For sports bettors, the NFL is the real deal. The preseason gets fans hyped up for a fast and furious regular season, all leading to the Super Bowl, one of the biggest betting days of the year.
What makes NFL betting so fun is the massive number and variety of options you have to bet on. Below, we’ll break down the different types of NFL bets and some tips to keep in mind before you get into the action.
Beginner’s Guide to Betting On The NFL
Whether you’re placing your first NFL bet or you’ve been betting since before fantasy football was a thing, this guide will give you the knowledge you need to get started.
If you’re brand new to this whole betting thing, we’ll cover the basics here like moneyline bets, parlays, point spreads, and more, and give you some info on things like parlays – which are becoming a very popular betting option.
NFL Moneyline Bets
A moneyline bet is as simple as it gets—you’re just picking which team will win the game. The odds are set before the game starts, and if you bet on the underdog (the team less likely to win), you’ll win more money if they pull off the upset. It doesn’t matter if they win by 1 point or 30 points, a win’s a win. For example, if you bet on the Seahawks to beat the Rams and they do, your payout is the same whether it’s a close game or a blowout.
Let’s look at a real game example.
The game above is between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Baltimore Ravens. The numbers for the moneyline bet are in the center column – the Ravens are listed as the +130 underdog, which you can tell from the “+” before the 130. That means that if you placed a $100 bet on the Ravens, and they won, you’d win $230, including your original bet amount.
The Chiefs are the -155 favourite, which you can tell from the “-” sign in front of the number. What that means is that a winning $100 bet on the Chiefs would payout $164 including your original stake.
NFL Point Spreads
Point spread bets are super popular because they make mismatched games more interesting. Let’s say in Week 1, the Kansas City Chiefs are 7.5-point favorites against the Arizona Cardinals. If you bet on the Cardinals +7.5, you win your bet if they win the game outright or lose by 7 points or less. If the Chiefs win by 8 or more, then those who bet on the Chiefs to cover the spread get the cash.
Here’s a real game example:
In our game above, we have the Titans and the Bears showing, in that first column, a 4-point spread.
The Bears are the favorites, and that is shown by the (–) value in front of the 4. Underdogs are represented by the (+) value. The 4 point value is how many points either team could win, or lose by. If you think the Bears will win by MORE than 4 points, then you’d bet on the favorite in this case.
Perhaps you believe that the Titans can either win the game or lose by less than 4 points. In that case you’ll want to place your bet on the underdog.
Learn more about point spreads here.
NFL Totals (Over/Under) Betting
If you’re betting on the total, or over/under, you’re guessing whether the combined score of both teams will be higher or lower than a number set by the oddsmakers.
For instance, in this game between the Packers and Eagles, the total is set at 48.5 points. If the final score is 30-20 (50 total points), Over bettors win. If it’s 24-20 (44 total points), Under bettors take it. You’re not worried about which team wins—just whether they score a lot or keep it low.
Check out more on Over/Under betting here.
NFL Player And Team Prop Bets
Prop bets (short for proposition bets) focus on specific events within a game. For example, you might bet on whether a player like Justin Jefferson will have over or under 100.5 receiving yards. Or maybe you’re wondering if the game will go into overtime—yes or no.
The Super Bowl is famous for its wild variety of prop bets, but you can find plenty of options during the regular season too. Props are a fun way to get in on the action, especially if you’ve got a good feel for certain matchups. For instance, if an elite running back is facing a weak run defense, betting the over on their rushing yards could be a smart play.
NFL Futures
Futures bets are all about predicting outcomes down the line, like who will win the Super Bowl or which team will come out on top in their division. You can also bet on season win totals—like, will the New York Jets win more or less than 9.5 games this season?
Futures odds change as the season goes on, depending on how teams are performing. For example, if the Eagles start the season strong, their odds to win the Super Bowl might shorten from +1400 to +800 by midseason.
NFL Parlays
A parlay bet is when you combine multiple bets into one. For example, let’s say you’re confident the Eagles will cover the spread, and you also think the game between the Packers and Vikings is going to go over 45.5 total points. Instead of placing two separate bets, you can roll them into a single parlay bet. You could also bet on the Eagles and the 49ers both winning their games.
A parlay can include a mix of different bets like moneylines, point spreads, or totals from one or more games each week. Same-game parlays are becoming super popular in NFL betting because they let you tie together different bets from the same game to get better odds. The potential payout is higher with parlays because you need to get every single bet right to win. This means you can risk a little to win a lot.
