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Betting Guide
Point spread betting in the NFL is the subject to so much debate and discussion each week that it’s almost a sport unto itself. There are podcasts that attempt to guess the lines before they come out, scrutiny over half points and sharp bettors who jump in early and change the math for everyone. The NFL point spread is endlessly fascinating and also a ton of fun to bet on.
Point spreads are the center of all NFL betting and we’re here to break them down for you. Where to bet them, how to bet them and our strategy for betting them.
There is quite a bit to unpack here so let’s get right into it.
Where To Bet NFL Point Spreads:
America: One of the best places to bet the NFL is Bovada. They offer competitive lines and tons of props on each week’s NFL games.
Canada: While Canada doesn’t have an NFL team, Sports Interaction has you covered during the NFL season with action on every game of the week.
Everywhere Else: The NFL is growing worldwide and getting more and more popular. 888 has jumped on the bandwagon and has you covered for all of the NFL games in each week of the season.
What are NFL Point Spreads?
Not all NFL teams are created equally so there are certain match-ups that might not be a lot of fun to watch if you were simply betting one side or the other. Point spreads change all that.
Take this example. A bad Redskins team against a good Seahawks team. To bet the Seahawks would mean spending a lot to win a little, a bet on the Redskins might not be smart. So the sportsbook sets a point spread: Seahawks -7.5. If the Seahawks win by seven, the Redskins “win” as they didn’t cover that extra 0.5 points. Betting on the Seahawks means you want a win of 8 or more, betting on the Redskins means that you want a margin of 7 or less.
A line like that is set on every game of the week and you can bet on all of them.
Common NFL Point Spreads Questions:
How do I beat the bookie/sportsbook?
This is actually a misconception about sports betting. You aren’t trying to “beat the bookie/sportsbook”, but instead you are trying to pick the correct side. The sportsbook sets the line at a number that they think will get even action on both sides of the bet, thus profitting from the “juice”. When sportsbooks feel that they are getting too much action on one side they will adjust the lines to get more on that other side. This is why many sports bettors wait and see what the lines do before making their NFL play.
How To Bet NFL Point Spreads:
NFL Point Spreads are the center of a sportsbooks NFL product and are thusly easy to find on the website. Just go to the Football/NFL section (honestly, there will most likely be a big ad on the front page) and the lines will be layed out there for you.
NFL Point Spreads Betting Strategy:
The thing to watch when it comes to the NFL is line moves. You might really love the Patriots against the Packers, but when that line goes from -6 to -8 that changes everything. If you get in early on the Pats, great, but don’t just lay the points at whatever the line goes to. As I laid out earlier, the sportsbooks are moving these lines for a reason and you don’t want to be on the wrong side of a line move.
A lot of people like to go “against the public” when betting the NFL. Many sites list what is being bet on for each game so the Packers (-14) against the Vikings (+14) might see someting like 75% of bettors going for the Packers. A lot of people see this and think that the Vikings are then a lock because “they don’t keep building casinos because the public is right”. This is perhaps overly simplistic and lacks understanding of why they build casinos in the first place.
That said, this information does still have value. Why? Line moves.
The sportsbook seeing that kind of action on one side would typically move the line to get more money on the Vikings. Let’s say +15 or higher. Well, what if that doesn’t happen? What if the line goes the other way? This is a sign that smart money (professional gamblers known to beat the sportsbooks) came in on the Packers -14. So, if the line goes down to Packers -13.5 that means that Packers -14 was a tremendous value and you want to get that if at all possible.
NFL Betting Guide / Where To Bet NFL
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Where To Bet NFL Futures
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