NFL Parlay Picks: Wild Card Weekend (2020)
The NFL postseason kicks off on Saturday, and we have four stellar contests to look forward to for Wild Card Weekend. A case can easily be made for each of the eight teams to advance, so we have quite the challenge in front of us from a handicapping perspective.
Here’s a rundown of the games on the docket and a pick for each. All odds are current as of this writing and courtesy of PointsBet.
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Buffalo Bills at Houston Texans, Sat. 4:35 PM, ESPN
The playoffs begin with an excellent matchup in Houston. The Bills and Texans bring matching 10-6 records to the table, but differing strengths. Buffalo boasts one of the top defensive units in the league, while Houston has an offense that can score with anyone.
The Bills have been great on the road this season – 6-2 overall and 6-0-2 ATS – while the Texans are 5-3 straight-up at home and just 2-6 ATS. That trend carries over to Saturday. Buffalo gets the win and advances to the Divisional round.
The Pick: Buffalo Bills +2.5 (-105)
Tennessee Titans at New England Patriots, Sat. 8:15 PM, CBS
Like a prizefighter that has seen better days, the Patriots are on the ropes. Last weekend, the unthinkable happened when they fell at home to the Miami Dolphins as huge favorites. New England enters the postseason with a severe limp.
The Titans are built like a team that can knock the champs out for the count. However, we’ve seen this movie before. Nearly everyone was counting the Patriots out in last year’s playoffs too, but they wound up hoisting another Lombardi Trophy when all was said and done.
We can’t say for certain that they’ll turn that trick again, but they’ll go down swinging and at least live to fight another week. Patriots win and cover.
The Pick: New England Patriots -5 (-105)
Minnesota Vikings at New Orleans Saints, Sun. 1:05 PM, FOX
The Vikings aren’t being given much of a chance by oddsmakers on Sunday. While a trip to New Orleans is a daunting task, Minnesota has the horses to keep up when they are clicking on all cylinders. They can trade punches with the Saints on both sides of the ball.
The team enters the postseason with a point differential of +104, which isn’t that far behind a Saints squad that checks in at +117 on that metric. New Orleans gets the job done on the home field, but the Vikings keep the margin closer than expected.
The Pick: Minnesota Vikings +8 (-105)
Seattle Seahawks at Philadelphia Eagles, Sun. 4:40 PM, NBC
Once again, the Eagles have risen from the ashes and gotten it together at the right time. The club has won four straight to take down the NFC East in spite of being bitten by the injury bug in dramatic fashion.
The Seahawks are making the trek across the country to square off with them and enter the contest as the favorite. On paper, that makes sense as Seattle is looking like a stronger overall team. However, there’s a lot to be said for intangibles this time of the year.
Doug Pederson is getting everything he can out of a Philadelphia team which really has no business being in the postseason. That continues for another week as his squad pulls off the slight upset.
The Pick: Philadelphia Eagles +1.5 (-105)
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Christopher Feery is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from Christopher, check out his archive and follow him @cmfeery.