The bum's 2020-2921 nfl news, trends, picks !

[StarDust Bum]

NFL

Week 17

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sunday, January 3

NY Jets @ New England
NY Jets
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of NY Jets's last 6 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of NY Jets's last 5 games
New England
New England is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against NY Jets
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of New England's last 5 games

Minnesota @ Detroit
Minnesota
Minnesota is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Detroit
Minnesota is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing Detroit
Detroit
The total has gone OVER in 11 of Detroit's last 14 games at home
The total has gone UNDER in 10 of Detroit's last 14 games when playing Minnesota

Miami @ Buffalo
Miami
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Miami's last 5 games when playing on the road against Buffalo
Miami is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games on the road
Buffalo
Buffalo is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Buffalo's last 5 games when playing at home against Miami

Baltimore @ Cincinnati
Baltimore
Baltimore is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games
Baltimore is 11-2 SU in its last 13 games on the road
Cincinnati
Cincinnati is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games at home
Cincinnati is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games when playing at home against Baltimore

Pittsburgh @ Cleveland
Pittsburgh
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Pittsburgh's last 7 games when playing on the road against Cleveland
Pittsburgh is 9-1-1 SU in its last 11 games when playing Cleveland
Cleveland
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Cleveland's last 7 games when playing at home against Pittsburgh
Cleveland is 9-3 SU in its last 12 games at home

Dallas @ NY Giants
Dallas
Dallas is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing NY Giants
Dallas is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games when playing NY Giants
NY Giants
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of NY Giants's last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of NY Giants's last 5 games at home

Atlanta @ Tampa Bay
Atlanta
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Atlanta's last 5 games when playing Tampa Bay
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Atlanta's last 6 games
Tampa Bay
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Tampa Bay's last 5 games when playing Atlanta
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Tampa Bay's last 5 games at home

Green Bay @ Chicago
Green Bay
Green Bay is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
Green Bay is 9-1 SU in its last 10 games when playing on the road against Chicago
Chicago
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Chicago's last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 14 of Chicago's last 18 games at home

Tennessee @ Houston
Tennessee
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Tennessee's last 9 games when playing on the road against Houston
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Tennessee's last 7 games
Houston
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Houston's last 9 games when playing at home against Tennessee
Houston is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games when playing at home against Tennessee

LA Chargers @ Kansas City
LA Chargers
The total has gone OVER in 5 of LA Chargers's last 6 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of LA Chargers's last 5 games
Kansas City
Kansas City is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
Kansas City is 13-1 SU in its last 14 games at home

New Orleans @ Carolina
New Orleans
New Orleans is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games when playing Carolina
The total has gone OVER in 7 of New Orleans's last 8 games when playing Carolina
Carolina
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Carolina's last 8 games when playing New Orleans
Carolina is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games when playing New Orleans

Jacksonville @ Indianapolis
Jacksonville
Jacksonville is 9-1-1 ATS in its last 11 games when playing Indianapolis
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Jacksonville's last 5 games when playing Indianapolis
Indianapolis
Indianapolis is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games when playing at home against Jacksonville
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Indianapolis's last 5 games when playing Jacksonville

Arizona @ LA Rams
Arizona
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Arizona's last 5 games on the road
Arizona is 10-5 SU in its last 15 games when playing on the road against LA Rams
LA Rams
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of LA Rams's last 5 games at home
LA Rams is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing Arizona

Seattle @ San Francisco
Seattle
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Seattle's last 5 games
Seattle is 12-2 SU in its last 14 games when playing San Francisco
San Francisco
The total has gone OVER in 4 of San Francisco's last 5 games when playing Seattle
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of San Francisco's last 6 games

Las Vegas @ Denver
Las Vegas
Las Vegas is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Denver
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Las Vegas's last 5 games when playing Denver
Denver
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Denver's last 5 games when playing Las Vegas
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Denver's last 5 games when playing at home against Las Vegas

Washington @ Philadelphia
Washington
Washington is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Washington's last 6 games
Philadelphia
Philadelphia is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games when playing Washington
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Philadelphia's last 6 games when playing at home against Washington

[StarDust Bum]

Friday’s 6-pack
NFL leaders in passing yardage:
4,740— Patrick Mahomes, KC
4,458— Deshaun Watson, Hst
4,320— Josh Allen, Buff
4,316— Matt Ryan, Atl
4,234— Tom Brady, TB
4,059— Aaron Rodgers, GB

Americans who have died from COVID-19: 344,399
PLEASE wear a mask (over your nose/mouth) when you go out.

Quote of the Day
“It’s dumb. The root of its dumb, no matter what the root of it is. The root of its dumb and the continuation of its dumb. I would have that solidly in the category of dumb. Now where the dumb started, I’m not entirely sure.”
Mississippi State coach Mike Leach, talking about his team’s post-game fight Thursday

Friday’s quiz
Who coached the Baltimore Ravens, first time they won the Super Bowl?

Thursday’s quiz
When the ABA folded in 1976, Spurs, Pacers, Nuggets, Nets were absorbed into the NBA.

Wednesday’s quiz
In the last 40 years, Ohio State has had two QB’s picked in the first round of the NFL Draft: Dwayne Haskins is one. Art Schlichter was the other; he went 0-6 starting for the Colts.

********************

Friday’s List of 13: Our first Den of 2021…….
13) I’m sick and tired of people ripping Jared Goff; seriously, I’m sick of it. Guy played with a broken thumb for a quarter and a half last week, but people still rip the guy. He’s a damn good quarterback.

Last four years, Goff is 44-22 as the Rams’ QB; he helped them win the NFC title couple years ago. Super Bowl didn’t go too well, but Dan Marino lost his only Super Bowl and no one complains about him. Dan Fouts never played in a Super Bowl; he was pretty good.

12) There is a Brooklyn wiseass named Sal Iacono who passes himself off as a sports expert on TV, but he only got on TV because he is Jimmy Kimmel’s cousin. Iacono posts Rams +3 on Twitter Thursday, for this reason:

“I went on Wikipedia to look up this John Wolford to seek out reasons to bet the Rams and it said he’s not Jared Goff, that’s good enough for me.” He goes on to shred Kyler Murray; he doesn’t like Murray’s body language.

Thats what passes for “expert analysis” these days. What a jackass.

11) Bad news for a Dolphins team trying to make the playoffs for first time since 2016, third time since 2002; QB Ryan Fitzpatrick tested positive for COVID, is out for Sunday’s game in Buffalo.
Jake Rudock was signed to back up Tua Tagovailoa this week; Rudock’s NFL experience consists of five passes he threw for Detroit three years ago.

10) Green Bay Packers star LT David Bakhtiari tore his ACL in practice Thursday, is done for the year. Bad news for Green Bay’s offensive line.

9) College football head coaches who didn’t play college football:
— Mike Leach, Mississippi State
— David Cutcliffe, Duke
— Hugh Freeze, Liberty
— Sonny Dykes, SMU
— Manny Diaz, Miami
— Ryan Silverfield, Memphis
— Jedd Fisch, Arizona

8) Louis Hedley is the punter for the Miami Hurricanes; he is a 26-year old Australian who wears number 94, because one of his heroes used to wear #94 for Miami- Dwayne Johnson, better known as pro wrestler/actor The Rock.

Miami QB D’Eriq King tore his ACL in the Hurricanes’ bowl game.

7) I’m glad the Big 14 Network shows a lot of basketball games, but their announcers are really annoying; we know every team in the league is great, every game is competitive, every player is incredibly skilled and a great student. Just announce the games, please????

Big 14 is the best league this year, it was the best last year, but before that, last time it was the best league was 2013. So says kenpom.com, the authority on such things.

Someone should tell these geniuses that the last Big 14 team to win the basketball national title was Michigan State, in 2000. Thats 21 years ago.

6) Bulls 133, Wizards 130: Washington is now 0-5, but Russell Westbrook becomes 2nd player ever (Oscar Robertson is other) to start a season with four triple-doubles in his first four games.

5) It is January 1st, and Duke, North Carolina, Kentucky and Michigan State are a combined 15-15, 1-5 in conference games.

4) There must be a lot of money in selling pillows; lot of late-night commercials for pillows, either the guy who looks like Rollie Fingers, or the pillows that look like pool floats.

