Oh boy, Wildcard weekend is upon us and we have some bets to discuss. You want to know why they call it Wildcard weekend because the only two teams guaranteed to advance are the Packers and the Titans. The other 12 teams are in a win and advance, lose and go home.
Why am I telling you this? The point spreads matter a lot this weekend. I don’t know if you have paid attention, but anyone can beat anyone right now in the NFL. And when getting points, weather and home-field advantage (unless you are the Rams) all matter for the weekend.
So let’s cover the six Wildcard weekend games and see if there’s some winners we can find.
Raiders vs Bengals (-4.5):
The Raiders are hot right now winning 4 in a row but already lost to the Bengals once at home in a blowout. They played in a brutal AFC West and truly have zero expectations in the playoffs unless you are a Raiders Fan that is.
(Side note, there are two fan bases that have zero grip on reality of what their teams can accomplish even after 17 games. Raiders are one of them, the other fan base is coming up shortly.)
The Bengals played in a weakened AFC North, and they are playing with a QB who has never experienced the playoffs.
Pick: Raiders with the points
New England vs Buffalo (-4):
This is a gift from above, Buffalo is an astounding 4 point favorite. They have played spotty at times but they are playing a Rookie QB in the playoffs and at home. You could have double the point difference and I would still have bet the farm on Buffalo.
Pick: Buffalo and you can take the points or not, it isn’t going to matter.
Philadelphia vs Tampa Bay (-8.5):
Tampa at home, playing another playoff rookie QB. The Eagles (in my opinion) made the dreaded mistake of not playing starters in prep of this game. I feel this is another pretty easy game to pick and Tampa Bay should handle their business with ease. I honestly can’t even make this game entertaining to read because it is such a boring game.
Pick: Tamp Bay with the points or without.
San Francisco vs Dallas (-3.5):
Remember when I said there was another unrealistic fan base out there about their team every year. May I introduce you to the Dallas Cowboys. Going 12-5 has Cowboy fans already winning the Super Bowl in their minds. If you want Super Bowl tickets and hotel rooms for Los Angeles this year, just follow a Cowboy blog or site, they will be selling them shortly.
Pick: 49ers with the points, but that is my heart so don’t put too much stock into that pick
Pittsburgh vs Kansas City (-12.5):
The facts are that Pittsburgh got in because of a Los Angeles timeout. Ben Roethlisberger is averaging 6.2 yards per pass, and only has 22 TD’s and longest completion of this season is 59 yards. Pittsburgh is playing a team that scores and the last time they played, they put up 10 points on the Chiefs on December 26th.
Pick: Chiefs with the points and/or money line.
Arizona vs Los Angeles (-3.5):
How about we play the game I like to call “Who Shows Up?” Do the Cardinals of the first half or second half of the season show up? Does the Matthew Stafford of the first half or the second half of the season show up? Do more Cardinal fans or Rams fans show up?
Pick: Rams -3.5 only because this is Kyler Murray’s first playoff game.
Good luck this weekend with your bets. As always, bet small, win big, and make good choices.
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