Careful reading of the NFL odds can help you pick a winner.
The National Football League is a favorite for millions of sports fans. One way to add to the thrill of the games is to place bets on them. It's important that you understand read NFL odds when you are considering gambling on pro football. You can easily find the odds in newspapers or online, and with a little effort, you can interpret them. Even if you aren't going to place money on a game and only bet with your friends, there's no reason not to increase your chances of picking the winner by understanding the odds.
Instructions
1. Locate the odds of the NFL games. Beginning with the preseason and going through to the Super Bowl, lines (odds) are posted for every football game played. You can find these in most newspaper sports sections and online.
2. Learn about the various odds available. Each team playing has posted lines for every game. These include "Straight-up Point Spread" and "Total--Over/Under." These are the two football odds most commonly found in newspapers.
3. Understand the NFL Straight-Up Point Spread Odds. You'll see the team name, then a number. These odds are shown in either negative (Pittsburgh Steelers -7) or positive (Dallas Cowboys +7) amounts. The team with the negative amount (Pittsburgh) is the favorite, or projected to be the winner. The one with the positive amount (Dallas) is considered the underdog. Usually, the favorite team is listed first. These numbers represent the amount you must take away from (favorite) or add to (underdog) the final scores, if you were betting on the games. For example, if Pittsburgh won in the above example 20-10 over Dallas, Pittsburgh bettors win. If the Cowboys win or lose by less than 7, the Cowboy bettors win.
4. Understand the NFL Total (Over/Under) Odds. This number will most often be to the right of the point spread number in parentheses or will be shown with "ov" at online sites. It is seen like this: Pittsburgh Steelers (33) Dallas Cowboys, or online like this: 33 ov. It represents the amount predicted to be the final total score of the game. If you were placing a bet on the game, you would have to predict whether the ultimate combined score would be over or under this amount.
