The NFL Playoffs kick off with what should be a great Wild Card weekend with six games spread across the weekend Saturday, Sunday and Monday with no two games happening at the same time. Saturday’s doubleheader starts with the Seahawks visiting the 49ers in an NFC West clash before the Chargers visit the Jaguars Saturday night.
On Sunday, the early game is an AFC East matchup between the Dolphins and the Bills. The Giants visit the Vikings at 4:30 p.m. ET, and on Sunday Night Football the Ravens visit Cincinnati again to face the Bengals for the third time this season. The action comes to a close on Monday Night Football as the Buccaneers and Tom Brady host Dak Prescott and the Cowboys. Who will win and advance to the Divisional Round next week and who will be “one-and-done” in the postseason? It should be a fantastic weekend of football as we find out!
As you break down all the matchups and get your betting cards ready on DraftKings Sportsbook, take a look at these trends against the spread and totals to help you make the right picks. The lines provided are as of Wednesday morning, and odds and lines are subject to change leading up to kickoff.
Here are some key definitions of acronyms that we’ll use throughout the article:
- SU: Straight Up
- ATS: Against the Spread
- O/U: Over/Under
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Seattle Seahawks at San Francisco 49ers (-9.5; O/U 42.5)
Seahawks ATS: 7-10
Seahawks O/U: 8-9
Seahawks average total game points: 47.3
Seahawks as underdog: 6-5 SU/6-5 ATS
The Seahawks needed a win and some help from the Lions to get into the postseason, but they took care of their part of that with an overtime SU win over the Rams, which was an ATS loss. They started the season 6-3 SU/6-3 ATS but went just 3-5 SU/1-7 ATS in their eight most recent games. They are 6-2 ATS in their last eight Wild Card games and 15-1-1 ATS in the last 23 head-to-head meetings between these divisional foes. However, they are only 7-17 ATS in their last 24 games following a SU win and 1-6 ATS in their last seven road games against a team with a winning home record. The under is 4-0 in Seattle’s last four games and 12-4 in its last 16 games against a team with a winning record.
49ers ATS: 11-6
49ers O/U: 9-8
49ers average total game points: 42.8
49ers as favorite: 12-3 SU/10-5 ATS
The 49ers finished the season with a SU/ATS win over Arizona to go 10-0 SU/8-2 ATS in their final 10 games of the season. They also went 2-0 SU/2-0 ATS in their two games against the Seahawks this season and 8-0 ATS in their last eight divisional games. They are 5-1 ATS in their last six playoff games, 5-0 ATS in their last five home games and 21-8 ATS in their last 29 games overall. The under is 4-0 in San Francisco’s last four playoff games, but the over is 4-0 in its last four home games, 5-1 in its last six overall and 5-2 in its last seven home playoff games.
Los Angeles Chargers at Jacksonville Jaguars (+2; O/U 47.5)
Chargers ATS: 11-5-1
Chargers O/U: 7-10
Chargers average total game points: 45.6
Chargers as favorite: 9-2 SU/6-4-1 ATS
This is a rematch of Week 3 when the Jaguars traveled to Los Angeles and handed the Chargers a SU/ATS loss, 38-10. The Chargers also finished the season with a SU loss to the Broncos but did cover the spread to finish 5-2 SU/4-3 ATS in their final seven games. The Chargers are 4-0 ATS in their last four Wild Card games, 3-0-1 ATS in their last four games against a team with a winning record and 7-2 ATS in their last nine road games. However, they are only 2-8 ATS in their last 10 games played on Saturday. The under is 9-1 in the Chargers’ last 10 Saturday games, 5-1 in their last six overall and 5-0 in their last five Wild Card games.
Jaguars ATS: 8-8-1
Jaguars O/U: 8-9
Jaguars average total game points: 44.4
Jaguars as underdog: 7-5 SU/7-5 ATS
The Jaguars got a late defensive touchdown to knock off the Titans last Saturday night to win the AFC South after going 5-0 SU/4-1 ATS to finish the season. Like L.A., they are 3-0-1 ATS in their last four games against a team with a winning record, but they have only gone 4-11 ATS in their last 15 games following an ATS loss and are 0-5 ATS in their last five home games against the Chargers. The under is 11-3 in Jacksonville’s last 14 home games, 6-2 in its last eight games against the AFC and 19-9 in its last 28 games against a team with a winning record.
Miami Dolphins at Buffalo Bills (-9; O/U 47)
Dolphins ATS: 9-8
Dolphins O/U: 8-9
Dolphins average total game points: 46.9
Dolphins as underdog: 2-5 SU/4-3 ATS
Miami did just enough to snap its five-game losing streak against the Jets on Sunday, winning 11-6 SU and covering ATS thanks to a safety awarded on New York’s final desperation play. The Dolphins went 1-1 SU/2-0 ATS against the Bills this season, but both those games were with Tua Tagovailoa (concussion) at quarterback. Who plays QB is key for this matchup, but the Dolphins have gone 6-1 ATS in their last seven games against the AFC East, 5-1 in their last six against the AFC and 11-5 in their last 16 games following a SU win. However, the Dolphins are 0-4 ATS in their last four playoff games. The under is 5-0 in Miami’s last five Wild Card games, 5-0 in its last five playoff games and 5-2 in its last seven games following an ATS win.
