Early NFL Divisional Round Betting Lines and Predicted Movement
Wild Card Weekend had no shortage of excitement. Three of the lower seeds upset the home team, while arguably the closest matchup ended with the Cowboys winning in Jerry World. If you checked our Expert Consensus here at BettingPros before the games, you will notice that we went a perfect 4-0. So assuming you act upon the analysis here, congrats on your money, and let’s make more this weekend!
The early lines for the Divisional Round are really interesting. Let’s take a look at each and predict what they will finish at kickoff.
Saturday Games
Colts at Chiefs (-5.5)
The Colts remained hot during Wild Card weekend, and now they travel to Kansas City to take on the top-seeded Chiefs. Winning at Arrowhead is not easy, but with the Colts looking more and more like a complete football team, early bets are sure to go their way. Kansas City is also battling the Andy Reid effect, which everyone is plenty aware of. Early bets are siding with Indy, and I expect the line to shift with it.
Closing Line Prediction: Chiefs (-4.5)
Cowboys at Rams (-7)
The Cowboys beat a Seahawks team, who plays very similarly to them, due to Pete Carroll’s offensive game plan. This week, they go on the road to face the high-powered Rams team. LA is clearly the more talented team, and they are playing at home. On the other side, we know Dallas wants to slow down the pace with Ezekiel Elliott and grind out a win. These two contrasting narratives even themselves out, which I believe will result in the line staying put.
Closing Line Prediction: Rams (-7)
Sunday Games
Chargers at Patriots (-4.5)
Philip Rivers and the Chargers just came up big against one of the best defensive units in the league. They travel to New England to take on the Patriots, who have struggled this season despite their record, but always seem to play their best football in January. News emerged that Melvin Gordon has a knee sprain, which certainly hurts the offense as a whole, but bets continue to roll in for the Chargers. We can get into the narrative about the California team traveling to the east coast for the early game later, but for now, the spread for this game will narrow before kickoff.
Closing Line Prediction: Patriots (-3.5)
Eagles at Saints (-8.5)
A tipped kick and double doink allowed Philly to move onto the next round. Unfortunately, they will go to the Superdome to play the Saints. At their best, the Saints are the best team in the league. However, they seem to get in their own way far too often. Everyone loves an underdog, and the Eagles were certainly that heading into the playoffs. The same is clearly true this week, being 8.5-point underdogs. This playoff spread is wide enough for bettors to side with the road team. I see this line dropping a little bit before kickoff, but with the Saints still being heavy favorites.
Closing Line Prediction: Saints (-7)
Zach Brunner is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from Zach, check out his archive and follow him @FantasyFlurry.