December 19 Weekly Roundup

NFL

Week 16 in the NFL is a convoluted mix of playoff clinching scenarios with a number of teams looking to punch their tickets to post-season play, while others are in the hunt for home-field advantage or first-round byes. In the NFC, the Chicago Bears, New Orleans, and Los Angeles Rams have all clinched their division titles, while the Dallas Cowboys can win the NFC East division with a victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Cowboys are set as touchdown favourites, but nearly 80 percent of bettors like the Bucs to cover. 

Chiefs & Chargers Clinch

In the AFC, the Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Chargers have clinched playoff spots, but the rest of the playoff picture has yet to be decided. The New England Patriots and Houston Texans can take top spot in their divisions with wins and Pittsburgh can claim the AFC North crown with a win combined with a Baltimore Ravens loss. The Pats are pegged as 13-point favourites at home to the Bills, the Texans are at +2.5 at Philadelphia, and the Steelers are +5.5 at the Saints. The early action on the spread for those games is backing the Bills, Eagles and Saints. 

MNF on Christmas Eve

The Sunday Night Football matchup that has the Chiefs visiting the Seahawks will help clear up the NFC playoff picture. The Chiefs can win the AFC West and bag a first-round bye with a win combined with a Rams loss, while Seattle can book a playoff spot with a win combined with a Washington loss at Tennessee on Saturday. The MNF game on Christmas Eve will be the last game the Raiders play before moving to Las Vegas next season as they host the Broncos as 2.5-point underdogs. About 70 percent of bettors like Denver to win and cover. 

NHL

Sharp bettors have been targeting the Calgary Flames for a while now. The Flames have won eight of their last 10 overall and are tied with Winnipeg and Nashville for the most points in the Western Conference with 46. The difference between the Flames and those other two teams is in their betting value. The Flames are the third-best puckline bet in the league having earned their supporters 7.6 units for their supporters. Still, the Flames Stanley Cup odds remain relatively long at +1600, compared to +800 for Nashville and +1200 for Winnipeg.

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