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Following an exciting Wild Card Round that saw all four underdogs cover with three winning outright, the NFL moves onto the Divisional Round of the playoffs. Underdogs have been profitable in the playoffs the last two year and bettors are banking on the trend to continue this weekend. Here we break down the sports betting trends and observations from folks behind the counter.

The Divisional Round is where we see the return of the top two teams from each conference coming off a bye. All four of the top seeds are favored by at least four points this weekend but that may not be a good thing. Underdogs are 14-1 ATS and have covered 10 straight games in the playoffs dating back to last season.

“It’s funny how these underdogs keep coming in and the public usually likes to bet a lot of favorites,” said Tony Miller, Sportsbook Director at the Golden Nugget Las Vegas. “I think it could continue this weekend. Anybody in these playoffs has a chance to win these games. All the teams that are underdogs are playing really well.”

Indianapolis Colts at Kansas City Chiefs

Opening Line: Chiefs -5.5, 56
Current Line: Chiefs -5.5, 57

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The Colts come into this game on a roll. Indianapolis defeated Houston 21-7 on the road last week as a 2-point underdog. After starting the season 1-5, the Colts are 10-1 SU and 7-3-1 ATS in their last 11 games. Indianapolis is also playing well against top competition, going 7-0 ATS the last seven vs. teams with a winning record.

“The last three or four weeks we got all Colts money. The public is in love with the Colts,” said Miller. “They’re the Cinderella team. We’re seeing a lot of public action on them again. We’re at 5.5 right now but we’re a little heavy on the Colts side.”

The Chiefs started the year on fire covering their first seven games. Kansas City wasn’t profitable over the final two months though, going 1-5-1 ATS in its last seven games. Unlike the Colts, the Chiefs struggled against good competition, going 2-4 SU and 2-3-1 ATS versus playoff teams.

The number in this game has remained steady, another indication of money coming in on both sides. The Chiefs opened -5.5 and after the line briefly went to -6 at some books, it dropped back down to 5.5 pretty much everywhere as of Friday.

“This is kind of a Pros vs. Joes game but opposite of what it normally is,” said Jason Simbal, Vice President of Risk Management at CG Technology. “The sharp guys are on the Chiefs and the public is on the Colts. With the spread, it’s 2 to 1 on the ticket count for the Colts but the money is 2 to 1 the other way on the Chiefs.

“We took a couple decent size bets laying 5.5 with the Chiefs. The line went to +6 and we got some money on the Colts but for the most part the sharps are betting the Chiefs. The public loves the Colts money line +205.”

Two top-10 offenses collide in this game with the total sitting at 57 after opening up 56. The last time these two teams met in the playoffs the Colts won a shootout 45-44.

Both teams are actually trending UNDER recently. Kansas City was a strong UNDER play at home this season with five of its eight games falling below the total. However, in the five games that went UNDER at Arrowhead Stadium, the Chiefs faced the offensively-challenged Raiders, Ravens, Cardinals, Jaguars and Broncos. The UNDER is also 6-2 in the Colts’ last eight games.

Despite the trends, bettors are backing the OVER in a game where quarterbacks Patrick Mahomes and Andrew Luck have combined to throw 91 touchdowns this season.

“The public is betting the OVER in this one,” said Simbal. “We were at 56 and it’s up to 57. We have about 6x more bets on the OVER.”

Dallas Cowboys at Los Angeles Rams

Opening Line: Rams -7, 49.5
Current Line: Rams -7, 49.5

Dallas enters this game as a touchdown underdog. The Cowboys have been a dangerous underdog recently, going 6-1 ATS in their last seven games in that spot. Dallas closed the season strong, winning eight of its last nine games, including a 24-22 victory over the Seahawks in the Wild Card Round.

“Out of all the teams, the Cowboys are the most public,” said Miller. “We’ll see a lot of play on them because of that, especially at the Golden Nugget. We’re a Houston-based house and we have a lot of clients that come up from Texas. We expect a lot of money on them, even though the line has changed from -7 to -7 (-120). We took some Rams money but the Cowboys money will come in late.”

The Rams are 7-1 at home this season and closed the year with two straight covers over bottom-feeders Arizona and San Francisco. However, Los Angles was one of the least-profitable teams over the second half of the season, going 3-5-1 ATS in its last eight games.

The line for this game is holding strong at -7. A couple of books have moved the juice to -120 on the Rams but heading into Saturday, the spread has yet to move off the key number of seven.

“The public likes the Cowboys but on the spread itself it’s pretty even,” said Simbal. “We literally have three more bets on the Cowboys than the Rams. We took some decent sized bets on the Rams -7. The biggest bet we’ve taken so far in any of these games is -7 on the Rams for low five figures.”