3) Nets 145, Hawks 141: If you’re in an NBA fantasy league, you might want to acquire some Nets or Hawks; they both play very fast tempos. Hawks scored 128.8 ppg in their first four games this season. Brooklyn scored 121.6 ppg in their first five games.

2) In November, 56.5% of all the money wagered on sports in Nevada was wager on mobile apps; the number is way higher in New Jersey. Will be interesting to see if New York ever allows mobile sports betting.

1) UCLA 72, Utah 70— Bruins improve to 6-2, 2-0 in conference play.

[StarDust Bum]

Saturday’s 6-pack
NFL leaders in receiving yardage:
1,459— Stefon Diggs, Buff
1,416— Travis Kelce, KC
1,372— DeAndre Hopkins, Ariz
1,328— Davante Adams, GB
1,322— Calvin Ridley, Atl
1,282— DK Metcalf, Sea

Americans who have died from COVID-19: 344,399
PLEASE wear a mask (over your nose/mouth) when you go out.

Quote of the Day
“There’s a whole lot of unknowns, so we’ll see what happens. I don’t have any guarantees left in my contract, so something’s gotta happen one way or another.”
JJ Watt

Saturday’s quiz
Where did JJ Watt play his college football?

Friday’s quiz
Brian Billick coached the Baltimore Ravens, first time they won the Super Bowl.

Thursday’s quiz
When the ABA folded in 1976, Spurs, Pacers, Nuggets, Nets were absorbed into the NBA.

********************

Saturday’s Den: Wrapping up the first day of 2021

13) Ohio State 49, Clemson 28
— Buckeyes racked up 639 yards, led 35-14 at halftime.
— Fields threw for 385 yards, six touchdowns.
— Buckeyes will play Alabama for the national title.

12) Alabama 31, Notre Dame 14:
— Game was 14-0 after 11:00, wasn’t very interesting.
— Harris ran for 125 yards, Smith caught seven balls for 135 yards.
— Alabama averaged 9.9 yards/pass attempt.

11) Georgia 24, Cincinnati 21:
— Horrendous, awful time management by Cincinnati in last 2:00, when they were supposed to be trying to run out the clock.
— Dawgs kicked GW 53-yard FG with 0:03 left, then got a safety on last play.
— Georgia threw for 404 yards, outgained Cincy 449-305.

10) Northwestern 35, Auburn 19:
— Wildcats ran for 166 yards, outgained Auburn 457-361.
— Northwestern converted 7-17 on third down, Auburn 2-13.
— Auburn has now lost four of its last five bowl games.

9) Dallas 93, Miami 83— Luka Doncic had 27 points, 15 rebounds, as Mavericks won for only second time in five games.

8) Atlanta 114, Brooklyn 96— 4-1 Hawks appear to be a much improved team; they haven’t made the playoffs since 2017, went 73-158 the last three years.

7) Washington 130, Minnesota 109— Wizards win for first time in six tries; Russell Westbrook didn’t play. Go figure.

6) Western Kentucky 67, Charlotte 63— Hilltoppers were down 8 at halftime, they rallied and won for sixth consecutive time. Only two Hilltoppers shot a foul shot in this game, which is very unusual.

5) Cleveland State 65, IUPUI 62— Vikings are 5-0 in Horizon; previous five years, Cleveland State went 27-53 in conference games.

4) Marist 63, Niagara 61— Red Foxes are 6-1; their last winning season was 2008, when they went 18-14 under Matt Brady.

3) Mike Krzyzewski won’t coach Duke in their game at Florida State Saturday, due to contact tracing. Jon Scheyer will be the acting head coach. Krzyzewski will be 74 next month; he can’t be messing around with COVID.

2) New Mexico’s basketball team is playing “home” games at Lubbock Christian University in Texas this season; Lobos have a very young team (#246 experience, #300 continuity), not having their own gym to practice in isn’t an ideal situation.

New Mexico scored 53 ppg in losing its first three Mountain West games.

1) Long time ago, 1955, there was a Caribbean baseball team called the Santurce Cangrejeros who had a pretty good outfield— Willie Mays, Roberto Clemente and a guy named Bob Thurman, who played four years with the Cincinnati Reds. I’m guessing not a lot of teams in the Caribbean League had two Hall of Famers.

[StarDust Bum]

Sunday’s 6-pack
NFL leaders in rushing yardage:
1,777— Derrick Henry, TN
1,557— Dalvin Cook, Minn
1,070— James Robinson, Jax
1,062— Aaron Jones, GB
1,001— David Montgomery, Chi
976— Josh Jacobs, LV

Americans who have died from COVID-19: 349,625
PLEASE wear a mask (over your nose/mouth) when you go out.

Quote of the Day
“I love Boise State. I will always root for them, and I hope one day to be a part of the program again. We are building something special here in Dallas. I am thankful to the Jones family and [head coach] Mike McCarthy for providing me with the opportunity to coach these special players. I am excited for us to put it all together and finish the job.”
Kellen Moore

Sunday’s quiz
John Calipari has led three schools to the Final Four; Kentucky, Memphis and ????????

Saturday’s quiz
JJ Watt played his college football at Wisconsin.

Friday’s quiz
Brian Billick coached the Baltimore Ravens, first time they won the Super Bowl.

****************************

Sunday’s Den: Wrapping up a sports Saturday

13) Kentucky 78, Mississippi State 73 2OT:
— Kid named Dontaie Allen scored 23 points off the bench for Kentucky, as they broke a 6-game losing skid.
— Thing is, in Kentucky’s first seven games, Allen had played a TOTAL of 19:00, scored 7 points. Good things happen to people who work hard and don’t complain.

12) Must’ve been a bad day for SEC refs; John Calipari, Eric Musselman both got tossed out of their games. Either that, or refs can just hear better in the mostly-empty gyms.

There 73 free throws almost evenly divided in the Arkansas game; lot of whistles.

11) What does it say about a mid-major program when its head coach quits to become an assistant at a bigger school? When Musselman got tossed out of the Arkansas game, associate coach David Patrick took the reins.

Patrick had been head coach at Cal-Riverside; they had their first winning season in 11 years LY, but Patrick bolted to become an SEC assistant. Couple years ago, Doc Sadler quit at Southern Miss to be an assistant for Fred Hoiberg at Nebraska.

Maybe being a mid-major head coach ain’t all it is cracked up to be.

10) Marquette 64, Georgetown 60:
— Hoyas led this game 52-37 with 9:55 left to play.
— This is Patrick Ewing’s fourth year as Georgetown’s coach; he is now 20-42 in Big East games.

9) Colorado State 70, San Diego State 67— Aztecs led this game 33-7 with 8:57 left before halftime. Biggest comeback win in Mountain West history. Rams are 6-1, 3-0 in conference.

8) Oklahoma 75, West Virginia 71— Sooners were up 38-20 at halftime; Mountaineers tied game in second half- they made 14-24 3-pointers, but shot only 27.8% inside the arc.

7) There were lot of upsets Saturday:
— Morehead State (+13.5) 61, Murray State 56
— Oakland (+11) 81, Wright State 71
— Alabama (+10) 71, Tennessee 63
— Colorado State (+9) 70, San Diego State 67
— Oklahoma State (+8) 82, Texas Tech 77 OT
— Northern Colorado (+8) 64, Montana 62
— Wichita State (+7.5) 83, Ole Miss 79

6) Boise State 87, San Jose State 86:
— Thursday night, Boise hammered the Spartans 106-54, dropping San Jose to 1-5, but San Jose junior Jalen Dalcourt made his debut Saturday. Dalcourt scored 23 points in 24:00 off the bench, as this game went right down to the wire. It’ll probably be last time he doesn’t start.

5) Iowa 77, Rutgers 75:
— Rutgers will make the NCAAs this year for first time since 1991, but they better improve their free throw shooting if they want to advance. Scarlet Knights were 4-12 on the line in this game.

4) There is a freshman on Mississippi State who is 1-11 on the foul line this season; I’m 61 years old, have been holed up in my house here for the last ten months, but I’m pretty sure I could go to a playground today and, after a little warmup, make half my foul shots, and I’d be annoyed if I only made half of them.

If you go to college on a basketball scholarship, 1-11 ain’t getting it done.

