NFL Betting: Bears alive after OT win
NFL Betting: Bears alive after OT win
Chicago kept their postseason hopes alive with a 20-17 overtime win over Green Bay on Monday, and will now travel to Houston to face the Texans for their final regular season game. With only seven of the 12 playoff berths claimed heading into Week 17, two of the most crucial matchups this Sunday are the Dallas Cowboys at the Philadelphia Eagles and the New York Jets hosting the Miami Dolphins
If there were a karma bank in the NFL, the Green Bay Packers could cash in their account next year and go 16-0.
Despite Green Bay outplaying the Chicago Bears for most of their Monday Night Football matchup, it was the Bears extending their playoff hopes with a 20-17 overtime victory at Soldier Field. The Packers still managed the cover as 4-point road dogs – little comfort in a 5-10 season (8-7 ATS) where they’ve lost seven times by four points or fewer, including twice in overtime without touching the ball.
As MNF commentator Tony Kornheiser won’t let us forget, this is where Brett Favre would have come up big for the Packers. But his New York Jets are on the playoff bubble after losing 13-3 to the Seattle Seahawks. In Mike Holmgren’s (presumably) final home game as Seattle’s coach, the ‘Hawks picked Favre off twice and held him to 187 yards passing. The Jets were 3½-point road faves.
The Seahawks victory was part of yet another successful week for the home dogs. They went 5-3 ATS to improve to 12-5 ATS over the past three weeks; they’re still way below the poverty line at 30-42-2 ATS (41.7 percent) on the season, but that’s why they call it a late-season trend. Meanwhile, Week 16 saw the betting odds for the total split evenly in half at 8-8 to remain deadlocked at 115-115.
But back to the playoffs. Chicago has a chance to steal the NFC North title from the Minnesota Vikings, who lost 24-17 at home to the Atlanta Falcons (+3½). Vikings QB Tarvaris Jackson fumbled three times and turned the ball over twice, Adrian Peterson also had a pair of fumbles (one lost), and Bernard Berrian muffed a punt return to help Atlanta clinch a playoff berth at 10-5 SU and 9-6 ATS.
Further illustrating the parity in the NFL, the Miami Dolphins are on the verge of the playoffs after beating Kansas City 38-31. The Chiefs (+3½) couldn’t keep the home dogs barking in this one as Miami scored the last 14 points of the game to sit on top of the AFC East at 10-5 SU (7-8 ATS). The New England Patriots kept pace at 10-5 SU (8-7 ATS) with a crushing 47-7 defeat of the Arizona Cardinals (+9), who mailed it in having already taken the NFC West.
This sets up a fascinating Week 17 playoff scenario. The Dolphins and Jets play Sunday at Giants Stadium; if the Fins win, they get the division title and the No. 3 seed in the AFC. If the Jets win, they also need New England to lose to the 6-8 Buffalo Bills at Ralph Wilson Stadium. The Patriots need the Jets to beat Miami to win the division, but they can also earn a Wild Card spot if the 10-5 Baltimore Ravens stumble at home against the 5-10 Jacksonville Jaguars. The Ravens (11-4 ATS) gave themselves the upper hand Saturday night by roping the Dallas Cowboys 33-24 as 5-point road dogs.
Which brings us to the NFC. At 9-6 SU, Dallas is still in control of its own Wild Card destiny this week against the Philadelphia Eagles, but the ‘Boys have to take care of business on the road. The 8-6-1 Eagles are coming off a 10-3 loss to the Washington Redskins, another successful Week 16 home dog at +4½. Philly needs to beat Dallas, and then hope for both the Bears and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to lose on Sunday.
Last, and most definitely least in this case, we have the AFC West. The division title is still up for grabs after the Denver Broncos (-6½) lost 30-23 at home to Buffalo and the San Diego Chargers (+3½) won 41-24 on the road at Tampa Bay. That sets up a winner-take-all battle between the 8-7 Broncos and 7-8 Bolts in San Diego. The Broncos are 4-10-1 ATS on the year, second in futility only to Jacksonville at 4-11 ATS.
