NFL Wild Card Betting: Cincinnati Bengals vs. Houston Texans Odds, Prediction, and Pick
This weekends opening NFL Wild Card match-up features two teams who you can bet that quite a few people are surprised are even in the playoffs in the first place. The Houston Texans were definitely a favorite when the season kicked off, as they were a team with quite a bit of talent, but things went south as injuries completely hit this team harder than you could imagine. The Cincinnati Bengals on the other hand, literally had an over/under on their total wins for this season set at four. The team obviously excelled past that thanks to two rookies in quarterback Andy Dalton and wide out AJ Green. So what does this add up to? One of the most talked about games of the opening weekend of the NFL playoffs. What really makes this game interesting is the fact that these two teams enter the playoffs as the underdogs to make deep runs, and this adds up to an excellent opening game in Houston.
The Houston Texans have waited a long time to be able to host a playoff game, and they’ll get to do just that this weekend. While they lost two quarterbacks to injury this year in Matt Schaub and Matt Leinart, and they also lost stars Mario Williams for the season, and Andre Johnson for quite a while during this season. Heck, this team even saw defensive coordinator Wade Phillips have to have surgery to miss a few weeks. They’ve rebounded incredibly though, and they were led by rookie TJ Yates and running back Arian Foster to the point that they are at currently. The team still put together an impressive 10-6 record, which leads to a huge game on Saturday.
How about those Cincinnati Bengals though? On top of just Dalton and Green, running back Cedric Benson has been strong, and he’s been the veteran who had to prepare for one of the toughest seasons in front of him. Instead of that, the veteran gets a chance to head into the playoffs and make some noise. Sleeping on this Bengals team would be the wrong thing to do, and you can bet that Marvin Lewis will have his team ready to go this weekend.
Odds and Sports Betting Line
Cincinnati Bengals: +3
Houston Texans: -3
Free Prediction
Both teams started the year incredibly well, but both of these teams had their struggles throughout the season also. What stands out most here though is the fact that the Texans suffered a three game losing streak to finish the year. They’ll need to turn that around quickly in order to get a first round playoff win this weekend. I don’t think it will happen though, as this offense has struggled quite a bit down the stretch. I think that the Bengals offense does enough to win the game on the road, but it’ll be a close one. Bengals by four here.
Prediction: Cincinnati Bengals- 28 Houston Texans- 24
Free Pick
I’m surprised that the Texans are favored here, but you could really make a case for either side. I’m siding with the team who has already surprised a few people this season in the Bengals. I’m not only going to be picking the Cincinnati Bengals to cover the +3, but I’m going to get a small bet on them straight as well.
Pick: Cincinnati Bengals +3
BONUS Pick: Cincinnati Bengals STRAIGHT at +155
Wild Card Playoff Betting: Atlanta Falcons vs. New York Giants Odds, Prediction, and Pick
Wild Card weekend kicks off at the regular Sunday football time, with the first game kicking off at 1:00pm EST. This match-up will feature two of the top teams from the NFC this season, in the Atlanta Falcons who clinched their Wild Card spot with two weeks remaining in the season, and the New York Giants who got in by knocking off the rival Dallas Cowboys in their final regular season game. This game will be played in Giant stadium, even though the Falcons ended up with a better record, because the Giants won the NFC East, while the Falcons were second behind the Saints in the NFC South. The game definitely has the potential to be one of the most exciting games of the weekend, as both of these teams have powerful offenses, but defenses that have shown weaknesses at times.
Let’s start with the NFC East Champion New York Giants. The G-Men have shown that their offense can be incredibly strong at times, especially their passing game. The issue of course is their pass defense, which has struggled quite a bit at times. This team will need a strong game from Eli Manning and wide outs Victor Cruz and Hakeem Nicks in order to to put up some big points. The Giants finished the season at 9-7, and looked very solid in their final two regular season games against two big rivals in the New York Jets and Dallas Cowboys, if they can keep that play going, they’ll be a tough out in these playoffs.