3) Texas Longhorns fired football coach Tom Herman replaced him with Steve Sarkisian; Herman was 32-18 at Texas, 22-13 in Big X games, 4-0 in bowls, but it wasn’t enough. School ate $21M to terminate his contract.

Sarkisian knows Nick Saban and all, but he also went 46-35 as head coach at Washington/USC, 31-26 in conference games. No way is this an upgrade, it is change for the sake of change.

2) Dallas Cowboys’ offensive coordinator Kellen Moore turned down Boise State’s offer to become its new football coach; he’ll be staying with Dallas. Moore played QB at Boise State not that long ago; where do they turn now?

1) Defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz is the scapegoat for the Eagles’ bad year; he is “taking next year off” while head coach Doug Pederson appears to be keeping his job. Always has to be someone’s fault. Eagles won the Super Bowl three years ago; people have a short memory.

[StarDust Bum]

Gridiron Angles - Week 17
Vince Akins

NFL PLAY ON ATS TREND:
Matchup: New Orleans at Carolina

-- The Saints are 11-0 ATS (7.82 ppg) since Oct 19, 2014 on the road coming off a game that went over the total by at least 13 points.

NFL PLAY AGAINST TREND:
Matchup: Las Vegas at Denver

-- The Raiders are 0-11 ATS (-16.41 ppg) since Dec 08, 2016 on the road coming off a home game where they scored at least 24 points.

TOP NFL PLAYER TREND:
Matchup: Tennessee at Houston

-- The Titans are 7-0 OU (13.00 ppg) since Nov 10, 2019 when they are facing a team Derrick Henry ran for at least 100 yards against last meeting.

NFL O/U OVER TREND:
Matchup: Dallas at N.Y. Giants

-- The Cowboys are 10-0 OU (10.75 ppg) since Dec 30, 2018 coming off a game where they allowed at least two turnovers.

NFL O/U UNDER TREND:
Matchup: Arizona at L.A. Rams

-- The Rams are 0-10 OU (-8.05 ppg) since Sep 16, 2018 when the total is under 46.

NFL CHOICE TREND:
Matchup: Green Bay at Chicago

-- The Packers are 10-0 ATS (7.70 ppg) since Dec 20, 2015 coming off a game as a home favorite where they allowed at least 150 rushing yards.

Trends are verified using Sports Data Query Language (SDQL)

[StarDust Bum]

SUNDAY, JANUARY 3
GAME TIME(ET) PICK UNITS

ATL at TB 01:00 PM
ATL +7.5
O 50.5

MIN at DET 01:00 PM
MIN -3.0
O 54.0

PIT at CLE 01:00 PM
PIT +10.5
U 45.0

NYJ at NE 01:00 PM
NYJ +3.0
U 41.0

BAL at CIN 01:00 PM
CIN +13.5
O 45.0

MIA at BUF 01:00 PM
BUF +3.5
U 42.5

DAL at NYG 01:00 PM
NYG +1.5
U 43.5

GB at CHI 04:25 PM
GB -4.5**********
U 48.5

SEA at SF 04:25 PM
SF +7.5
U 46.0

NO at CAR 04:25 PM
CAR +6.0
U 46.5

ARI at LAR 04:25 PM
ARI -1.0
O 41.5

JAC at IND 04:25 PM
JAC +15.5
O 48.0

LV at DEN 04:25 PM
DEN +2.5
U 50.0

TEN at HOU 04:25 PM
TEN -7.0
O 55.0

LAC at KC 04:25 PM
KC +6.0
O 43.5

WAS at PHI 08:20 PM
WAS -6.5
U 43.0

[StarDust Bum]

DATE W-L-T % UNITS RECORD

01/03/2021 14-18-0 43.33% -2900 Detail
12/28/2020 1-0-1 75.00% +500 Detail
12/27/2020 8-13-0 38.10% -3150 Detail
12/26/2020 2-4-0 33.33% -1200 Detail
12/25/2020 0-2-0 0.00% -1100 Detail
12/21/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
12/20/2020 9-13-0 40.91% -2650 Detail
12/17/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
12/14/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1000 Detail
12/13/2020 11-15-0 42.31% -2750 Detail
12/10/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
12/08/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
12/07/2020 1-3-0 25.00% -1150 Detail
12/06/2020 12-8-1 60.00% +1600 Detail
12/02/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail

Totals..........65-81-2......44.62%....-122.50

[StarDust Bum]

Monday’s 6-pack
NFL Wild Card games next week:

Saturday:
— Indianapolis @ Buffalo (-6.5)
— LA Rams @ Seattle (-4.5)
— Tampa Bay (-7.5) @ Washington

Sunday:
— Baltimore (-3.5) @ Tennessee
— Chicago @ New Orleans (-9.5)
— Cleveland @ Pittsburgh (-3.5)

Americans who have died from COVID-19: 349,625
PLEASE wear a mask (over your nose/mouth) when you go out.

Tweet of the Day
“Can someone make it make sense to me what’s going on….?”
Saquon Barkley, watching the Washington-Philly game Sunday night

Monday’s quiz
Joe Gibbs won three Super Bowls coaching Washington, playing three different QB”s; who were they?

Sunday’s quiz
John Calipari has led three schools to the Final Four; Kentucky, Memphis and UMass.

Saturday’s quiz
JJ Watt played his college football at Wisconsin.

************************

Monday’s Den: Wrapping up Week 17 of the NFL

Buffalo 56, Miami 26
— Dolphins get hammered here, don’t make the playoffs.
— Total yardage: 455-454, Buffalo
— Miami lost its last five games against the Bills.
— In two games vs Miami this year, Buffalo threw for 790 yards.

— Bills’ first three drives: 15 plays, 37 yards, zero points:
— Bills’ next nine drives: 43 plays, 420 yards, six TD’s.
— Buffalo won nine of its last ten games, covered last eight.
— Bills host Indianapolis in playoffs Saturday afternoon.

Indianapolis 28, Jacksonville 14
— Colts win, pass Miami and make the playoffs.
— Indy ran ball for 273 yards, outgained Jaguars 437-283.
— Colts are 9-0 when they score 27+ points. 2-5 when they do not.
— Colts visit Buffalo Saturday afternoon in the first Wild Card game.

— In two games vs Indy this year, Jaguars were outgained 882-524.
— Jacksonville lost its last 15 games, going 5-9 ATS in last 14.
— Jacksonville gave up 35 ppg in their last four games.
— Jaguars can start negotiating with Trevor Lawrence’s agent.

Green Bay 35, Chicago 16
— Packers’ win gets them the #1 seed, and a bye next week.
— Green Bay won six in row, eight of last nine games.
— Packers scored five touchdowns on seven drives.
— Green Bay won 19 of its last 22 games with the Bears.

— Chicago made the playoffs when the Cardinals lost in LA.
— In two games vs Green Bay TY, Bears allowed 10 TD’s on 14 drives.
— In five trips to red zone, Chicago scored one TD, kicked three FG’s.
— Bears visit New Orleans for a Wild Card game Sunday.

Cleveland 24, Pittsburgh 22
— Browns win, make playoffs for first time since 2002.
— These two teams meet again Sunday night in Pittsburgh.
— Cleveland won six of its last eight games.
— Browns are 3-13-1 in last 17 games vs Pittsburgh.

— Steelers scored TD with 1:23 left, but 2-point conversion failed.
— Backup QB Rudolph threw for 315 yards in a losing cause.
— Last four games, Pittsburgh was outscored 57-20 in first half.
— Steelers lost four of last five games, thought this result didn’t matter.

Tennessee 41, Houston 38
— Sloman banked in 37-yard FG off right upright for game-winning points at gun.
— Henry carried ball 34 times for 250 yards, went over 2,000 yards for season.
— Tennessee converted 7 of 10 third down plays.
— Titans are a home underdog to Baltimore in Sunday’s early game.

— Tennessee scored 22 TD’s on their last 51 drives.
— Houston tied game on a 51-yard FG with 0:18 left.
— Texans lost last five games, giving up 32.4 ppg.
— Tennessee ran ball for 571 yards in two games vs Houston this year.

