Nfl Parlay Betting Strategy

 

There are two instances when a parlay can be a winning bet. A parlay only wins if none of the sides, totals or moneylines selected is a loser. The parlay can still be a winner if a game is canceled or ends in a tie. The pay schedule will simply more down to the lesser payment. Parlay calculator — What a parlay pay composed of events of miscellaneous odds should pay. Proposition bet calculator — Fair line for lots of common prop bets, given the point spread and total. NFL Average Scores per Game 2000-2020 — Historical scoring data from 2000 to 2020.

  • For a parlay bet, you’re combining multiple wagers on a single betting ticket. The more bets that are added to the ticket, the higher the potential return becomes. However, the odds of hitting all legs on the ticket rise with each addition. As such, parlay bets are a high-risk, high-reward wager type.
  • Betting on NFL and turning a profit are not mutually exclusive concepts, but one does not follow the other seamlessly either. You do need to have an NFL betting strategy in place in order to be able to maximize your wins and minimize your losses.

Week 10 of the NFL season has multiple big-time games that could eventually decide playoff seeding. It’s a heavy late-afternoon schedule that will make this a wild week for NFL betting. Below, we will be creating a 5-bet NFL parlay with several money line underdogs. Let’s take a look at our top Week 10 NFL parlay.

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NFL Week 10 parlay picks and predictions

Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated Friday at 8:30 a.m. ET.

Leg 1: Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Carolina Panthers (+210)

Tampa Bay is coming off a blowout loss to the New Orleans Saints and everyone believes they will bounce back against Carolina. Given some of the problems the Buccaneers have on offense, don’t be surprised if the Panthers hang around a little too long in this game at home. At +220, I love the value of the Panthers to win outright given their offensive weapons. Expect this to be a close game and for the Panthers to potentially steal one in the division.

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Leg 2: Denver Broncos +4.5 (-110) at Las Vegas Raiders

Another divisional game worth monitoring occurs in the AFC West between the Raiders and Broncos. Las Vegas is 5-3 on the season, but it currently has one of the league’s worst defenses. The Raiders should win this game, but they are giving too many points here. Look for this game to come down to the last play and for the Broncos to stay within a field goal.

Parlay

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Leg 3: Houston Texans (+160) at Cleveland Browns

It’s hard to trust the Texans after barely beating the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 9. Then again, it’s tough to bet on Browns QB Baker Mayfield, either. This is strictly a value play on Texans QB Deshaun Watson as the hope is that he can find a way to expose Cleveland’s weak secondary.

Leg 4: Seattle Seahawks (+105) at Los Angeles Rams

Under head coach Pete Carroll and QB Russell Wilson, the Seahawks are rarely underdogs. They are this week as they take on the Rams. There is reason to be concerned about the Seahawks defense, but it’s just too hard to bet against Wilson and his weapons on offense. At even odds, take Seattle to pull off the upset here in Week 10 and avoid losing back-to-back games.

Also see:Seahawks at Rams odds, picks and prediction

Leg 5: Baltimore Ravens at New England Patriots +7 (-110)

The Ravens have traditionally fared well against the Patriots, but something seems off with this Baltimore team. QB Lamar Jackson is struggling in the passing game and the Ravens have multiple big injuries on defense. It wouldn’t be all that surprising if the Patriots found a way to win this game at home, but I love the idea of them covering a 7-point spread on Sunday Night Football.

Special Sunday Night Football Betting Promotion: Bet $1 on either the Baltimore Ravens or New England Patriots money line, WIN $100 (in free bets) if either team scores a touchdown during their Week 10 Sunday Night matchup. Place your legal, online sports wagers in CO, IN, NJ, TN and WV at BetMGM, The King of Sportsbooks. New customer offer. Terms and conditions apply. Bet now!

5-TEAM PARLAY Bet $100 to earn a profit of $5,922.02

Want action on these NFL games? Sign up and bet at BetMGM. If you’re looking for more sports betting picks and tips, visit SportsbookWire.com. Please gamble responsibly.

Also see:

Panthers WR Curtis Samuel has highest catch rate at his position (Panthers Wire)Phillip Lindsay reveals the key to fixing Broncos’ offense (Broncos Wire)

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Introduction

This page assumes the reader already has a good grasp of sports betting terminology. If this is not the case, I recommend reading my general page on sports betting first.

Unless otherwise stated, the source of this data is every NFL game played from the 2006 season through and including week 1 of the 2018 season. This is a total of 3,220 games. The data is available for free at Australia Sports Betting.

