The Pittsburgh Steelers (13-5) have not been to the Super Bowl since 2011, while the New England Patriots (15-2) have played in two of the past five and split them as they get ready for their sixth straight AFC Championship Game appearance Sunday as six-point home favorites.

Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com

While the Steelers have not enjoyed much success versus the Patriots lately, they are hoping to change that and play for a seventh Vince Lombardi Trophy by pulling off the upset at Gillette Stadium.

Pittsburgh is riding an NFL-best nine-game winning streak into Foxborough while New England has won eight in a row, showing that the two best teams in the AFC are indeed playing for the conference title.

The Pittsburgh Steelers (13-5) have not been to the Super Bowl since 2011, while the New England Patriots (15-2) have played in two of the past five and split them as they get ready for their sixth straight AFC Championship Game appearance Sunday as six-point home favorites.

Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com

While the Steelers have not enjoyed much success versus the Patriots lately, they are hoping to change that and play for a seventh Vince Lombardi Trophy by pulling off the upset at Gillette Stadium.

Pittsburgh is riding an NFL-best nine-game winning streak into Foxborough while New England has won eight in a row, showing that the two best teams in the AFC are indeed playing for the conference title.

The Pittsburgh Steelers (13-5) have not been to the Super Bowl since 2011, while the New England Patriots (15-2) have played in two of the past five and split them as they get ready for their sixth straight AFC Championship Game appearance Sunday as six-point home favorites.

Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com

While the Steelers have not enjoyed much success versus the Patriots lately, they are hoping to change that and play for a seventh Vince Lombardi Trophy by pulling off the upset at Gillette Stadium.

Pittsburgh is riding an NFL-best nine-game winning streak into Foxborough while New England has won eight in a row, showing that the two best teams in the AFC are indeed playing for the conference title.

Oddsmakers believe Sunday’s NFC Championship Game between the fourth-seeded Green Bay Packers (12-6) and second-seeded Atlanta Falcons (12-5) will be the highest-scoring in NFL history, setting a record total of 61 that has already risen to 61.5 and could close even higher before kickoff.

Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com

The Falcons are listed as four-point home favorites and may look to prevent that scenario from happening though in an effort to cool off the red-hot Packers and earn their second Super Bowl appearance ever.

Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers, a two-time NFL MVP, has been a man on fire over the past nine weeks, throwing 24 touchdown passes and only one interception during that stretch. His counterpart Matt Ryan – the favorite to win league MVP honors for the first time this year – has thrown 22 touchdowns and three picks in his last nine games, which is nearly as good.

Oddsmakers believe Sunday’s NFC Championship Game between the fourth-seeded Green Bay Packers (12-6) and second-seeded Atlanta Falcons (12-5) will be the highest-scoring in NFL history, setting a record total of 61 that has already risen to 61.5 and could close even higher before kickoff.

Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com

The Falcons are listed as four-point home favorites and may look to prevent that scenario from happening though in an effort to cool off the red-hot Packers and earn their second Super Bowl appearance ever.

Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers, a two-time NFL MVP, has been a man on fire over the past nine weeks, throwing 24 touchdown passes and only one interception during that stretch. His counterpart Matt Ryan – the favorite to win league MVP honors for the first time this year – has thrown 22 touchdowns and three picks in his last nine games, which is nearly as good.

After a completely underwhelming wild card weekend, the divisional round playoff betting matchups have to be better. The matchups are certainly salivating. Logic usually dictates that the favorites are the ones to back here, and I’ve pretty much gone chalk outside of the first game. Are we bound for more surprises, or will the oddsmakers hit the nail on the head yet again with this weekend’s slate?

Odds Courtesy of OddsShark.com

Seattle Seahawks +5.0 over Atlanta Falcons (Saturday, 4:35pm EST)

There are a lot of reasons to bet on Atlanta. They ranked top-10 all-time in offence this past season. Yes – ALL TIME. Matt Ryan should win the MVP for putting up the numbers that he did, but the playoffs are a different animal.

The Kansas City Chiefs took advantage of a season-ending injury to Oakland Raiders quarterback Derek Carr to win the AFC West and earn a first-round bye in the AFC playoffs.

courtesy of OddsShark.com

Now the Chiefs and head coach Andy Reid will try to pick up a much-needed home win in the postseason when they host the Pittsburgh Steelers as slim one-point favorites in Sunday’s Divisional Round matchup at Arrowhead Stadium.

The Chiefs were routed 43-14 as 3.5-point road underdogs in the first meeting with the Steelers in Week 4 and will need to play much better defensively in order to advance to the AFC Championship Game for the first time since 1993.

The Kansas City Chiefs took advantage of a season-ending injury to Oakland Raiders quarterback Derek Carr to win the AFC West and earn a first-round bye in the AFC playoffs.

courtesy of OddsShark.com

Now the Chiefs and head coach Andy Reid will try to pick up a much-needed home win in the postseason when they host the Pittsburgh Steelers as slim one-point favorites in Sunday’s Divisional Round matchup at Arrowhead Stadium.