New Orleans 33, Carolina 7
— Saints picked off five passes, three in red zone.
— New Orleans ran for 156 yards, despite most of their RB’s missing game.
— Saints won eight of last nine series games
— In two games vs Carolina TY, New Orleans converted 18-28 third down plays.

— Carolina lost four of last five, nine of its last 11 games.
— Last three weeks, Panthers were outscored 30-0 in second half.
— Carolina was 0-11 when they allowed 23+ points, 5-0 if allowing 21 or fewer.
— Panthers covered two of eight home games this season.

New England 28, NJ Jets 14
— Jets fired coach Adam Gase Sunday night.
— Jets lost their last ten games with New England.
— Jets went 2-6 ATS on the road this season.
— Jets were outscored 148-84 in 2nd half of their last 11 games.

— Game was 14-14: Patriots scored TD’s 2:14 apart early in 4th quarter.
— In two wins against Jets this year, Patriots ran ball for 159-166 yards.
— Only one of New England’s four TD drives was longer than 58 yards.
— Jets lost their last ten visits to Foxboro, last five by 14+ points.

Minnesota 37, Detroit 35
— Vikings went 0-6 ATS in their last six games.
— This was only second time all year Minnesota won field position.
— Cousins threw for 405 yards, three TD’s.
— Vikings won last seven series games, winning last four visits here.

— Detroit scored TD with 4:26 left, but tying 2-point play failed.
— Lions allowed 27+ points in nine of their last ten games.
— Detroit lost four in row, eight of last ten games.
— Last three weeks, Lions were minus-7 in turnovers

Tampa Bay 44, Atlanta 27
— Falcons lost their last five games, only one by more than 5 points.
— Last four games, Atlanta was outscored 72-27 in second half.
— Falcons lost field position in this game, by 15 yards.
— Average total in last ten series games, 59.0

— Buccaneers won their last four games, scoring 37 ppg.
— Last six games, Bucs converted 39-81 third down plays.
— Tampa Bay is 11-0 when it scores 25+ points, 0-5 when it does not.
— Buccaneers visit Washington in Wild Card game Saturday night.

Baltimore 38, Cincinnati 3
— Ravens ran ball for 404 yards in this game; not sure I’ve seen that before.
— At one point in this game, total yardage was 255-7.
— Ravens’ first seven drives: 58 plays, 440 yards, five TD’s and a FG.
— Ravens are a 3.5-point favorite at Tennessee Sunday.

— Bengals’ first three drives: nine plays, minus-3 yards, three punts.
— Cincinnati completed only 6-21 passes, threw two INT’s.
— 3rd down conversions: Ravens 11-17, Bengals 1-9
— Last eight games. Cincinnati was outscored 121-47 in 2nd half.

LA Chargers 38, Kansas City 21
— Chargers won their last four games, after a 3-9 start.
— Bolts scored five touchdowns on eight drives.
— Chargers won field position by 11 yards.
— This was only Chargers’s 2nd win in last 14 games against KC.

— Chiefs scored TD’s on first two drives; ran 30 plays for 143 yards rest of game.
— Kansas City already had top seed clinched, Mahomes didn’t play.
— In two games vs Chargers TY, KC trailed 14-6/24-14 at the half.
— Last time Chiefs covered was November 1st against the Jets.

Seattle 26, San Francisco 23
— Seattle’s first seven drives: 39 plays, 120 yards, two FG’s.
— Seattle’s last three drives: 25 plays, 177 yards, three TD’s.
— Seattle won 13 of last 15 games against the 49ers.
— Seahawks host the Rams in a Wild Card game Saturday.

— 49ers’ first four drives: 15 plays, 24 yards, four punts.
— With 12:00 left in this game, SF led 16-6.
— 49ers lost seven of their last nine games SU.
— SF is 6-17 SU in last 23 games Garoppolo didn’t play

Las Vegas 32, Denver 31
— Trailing 31-24, Raiders scored TD with 0:24 left, went for 2 and got it.
— Las Vegas was minus-5 in turnovers, had 14 penalties for 111 yards but still won.
— Raiders turned ball over 16 times in last six games (-12)
— Last seven games, Raiders gave up 20.1 ppg, just in second half.

— Lock threw a 92-yard TD pass to Jeudy, passed for 339 yards.
— Denver lost eight of its last ten games.
— Broncos gave up 37 ppg in their last three home games.
— Raiders won four of their last five games with Denver.

Rams 18, Arizona 7
— Arizona’s only TD came on a 14-yard drive after an INT.
— Murray sprained ankle on first drive, didn’t return until 14:25 left in game.
— Cardinals covered twice in their last nine games.
— Last three games, Redbirds converted 9-35 third down plays.

— Hill had an 84-yard pick-6 with 0:20 left in first half that put LA ahead.
— Wolford threw for 231 yards, ran for 56 more in his NFL debut.
— Rams won last eight series games, seven of them by 10+ points.
— Rams visit Seattle Saturday for a Wild Card game.

Washington 20, Philadelphia 14
— Last seven weeks, Washington allowed 15.9 ppg.
— Washington outscored last 11 opponents 155-44 in second half.
— Washington won five of its last seven games. (5-2 ATS) overall.
— Washington hosts Tampa Bay in a playoff game Saturday night.

— Trailing 17-14 in 3rd quarter, Eagles passed up easy FG to tie game, went for it on 4th down, and never came close to scoring again.
— Philly replaces QB Hurts with 3rd-stringer Sudfeld after that; it didn’t go well.
— Eagles lost seven of their last eight games overall.
— Last four games, Eagles were outscored 48-13 in second half.

NY Giants 23, Dallas 19
— Loss ends Cowboys’ 7-game win streak against the Giants.
— Dallas had four red zone drives, scored only 13 points.
— Cowboys had 12 takeaways in their last four games (+10)
— Dallas is 4-7 ATS in last 11 games as a road favorite.

— Giants won despite converting 0-7 third down plays.
— Giants had six sacks, held Dallas to 3.8 yards/pass attempt.
— Giants were 4-2 SU, 5-1 ATS inside their division.
— Under was 9-1-1 in Giants’ last eleven games.

[StarDust Bum]

Betting Recap - Week 17
Joe Williams

Overall Notes



The largest underdogs to win straight up

Bills +3.5 (ML +150) vs. Dolphins, 56-26
Giants +1.5 (ML +105) vs. Cowboys, 23-19

The largest favorites to cover

Ravens (-13) at Bengals, 38-3
Chargers (-7) at Chiefs, 38-21
Buccaneers (-7) vs. Falcons, 44-27
Saints (-6) at Panthers, 33-7
Packers (-4.5) at Bears, 35-16

The Biggest Disappointment of the Week

If you were holding an 'under' (44.5) ticket in the Pittsburgh Steelers-Cleveland Browns game, you were extremely unhappy by the end of the afternoon. The Browns fired out to a 7-0 lead early in the first quarter, but there was no more scoring in the opening 15 minutes. And we didn't have another touchdown until there was just 3:48 left in the third quarter, as the Browns took a 17-9 lead.

So with 26 total points on the board, that's a good thing, right? Well, Jarvis Landry scored on a 3-yard touchdown run just three seconds into the final quarter, pushing Cleveland's lead to 24-9. The Steelers responded with a Mason Rudolph to Chase Claypool scoring hook-up from 28 yards out with 10:07 to go, making it 24-16. Under bettors were still in good shape until there were 83 ticks left on the clock in regulation. Rudolph hit JuJu Smith-Schuster on a scoring play with 1:23 to go, cutting Cleveland's lead to 24-22, pending the two-point conversion. If you were holding a Steelers money line ticket, which would have paid +360, it was a tough finish, but you weren't really on the right side until the feverish fourth quarter comeback, so you cant complain too vehemently. But the 20 total points in the fourth quarter were a raw deal for under players.

The Biggest Disappointment of the Week - Part II

Over (43.5) bettors in the Dallas Cowboys-New York Giants game were feeling pretty good about themselves, as the teams combined for 29 points in the first 30 minutes, with New York taking a 20-9 lead into the locker room at halftime.

