How to Understand NFL Betting Odds

If you've ever wondered how betting point spreads and lines are figured, you're not alone. The truth is that NFL odds are calculated primarily by a group of professional oddsmakers working in Las Vegas, who each week interpret all of the data they can gather for each team and release their predictions to sports books everywhere. Use these steps to understanding NFL betting odds.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

1. Consider both teams' records and momentum. Teams that are playing well or have hit a winning streak are often favored.
2. Find out if any key players are injured or otherwise unavailable to play. Oddsmakers will assuredly take this into account, and so should you when determining a fair bet.
3. Look at which NFL team is playing in front of a home crowd, and check the weather forecast. Some teams play better in the cold than others. Everything else being equal (which it rarely is), oddsmakers usually give a three-point advantage to the home team.
4. Sports books use point spreads and money lines to even out betting on both sides. Without point spreads and lines, everyone would always bet on the favorite to win.
5. Individual sports books make adjustments to the lines to account for local favorites once the odds have been released by the professionals in Las Vegas.
6. There will be times when, after you've done all of your homework, your figures won't agree with those of the oddsmakers. These are opportunities for you to make your biggest profits if your predictions turn out to be more accurate than those of the professionals.

Tips & Warnings

• Sports gambling is illegal in most states.