The Chiefs were routed 43-14 as 3.5-point road underdogs in the first meeting with the Steelers in Week 4 and will need to play much better defensively in order to advance to the AFC Championship Game for the first time since 1993.

If you considered the recent postseason success of the Seattle Seahawks, including two Super Bowl trips in the previous three years, you might be surprised to find out that they have lost eight straight games in the playoffs as road underdogs.

courtesy of OddsShark.com

The Atlanta Falcons will try to extend that streak to nine and win for just the second time in seven postseason games themselves on Saturday when they host the Seahawks as five-point home favorites in the first NFC Divisional Round matchup.

Atlanta beat out Seattle for the second seed in the conference and home-field advantage in Week 17 with a 38-32 win over the New Orleans Saints. Now the Falcons hope to cash in on that edge and end a six-game skid against the spread in the playoffs.

If you considered the recent postseason success of the Seattle Seahawks, including two Super Bowl trips in the previous three years, you might be surprised to find out that they have lost eight straight games in the playoffs as road underdogs.

courtesy of OddsShark.com

The Atlanta Falcons will try to extend that streak to nine and win for just the second time in seven postseason games themselves on Saturday when they host the Seahawks as five-point home favorites in the first NFC Divisional Round matchup.

Atlanta beat out Seattle for the second seed in the conference and home-field advantage in Week 17 with a 38-32 win over the New Orleans Saints. Now the Falcons hope to cash in on that edge and end a six-game skid against the spread in the playoffs.

If you’re looking for a monster preview of the divisional round in the NFL playoffs, then I have just the thing for you. I’ve stacked all the teams in descending order based on their odds to win Super Bowl LI. Need to know where and how to invest your money in the NFL futures market? I’ve got you covered.

In general, the numbers haven’t shifted all that much in terms of outright value. The Dallas Cowboys went from +150 as NFC Championships to +140, while the New England Patriots stayed at +180 as the reigning Super Bowl LI favorites (I mistakenly wrote +190 last week).

Later this week I’ll have my matchup breakdowns for the divisional round, but for now let’s take a look at the eight teams still standing after a chaotic 2016 campaign, and a wildly boring wild card weekend.

8. HOUSTON TEXANS

If you’re looking for a monster preview of the divisional round in the NFL playoffs, then I have just the thing for you. I’ve stacked all the teams in descending order based on their odds to win Super Bowl LI. Need to know where and how to invest your money in the NFL futures market? I’ve got you covered.

In general, the numbers haven’t shifted all that much in terms of outright value. The Dallas Cowboys went from +150 as NFC Championships to +140, while the New England Patriots stayed at +180 as the reigning Super Bowl LI favorites (I mistakenly wrote +190 last week).

Later this week I’ll have my matchup breakdowns for the divisional round, but for now let’s take a look at the eight teams still standing after a chaotic 2016 campaign, and a wildly boring wild card weekend.

8. HOUSTON TEXANS

If you’re looking for an era-specific look book on the quality of past wild card weekend, you’ve come to the wrong place. There’s no need to do a deep dive on historical consequence. I can tell you that a round of NFL playoff betting that is set to feature Connor Cook, Brock Osweiler and Matt Moore is by far the worst version of the playoffs that we’ve seen in a long, long time.

Which, as it turns out, leads to many people vastly overthinking the matchups themselves. The odds makers have been somewhat brazen with the lines given that the buffet of craptastic talent we’ve been handed. There’s always an inherent fear when betting for and against weak quarterback talent, but that doesn’t mean you should drastically change the way you bet. You still have to measure things statistically to some degree, and run with your intuition the rest of the way.

The lazy thing to do during Wild Card weekend is to bet on the underdogs, and then switch course next weekend during the divisional round. I don’t necessarily like doing that because I’m a handicapper and a lunatic. So if you need some help navigating the swamp that is this weekend’s NFL betting round, I’m here to throw a thousand words right in between your eyes.

And for whatever it’s worth: Alabama -6.5 over Clemson in the OVER.

The 2017 NFL Futures have been released by our friends at Bovada, and I’m here to take a deep dive in to what’s going to be an intriguing set of plays you can make in this market. It does seem like the AFC is relatively spoken for, while the NFC is anyone’s guess. Some people love to sprinkle their money around randomly. Me? I like to be a bit more precise.

NFL FUTURES – 2017 AFC CHAMPIONSHIP ODDS

The AFC playoff table looks like a cruel joke on football fans. The worst part is that the “big news” in the lead up to wild card weekend is about which crappy quarterback is going to start for which crappy team. Can I please read more about Matt Moore and Ryan Tannehill? Is Tom Savage better than Brock Osweiler?! Does any of this matter?!

The sad truth is that the long game of the AFC – and that of the Super Bowl – pretty much goes through the top two teams in the conference. That would be New England (-500 to win AFC) and Kansas City (+450 to win AFC). Honestly, I could do a major deep dive on my preference, but a hedge play on Kansas City here seems like the smartest play if you’re going to take the Patriots to win the Super Bowl.