The scoring slowed to a crawl in the third quarter, with only an Ezekiel Elliott 1-yard touchdown run to make it 20-16 in favor of the Giants. Over bettors were closing in on a winning ticket, but for the first time all day they were barely on pace. A 36-yard field goal by Greg Zuerlein sliced the lead to 20-19 with 14:16 to play, so surely we're get five more points, right? Well, Graham Gano nailed a 50-yard field goal with 6:27 to go, making it 23-19, but that's exactly how it would end up.

Total Recall

The lowest total on the board for Week 17 was the New York Jets-New England Patriots (40.5) game. We had a 14-14 tie going into the fourth quarter, but that's when Cam Newton erupted for a pair of touchdown strikes to Devin Asiasi and Sony Michel. It wasn't a bad beat, or anything close to it, as the over was on the board by 11:42 to go in the fourth quarter. But it was still a raw deal nonetheless.

The highest total on the board this week was in the Tennessee Titans-Houston Texans (55.5) game on Sunday. It started out just 3-3 after 15 minutes, and it looked like maybe we'd have an 'under' result. It turns out that the oddsmakers weren't even close with their total of 55.5. We have a total of 20 points in the second, 33 points in the third and 20 points in the fourth, as the teams tossed up a total of 79 points in the 41-38 win by Tennessee.

As far as primetime games were concerned, there was just one this week -- Washington Football Team-Philadelphia Eagles (43.5). The teams combined for 31 points at halftime, with WFT leading 17-14. However, we had a scoreless third quarter, and then head coach Doug Pederson made the curious move of replacing QB Jalen Hurts with QB Nate Sudfeld. The Giants, and their fans, didn't love that. They needed a Philly win to get into the playoffs. Over bettors didn't love it, either, as both sides struggled to move the ball in the final 30.

For the regular season the under is 28-19-1 (59.5%) across 48 primetime games. In 2019, the 'under' went 31-17-1 (64.6%) during primetime games.

Looking Ahead to Wild-Card Weekend

Indianapolis Colts at Buffalo Bills (Saturday, 1:05 p.m. ET)

The Colts and Bills did not meet during the regular season. Buffalo streaks into the playoffs on a six-game win streak, and they have cashed in eight in a row. The Bills offense has also scored 24 or more points in nine consecutive games since Oct. 25, when they scored just 18 in a win over the New York Jets on Oct. 25.

Indy won in Week 17 against Jacksonville, and received help, ironically from the Bills, to get into the playoffs. Buffalo topped Miami to vault Indy into the seventh seed. The Colts closed 4-1 SU in the final five, but they failed to cover in each of the past three. The offense has been strong lately, too, going for 24 or more points in each of the past eight outings.

Los Angeles Rams at Seattle Seahawks (Saturday, 4:40 p.m. ET)

The division rival Rams and Seahawks will meet for a third time this season. Seattle won at Lumen Field by a 20-9 count in Week 16, covering a 1.5-point number as the 'under' (47.5) connected. L.A. won 23-16 on Sunday Night Football back in Week 10, as the Rams covered as three-point favorites in another 'under' result.

There will be a lot of uncertain on this game, as far as the lines, due to injuries. QB Jared Goff is expected back after missing the must-win regular-season finale after thumb surgery. But he could very well miss if he doesn't heal properly. WR Cooper Kupp was on the Reserve/COVID-19 list, missing Week 17, and his status is up in the air. If the Rams get Goff, Kupp and all of their others back, that's obviously huge. OT Andrew Whitworth also might be able to return from a long-term injury to help out.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Washington Football Game (Saturday, 8:15 p.m. ET)

Tom Brady and the Bucs face the NFC East champs in D.C. in a 5-4 game. Despite the lower seed the Buccaneers opened as a touchdown favorite, one of just two road favorites in the wild-card round. Washington ended the regular season 1-2 SU in their final three, and 0-2 ATS in the final two, while the 'under' cashed in five straight to close out the season.

The Bucs tossed up 91 total points in the final two weekends, as their offense is on fire. They won four in a row, and went 4-1 ATS down the stretch in the final five. Tampa Bay has also scored 24 or more points in each of the past seven, although the 'under' is still 3-2 in the past five. Watch WR Mike Evans and his status, as he hyperextended a left knee in the finale. An MRI showed no structural or ligament damage, which is good, but he is still a question mark.

Baltimore Ravens at Tennessee Titans (Sunday, 1:05 p.m. ET)

One of the more intrigued games on the wild-card schedule might be the Baltimore-Tennessee game. These teams met in Baltimore back on Nov. 22, with the Titans coming away with a 30-24 in overtime. These teams also met in the divisional playoffs last season, with the Titans winning 28-12 on Jan. 11 in Baltimore, so we have quite a nice little rivalry budding here.

The Ravens had to win to get in Sunday, and they pounded Cincinnati 38-3 to win for the fifth straight time. They also enter the playoffs on a 6-0 ATS run. Titans RB Derrick Henry became the eighth player in NFL history to run for 2,000 or more yards in a single season, and he helped the Titans go 3-1 SU in the final four, although they were just 2-3 ATS in the final five.

Chicago Bears at New Orleans Saints (Sunday, 4:40 p.m. ET)

The Bears lost 35-16 in the finale at home against the Packers, but they received help to get into the postseason. They will meet the New Orleans Saints, perhaps in front of fans, depending on what the state of Louisiana decides. These teams met in Week 8, with the Saints winning 26-23 in overtime on a Thursday night. Chicago covered a 5.5-point number as the 'over' (41) cashed in that one. Chicago ended their season 3-1 SU/ATS in the final four, with the 'over' hitting in each of the final three. New Orleans won and covered the final two games, averaging 42.5 PPG.

Cleveland Browns at Pittsburgh Steelers (Sunday, 8:15 p.m. ET)

We covered what happened in the finale. Cleveland and Pittsburgh meet for the third time this season, and the third time in the postseason in the history of this rivalry. These teams met in Jan. 2003, with the Steelers winning 36-33.

Cleveland ended the season just 2-2 SU/1-3 ATS across the final four outings. Pittsburgh stumbled down the stretch with a 1-4 SU mark, and they covered just twice in the final six contests. Pittsburgh enters the playoffs with the worst winning percentage across the final five games than any other team in the postseason field.

[StarDust Bum]

NFC Wild Card Cheat Sheet, Odds, Trends

The road to the NFC Championship will begin next weekend in the Wild Card Round as six teams will look to advance to the NFL Divisional Playoff Round.

Seeds two through four are the division winners while five, six and seven are the Wild Card teams.

After losing in the NFC Championship last season, the Green Bay Packers own home-field advantage in the NFC as they are the top seed at 13-3.

NFC Playoff Bracket and Matchups

1 Seed - Green Bay (First Round Bye)
2 New Orleans vs. 7 Chicago
3 Seattle vs. 6 L.A. Rams
4 Washington vs. 5 Tampa Bay

Odds to Win NFC Championship

Green Bay Packers +160
New Orleans Saints +275
Tampa Bay Buccaneers +450
Seattle Seahawks +450
Los Angeles Rams +1200
Chicago Bears +3300
Washington Football Team +3300


Matchup - Chicago vs. New Orleans

Date: Sunday, January 10
Venue: Mercedes-Benz Superdome
Location: New Orleans, Louisiana
TV-Time: CBS, 4:40 p.m. ET

Opening Line: Saints -9.5, Total 48

Chicago Road Record: 5-3 SU, 5-3 ATS, 5-3 O/U
New Orleans Home Record: 6-2 SU, 4-4 ATS, 6-2 O/U

Head-to-Head

The Saints edged the Bears at Soldier Field in Week 8 in overtime, 26-23. Chicago managed a cover as 5.5-point home underdogs, while the total sailed 'over' 41 points. Saints' quarterback Drew Brees threw for 280 yards in the victory, as New Orleans kicked four field goals and scored two touchdowns.

Playoff Notes

This marks the first time in three playoff meetings between these two teams that the game will take place in New Orleans. The Bears beat the Saints in the Wild Card round in 1990, while eliminating New Orleans to capture the 2006 NFC championship, 39-14.

New Orleans is in the playoffs for the fourth straight season, while winning each of its last three Wild Card contests. Chicago is making its second postseason appearance since 2011, as the Bears were squeezed by the Eagles in the Wild Card round in 2018 by a 16-15 count.


