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The Cincinnati Bengals will host the Las Vegas Raiders in the Wild Card round to kick off the NFL playoffs on Saturday afternoon. With how many new states have legalized sports betting, there should be a ton of volume on a stand-alone playoff game.
So where are sports bettors going as we get closer to game time? Let’s take a look at betting splits for the Raiders-Bengals Wild Card matchup as of game day. All odds and info were provided by DraftKings Sportsbook.
Point Spread
The Bengals are 5.5-point favorites. 73% of the handle and 64% of the bets are on the Bengals.
Is the public right? No, I’ll side with the Raiders to cover this number. The Bengals sat out a meaningless Week 18 game to rest for the postseason while Las Vegas battled through a hard-fought game just to make it to this spot. That could be looked at as an advantage for Cincinnati, but there is something to be said for the Raiders being in do-or-die mode toward the end of the regular season and clinching a spot with four straight wins to close it out.
Over/Under
The point total is 48.5. 67% of the handle and 69% of the bets are on the over.
Is the public right? The worst two units on the field on a yards per play basis are the defenses, so we’ll side with the public. The Raiders threw the ball on 61.7% of their offensive snaps during the regular season, so that is another key factor to think about when looking at this total. With two top-10 offenses in yards per play, look for this number to surpass 48 points.
Moneyline
The Bengals are -240 favorites while the Raiders are +195 underdogs. 76% of the handle and 68% of the bets are on the Bengals to win.
Is the public right? Cincinnati will probably win this game as the favored team obviously, but this feels like more of a toss up as opposed to what the oddsmakers suggest. There is much greater value on the Raiders with their moneyline odds.
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