Thanksgiving may be the truest of American holidays. It combines some of our great passions: family, eating, shopping, and of course, sports. Now we can add betting on sports to that list.
The long weekend meant a long week of NFL action and more opportunities to stuff wallets with winnings from the sportsbooks. Three divisional games on Turkey Day set up an intriguing week of action.
Thanksgiving specials
Chicago opened a decent favorite on the road, giving four points to the Lions. That line dropped to -2.5 across the books when Mitchell Trubisky was ruled out with a shoulder injury. By kickoff, it was also announced that Detroit would be without two of their offensive catalysts, running back Kerryon Johnson and feature wideout Marvin Jones Jr.
The switch to Chase Daniel gave bettors confidence in the Lions. At BetStars, 90% of the spread money went to Detroit. At William Hill, the public slightly favored the Bears. A late defensive TD proved the difference as Chicago covered.
The public agreed on the Cowboys as seven-point favorites at home. They won by eight.
In the nightcap, BetStars saw the public money on Atlanta, while William Hill saw more money on the Saints. With the spread at 13, the Saints covered.
FanDuel saw the players correctly pick the winners and cover in all three games.
Patriots games
New England opened the week as a touchdown favorite over the Jets. During the week, the lines moved drastically.
By game day, there was a three-point variance in prices. FanDuel had it at NE -9.5, a couple more had 11, while Caesars and William Hill moved the line to NE -12.5. William Hill reported 97% of the public money on the Pats in their biggest handle of the day.
The Pats won in the Meadowlands and the books got soaked on a late goalline stand that prevented a backdoor cover for Gang Green. The bettors at PlaySugarHouse and FanDuel scored with New England’s 14-point victory.
Overall it was a good weekend for big favorites. The biggest line of the weekend belonged to the Chargers, giving 13.5 points to the visiting Cardinals. They covered despite being down 10-0 early. At William Hill, they were the second biggest spread leader behind the Pats at 87%.
In Baltimore, Lamar Jackson instilled enough confidence to make the Ravens 12 point favorites over the Raiders. The public put 66% of the spread money on them at William Hill. The Ravens won by 17.
Both teams made winners out of the public at Fanduel as well. Upsets of the Steelers in Pittsburgh and the Bills over Jacksonville proved winners for the books.
The public got a couple good upsets against the spread. The biggest edge was the Giants getting 63% of spread bets to cover in Philly. The Browns and Seahawks both were slightly favored in public money and won outright.