Matchup - L.A. Rams vs. Seattle

Date: Saturday January 9
Venue: Lumen Field
Location: Seattle, Washington
TV-Time: FOX, 4:40 p.m. ET

Opening Line: Seahawks -5, Total 43

Los Angeles Road Record: 4-4 SU, 4-4 ATS, 4-4 O/U
Seattle Home Record: 7-1 SU, 6-2 ATS, 3-5 O/U

Head-to-Head

These two NFC West rivals split a pair of meetings with the home team winning each time. The Rams knocked off the Seahawks in Week 10 at SoFi Stadium, 23-16 as three-point favorites, while staying 'under' the total of 55.

Seattle picked up revenge in Week 16 with a 20-9 triumph over Los Angeles as 1.5-point favorites to win the division title.

Playoff Notes

Seattle is in the playoffs for the eighth time in the last nine seasons, as the Seahawks have won their postseason opener in six of their past seven opportunities. In the only other postseason matchup between these clubs, the Rams eliminated the Seahawks, 27-20 in the 2004 Wild Card round.

The Rams are making their third postseason appearance in the past four seasons under head coach Sean McVay, as Los Angeles advanced all the way to the Super Bowl in 2018 before falling short against New England, 13-3. In the only road postseason contest under McVay, the Rams edged the Saints in overtime, 26-23 of the 2018 NFC Championship.


Matchup - Tampa Bay vs. Washington

Date: Saturday January 9
Venue: FedEx Field
Location: Landover, Maryland
TV-Time: NBC, 8:15 p.m. ET

Opening Line: Buccaneers -7.5, Total 46.5

Tampa Bay Road Record: 6-2 SU, 4-4 ATS, 5-3 O/U
Washington Home Record: 3-5 SU, 4-4 ATS, 2-6 O/U

Head-to-Head

Tampa Bay and Washington did not hook up this season, as the Football Team beat the Buccaneers, 16-3 as 3.5-point road underdogs in their previous matchup in 2018. Alex Smith led Washington past Tampa Bay that day, but obviously Tom Brady was not with the Bucs at the time. Brady torched Washington in 2018 as a member of the Patriots in a 33-7 rout at FedEx Field as 15.5-point favorites, while throwing three touchdown passes.

Playoff Notes

For the 18th time in his career, Brady has made the playoffs, while taking the Patriots to the Super Bowl in four of the past six seasons. Last season ended with a dud in a 20-13 home loss to the Titans in the Wild Card round, as this is the first time in Brady's career that his team is beginning the playoffs on the road.

The Buccaneers ended a long playoff drought by qualifying for the postseason for the first time since 2007. Tampa Bay last won a playoff game in 2002, which happened to be in Super Bowl XXXVII against the Raiders.

Washington has lost four consecutive playoff games dating back to 2005, when it actually beat Tampa Bay in the Wild Card round, 17-10. In 2012 and 2015, Washington won the NFC East title but ended up losing its first playoff contest by falling to Seattle and Green Bay, respectively, each by double-digits.

[StarDust Bum]

NFL Wild Card Odds: Opening Lines, Sharp Money & Line Moves
Patrick Everson

The NFL regular season wrapped up Sunday, and NFL Wild Card playoff odds are on the board and getting action. Among the highlights are two games pairing division rivals, with the Los Angeles Rams visiting the Seattle Seahawks on Saturday, and the host Pittsburgh Steelers getting an immediate rematch with the Cleveland Browns on Sunday.

The SuperBook's John Murray provided insights on NFL Wild Card Weekend opening lines and early line movement, sharp money and public betting.

NFL Wild Card Round Odds

Colts at Bills Odds
Opening line
Bills -6.5, Over/Under 52.5

Why the line moved
There was some thought that Buffalo might not go all out in Week 17 to nab the AFC's No. 2 seed. A 28-point second quarter en route to a 56-26 victory over Miami squelched that thought, and the Bills now won't have to face top-seeded Kansas City prior to the AFC Championship Game.

Meanwhile, Indianapolis clinched the seventh and final AFC playoff spot with a 28-14 victory over Jacksonville.

"We took a $40,000 parlay of Bills -6.5 to Ohio State +8 last night," Murray said Monday morning of Buffalo-related action right out of the gate. "The Bills opened -6.5, and everyone was betting Buffalo, so we went to -7."

The total dipped a tick to 52 early Monday morning for the opener of Saturday's three-game playoff slate.


Rams at Seahawks Odds
Opening line
Seahawks -5, Over/Under 43

Why the line moved
The Seahawks ended up getting the NFC's No. 3 seed, but sure didn't look like they wanted it for much of Sunday's game against the 49ers. Seattle, facing third-string quarterback C.J. Beathard, led 6-3 at halftime and trailed 16-6 after a San Francisco touchdown in the first minute of the fourth quarter.

But the Seahawks pulled it together by scoring the next 20 points – three touchdowns, the first of which had a missed extra point – and hung on for a 26-23 victory. Meanwhile, the Rams found a way to win and secure a wild-card spot, despite not having QB Jared Goff (thumb). Los Angeles slogged to an 18-7 home victory over Arizona.

Seattle inched down to -4.5 Monday morning at The SuperBook.

"We are guessing probably no Goff," Murray said, noting the Rams QB's thumb injury. "I don't know how much difference he makes, but I know the perception would be that he's worth something."


Buccaneers at Washington Odds
Opening line
Washington +6.5, Over/Under 46.5

Why the line moved
Washington won the battle to represent the NFL's worst division, beating host Philadelphia 20-14 in the Week 17 Sunday nighter to claim the NFC East title and the No. 4 seed, despite a 7-9 record. Tampa Bay rode a 21-point fourth quarter to a 44-27 home win over Atlanta and is the NFC's No. 5 seed.

"We are at Bucs -8," Murray said Monday, noting a 1.5-point jump, one point of which came shortly after this line posted Sunday night. "It's just gonna be all moneyline parlays and teasers with the Bucs."

The total fell to 46 Monday morning.


Ravens at Titans Odds
Opening line
Titans +4.5, Over/Under 55

Why the line moved
Tennessee tried to give away the AFC South and the No. 4 playoff seed, turning a 31-15 third-quarter lead into a 35-31 fourth-quarter deficit at Houston. A wild final couple of minutes saw the Titans sandwich a touchdown and a bank-shot, final-seconds field goal around a Texans field goal, as Tennessee escaped with a 41-38 victory.

Baltimore had no such close-call issues in its regular-season finale at Cincinnati, where the Ravens rumbled to a 38-3 win to secure the No. 5 seed.

"The Ravens-Titans number came down a little," Murray said of a pretty quick drop from Baltimore -4.5 to -3.5, for the first of three Sunday playoff games. "That's definitely the best matchup of the weekend. Too bad it's at 10 a.m. PT. It should be really good two-way action."

The total dropped a notch to 54.5 Monday morning.


Bears at Saints Odds
Opening line
Saints -9.5, Over/Under 48

Why the line moved
Chicago needed a win to guarantee an NFC playoff spot, but couldn't get it in a 35-16 home setback to Green Bay. However, thanks to Arizona tumbling to Los Angeles, the Bears grabbed the seventh and final slot and a spot on Wild Card Weekend.

New Orleans already had a playoff spot secured entering Week 17, but went out and pounded Carolina 33-7 anyway to secure the No. 2 seed. That means the Saints won't go on the road until, and if, they face the top-seeded Packers.

"Bears-Saints will be the same as the Bucs game," Murray said. "All the moneyline parlays will go there and to Alabama (in the CFP championship) the next night."


Browns at Steelers Odds
Opening line
Steelers -3.5, Over/Under 47

Why the line moved
Two teams that just squared off to end the regular season get a Wild Card Weekend rematch, though the location changes, with Pittsburgh at home. Cleveland needed to win Sunday to assure a playoff spot and made things interesting, despite the Steelers resting Ben Roethlisberger and other key players. But the Browns got there 24-22 to nab the AFC's No. 6 seed and another meeting with the No. 3 Steelers.

Pittsburgh nudged up to -4 Monday morning at The SuperBook, and the total dipped a tick to 46.5.

"The last game of an NFL playoff weekend, there's always a ton of parlay liability to the favorite. I expect us to see that again with the Steelers," Murray said. "We will need the Bears and Browns pretty big on Sunday."

