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Keys to Betting the NFL

Written October 29, 2008 by Evan Altemus

This past weekend’s card proved once again why some fundamental keys must be considering when betting the NFL. Several games finished at, or very close to, the spread that the oddsmakers put out. As a result, bettors who used 6-7 point teasers were able to once again have an outstanding weekend. Let’s take a deeper look at these two pieces of information to see if you can’t beat the NFL odds this weekend.

The NFL has become the most wagered on sport in North America. The betting public absolutely loves to bet on pro football for two reasons. They think it is an easy sport to figure out, and they love the action and physical nature of the game. As a result of the popularity, oddsmakers are forced to make their lines extremely accurate in order to balance the action. Because of the accuracy of the lines, bettors must shop around various sports books and get the best possible line. The perfect example to prove this point was last week’s game between the Washington Redskins and Detroit Lions. The line opened with Washington as a 7.5 point favorite. However, the line shifted back and forth during the week between 7.5 and 9. Intelligent bettors were able to get the best spread according to their selection. Washington ended up winning the game by 8 points with a late 4th quarter field goal. Redskins backers were able to win their bet if they got the line at -7.5; meanwhile Lions backers were able to cash their ticket if they had +9. Another example of this scenario was last week’s game between Arizona and Carolina. The line shifted throughout the week anywhere from 3.5-5.5, so the outcome of your ticket depended on if you shopped around for the best line. Finding the best available spread for your selection is essential to long term success with your football betting.

A second fundamental key to building your bankroll with the NFL is correctly using 6-7 point teasers. Because of the extremely strong lines, teasers are a great way to have long term betting success in pro football. A not very well publicized piece of information is that sports books lose a good deal of money with NFL 6-7 point teasers, especially from the most successful bettors. The reason why sports books shifted the Washington/Detroit line so much during the week was to adjust for teaser action. The spread was shifting in either direction depending on which side teaser action was coming in on. One of the most basic approaches to teasers is to figure out which team will win the game outright. This idea seems simple, but too often bettors just try and take what they think is a good team and add points with a teaser. For example, a few weeks ago teaser players took New Orleans from a 3 point underdog to a 9-10 point underdog against Carolina. People thought that New Orleans was a good team and that they would keep the game close. However, the Saints ended up getting routed by the Panthers. This approach was not the proper way to use teasers. The best way to use this theory is to take favorites of 3-10 points and tease them down with 6-7 point teasers. However, these teams must have a very strong chance of winning. Teams that fit this situation last week included New England, Carolina, Baltimore, and Philadelphia. Correctly using 6-7 point teasers can be a tremendous tool when building a bankroll.

Shopping around various sports books for the best line and correctly using 6-7 point teasers can have a tremendous effect on a bankroll. These two theories go unnoticed by the average bettor, but professional handicappers routinely use these two ideas to build their bankroll. You can use their expertise to help you do the same by signing up for the NFL picks available at our site.

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