Point Spread Bets

I admit 'point spread bet' is not a common term in sports betting, but I'm trying to change that. What I call a point spread bet is a basic bet against the point spread. Many people call this a 'straight bet' but this term can also be used, and is printed on tickets for, money liney bets, total bets, and any other bet involving just one game. So I invite the rest of the world to adopt this term.

The following table shows the probability of winning, losing, and pushing according by various breakdowns.

Point Spread Bets in the NFL

BetWinsLossesPushesWin RateStd. Dev.N.S.D.Return
All home1,4841,6805646.90%1.26%-2.46-10.28%
All away1,6801,4845653.10%1.26%2.461.34%
All favorite1,4881,6175647.92%1.27%-1.64-8.36%
All underdog1,6171,4885652.08%1.27%1.64-0.57%
Home underdog4925202048.62%2.22%-0.62-7.05%
Home favorite9681,1253646.25%1.55%-2.43-11.51%
Away underdog1,1259683653.75%1.55%2.432.57%
Away favorite5204922051.38%2.22%0.62-1.87%
Home pick2435040.68%9.21%-1.01-22.34%
Away pick3524059.32%9.21%1.0113.25%
All3,1643,16411250.00%0.89%0.00-4.47%

Explanation of column headings:

  • Bet: Type of bet
  • Wins: Number of wins against point spread
  • Losses: Number of losses against point spread
  • Pushes: Number of pushes against point spread
  • Win Rate: Ratio of wins to bets resolved
  • Std. Dev.: One standard deviation in the mean of the win rate, assuming every bet had a theoretical chance of winning of 50%.
  • N.S.D: Number of standard deviations that the actual results differ from an expected win rate of 50%.
  • Return: Ratio of money won (lost = negative) to money bet, assuming laying 11 to win 10.

Over/Under Bets

The following table shows the results of under and over bets. It shows both had nearly a 50% chance of winning. In face, over 3,220 games the over won just two more times than the under. I thought under bets would have performed better, but I've been wrong before.

Under and Over Bets in the NFL

BetWinsLossesPushesWin RateStd. Dev.N.S.D.Return
Over1,5861,5765850.16%1.26%0.13-4.17%
Under1,5761,5865849.84%1.26%-0.13-4.76%

Money Lines

The following brief table shows the result of money line bets.

Betting

Money Line Bets in the NFL

The next table shows the actual and estimated probability of winning for underdogs of 1 to 14.5 points. Obviously, the probability of the favorite winning would be 100% less the probability of the underdog winning. The estimated probability of winning uses logistic regression to smooth out the ups and downs.

Probability of Winning by Point Spread in the NFL

SpreadGamesWinsActual
Probability
Estimated
Probability
Fair
Line
11396949.6%46.4%115
1.5884348.9%44.6%124
21265140.5%42.9%133
2.52249843.8%41.1%143
351723545.5%39.4%154
3.527910738.4%37.7%165
41575937.6%36.1%177
4.51284736.7%34.4%191
5892325.8%32.8%205
5.51183832.2%31.3%220
61334533.8%29.7%236
6.51474228.6%28.3%254
72205123.2%26.8%273
7.51463624.7%25.5%293
8651421.5%24.1%315
8.5521630.8%22.8%338
9581322.4%21.6%363
9.548612.5%20.4%390
101041918.3%19.3%419
10.5611524.6%18.2%450
114149.8%17.1%483
11.522418.2%16.1%519
1213323.1%15.2%558
12.525416.0%14.3%599
1334617.6%13.4%644
13.536411.1%12.6%692
143638.3%11.9%743
14.51218.3%11.1%798

If you want to estimate the probability of winning of an underdog of more than 14.5 points, the formula is e^(-0.14324*s)/(1+e^(-0.14324*s)), where s is the point spread. To convert any probability under 50% to a fair money line, the formula is 100*(1-p)/p, where p is the probability of winning. To convert any probability over 50% to a fair money line, the formula is -100*p/(1-p).

Parlays

Here is my quick advice on parlays:

  • If you bet off the board, either do a pick-3 or mix in one leg that isn't at the standard -110 odds, to get off the lousy parlay odds table, and force a fair calculation.
  • On parlay cards, try to capture as many points as you can compared to the 'off the board' point spread.

I have much more information about parlays in my page on Parlay Bets in the NFL.

