draft. There is more uncertainty here than in any draft in recent memory because there is so much depth but so little obviously elite talent. That makes trying to figure out what is going to happen much more difficult than usual — and it is always tough. Regardless, I will fearlessly make eight first-round NFL Draft predictions:

NFL Handicapping: Ranking the Available QB Options
by Trevor Whenham - 3/15/2013

The top prize of the year for teams that needed a new quarterback in the NFL was Alex Smith. The Chiefs have secured him, but there are still a whole lot of teams that need a new guy under center — either right now or in the near future. This year is a whole lot different than last year where Andrew Luck and Robert Griffin III were can’t-miss prospects and a few others were fairly low-risk. This year there doesn’t seem to be a home run out there — in the draft, in free agency, or through trade. There are some interesting options, though. Here is my ranking of the top 5 QB options teams could settle for this year:

NFL Odds and Picks: Wes Welker & Reggie Bush Props
by Alan Matthews - 3/14/2013

There have been some very curious free-agent decisions made in recent years, but I can't remember one that has drawn more scrutiny and surprise than New England Patriots receiver Wes Welker deciding on Wednesday to sign with the Denver Broncos. The only move I could see in this year's free agency rivaling that as a surprise is Chicago Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher, who is an unrestricted free agent, choosing to finish his Hall of Fame career with the hated Packers.

NFL Odds and Picks: Percy Harvin & Anquan Boldin Trade Props
by Alan Matthews - 3/12/2013

Remember the 2010 regular season when the NFC West was being pilloried as one of the worst divisions in National Football League history? The Seattle Seahawks made history that year by winning the West and reaching the playoffs with a 7-9 record. The San Francisco 49ers, in their final season pre-Jim Harbaugh, finished a game back of the Seahawks and Rams at 6-10.

Alex Smith to the Chiefs Betting Props Odds and Predictions
by Alan Matthews - 2/28/2013

Last offseason there was a rare big trade in the NFL, with the Miami Dolphins sending star receiver Brandon Marshall to the Chicago Bears for two third-round picks. Chicago immediately become considered a significant Super Bowl contender. The team fell short of the playoffs despite a 10-6 record, but it wasn’t Marshall’s fault as he had the best season for a receiver in Bears history with 118 catches for 1,508 yards and 11 touchdowns. Marshall just didn’t have any help on offense.

2013 NFL Draft Predictions: Combine Risers and Fallers
by Trevor Whenham - 2/26/2013

A player’s career can’t be made or ruined at the NFL Combine, but they sure can change the impression of teams and fans in a hurry. Guys like Vernon Davis can go from obscure to highly-valued with one explosive athletic display. I won’t pick on any one player who has disappointed athletically at the Combine in the past, but there are plenty of those as well.

Top Quarterbacks in the 2013 NFL Draft Class
by Trevor Whenham - 2/18/2013

We have been very spoiled by the quarterback draft classes in the last couple of years. Just think about it — Wilson, Griffin and Luck last year, and Newton, Dalton and Kaepernick the year before. That’s six very competent starting quarterbacks, and that doesn’t include incomplete projects with upside like Locker, Gabbert, Ponder, Tannehill, Weeden, Foles or Cousins. That is two straight bumper crops of starter-caliber (with more than a couple superstars) quarterbacks. Impressive.

Key Offseason Storylines for NFL Handicappers
by Trevor Whenham - 2/12/2013

There really is no real time off for bettors who want to be serious about winning in the NFL. It’s a long time until we will be able to watch another game, but there is no shortage of things to pay close attention to until then. Coaching shuffles, free agency, the Combine, the draft, mini camps — it never ends. As we head into the very busy offseason, here are five key storylines for bettors on the hunt for value to pay close attention to.

2013 NFL Draft: Players That Will Make Immediate Impact
by Trevor Whenham - 2/11/2013

Now that the Super Bowl is behind us, it is time to turn our attention to the NFL Draft. It is a bit of a different draft this year because there quite possibly won’t be a quarterback taken in the Top 10 picks, and there isn’t a QB certain to be a star this year. In recent years we have been spoiled by the rookie classes of QBs, but now we need to look deeper for real impact in this draft.

2014 Super Bowl Handicapping: Can Ravens Repeat?
by Trevor Whenham - 2/4/2013

I have written a whole lot of articles over the years. Thousands. This one could be the shortest one yet. Will the Ravens win the Super Bowl again next year? No. I could leave it there, and I am pretty confident that I would be right. Since I have the time, though — football doesn’t start up for seven months after all — I’ll go a little deeper. The Ravens are going to be very hard pressed to repeat their hard earned Super Bowl next year because of at least five reasons:

Grading the 2013 NFL Coaching Hires
by Trevor Whenham - 1/21/2013

Eight NFL teams — fully a quarter of the league — fired their coaches last year, which is yet more proof of how thankless the job of NFL head coach has become. All eight vacancies have now been filled, which means it is a good time to grade the hires. Before we look at each team and grade their coaching hire in turn, let me just say that this is an impressive group of new coaches. Most years there are a couple of picks that leave you scratching your head — or imagining how soon the team will be hiring again. This year, though, it’s hard to find major fault with any of the picks. Teams did a far worse job filling GM vacancies, but on the coaching front the early returns are that this was a strong offseason.

NFL Conference Championship Player Props Odds and Betting Picks
by Alan Matthews - 1/18/2013

Well, as has been the case for most of the past decade, both No. 1 seeds failed to make it to conference championship weekend in the NFL playoffs. In fact, we came only about 31 seconds from both failing to do so this season, but Atlanta’s Matt Ryan showed why his nickname is “Matty Ice” with last week’s game-winning field goal drive against Seattle for the NFC’s top-seeded Falcons.

Ravens at Patriots Picks and NFL Betting Odds
by Trevor Whenham - 1/17/2013

The Ravens should not be able to beat the Patriots. Not on the road, and not when they are facing a future Hall of Fame quarterback playing at the peak of his abilities. Of course, the exact same thing could have been said last week, and after one of the craziest games in memory the Ravens were left standing, and Peyton Manning was left to consider what could have been. Now Baltimore needs to get their emotions in charge, reload their luck, and give it another try as we await the next chapter of their unlikely run.

Potential Super Bowl Matchups: Odds and Analysis
by Trevor Whenham - 1/15/2013

We don’t yet know which two teams will be playing in the Super Bowl, but at this point there are only four possibilities. It seems like a good idea to rank each of those four possibilities in terms of betting attractiveness (odds of each matchup occurring are from Bovada):