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How To Bet on NFL Football
We know you love your football now let us school you on how to bet on the game. There are a number of ways that you can bet on a football game. Some offer low risk with low payouts while others offer high risk with high payouts. We'll explain each below Enjoy!
Let's break it down. The Point Spread ( Betting the NFL point spread is the most popular form of sports betting. What is a point spread you ask? A pointspread is a number made up by oddsmakers that is presented to the sportsbooks who in turn offer this number to their bettors to either take the favorite or the underdog.
The number is created with the idea that the public will be divided and bet equally on both sides. This is hardly ever the case though. Games usually end up one sided as the general betting public seems to love to bet on the favorite.
Why does a point spread exist? The spread exists because theoretically it is perceived that one team is better than another so to make up that difference, the spread is created to bring equality to the wager. Do underdogs ever win straight up? You better believe they do!
Here's an example of a point spread:
Dallas Cowboys +6.5 -110
New york Jets -6.5 -110
As you can see, the Cowboys have a + in front of their number, which that number is called the point spread. A plus in front of a spread (aka: line) signifies that the team is an underdog and that's how many points your "getting." Getting points basically means that their free points to you that you add onto the teams true final score. If your team has more points than the other team after you'd added on your points to the final score, you are the pointspread winner.
Conversely, if you were to take the Jets at -6.5, you subtract 6.5 points from the Jets final score and compare it to the Bears true final score to determine the who wins the wager.
The -110 next to each denotes how much you have to risk to win $100. This can also be broken down as $11 to win $10.
- The most common method of football betting is by doing so using the point spread (aka: sides or straight bets.) You usually lay -110 odds to win $100 ($11 to win $10 is another way to look at it) to do so unless your playing at a reduced vig sportsbook which offers you the ability to risk less to win the same amount. For more info: Reduced Vigorish. This is a very low risk form of betting and by far the most popular. Many bettors flock to sportsbooks that offer generous sign up bonuses. Astute bettors want more though. A savvy bettor wants reduced vig.
What is reduced vig you ask? (aka: reduced vigorish/reduced juice) This merely means that your betting at reduced odds. While most online sportsbooks offer the traditional -110 to win $100, some offer reduce vig of -105 to win $100.
While most think a nickel is hardly worth clamoring over, just the opposite is true. Let's take a look at an example of some reduced vig bets:
Packers +3 -105
Vikings -3 -105
If your betting $10.50 to win $10.00 your saving .50 off the traditional $11 to win $10. It's really no big deal but hey, fifty cents is fifty cents.
Now let's say your a buck bettor ($100) and your laying $105 to win $100. Your saving $5 in risked money here that you could in essence be using to buy yourself a sandwich tomorrow at work or even better, tack it on to the $105 your laying which will increase your payout to $104.78!
Where reduced vig REALLY comes in huge is if your a big bettor. If your a dime bettor and laying $1050 to win $1000, your saving $50 bucks a pop. Lets' say you make 10 bets over the course of the weekend. Your saying $50 x 10 = $500. Needless to say, if your a dime bettor you can't afford not to be betting at reduced odds.
Furthermore, betting at reduced vig -105 instead of -110 allows you to lower your break-even point from 52.38% down to 51.22%.
Fellas! Shop for the best price! You go to the store and compare loaves of bread to try to save a measley quarter. Why not shop for the best price on your bets? You'll save a ton!
The Moneyline - This type of bet eliminates the point spread and results in you either laying more money on the favorite to win less or a little bit on the underdog which pays more. This is a bet based on odds, not a point spread.
Betting NFL moneylines is an alternative to doing so using a point spread. The "moneyline" elimiates the spread and turns it into a bet that uses odds. This means that all you have to do is win or lose the game by one point as the spread has been eliminated.
There are of course good times and bad times to apply this type of wagering to an NFL game. While it may look easy to take a game with a team favored by -7, get rid of the spread, lay -330 to win $100 in a bet that "can't lose," these games can and do lose and you will be smarting after a -3.3 unit hit. This essentially means that you now have to win 3.3 games in a row just to break even!
On the flip side, short underdogs (underdogs of 2.5 points or less) are GREAT bets to consider for a moneyline play. Not only do you not lay vig on a moneyline underdog, you get paid more than you bet which means you can hit less than 50% of these bets and still turn a profit, which is the ideal situation for any sharp sports bettor.
In case your confused, we'll post an example of a moneyline play below:
Minnesota Vikings +250
Indianapolis Colts -330
If you take Minnesota, you are basically saying that they don't need the point spread to win this game and have your bet cash. Since your not taking the spread and your bet is against the odds, the bookie is willing to give you +250 which is a huge return on your risked amount. In case you don't know how to read sports odds, +250 is the same thing as saying "risking $100 to profit $250." You of course get your risked $100 back as well.
If you take the Colts in the above listed matchup, your laying -330 which is a steep price, however you now don't have to worry about the spread. All you need to do is win by one point. In case you don't know how to read sports betting odds, anytime a line has a (-) in front of it, that denotes the favorite and the number following the "-" is the amount you'll have to lay to win $100. In this case, you'd have to RISK $330 to win $100. You can of course bet in small amounts such as $33 to win $10 as well. What it's saying is that for every 3.30 you risk, their willing to give you a $1 profit should the bet win.
For all you finance majors out there who are satisfied with putting your money in a CD or money market account at 5% over the course of a year, don't get all too excited when you see a solid wagering opportunity that can pay 5-25% in one day by playing a moneyline. These are not "surebets." In fact, when it comes to sports gambling, NOTHING is a sure thing. We've seen enormous favorites lose straight up and bad. All sports betting should be done in moderation. You are ready - click here !
Parlays - If your the REAL LOW risk type and looking for the enormous payout, this is your bet. You can lay as little as one dollar on a parlay wager and win a ton in doing so. The problem is that every spread you pick has to win. Even one loss puts your parlay card in the garbage can. There is such a thing as a progressive parlay though which allows your par bets to have some losers and still pay out at a reduced amount. Contine - click here!
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Sports betting is a game of skill. The challenge is to gather and analyze as much information as you can about a game, weigh the probabilities of each team winning, and subsequently compare your opinion to the oddsmaker''s. Make the right judgment and you win. It''s as simple as that.
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