Betting Recap – Week 13

VegasInsider Staff Sports Betting Expert

17 minute read

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Overall Notes

The largest underdogs to win straight up

• Giants (+11, ML +420) at Seahawks, 17-12
• Washington (+5.5, ML +220) at Steelers, 23-17
• Browns (+4, ML +180) at Titans, 41-35
• Lions (+3, ML +135) at Bears, 34-30

The largest favorites to cover

• Dolphins (-10) vs. Bengals, 19-7
• Packers (-8.5) vs. Eagles, 30-16
• Colts (-3) at Texans, 26-20

The Biggest Disappointment of the Week

The Philadelphia Eagles-Green Bay Packers game was crazy if you were a side bettor supporting the visitors. The Eagles fell behind 14-3 at halftime, and 20-3 after 45 minutes. If you had Philadelphia +8.5, it wasn't a great feeling.

However, in the second half, Eagles head coach Doug Pedersen replaced struggling QB Carson Wentz with rookie QB Jalen Hurts, mainly for his mobility due to struggles and injuries along the offensive line. Things were looking up, as Hurts tossed his first NFL touchdown, and the Eagles got a 73-yard punt return from another rookie just 82 seconds later, as WR Jalen Reagor housed it to make it a game, 23-16. The Eagles were covering with 6:30 to go in regulation.

However, Eagles side bettors already know it wouldn't last. RB Aaron Jones found some daylight with just under three minutes remaining. He juked, danced down the sidelines, eluded several tacklers and received key blocks for a highlight-reel 77-yard back-breaking touchdown run to make it 30-16. Suddenly, 'under' (50.5) bettors were sweating. Hurts got the ball back and they were driving in Green Bay territory late. However, Hurts tossed an interception to stymie the drive, so Packers side bettors and under bettors were breathing a sigh of relief.

The Biggest Disappointment of the Week - Part II

The game between the Indianapolis Colts-Houston Texans game was one to remember. Or one to forget, depending upon your wager.

 At halftime, the Colts (-3) led 24-20, so 'over' (50) bettors were feeling overly excited, perhaps even looking ahead to their late-window bets or even bumping them up on an assumed victory. Surely there would be at least seven points for an easy 'over' in the second half, right?

Well, not only did those seven points for the over result never come, we didn't even get any offensive points at all. The offensive spigot was turned off tight, and we saw just one safety in the fourth quarter. After 44 total points in the first 30 minutes, yep, we had just TWO in the second 30 minutes. Unreal loss if you were holding an 'over' ticket.

We should have had an over, though. And Texans side bettors were also left shaking their heads at the end of this one. The Texans had 2nd and goal from the Indianapolis 2, but QB Deshaun Watson fumbled, and the Colts covered it up for the win, cover and they helped the 'under' hang in there, too.

Total Recall

The lowest total on the board for the Sunday slate was the Cincinnati Bengals-Miami Dolphins (43), and the result was never in doubt. The Bengals fired out to a 7-0 lead, as WR Tyler Boyd hauled in a long touchdown from QB Brandon Allen. Unfortunately for the Bengals and their side bettors, the best receiver in stripes was ejected for his part in a brawl.

The game turned from there, as the Dolphins posted six in the second, going into the break down 7-6. It was all Dolphins from there, as they outscored the visitors 13-0 in the second half. Despite a low-scoring 19-7 win, they were able to cover the 10, too.

The highest total on Sunday was the Cleveland Browns-Tennessee Titans (54), and the 'over' was never in doubt here. Cleveland took a 10-0 lead after 15 minutes, and they piled up 28 points in the second quarter en route to a 38-7 halftime lead at Nissan Stadium in Nashville.

After the Titans outscored the Browns 14-3 in the third quarter, we had a total of 55 points on the board, and 'over' tickets were already good to go. The Titans mounted a late flurry to cut it to 41-35, making moneyline bettors a little nervous, though.