Chicago kept their postseason hopes alive with a 20-17 overtime win over Green Bay on Monday, and will now travel to Houston to face the Texans for their final regular season game. With only seven of the 12 playoff berths claimed heading into Week 17, two of the most crucial matchups this Sunday are the Dallas Cowboys at the Philadelphia Eagles and the New York Jets hosting the Miami Dolphins
If there were a karma bank in the NFL, the Green Bay Packers could cash in their account next year and go 16-0.
Despite Green Bay outplaying the Chicago Bears for most of their Monday Night Football matchup, it was the Bears extending their playoff hopes with a 20-17 overtime victory at Soldier Field. The Packers still managed the cover as 4-point road dogs – little comfort in a 5-10 season (8-7 ATS) where they’ve lost seven times by four points or fewer, including twice in overtime without touching the ball.
As MNF commentator Tony Kornheiser won’t let us forget, this is where Brett Favre would have come up big for the Packers. But his New York Jets are on the playoff bubble after losing 13-3 to the Seattle Seahawks. In Mike Holmgren’s (presumably) final home game as Seattle’s coach, the ‘Hawks picked Favre off twice and held him to 187 yards passing. The Jets were 3½-point road faves.
The Seahawks victory was part of yet another successful week for the home dogs. They went 5-3 ATS to improve to 12-5 ATS over the past three weeks; they’re still way below the poverty line at 30-42-2 ATS (41.7 percent) on the season, but that’s why they call it a late-season trend. Meanwhile, Week 16 saw the betting odds for the total split evenly in half at 8-8 to remain deadlocked at 115-115.
But back to the playoffs. Chicago has a chance to steal the NFC North title from the Minnesota Vikings, who lost 24-17 at home to the Atlanta Falcons (+3½). Vikings QB Tarvaris Jackson fumbled three times and turned the ball over twice, Adrian Peterson also had a pair of fumbles (one lost), and Bernard Berrian muffed a punt return to help Atlanta clinch a playoff berth at 10-5 SU and 9-6 ATS.
Further illustrating the parity in the NFL, the Miami Dolphins are on the verge of the playoffs after beating Kansas City 38-31. The Chiefs (+3½) couldn’t keep the home dogs barking in this one as Miami scored the last 14 points of the game to sit on top of the AFC East at 10-5 SU (7-8 ATS). The New England Patriots kept pace at 10-5 SU (8-7 ATS) with a crushing 47-7 defeat of the Arizona Cardinals (+9), who mailed it in having already taken the NFC West.
This sets up a fascinating Week 17 playoff scenario. The Dolphins and Jets play Sunday at Giants Stadium; if the Fins win, they get the division title and the No. 3 seed in the AFC. If the Jets win, they also need New England to lose to the 6-8 Buffalo Bills at Ralph Wilson Stadium. The Patriots need the Jets to beat Miami to win the division, but they can also earn a Wild Card spot if the 10-5 Baltimore Ravens stumble at home against the 5-10 Jacksonville Jaguars. The Ravens (11-4 ATS) gave themselves the upper hand Saturday night by roping the Dallas Cowboys 33-24 as 5-point road dogs.
Which brings us to the NFC. At 9-6 SU, Dallas is still in control of its own Wild Card destiny this week against the Philadelphia Eagles, but the ‘Boys have to take care of business on the road. The 8-6-1 Eagles are coming off a 10-3 loss to the Washington Redskins, another successful Week 16 home dog at +4½. Philly needs to beat Dallas, and then hope for both the Bears and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to lose on Sunday.
Last, and most definitely least in this case, we have the AFC West. The division title is still up for grabs after the Denver Broncos (-6½) lost 30-23 at home to Buffalo and the San Diego Chargers (+3½) won 41-24 on the road at Tampa Bay. That sets up a winner-take-all battle between the 8-7 Broncos and 7-8 Bolts in San Diego. The Broncos are 4-10-1 ATS on the year, second in futility only to Jacksonville at 4-11 ATS.