Buckle up, boys and girls. There is a lot going on with these games this week. There has been some wild movement based on speculation as far as who is playing and who isn’t playing.
And then, who needs to win the game and who doesn’t. Some big number moves, too, not just a half point here and there. So, like I say, it has been a wild betting card up to this point for sure in Week 17.
We always present the games in official Nevada rotation order, but I am moving the Steelers-Ravens game down the list as it has been flexed into the Sunday night slot.
Carolina Panthers at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (-3.5, 40)
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We opened 2.5 and everyone is all over the Bucs, public and sharp bettors. They laid the 2.5, they laid the 3, and we’re up to 3.5 on the game. I also have a lot of play on the money line. They laid me -155, -160, -175, -180, and now I’m all the way up to -200. A ton of support for the Buccaneers here although nothing on the total. I gotta tell ya, I absolutely don’t mind needing the Panthers. This Bucs team has been overrated all season long.
Cleveland Browns at Washington Commanders (-2, 40.5)
We opened Commanders -2.5. They took the 2.5, so I’m at 2 right now with sharp play on the Browns but they also took the money line. They took +120 for a pretty big whack, so now I’m at -130/+110. We opened the total 40.5 and haven’t moved it.
New Orleans Saints at Philadelphia Eagles (-5, 41.5)
This is another wild one. We opened the Eagles -7. They took the 7, took the 6.5, took the 6, and I went to 5. Then they laid back the 5, laid back the 6, laid back the 6.5, and I went to 7 again. They took the 7 again and this time I moved it a full point, down to 6. Well, they took the 6, too, and now I’m at 5 with the game. We figured Gardner Minshew would start at quarterback for the Eagles all along, so maybe it just dawned on the bettors that Hurts wasn’t going to play, I don’t know. Crazy game. It’s been all over the place with a ton of action. The ticket count is about 7-to-1 on the Eagles. We opened the total 44 and they bet me Under. This, along with Minshew, we moved it all the way to 42, and they bet me Under again, so I’m at 41.5 right now.
Arizona Cardinals at Atlanta Falcons (-5, 41)
Just an awful game between two trash teams – and we have a ton of action on it. Amazing. We opened Falcons -3.5. The first bet came in at +3.5, so we went to 3. They laid back the 3, they laid the 3.5, and I went to 4. They took the 4 and I went back to 3.5. I mean, this is unbelievable. So now they laid the 3.5, and they laid the 4, and they laid the 4.5, and I’m up to 5. Certainly some of the movement was triggered by Colt McCoy being ruled out and David Blough being named the starter for the Cardinals, but still crazy how much money we have on this game. Not a huge ticket count but a good amount of sharp money. We opened the total 40.5. The first bet came in on the Over and we went to 41.5, they bet me back Under and I’m at 41.
Jacksonville Jaguars (-3, 43.5) at Houston Texans
Another beauty. The speculation is that Doug Pederson won’t play his starters the entire game. We’ll see. We opened Jaguars -4.5. They took the 4.5, took the 4, took the 3.5, so we are down to 3 with the game. All sharp money on the Texans and this another one where they played the money line pretty good. They took +170, +160, and they took +150, so I’m now at -155/+135 on the money line. We haven’t moved the total, still at 43.5.
Chicago Bears at Detroit Lions (-6, 52.5)
We opened the Lions -6. The first bet came in plus the 6. We went to 5.5 and they laid it back, so I am back to the original number of 6. It’s about a 3-to-1 ticket count on the Lions. We opened the total 51.5 and were up to 52.5.
Miami Dolphins at New England Patriots (-2.5, 41.5)
We opened this at pick-’em and at the time we didn’t know that Tua Tagovailoa was hurt. When the word came out, we jumped this to Patriots -2 without a bet, just on the news. They laid me the 2, they laid the 2.5, and I went to 3. Then we took big action on the Dolphins +3, so we’re back to 2.5 on the game. We opened the total 43.5. With the Tua news, we dropped it to 41.5 and we don’t have any action at this number.
