NFL Playoff Betting Odds: Wild Card Weekend
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Nov 1, 2015; Arlington, TX, USA; Seattle Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch (24) during the game against the Dallas Cowboys at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports Dec 10, 2015; Glendale, AZ, USA; Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson (28) against the Arizona Cardinals at University of Phoenix Stadium. The Cardinals defeated the Vikings 23-20. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
The road teams are pegged as the betting favorite in all four of the Wild Card Weekend matchups as the NFL's postseason gets underway this Saturday and Sunday.
The smallest home dogs are the Washington Redskins, who actually opened as 1.5-point chalk for the contest but have subsequently been bet down to 1-point underdogs at the sportsbooks. Washington won the NFC East title with a record of just 9-7, while Green Bay lost its last two games of the season to finish second in the NFC North with a 10-6 mark.
It was the Minnesota Vikings who emerged as NFC North champions this season, but they're 6-point home underdogs hosting the Seattle Seahawks in the other NFC Wild Card matchup on Sunday afternoon. Minnesota heads into the postseason on a three-game winning streak, while Seattle has only been tagged with one loss in its last seven games.
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In the AFC matchups on Saturday the Cincinnati Bengals opened as 1-point home favorites against the Pittsburgh Steelers, but with Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton not expected to play this week the Steelers have since shifted to 3-point road favorites. The Steelers are 13-2 SU in their last 15 road games against the Bengals, and 4-1 both SU and ATS in the last five meetings between the AFC North rivals.
And finally the Kansas City Chiefs, riding a league-best 10-game winning streak, are listed as 4-point road favorites against the Houston Texans with their Wild Card matchup kicking off the weekend slate on Saturday afternoon. Houston, the AFC South champion, also trails as the +5000 longshot on the updated odds to win Super Bowl 50 heading into the playoffs.
The latest Super Bowl betting lines have the New England Patriots tied at the top with the Arizona Cardinals at +475, followed by the Seahawks and Carolina Panthers at +500. The Denver Broncos, who join the Patriots, Cardinals, and Panthers on a bye this week, are set at +650, with the Steelers at +1000, the Chiefs at +1400, the Packers, Vikings, and Bengals at +2500, and the Redskins at +4000.
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New England is the +190 favorite to win the AFC ahead of the +225 Broncos, while the Panthers and the Cardinals are tied as the +200 favorites on the odds to win the NFC title.