[StarDust Bum]

NFL Wild Card Round Betting Tips: Bet Now or Bet Later
Jason Logan

Buffalo is on fire right now, and with the indoor-friendly Indianapolis Colts coming to Orchard Park in January, we suggest you jump on the Bills—NOW.

If you thought regular-season NFL odds were tight, wait until you tangle with the NFL playoff odds. With fewer games on the board, bookies put all their might into making the numbers and adjusting off action on these postseason showdowns.

The first round of point spreads and totals are on the board for the Wild Card games and just like we did every Sunday night during the season, we’re planning out our NFL betting strategy when it comes to getting the best of the playoff numbers.

These are our NFL betting tips for the Wild Card odds to bet now and which ones you should bet later.

Indianapolis Colts at Buffalo Bills (-6.5): Bet Now

The Bills opened just under touchdown favorites at home to the Colts in the Wild Card Round, and money on Buffalo has boosted the juice to -6.5 (-115) at some books. With the way the Bills are playing – and the 56 points they dropped on Miami in Week 17 – you know this spread is going to hit seven—and soon.

Buffalo’s resume for 2020-21 is impressive, with its three losses all explainable blemishes. The Bills whiffed in a weird COVID-complicated Tuesday night matchup with Tennessee in Week 5, lost to the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs on a short week, and fell victim to a 43-yard Hail Mary in a 32-30 loss at Arizona. That’s it.

The Colts are a worthy advisory, having won four of their last five games to finish with 11 victories. But this is an indoor team coming to Orchard Park in January. On top of the limited amount of Bills Mafia being admitted for this game, the weather in Buffalo this weekend is calling for temperatures around freezing. Indianapolis has played in five outdoor games this year, boasting a 2-3 SU and ATS mark.

If you’re betting the Bills, make sure you get them under the touchdown now.

Cleveland Browns (+4) at Pittsburgh Steelers: Bet Later

The last time the Browns went to the tournament, Kanye West’s ego was nonexistent and Tobey Maguire was the only big-screen Spider-Man we knew. Ah, 2002. Simpler times.

Thanks to the expanded 2021 playoff, Cleveland clashes with a familiar foe in the Wild Card Round. The Browns opened +4 versus the Steelers at most books, but this spread is starting to tick up with a +4.5 out there at -115. This is a dead number and bookies will allow early money to dictate the move, which means if action comes on Pittsburgh – and it will – the adjustment will be fast and furious to +5 or higher.

Cleveland just squeaked past the Steelers’ skeleton crew in Week 17, winning 24-22 as a 10.5-point home favorite. And when you add on a Week 16 loss to the lowly Jets, the Browns aren’t playing their best football heading into the postseason. However, if you’re clamoring to bet Cleveland, hold your horses. This spread is going to go up, barring any injuries/COVID crap. Wait to bet the Browns.

Chicago Bears at New Orleans Saints (Over 47.5): Bet Now

In a battle between the Bears and Saints – two of the better stop units in recent years – you might be surprised that the Over is the hot ticket this Wild Card Weekend. This total opened 47.5 and the vig is starting to tick up on the Over, with some books already dealing 48 points.

Chicago’s offense showed up for the home stretch of the schedule, scoring 30 or more points in each of the four games between Week 13 and Week 16. And, even though the Bears botched the Week 17 finale with only 16 points against Green Bay, they still out-yarded the Packers in the box score.

The Saints hung 33 points on the board against Carolina with no Michael Thomas and a half a running back in the finale game. New Orleans’ defense started to budge in the home stretch of the regular season, but the offense has produced 114 total points in the past three games.

The Saints and Bears battled to a 26-23 overtime win for NOLA back in Week 8 but didn’t need the extra frame to top the modest 41-point total. This time around, books have raised the bar, so if you’re on the Over again, get it now at 47.5 before the number keeps growing.

Los Angeles Rams at Seattle Seahawks (Under 42.5): Bet Later

These divisional foes meet for a third time this season and after examining their last two matchups, you can see why this total is hanging pretty low. Well, that and the uncertainty around Jared Goff’s surgically repaired thumb.

Los Angeles head coach Sean McVay is possibly slow playing Seattle on the availability of Goff after talking to reporters Sunday night, and this total is being made with John Wolford as Los Angeles’ starting quarterback. However, from reports last week and recent comments from Goff, it sounds like there’s a good shot of him taking snaps in the Wild Card Round.

Even with Goff under center, the Rams and Seahawks went below the number in both matchups in 2020 with only 69 combined points produced in those outings. Los Angeles can ill afford to get into a shootout with the Seahawks and have helped Under backers cash in 11 of the Rams’ last 13 games. Seattle’s stop unit took half the schedule to find its footing but has given up an average of only 16 points per game in the eight games since Week 10 (a run of seven straight Unders until a Week 17 Over).

At its current setting, this number is a tough pill to swallow for those leaning Under, so if you are banking on low-scoring football in Seattle (where it could be rainy and cold Saturday), wait until the veil is lifted on Goff and see if this total gets a shot in the arm—and some extra points.

[StarDust Bum]

NFL Wild Card Injuries, Weather
Patrick Everson

Rams quarterback Jared Goff sat out a Week 17 win over Arizona with a thumb injury, and his status is unclear for Wild Card Weekend. The SuperBook has Los Angeles a 5-point underdog at Seattle.

The regular season is in the rearview mirror, NFL Wild Card Weekend odds are up, and several betting factors are already in play. That includes the typical injury information, most notably surrounding Los Angeles Rams quarterback Jared Goff for a Saturday showdown against the Seattle Seahawks.

Wild Card Round Injuries

Los Angeles Rams: Quarterback Jared Goff sat out the Week 17 home victory over Arizona, after injuring his right (throwing) thumb in Week 16 and subsequently having surgery. His status Monday is uncertain at best, and the odds reflect that, with The SuperBook opening the Rams +5, ticking to +4.5 Monday morning and back to +5 Monday afternoon. "We are guessing probably no Goff," SuperBook executive director John Murray said.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Top wide receiver Mike Evans learned Monday his knee injury suffered in Sunday's win over Atlanta was not as serious as first thought, as there's no structural damage. Coach Bruce Arians termed Evans day-to-day for Saturday's game at Washington. The SuperBook opened Tampa Bay -6.5 and was already up to -8 Monday.

Buffalo Bills: Wideout Cole Beasley (knee) missed the Week 17 rout of Miami, and his status Monday was uncertain for a Saturday home game against Indianapolis. Buffalo opened -6.5 at The SuperBook and spent several hours Monday at -7 before returning to the opener.

Cleveland Browns: Defensive end Olivier Vernon, who had nine sacks this season, tore an Achilles and is done for the year. Cornerback Denzel Ward is in COVID protocol, and his status Monday was uncertain. The Browns opened +3.5 for Sunday night's game at Pittsburgh and moved to +4 Monday.

New Orleans Saints: Star running back Alvin Kamara tested positive for COVID last week, but could return for Sunday's game if he successfully gets through league protocols. Wideout Michael Thomas (ankle) might also return for the playoff tilt against Chicago. The Saints are -9.5 at The SuperBook.

Wild Card Round Weather

Indianapolis Colts at Buffalo Bills: The early forecast notes Saturday will be chilly, but nothing more, which isn't bad for Buffalo in January. The high will be near 30 degrees, with 5-10 mph breezes. The total moved from 52.5 to 51.5 to 52 by Monday afternoon at The SuperBook.

Los Angeles Rams at Seattle Seahawks: Seattle could see cloud cover Saturday afternoon, but the early projection includes just a 19 percent chance of rain. The total Monday was stable at 43.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Washington Football Team: The temperature will be in the low-to-mid 30s for this prime-time Saturday game, with almost no chance of precipitation predicted in the early forecast. The total opened 46.5 and on Monday was 45.5 at The SuperBook.

Baltimore Ravens at Tennessee Titans: Nashville should see partly cloudy skies and very light wind for Sunday's Wild Card Weekend contest. The total moved from 55 to 54.5 and back at The SuperBook by Monday afternoon.

Cleveland Browns at Pittsburgh Steelers: A night game in January in Pittsburgh can hardly expect to be warm, and it won't be, with temperatures in the low 30s Sunday evening. But that's the only issue in the early forecast. The total ticked from 47 to 46.5 Monday morning at The SuperBook.