Denver Broncos at Kansas City Chiefs (-12.5, 45)
We opened the game 13.5. They took the 13.5 and they took the 13. We are now at -12.5 on the Chiefs. The public is laying the big number on Kansas City and the ticket count is about 4-to-1 in favor of the Chiefs. We opened the total 45 and haven’t moved it.
Indianapolis Colts at New York Giants (-5.5, 39)
We opened this game 3 before the Colts played on Monday night. They laid me the 3 and I went to 3.5. Then we reopened on Tuesday morning, Giants -5. They laid me the 5 and I went to 6. Then on Friday they took the 6 and I’m back to 5.5. About an 8-to-1 ticket count on the Giants, too. We’re at 39 on the total and haven’t moved it.
New York Jets (-1.5, 42.5) at Seattle Seahawks
We opened this pick. They laid me the Jets at pick-’em, they laid me at Jets -1 and I went to 2. Once Mike White was announced as the starter for New York, we went to 2.5 with the Jets. Then they took the 2.5 and the +2, so now I am at 1.5 with the Jets. Probably our most lightly bet game of the week as far as the side, but a lot of action on the total here. We opened 43.5, they bet me Under 43.5, Under 43, and I went to 42. They bet me Over 42 and I am now at 42.5.
San Francisco 49ers (-9.5, 42.5) at Las Vegas Raiders
Here’s another crazy one. We opened it 6 and the first bet was a big bet at +6 on the Raiders. I went to 5.5 and they laid me back the 5.5, laid me back the 6. At that point, I was pretty much even on the game. Then it was announced that Derek Carr is not going to play, so I went to 9. They laid me that, I went to 9.5, they laid me that, I went to 10. Not long after that, I had enough money at +10 to move me back to 9.5 on the game. They’re all over the place in this game, but it was mostly wise guys laying the 5.5 and the 6 and mostly public money that was laying the 9 or higher. All over the place on the total, too. We opened 44. The first bet was Over and we went to 45. They bet me Over 45 and I went to 46. We were bet back down to 45 before the news came out about Carr and with that we went all the way down to 41.5. They bet me Over that and now I’m at 42.5.
Minnesota Vikings at Green Bay Packers (-3, 47.5)
I opened the Packers -3. They laid me the 3, I went to 3.5. Then they took the 3.5 and I’m back to 3 with the game. A lot of action on this game and the ticket count is almost exactly even. The total opened 47. The first bet came in Over 47, so I went to 47.5. They bet me Over 47.5 and I went to 48.5. They bet me Under 48.5 and Under 48, so I’m now back at 47.5.
Los Angeles Rams at Los Angeles Chargers (-6.5, 42)
I opened 7 and the first bet, they took the 7. I went to 6.5 and that’s where I am right now. Not a ton of interest in this game, but the public is on the Chargers. Good action on the total, though. We opened 41 and they bet me Over 41, Over 42, and I went to 43.5. They bet me Under 43.5, Under 42.5, and I’m back to 42.
Pittsburgh Steelers at Baltimore Ravens (-2, 35)
We opened 3.5 thinking it was going to be Lamar Jackson at quarterback for Baltimore. Terrible. I’ll take a mea culpa there. So they took the 3.5, took the 3, and we’re down to 2 with the game. I’ve got a little bit of money on the favorite at -2, but I really think it should be pick-’em without Jackson. We opened the total 36.5 and now we’re down to 35. Little bit of action, but this is mostly on the Jackson news.
Buffalo Bills (-1, 49.5) at Cincinnati Bengals
The game of the week. We opened pick. I saw some Bills -1 out there but I definitely wanted to take a bet because I like the Bengals here. So they bet me and I went to Bills -1 and that’s where we are right now. Ticket count, everything . . . almost identical. We opened the total 49.5 and haven’t moved it.
Chris Andrews is the Sportsbook Director at South Point Hotel in Las Vegas, a member of the Sports Betting Hall of Fame, and has been a Nevada bookmaker for over 40 years.
