Week 4 NFL Bets You should Make
By Timothy An
Moneyline: Betting on what team is going to win the game. For example, if the Spurs odds to win are -130 and the Warriors odds to win are +110, it means the Spurs are favored to win.
- If you bet $130 on the Spurs, you would win $100.
- If you bet $100 on the Warriors you would win $110.
a). (z/100) = (y/x) b). (100/z) = (y/x)
If you want to calculate how much you would win if you bet a value other than $100, use the equations above to calculate. The equation in (a) is to solve for the odds if it is a negative number. You put the odd in (z), then how much you want to be in (y), then solve for (x). So, let’s say you want to bet $50 on the Spurs winning and their line is set at -140.
(140/100) = (50/x)
X = 35.71
In this particular case, you would get a payout of $35.71.
Betting the Line: Betting the line means that you are essentially betting to double your money. An example of a line would be Los Angeles Lakers -9.5 and Miami Heat +9.5. This means that the odds are set at the Laker’s winning by 9.5 points. You can either bet the Lakers -9.5, which means you are predicting the Lakers will win by 10 or more points. Or you can bet Miami Heat +9.5, which means you are predicting that the Miami Heat will win, or lose by 9 or less. If you are correct, you double your money, and if you are incorrect you lose it all.
Surefire Bets of the Week:
Las Vegas Raiders (+3.5) vs. Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills have looked fantastic thus far, atop the AFC East with a 3-0 record. However, I think people are overlooking the fact that they beat an awful Jets team by only 10 points, beat a young Dolphins team by 3 points, and got away with a horrendous pass interference call to beat the Rams. This team isn’t as good as people think they are. The Raider’s loss came against Bill Belichick who took away Josh Jacobs and Darren Waller from the offense. This will be a close game, but I am betting on the Raiders pulling this one-off.
New Orleans Saints vs. Detroit Lions (+3)
We are accustomed to the Saints being one of the top teams in the NFL. However, they are basically an 0-3 team this year. Their only win comes against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week One, as Tom Brady was getting adjusted to all the new pieces around him. I think this team is currently overrated, while the Detroit Lions are severely underrated. This Lions team has seen an offensive resurgence with the return of Kenny Golladay. This is a bold pick, but my favorite bet of the week.
Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports
Follow Timothy on Twitter @timothyan1
