NFL DIVISIONAL ROUND PLAYOFFS HOT & NOT
The NFL postseason moves to the Divisional Round this weekend with eight teams still in play. The road teams prospered in the Wild Card Round with three straight-up victories closing as underdogs. The fourth team, Seattle still covered as 2.5-point underdogs on the road in a tight two-point loss to Dallas.
The top two seeds in each conference have the distinct advantage in this round coming off last week’s bye, but the four winning teams from the opening round now have some momentum on their side. They also have a few more points to work with as far as covering the number with a wider spread in all four contests.
The Indianapolis Colts grinded out a 21-7 road victory against Houston as slight 1.5-point underdogs in the opening game of last Saturday’s playoffs. They are in the leadoff spot again this Saturday as 5.5-point underdogs against the top-seeded Kansas City Chiefs in this AFC clash.
The Colts are 7-1 both SU and ATS in their last eight road games against the Chiefs. The Cowboys were the lone home favorites to win last week and this Saturday night they go on the road as seven-point underdogs against the Los Angeles Rams. Dallas failed to cover last week, but it is still 6-2-1 ATS over its last nine games. It also has a 4-2 edge both SU and ATS in its last six games against the Rams on OnlineSportsBet’ closing line
Sunday’s Divisional Round action gets underway with the second AFC matchup between the Los Angeles Chargers and the New England Patriots in Foxborough. New England is favored by four points after going 11-5 SU (9-7 ATS) in the regular season. The Chargers shutdown Baltimore 23-17 last Sunday as three-point road underdogs to improve to 5-2 ATS over their last seven games. They are 8-1 ATS on the road this season. New England went a perfect 8-0 SU at home this season with a 6-2 mark ATS.
The final matchup of the weekend sends the defending Super Bowl Champion Philadelphia Eagles back to the Mercedes-Benz Superdome to face the No. 1 seeded New Orleans Saints. These two met in Week 11 with the Saints rolling to a 48-7 victory as seven-point home favorites on BetAnySports’ betting line. They have been opened as eight-point home favorites for Sunday afternoon’s rematch. The Eagles grinded out a 16-15 road victory against Chicago last week as 6.5-point underdogs. They come into this rematch at 1-4 both SU and ATS in their last five games against New Orleans.