The Rams averaged 32.9 points per game, ranking second in the NFL. The Cowboys tend to play low-scoring games on the road though. The UNDER is 10-2 in the Cowboys’ last 12 games away from home with an average combined score of 36 points. The total opened at 49.5 and hasn’t budged as of Friday.

“We have a little more money on the UNDER,” said Simbal. “It’s 49.5 and we haven’t had to move it at all. It’s been 49.5 the entire time so decent two-way action on the total.”

Los Angeles Chargers at New England Patriots

Opening Line: Patriots -5, 47.5
Current Line: Chiefs -Patriots -4, 47

The Chargers are seeing a lot of backing in this game but betting against the Patriots at home has been a losing proposition. New England is 15-0 SU and 12-3 ATS in its last 15 games as a home favorite. Tom Brady is 13-2 overall and 12-1 at home in the Divisional Round of the playoffs.

On the other hand, the Chargers travel to New England as the NFL’s top road team this season. Los Angeles is 8-1 SU and ATS in nine road contests this year and haven’t lost a game outside of California. On the downside, this is the second consecutive cross-country tip for the Chargers after defeating the Ravens 23-17 in Baltimore last weekend.

The money has been coming in pretty heavy on the Chargers since the line opened between 4.5 and 6, depending on the sportsbook. It’s dropped to Patriots -4 with the underdog Chargers being one of the most bet sides of the weekend at CG Technology.

“Both the tickets and the money are on the Chargers,” said Simbal. “We have 1.4x more bets on the Chargers and 2x more on the money. When the number was 5.5, we took a bunch of bets on the Chargers. It’s down to -4 now, so this line has gone all the way down from six to four and it’s all Chargers money. Very little action on the Patriots.”

Philip Rivers is looking for his first win over the Patriots since Brady became the starting quarterback. Rivers is 0-7 SU against Brady but he’s cashed for bettors on the road in the playoffs, going 5-1 ATS in that spot over his career.

Despite what some may see as perceived value with a Patriots team that has been dominant at home over the years, the line could drop even lower by Sunday.

“No one has wanted to take -4 at all with the Patriots,’ said Simbal. “I’d imagine if this line is going to move, it will go the other way to 3.5 and then maybe you’ll see some bets on the Patriots. If they wanted to take them at -4, they would have done it.”

The total opened 47.5 and dropped to 45.5. It then when back up to 47 and that was the number at most books on Friday.

There are strong trends to the UNDER. The UNDER has cashed in eight of the Patriots’ last nine games with and average combined score of 40.8 points. Including the playoffs, the UNDER has hit in four of the Chargers’ last five games with an average combined score of 41.6 points. The UNDER is also 4-0 the last four meetings between the two teams.

Philadelphia Eagles at New Orleans Saints

Opening Line: Saints -9, 50.5
Current Line: Saints -8, 51

The Eagles find themselves in a familiar underdog role with Nick Foles at quarterback. This marks the fifth straight time Philadelphia has been an underdog in the playoffs with Foles at quarterback dating back to last season. The Eagles won the previous four games straight up.

Overall, Foles has won six straight games as an underdog and the Eagles are 5-2 SU in their past seven games when catching points. In order to continue that trend, the Eagles will need to upset a Saints team that hammered them 48-7 back in November.

“I know the Eagles got stomped by the Saints early in the season but it’s a different team this time around,” said Miller. “Foles is back in form and even though they’re going on the road, I think they have a chance.”

Beating New Orleans at home is a tall order. The Saints are 14-2 SU in their last 16 games at The Superdome. New Orleans is 5-0 SU at home in the playoffs since Sean Payton took over as head coach in 2006. The Saints went 6-2 SU at home this season but just 4-4 ATS. New Orleans closed the year going 1-4 ATS overall.

The line opened Saints -9 at some books but early money on the Eagles dropped it to -8. That’s where most shops were sitting on Friday with the Wynn in Las Vegas at 8.5.

“This game is more typical of how people bet the playoffs,” said Simbal. “They’re laying the points with the favorite and taking the dog with the money line. In terms of the spread, Saints -8, we have 1.3x more bets on the Saints. Moneyline is all Eagles at +310. If we can get the game to land between 1-7, we’ll beat everything for the most part.”

In the past four meetings between the Saints and Eagles, the UNDER is 3-1 with an average combined score of 50.5 points. The Saints have also gone below the closing total in five of their past seven at home with an average combined score of 42.1 points.

The number has moved a point/point and a half to the OVER since opening 50.5. Heading into the weekend it was up to 51.5 at some books with bettors leaning to the OVER.

“They’re betting the OVER here,” said Simbal. “It was 50.5 and now up to 51. It was 51.5 for a bit but we took a sharp bet on UNDER so it’s back down to 51.”

Follow along at @RGSportsBetting for more updates, big wagers and line movements.