In the days that have passed since the sports betting odds opened for this year’s NFL wild card round of the playoffs, the lines have not moved that much. Three games have remained static; Buffalo has dropped by a half-point to four-point favorites over New England, and Kansas City’s 13-point spread as the favorite over Pittsburgh has dropped to 12 ½. The biggest movement has come on the Philadelphia-Tampa Bay game, as the Bucs opened as seven-point favorites, only to see that line grow to 8 ½.
Let’s review the wild card schedule as well as some updated information for each NFL Betting odds for the Matchups.
NFL News: Wild Card Kickoff Times, Betting Odds and Point Totals
Wild Card Schedule and Odds
Las Vegas Raiders (+6) at Cincinnati Bengals (O/U 49)
Cincinnati -275 / Las Vegas +220
Saturday, January 15 | 4:30 pm ET, NBC
We haven’t seen much in new information for this game. A gritty Raiders team visits a red-hot Bengals team in what looks like a potential matchup of gunslingers. I’m going with the home team. Bengals to win and cover… and take the over.
Bengals to win and cover: Bet the Game Today
New England Patriots (+4) at Buffalo Bills (O/U 43.5)
Buffalo -200 / New England +170
Saturday, January 15 | 8:15 pm ET, CBS
This is a tricky game because of the split that the teams had this year in AFC East play. The Patriots won in Buffalo on a day when the wind was so strong that passing didn’t make much sense. Bill Belichick adjusted and had Mac Jones attempt only three passes, while the Bills tried to fight through the wind and lost. When the teams met in New England, the Bills’ defense limited Jones to 14 of 32 passing for 145 yards and a pair of picks.
Buffalo permits only 272.8 yards per game, more than 30 yards fewer than the next-best team. This is a stingy unit, and the team clearly made adjustments when the series moved back to Foxboro. If this were a three-point spread, I’d say Buffalo all day long, and I’ll still say Bills to cover here – but I wouldn’t bet as much on it.
Bills to cover: Bet the Game Today
Philadelphia Eagles (+8.5) at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (O/U 49)
Tampa Bay -305 / Philadelphia +240
Sunday, January 16 | 1:00 pm ET, FOX
Obviously, bettors think that the Buccaneers will roll right over Philadelphia even while missing two of their top wide receivers and with some injuries on the defensive side of the ball. That might happen, but now that the spread has moved past a touchdown in size, it would not surprise me to see Philadelphia hang around and sneak onto the bus with a backdoor cover.
Philadelphia to cover: Bet the Game Today
San Francisco 49ers (+3) at Dallas Cowboys (O/U 50.5)
Dallas -155 / San Francisco +135
Sunday, January 16 | 4:30 pm ET, CBS / NICK
Taking the 49ers here to cover might be the smartest pick of the weekend. San Francisco finished the season strong – against strong competition. Dallas did win four of five down the stretch, but those four wins all came against NFC East competition, and the Cowboys only faced a starting quarterback in two of those wins. Dallas ranks #1 in the DVOA metric that Football Outsiders develops, which analyzes a whole season one play at a time, comparing the success of every play to the average in the league on the basis of distance, down, score differential, field position, quarter and quality of opponent.
However, Dallas played four other teams in the top 10, and they went 1-3, only beating New England in overtime, back in Week 7, before New England really turned a corner and started to show improvement. San Francisco is ranked sixth in DVOA – but they went 2-5 against top-ten DVOA teams. The 49ers were only underdogs three times this season, and they covered twice, with the exception coming in a game started by backup quarterback Trey Lance.
Bet the Game Today
Pittsburgh Steelers (+12.5) at Kansas City Chiefs (O/U 46.5)
Kansas City -675 / Pittsburgh +475
Sunday, January 16 | 8:15 pm ET, NBC
Earlier I said this week that the Steelers would do a better job of imposing more of a grinding rhythm on this game and staying close enough to cover. The line has crept a half-point in my direction, but I still like it.
Take San Francisco to cover: Bet the Game Today
Arizona Cardinals (+4) at L.A. Rams (O/U 50.5)
L.A. Rams -190 / Arizona +160
Monday, January 17 | 8:15 pm ET, ESPN / ABC
I like the Rams to win and cover this game based on the way that Arizona has finished this season – despite the Rams’ loss to San Francisco in Week 18. The Rams were facing a San Francisco team that absolutely had to win to get into the postseason, and while you hate to see any team that prides itself on its defense blow a 17-0 lead, the Rams still have the defense to win. If you’re looking for a reason to pick Arizona, Matthew Stafford has gone 11-71 in his career against teams that have a winning record. Against teams that have at least 10 wins at the time when they play, he has gone 1-9. That one win, though, came against the Cardinals earlier this year. He does have an 8:8 TD:INT ratio in his last four games – but the Rams have won three of those. I see the Rams overcoming these problems, but it would make a lot of sense (and give you some value) to take the other side.
Bet the Game Today
NFL Betting Odds
Love betting NFL football? | Xbet Sportsbook offers up to date NFL lines
Check out XBet’s NFL Calendar: Dates, Scores, Tips, Previews, and Predictions