Teasers

Nfl Parlay Betting Strategy Expert

Here is my quick advice on teasers:

  • If you bet off the board, the best odds are at Jerry's Nugget.
  • Try to cross the 3- and 7-point margin of victories with the extra points.
  • Teaser cards are a sucker bet.
  • If you must bet a teaser card, I recommend the the Ties Win Teaser Card at any Caesars sports book.
  • On teaser cards, try to capture as many points as you can compared to the 'off the board' point spread.

I have lots more information about teasers in my page on Teaser Bets in the NFL.

Buying Half a Point off the Spread

Nfl Parlay Payout Table

Sometimes a sports book will let you buy a half point off the spread for total. For example, moving a point spread from +10 to +10.5. The price for this is laying an extra cents, in most cases laying 120 instead of 110. However, rarely will a sports book let the player buy onto point spreads of 3 or 7, for example moving from +2.5 to +3, because 3 and 7 are frequent margin of victories (MOV) in the NFL. To be specific, the margin of victory is three 14.5% of the time, and seven 9.2%, as the following table shows.

Margin of Victory in the NFL

MOVProbability
00.2%
13.7%
23.8%
314.5%
45.2%
53.4%
66.2%
79.2%
83.6%
91.7%
105.6%
112.5%
121.5%
132.9%
144.8%
151.5%
162.1%
173.1%
182.3%
191.1%
202.4%
213.2%
22+15.7%
Total100.0%

The following table shows the fair price to pay for most spreads and totals. For example, moving the spread from +2.5 to +3, +3 to +3.5, -3.5 to -3, or -3 to -2.5, would be buying the 3. In these cases if the favorite won by 3, or the underdog lost by 3, then it would turn a push into a win, or a loss into a push. The table shows the fair price to pay for extra half point, to equal the expected loss of 4.54% laying 11 to win 10. The bottom line is you should definitely buy the half point off of three, if you can, and it is marginally good off of seven. Anything else and it is a bad value.

Buying a Half Point Off the Spread

Buying Half a Point off the Total

The overall fair number of basis points to pay for a half point off the total is 8.12. In other words, you should be indifferent to laying 11 to win 10 and laying 118.12 to win 10 with an extra half point. The following table shows my suggested fair price to pay to capture totals from 30 to 60. By 'capture' I mean turn a push into a win or a loss into a push. If you have to lay 10 basis points for the half point, my table shows that it is never a good value, although sometimes it is close. An explanation of the column headings follows the table.

Buying a Half Point off the Over/Under in the NFL

Total
Points
Num. in
Sample
ProbabilityFair
Price
30890.0276406.58
31480.0149073.50
32420.0130433.06
331020.0316777.58
34830.0257766.13
35520.0161493.80
36740.0229815.45
371200.0372678.98
38630.0195654.62
39620.0192554.54
401050.0326097.81
411210.0375789.05
42480.0149073.50
431260.0391309.45
441230.0381999.21
45820.0254666.05
46640.0198764.69
471130.0350938.43
48980.0304357.27
49610.0189444.47
50810.0251555.98
511190.0369578.90
52740.0229815.45
53510.0158393.72
54660.0204974.84
55850.0263986.28
56250.0077641.81
57630.0195654.62
58580.0180124.24
59400.0124222.91
60180.0055901.30

Nfl Parlay Betting Tips

Nfl parlay sheets

Best Nfl Parlays Today

Key to column headings:

  • Total Points = Total point scored in game
  • Num. in Sample = Number of times this total appeared in a sample of 3,220 games.
  • Fair Price = My fair number of basis points to pay to capture this number (after a lot of math)

My page on alternate point spreads shows what it is worth to buy or sell up to seven points off the spread. That page has not been updated with the latest data yet.

Example

Nfl Football Parlay Card Picks

Assume the over/under on a game is exactly 43 points. My table shows the fair number of basis points to pay to capture the 43 is 9.45. This means you should be indifferent to laying 110 on the under 43 or over 43 to laying 119.45 on the under 43.5 or over 42.5.

Internal Links

  • Alternate point spread calculator.
  • Parlay calculator — What a parlay pay composed of events of miscellaneous odds should pay.
  • Proposition bet calculator — Fair line for lots of common prop bets, given the point spread and total.
  • NFL Average Scores per Game 2000-2020 — Historical scoring data from 2000 to 2020.
  • Super Bowl proposition bets — Repository of Super Bowl proposition bet sheets from Las Vegas

Nfl Parlay Betting Strategy Odds

Nfl Parlay Betting Strategy

Nfl Parlay Betting Strategy

Written by: Michael Shackleford