[StarDust Bum]

Hot & Not Report - Wild Card
Matt Blunt

Wild Card Betting Angles

The NFL playoffs are finally here, and while it may look different than it has in the past with only one bye week team and seven contestants in each conference, back-to-back triple headers this weekend should be highly entertaining.

Only having one bye week team does complicate a few historical angles that will be touched on in a minute, as under the 2020 format, there would be a lot more entries from the #2 seed in the past regarding the 30+ point angle in Week 17 coming up.

And after last week's piece suggested that any futures tickets in pocket better have said team win in Week 17, keep in mind we saw Kansas City, Pittsburgh and Chicago lose their Week 17 games this year.

It will be interesting to see how deep those three organizations go in this year's playoffs.

But let's get right to the Wildcard Weekend stuff:

Who's Hot

Since the 2010-11 NFL Playoffs started, Wildcard teams that scored 30 or more points in Week 17 are 6-13 O/U in their Wildcard game

For the second consecutive year, Week 17 went to 'over' bettors with a 10-6 O/U record on Sunday, continuing the 2019 results and bucking the history from all those previous years.

However, what that does do is create plenty of potential for Wildcard Weekend to go back to the low side of the totals, because Wildcard teams that put up 30 or more in Week 17 have cashed 'under' tickets at that 68.4% clip.

Of those 19 instances, three of them had occurrences where both combatants in a WC game were off 30+ point performances – GB/Minnesota in 2012, and Detroit/New Orleans and Atlanta/NYG in 2011 – and the O/U result for those respective WC games came in at 1-2 O/U.

Which Under Wagers do I make?

Indianapolis at Buffalo
Tampa Bay at Washington
Baltimore at Tennessee
Chicago at New Orleans

The Baltimore/Tennessee game on Sunday afternoon is applicable to that run after both scored 30+ on Sunday, and with how much running we are expected to see from both sides, an argument for the 'under' 54 in that game isn't all that hard to make (providing the defenses stop the run on Sunday).

Remember, these two met in the Divisional round of the playoffs last year when Baltimore was the #1 seed off a bye week against the 6th seeded Titans off their upset win in New England. Tennessee won that game 28-12 as the game stayed a full TD below the 47.5 closing number.

The other teams this could apply to this weekend are Buffalo, New Orleans, and Tampa Bay, and again, based on the opposing offenses for at least the Saints and Buccaneers, finding an 'under' argument to back in those games shouldn't take a lot of work.

Unders in Buffalo games are a completely different story right now with how that team has been operating for the better part of two months now, but you can also never say never in this league as well.

Finally, what may be the most important number for this historical trend is the fact that average points scored in these WC games with at least one team off a 30+ point effort is just 42.3 points per game.

That number is a full FG below any total in the applicable games mentioned this weekend, and if you take out the two outliers on either end of the spectrum – Indy/KC 45-44 game in 2013, and Seattle/Minnesota 10-9 game in 2015 – you get an average of 40.94 points per game.

Cold weather January games and the idea that most WC teams are relatively equal play into those numbers as well, and this year we've got two games going in cold weather cities (Buffalo, Washington). So just because you saw these teams light up the scoreboard at will in Week 17, don't fall into the trap it's a foregone conclusion that those offenses will roll over that momentum and production into Wildcard weekend. History suggests we will see some lower scoring games this weekend.
Also, since the 2010-11 NFL playoffs, at least one Super Bowl participant scored 30 or more points in Week 17 in 7 of the 10 seasons.

On to the Super Bowl participant note now, as 2017, 2014, and 2012 were the only years we got Super Bowls featuring two organizations that didn't score 30 or more in their final regular season game.

This trend isn't limited to Wildcard teams – so keep that in mind – and it means that after Sunday, we've got the Baltimore Ravens, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New Orleans Saints, Tennessee Titans, Buffalo Bills, and Green Bay Packers all live in that role this year.

In 2019 it was Kansas City who scored 31 in the regular season finale before going all the way, 2018 saw both the Patriots (38 points in Week 17) and Rams (48 points in Week 17) square off in the big game, and the same thing happened in 2016 between the Patriots (35 points in Week 17) and Falcons (38 in Week 17).

2015 it was Carolina going the distance after scoring 38 in Week 17, while 2013 and 2011 saw Denver (34 points in Week 17) and New England (49 points in Week 17) respectively make it to the Super Bowl.

In 2010 it was the Pittsburgh Steelers (41 points in Week 17) make the big game as well.

Interestingly enough, the 2019 Kansas City Chiefs were the only one in the group (outside of 2016 and 2018 when both participants applied) to go on to win the Super Bowl, as scoring 30+ in Week 17 may be good news in terms of getting there, but not necessarily lifting the trophy.

Carolina lost the SB in 2015, as did Denver in 2013, New England in 2011, and Pittsburgh in 2010. Heck, even the two years where both SB participants applied in 2016 and 2018, the two sides that had the higher point totals in Week 17 – Rams and Falcons – went on to lose those Super Bowls as well.

So maybe any futures considerations on the Ravens, Bucs, Saints, Titans, Bills, and Packers should maybe be limited to winning their conference only.



Duplicate Results in 2012 and 2011

Who's Not

Since the 2010-11 NFL Playoffs started, wild card teams that scored 40 or more points in Week 17 are 1-3 ATS in their Wildcard game (Omitting the Detroit/New Orleans game in 2011 when both were off 40+ point efforts)

Who could you fade?

Tampa Bay
Buffalo
Tennessee

Hardly a big sample size over the course of 10 years I know, but it's not like scoring 40 points in the NFL is that common of an occurrence during any week to begin with.

Yet, this year we've got three teams where it does apply, as Tampa Bay (-8.5), Buffalo (-7), and Tennessee (+3.5) would all line up as teams to fade this week.

Again, fading the Titans and backing Baltimore isn't a hard argument to make for a wide number of reasons outside of this historical trend, but it is interesting that the Titans are the home dog in this game.

We haven't seen a home team close as an underdog in this round since the 2015-16 playoffs when we had three of them in Houston (+3) vs KC, Cincinnati (+2) vs Pittsburgh, and Minnesota (+4.5) vs Seattle.

All three of those home dogs lost outright, as Houston lost 30-0, Cincinnati lost 18-16, and Minnesota lost 10-9.

The lone ATS win in this four-game sample did come from the underdog New Orleans Saints though, as they beat Philly 26-24 back in 2013.

Interestingly enough, all three of those games with home underdogs were easy 'under' winners as well, adding another piece of support to the Ravens/Titans 'under' play discussed earlier.

But it's taking the points with Indianapolis and Washington in those other two games that presents a few more headaches for those considering them, because on paper, and the eye test suggests that Tampa and Buffalo's offenses should be able to run those opponents out of town rather easily.

That's generally been the prevailing thought in those past four games though, and we just have to look at last year's Vikings/Saints WC game as the last occurrence.

New Orleans had put up 42 points in Week 17 and then couldn't really find any sort of rhythm in the 26-20 OT loss to the Vikings in the playoffs.

So try not to let too much recency bias from Week 17's results creep into your handicapping this week.

[StarDust Bum]

141INDIANAPOLIS -142 BUFFALO
BUFFALO is 8-1 ATS (6.9 Units) after scoring 25 points or more in 2 straight games in the current season.

143LA RAMS -144 SEATTLE
LA RAMS are 17-7 ATS (9.3 Units) against conference opponents in the last 2 seasons.

145TAMPA BAY -146 WASHINGTON
WASHINGTON is 25-8 ATS (16.2 Units) vs. excellent passing teams averaging 260 or more passing yards/game after 8+ games since 1992.

147BALTIMORE -148 TENNESSEE
BALTIMORE is 12-3 ATS (8.7 Units) vs. poor passing defenses - allowing a comp. pct. of 61% or worse in the second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.

149CHICAGO -150 NEW ORLEANS
NEW ORLEANS are 17-7 ATS (9.3 Units) with <=6 days rest in the last 2 seasons.

151CLEVELAND -152 PITTSBURGH
CLEVELAND is 2-10 ATS (-9 Units) against conference opponents in the current season.