Listen, I don’t know what the hell is going on. We’re looking at an AFC Wild Card playoff round that’s going to star Matt McGloin, Tom Savage and Matt Moore. What is happening here?!

Just so everyone knows, all the games are on New Years Day with the night game being flexed to a divisional title matchup between Green Bay and Detroit. Week 17 usually doesn’t ever mean much, and I’m not sure if this one will either. I’m in the same boat as most of you are – I just wan to get to championship weekend, enjoy the Super Bowl and then pretend that this season never happened.

1. New England Patriots (13-2 SU and 12-3 ATS)

Everyone in New England is making a big push for Tom Brady as the MVP of the league, but you’re going to be hard pressed to get Roger Goodell to sign off on that. Oh you don’t think he would flex his muscle to block that award? Get real.

The Kansas City Chiefs drag a couple of negative trends into their meeting with the desperate Denver Broncos on Christmas night. The Chiefs are listed as 3.5-point favorites against the Broncos with a 37.5-point total in the Sunday Night Football matchup.

Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com

Kansas City is 10-2 straight-up but 4-8 against the spread over its last 12 home games. The Broncos are 6-1 ATS in their last seven visits to Kansas City.

Defending Super Bowl champion Denver, at 8-6 SU and ATS, is at risk of missing the playoffs. An offensive line which has allowed 40 sacks – and faces pass rushers such as DE Chris Jones and OLB Dee Ford on Sunday – and a 27th-ranked run game have held back the progress of first-year starting QB Trevor Siemian. The Broncos have 11 lost fumbles this season and Kansas City is +13 in takeaways, so that could work against Denver as well.

For only the third time in the Eli Manning era, the New York Giants are favored on the road against the Philadelphia Eagles. Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com

The Giants are listed as three-point favorites against the Eagles with a 41.5-point total in the Thursday Night Football matchup. The Giants are 6-1-1 ATS in their last eight games as a favorite of three points or fewer, but the Eagles are also in a rut in divisional games – 0-4 SU and ATS in their last four games against NFC East teams.

The Giants, who are 10-4 SU and 7-5-2 ATS, will face some challenges when they have the ball on Thursday. New York’s offensive line often struggles to open running lanes, and while they have allowed just 21 sacks much of that stems from Manning’s quick release. The Eagles also have some marauding defenders such as DT Fletcher Cox, DE Brandon Graham and DE Vince Curry who can bring pressure from many angles.

Wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. has averaged 74.8 yards in five career games against Philadelphia. If Manning’s protection is strong, the Giants should be able to take advantage of the Eagles’ pass coverage. Philadelphia lacks depth at cornerback and allows 7.7 yards per pass, seventh-worst in the league.

For only the third time in the Eli Manning era, the New York Giants are favored on the road against the Philadelphia Eagles. Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com

The Giants are listed as three-point favorites against the Eagles with a 41.5-point total in the Thursday Night Football matchup. The Giants are 6-1-1 ATS in their last eight games as a favorite of three points or fewer, but the Eagles are also in a rut in divisional games – 0-4 SU and ATS in their last four games against NFC East teams.

The Giants, who are 10-4 SU and 7-5-2 ATS, will face some challenges when they have the ball on Thursday. New York’s offensive line often struggles to open running lanes, and while they have allowed just 21 sacks much of that stems from Manning’s quick release. The Eagles also have some marauding defenders such as DT Fletcher Cox, DE Brandon Graham and DE Vince Curry who can bring pressure from many angles.

Wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. has averaged 74.8 yards in five career games against Philadelphia. If Manning’s protection is strong, the Giants should be able to take advantage of the Eagles’ pass coverage. Philadelphia lacks depth at cornerback and allows 7.7 yards per pass, seventh-worst in the league.

Another week of total, non-stop mayhem and we are nowhere closer to figuring out who the real top teams in the league. Seattle, Dallas and New England are the only teams that have clinched their division and there’s just two more weeks to go. This is absolutely awesome. The best part? Games on Christmas Day! All other games are on Christmas Eve Day (December 24th) starting at 1pm EST and 4pm EST.

1. New England Patriots (12-2 SU and 11-3 ATS)

If Brady wins a fifth Super Bowl with this otherwise no-name team, then the conversation about him being the GOAT is simply over (if it isn’t already). And yes they deserve to be favored by every measure.

Next Game: NYJ at New England -16.5

Another week of total, non-stop mayhem and we are nowhere closer to figuring out who the real top teams in the league. Seattle, Dallas and New England are the only teams that have clinched their division and there’s just two more weeks to go. This is absolutely awesome. The best part? Games on Christmas Day! All other games are on Christmas Eve Day (December 24th) starting at 1pm EST and 4pm EST.

1. New England Patriots (12-2 SU and 11-3 ATS)

If Brady wins a fifth Super Bowl with this otherwise no-name team, then the conversation about him being the GOAT is simply over (if it isn’t already). And yes they deserve to be favored by every measure.

Next Game: NYJ at New England -16.5