NFL: AFC North Sports Betting Guide (2019)

This is the first of an eight-part series breaking down each NFL division and its future market.

With the Hall of Fame Game in the books and the first full weekend of preseason games just a few days away, the clock is ticking to get your season-long NFL future bets in. Today we look at what oddsmakers are considering one of the more competitive divisions in the NFL in the AFC North. Let’s dive in and see where we can find an edge. Check out all AFC North future odds here.

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What are the odds?

These odds were taken from FanDuel Sportsbook on August 4, 2019.

Team	Super Bowl	Division	Win Totals	To Make Playoffs
Cleveland Browns	+1600	+130	o9.5 (+125) / u9.5 (-150)	Yes (-122) / No (+100)
Pittsburgh Steelers	+2100	+170	o9 (-125) / u9 (+105)	Yes (+104) / No (-128)
Baltimore Ravens	+3600	+280	o8.5 (+120) / u8.5 (-140)	Yes (+184) / No (-230)
Cincinnati Bengals	+12000	+1800	o6 (+110) / u6 (-130)	Yes (+680) / No (-1200)

 

What happened last year?

Team	SU Record	ATS Record	O/U	Points For	Points Against	Net Points
Baltimore Ravens	10-6	8-8-0	7-9-0	389	287	102
Pittsburgh Steelers	9-6-1	8-7-1	8-8-0	428	360	68
Cleveland Browns	7-8-1	10-6-0	7-8-1	359	392	(33)
Cincinnati Bengals	6-10	9-7-0	8-6-2	368	455	(87)

 

Best Bets?

Cleveland Browns – To Make Playoffs: No (+100)

While the public has seemingly been hammering the Browns for the past month, driving many of their future odds down to around even money, there are just too many variables and unknowns for me to get on board with this team. Most notable of those variables, a brand new offensive and defensive coordinator with a combined four year’s experience (and little success) in their respective job titles take over an offense that was the worst in the division last season. 

The addition of Kareem Hunt will certainly be a boost, but he can’t play until the second half of the season when their toughest stretch of the schedule is behind them. In the first eight games of the season, which includes two sets of back-to-back road games in five weeks, I have this team going, at best, 4-4. Those eight games don’t include either of the two against division foe Pittsburgh whose quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has more wins against the Browns than any Browns’ quarterback has had for themselves in team history.

With all of this said, I see little to no room for error down the stretch to reach the number of wins it will take to reach the playoffs in an improved AFC. I am selling the Cleveland hype train.

Pittsburgh Steelers – Super Bowl 54 Champions +2100

Seemingly lost somewhere between the Browns’ offseason hype and the unfamiliar quietness that has eluded the Steelers’ offseason in recent years, Pittsburgh finds themselves undervalued coming into their 2019 campaign. The only quarterback-head coach combo in the division with even a single playoff win, Roethlisberger and Tomlin also find themselves in the unusual position of underdog in the division and further down on future market boards than they have been in recent memory.

All reports from Steelers’ camp thus far is Roethlisberger has brought a level of focus that he hasn’t had in years and is once again the unquestioned leader in the locker room. If first-round draft pick Devin Bush can come in at linebacker and fill even 75% of the production gap left by the absence of Ryan Shazier, this defense can be expected to improve from 2018 as well which they desperately need.

At over 20 to 1 odds, I see a ton of value in a team with a lot to prove and that is now free from the distractions that seemed to weigh on them the entire season last year. If they can at least make it to the divisional round of the playoffs, which they have the weapons and defensive front seven to do, you can at minimum hedge to a nice size profit at these longs odds.

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TJ Perun is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from TJ, check out his archive and follow him @JohnnyCovers.