Bills ATS: 8-7-1
Bills O/U: 6-10
Bills average total game points: 46.3
Bills as favorite: 13-3 SU/8-7-1 ATS
The Bills won SU/ATS over the Patriots in their first game following the scary situation with Damar Hamlin. They finished the season 7-0 SU/4-3 ATS in their final seven games. They are 11-1 SU in their last 12 home games and 6-0 SU in their last six games against the Dolphins. The over is 4-1 in Buffalo’s last five home games, 4-1 in its last five playoff games and 11-5 in the last 16 matchups between these teams, including 7-1 the last eight times then played in Buffalo.
New York Giants at Minnesota Vikings (-3; O/U 48.5)
Giants ATS: 13-4
Giants O/U: 6-9-2
Giants average total game points: 43.3
Giants as underdog: 6-5-1 SU/10-2 ATS
Despite resting their starters last week against the Eagles, the Giants became the only NFL team to claim 13 ATS wins this season by covering in their SU loss to Philadelphia. They also covered in their trip to Minnesota earlier this season on Christmas Eve. They are 7-1 ATS in their last eight road games, 9-1 ATS in their last 10 playoff road games and 9-2 ATS in their last 11 playoff games overall. The under is 4-1 in New York’s last five Wild Card games, 9-3 in its last 12 playoff games and 33-15-3 in its last 51 games overall.
Vikings ATS: 7-9-1
Vikings O/U: 11-6
Vikings average total game points: 50
Vikings as favorite: 12-0 SU/6-5-1 ATS
The Vikings bounced back from an ugly loss to the Packers and got a SU/ATS win over the Bears to finish their season. They went 5-2 SU/3-4 ATS in their last seven games and are 18-7 ATS in their last 25 home games against a team with a winning road record. However, they are also only 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games overall and 2-8-1 ATS in their last 11 against NFC opponents. The under is 6-0 in Minnesota’s last six Wild Card games, but the over is 6-1 in its last seven games overall, 6-0 in its last six home games against a team with a winning road record and 19-7 in its last 26 home games.
Baltimore Ravens at Cincinnati Bengals (-7; O/U 41.5)
Ravens ATS: 6-9-2
Ravens O/U: 5-12
Ravens average total game points: 39.1
Ravens as underdog: 2-3 SU/3-1-1 ATS
The Ravens and Bengals just played in Cincinnati last week with the Bengals getting a 27-16 victory, which was either a push or a Ravens win ATS depending on when you grabbed the line. The most important storyline for the Ravens in this game is the availability of star QB Lamar Jackson, and if Jackson is out of action, the availability of Tyler Huntley to replace Lamar. Baltimore is 7-1 ATS in its last eight playoff road games, 6-1 ATS in its last seven Wild Card games and 8-3 in its last 11 playoff games overall. The Ravens are also 33-13-5 ATS in their last 51 road games against a team with a winning home record, but they have only gone 1-6-1 ATS in their last eight divisional games and 0-3-1 ATS in their last four against the Bengals. The under is 4-0 in the Ravens’ last 4 playoff games, 6-1 in their last seven divisional games and 5-1 in their last six overall.
Bengals ATS: 12-3-1
Bengals O/U: 6-9-1
Bengals average total game points: 46.2
Bengals as favorite: 10-3 SU/9-4 ATS
The Bengals returned after not being able to finish their game against the Bills on Monday Night Football and made quick work of the Ravens last week to set up this rematch. The Bengals have been excellent ATS lately, going 9-1-1 ATS in their last 11 home games, 4-0-1 ATS in their last five playoff games, 6-2-1 ATS in their last nine divisional games and 5-0-1 ATS in their last six home games against a team with a winning road record. The under is 8-0 in Cincinnati’s last eight playoff games, 5-0 in its last five Wild Card games, 7-1 in its last eight games against a team with a winning record and 14-6-1 in its last 21 games overall.
Dallas Cowboys at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (+2.5; O/U 45.5)
Cowboys ATS: 9-6-1
Cowboys O/U: 8-7-1
Cowboys average total game points: 48.6
Cowboys as favorite: 9-3 SU/7-5 ATS
The Cowboys lost SU/ATS to the Commanders last week, and their starters played much of the game but struggled badly on offense. Still, the Cowboys went 8-3 SU/6-5 ATS in their last 11 games and are 10-1 ATS in their last 11 games following a SU loss. They are also 6-2 in their last eight Monday games and 20-8 ATS in their last 28 games against the NFC. In the playoffs, though, they have struggled recently, going 0-4 ATS in their last four playoff games overall and 2-5 ATS in their last seven Wild Card games. The over is 5-2 in Dallas’ last seven games overall and 5-2 in its last seven games against a team with a losing record.
Buccaneers ATS: 4-12-1
Buccaneers O/U: 6-11
Buccaneers average total game points: 39.5
Buccaneers as underdog: 0-3 SU/0-3 ATS
No team in the NFL had fewer ATS wins this season than the Bucs, who finished 4-12-1 ATS after going 3-4 SU/1-6 ATS in their final seven games of the season, including last week’s SU/ATS loss. They faced the Cowboys all the way back in Week 1 and got a SU/ATS win, 19-3. Tampa Bay is only 2-7-1 ATS in its last 10 home games, 3-12-1 ATS in its last 16 games overall and 1-5 ATS in its last six Wild Card games. The over is 4-1 in the Buccaneers’ last five games overall, but the under is 12-3 in their last 15 games following a SU loss and 4-1 in their last five playoff home games. The under is also 6-1 in the last seven head-to-head matchups between these two teams.
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