Underdogs started NFL Week 13 on a 9-2 against the spread run with seven outright wins, including all four games on Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday.
Todd Dewey
Todd Dewey covers sports betting for the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
tdewey@reviewjournal.com … @tdewey33 on Twitter. 702-383-0354
It was a comeback Sunday in Week 12 of the NFL as the Chiefs, Lions, Patriots and Cowboys erased double-digit deficits, but only Dallas covered the spread.
NFL favorites went 9-4 straight up but only 5-8 against the spread on Sunday as four favorites won but didn’t cover and four underdogs won outright.
The Dolphins pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the season in a 30-13 blowout win over the Bills as 8-point home underdogs.
After favorites went 11-2 against the spread in NFL Week 8, underdogs went 8-4 against the spread on Sunday with five outright wins.
NFL Week 8 was dominated by favorites and overs, normally a recipe for success for the betting public. But upsets by the Dolphins and Jets helped sportsbooks.
The Chiefs crushed the Raiders 31-0 as NFL Week 7 favorites went 6-0 ATS in the morning games, and the Broncos scored 33 fourth-quarter points in an historic comeback win over the Giants.
The Raiders closed as 3½-point favorites after sharp money on the Titans caused the line to drop from 6½. The betting public was all in on the home team.
The Titans took advantage of several miscues by the Cardinals en route to a 22-21 comeback win that dealt an unlikely loss to bettors and caused carnage in high-stakes Survivor contests.
The Eagles dealt the Buccaneers their first loss after almost blowing a 24-3 lead, while the Bills held off the Saints in a game that was closer than expected.
The NFL turned sportsbooks into a block party, when four blocked field goals, including two returned for touchdowns, impacted the outcomes of three early games.
NFL money line favorites, which cashed at a better than 70 percent clip last season, went 10-2 on Sunday to help bettors deal sportsbooks a rare losing day.
All four No. 1 seeds have advanced to the Final Four for only the second time since 1985, and Duke and Florida are favored in Saturday’s national semifinals.
Liam McNeeley’s 3-pointer for UConn as time expired in the Huskies’ loss to Florida on Sunday didn’t affect the point spread, but it sure affected the total.
Favorites won 25 of 32 games while going 19-13 against the spread in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. There were a few upsets, but no true bracket busters.
LISTEN TO THE TOP FIVE HERE