There were several lessons to be learned by bettors on an NFL Sunday won by the sportsbooks. One is that when a line doesn’t look right, it’s probably right on the money.
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Bettors were in position to hit an elusive middle — win on both sides — of the Bills-Vikings game after Buffalo fluctuated from a 3- to 7½-point favorite during the week.
Only four teams in NFL history have finished perfect regular seasons: the 2007 Patriots (16-0), 1972 Dolphins (14-0), 1942 Bears (11-0) and 1934 Bears (13-0).
With apologies to Winston Churchill, halfway through the NFL season, handicapping the league remains a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma.
While 6,010 entries from the field of 6,133 have been eliminated, Bob DeLuca still has all six of his entries in Circa Survivor, which pays $6.1 million to the winner.
Bettors loaded up on the Raiders (-1½) over the Saints and the game to go over 48½. But they never stood a chance on either count in a 24-0 loss.
For the past two decades, bettors could count on Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers to bounce back from a loss and not only win the next week, but cover. Those days are gone.
The Steelers upset Tom Brady’s Buccaneers 20-18 as 9½-point underdogs, and the Jets whipped Aaron Rodgers’ Packers 27-10 as 8-point underdogs.
It’s only Week 6, but the NFL will serve up a pair of possible conference championship games Sunday in Bills-Chiefs and Eagles-Cowboys.
Marco Piemonte isn’t a professional sports bettor and doesn’t sell his picks. He’s a Chicago-area car dealer who is married with three daughters ages 1, 3 and 6.