The Atlanta Falcons on the other hand have one of the strongest combos of quarterback and wide receiver, with Matt Ryan, Roddy White, and Julio Jones. Throw running back Michael Turner and tight end Tony Gonzalez on top, and this team gives defenses some serious problems. The Falcons finished the year at 10-6, and you can bet that they’ll be prepared for this round one playoff match-up against the Giants. They were sent packing in the first round last season to the eventual Super Bowl Champion Green Bay Packers, and this team doesn’t want that to happen in back to back seasons.
Odds and Sports Betting Line
Atlanta Falcons: +3
New York Giants: -3
Free Prediction
The G-Men are getting the edge because they are the home team this weekend, but don’t sleep on this Falcons team. After week three, the Falcons only losses came to teams who are in the playoffs, and are top four seeds as well. I think that the Falcons offense is going come out in a big way against this Giants team, and while it will be a close one, they will get the job done by a field goal on the road. This is the year that Matt Ryan proves he belongs with the big names in the NFL.
Prediction: Atlanta Falcons- 27 New York Giants- 24
Free Pick
I was a bit surprised to see the Giants favored by three here. I wouldn’t have been surprised to see them by -1, or even -2, but many people feel that this could be a push for the home team. Personally though, I think that the Falcons are flying under the radar, and are going to surprise quite a few people this postseason. I’m picking the Atlanta Falcons to cover the +3, and I’ll also be putting a bet down on them to win outright.
Pick: Atlanta Falcons +3
BONUS Pick: Atlanta Falcons STRAIGHT at +130
Wild Card Playoff Betting: Detroit Lions at New Orleans Saints Odds, Prediction, and Pick
You have to love opening weekend of the NFL Playoffs. What’s even better about the Wild Card playoffs this season, is that we get to open up the night cap game on Saturday with probably one of the best games of the weekends. The Detroit Lions pulled off a shockingly impressive season, and head into the playoffs as the number 6 seed overall, but get to play one of the toughest teams in the NFL in week one. They are up against a New Orleans Saints team who has shown quite a knack for putting up impressive performances on prime time television. So what does a game between two high scoring teams like this mean? It means that we could be looking at a shootout, and one exciting Saturday night football game here.
The New Orleans Saints finished the season with an incredibly impressive 13-3 record, which typically would be good to lock up at least a top two seed, but they were stuck in an NFC that has the 15-1 Green Bay Packers, and another surprising team in the 13-3 San Francisco 49ers. The Saints have a record breaking quarterback in Drew Brees, and a team who knows how to win Super Bowls as we saw just a few years back.
Now for that Detroit Lions team. It seems like it was just yesterday that this team was going through that incredibly tough 0-16 season. They’ve come a long way since then, and it is in large part due to the combination of Matt Stafford, Calvin Johnson, and head coach Jim Schwartz. The Lions know how to put points on the board, and their defense has been solid this season as well. If the Lions are able to knock off the Saints this weekend, you can bet that they could cause some serious issues for any teams on the remainder of a potential Super Bowl run.
Odds and Sports Betting Line
Detroit Lions: +11
New Orleans Saints: -11
Free Prediction
I’m excited about this game. It’s going to be a shootout, and I expect Stafford to do his best to keep pace with Brees and the Saints. The Lions didn’t get to 10-6 and make the playoffs just to get sent home in the first round without putting up and type of a fight. While I do think that the end result of this game will be close, I think that the Saints are going to win it because of the home field advantage and the experience. I’ll take Drew Brees and his powerful offense to win it by ten here.
Prediction: New Orleans Saints- 45 Detroit Lions- 35
Free Pick
This line started off a bit lower, and I’m shocked that it’s moving up so quickly. The Lions are a strong team, and they look determined to make some noise in these playoffs. I think that they won’t be able to knock off the Saints on the road, but that they will be able to cover this big spread. I’m picking the Detroit Lions to cover the +11 here.
Pick: Detroit Lions +11
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