In the first primetime game Sunday night, the Denver Broncos-Kansas City Chiefs (51.5) game, surprisingly, was a defensive battle. The Chiefs had 10 points in the third quarter, but that was the only time either side had a double-digit total in a single quarter. We had just 38 total points on the board for the easy 'under' result.

With some rescheduling, the Washington Football Team-Pittsburgh Steelers (43.5) game and the originally scheduled Monday nighter between the Buffalo Bills-San Francisco 49ers (47.5) made for a Week 13 doubleheader. The 'over' hit on the MNF game, while the 'under' cashed in the Washington-Pittsburgh contest, and that's not considered a primetime battle. And we're still awaiting the result of Tuesday's Dallas Cowboys-Baltimore Ravens (45) battle.

So far this season the under is 24-15 (61.5%) across 39 primetime games. In 2019, the 'under' went 31-17-1 (64.6%) during primetime games.

Looking Ahead to Week 14

New England Patriots at Los Angeles Rams (Thursday, 8:20 p.m. ET)

The Patriots hit the road in Week 13 and destroyed the Los Angeles Chargers by a 45-0 count, evening their overall record at 6-6 SU/ATS. Believe it or not, it's the first time this season the Patriots have covered in consecutive games. The 'under' is a perfect 4-0 across the past four games for the Patriots, too.

New England is scheduled to stay in the Los Angeles area and they will face the Rams on Thursday night. The Rams are headed back from Arizona with a 38-28 win in tow. The 38 points marked a season high, and they're now 3-1 SU/ATS across the past four outings. Against AFC East teams, the Rams are 0-2 SU/ATS so far this season.

Tennessee Titans at Jacksonville Jaguars (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET)

The Titans are coming off a 41-35 loss at home against the Browns. The Jaguars gave it their all in Minnesota, but they fell in overtime against the Vikings. Both sides will meet at TIAA Bank Field.

The Titans have won and covered back-to-back games on the road, winning as underdogs. They'll be favored in this one. Perhaps being favored isn't what they want. Tennessee is just 1-3 SU/ATS across the past four as a favorite.

These teams met back in Week 2, with the Titans hanging on for a 33-30 win over the Jaguars as seven-point favorites, another non-cover and 'over' (44.5) result. The over is 4-0 in the past four for Tennessee, and 9-1-1 across the past 11 for the Titans.

Green Bay Packers at Detroit Lions (Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET)

The Packers held on for the 30-16 win and cover against the Eagles. It's the first time the Packers have covered in consecutive games, and they've done so as favorite of 7.5 or higher in each outing.

The Lions registered a 34-30 win on the road against the Bears, picking up the victory for interim head coach Darrell Bevell. In case you're scoring at home, interim coaches are a perfect 3-0 SU/ATS in their first game after taking the new reins.

These teams faced each other at Lambeau Field in Week 2, with the Packers doubling up the Lions 42-21 as seven-point favorites as the 'over' (51) connected.

Baltimore Ravens at Cleveland Browns (Monday, 8:15 p.m. ET)

The Ravens blasted the Browns by a 38-6 score in Week 1, easily covering a seven-point number as the 'under' (47) connected.

Baltimore will actually be coming off a short week, as they're scheduled to play Tuesday against the Cowboys at M&T Bank Stadium in Balto. The Browns will have two more days to rest and recover. The Browns enter 4-0 SU/2-2 ATS across the past four outings overall.

The weather has been dismal in Cleveland for the past three games at FirstEnergy Stadium. They averaged just 12.7 PPG in the past three home games, played in two games with a wintry mix and windy conditions, and a steady rain last time out in Week 11 against the Philadelphia Eagles.

Looking ahead to Monday's weather forecast, it's supposed to snow for most of the day Sunday, and into Monday morning. It should change over to rain Monday afternoon before the precipitation pulls out. However, we still have a week before the forecast is fine tuned, and if the system slows down, perhaps weather also affects this one, keeping scores down. We'll see.

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VegasInsider Staff

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