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Jeremy Perry
Falcons vs. 49ers Point Spread: NFL Week 15 Odds, Prediction
The Atlanta Falcons and San Francisco 49ers will be looking to get one step closer in the NFC playoffs on Sunday. Atlanta saw their playoff odds get a boost after they took down the Carolina Panthers in a 29-21 road victory last week. The San Francisco 49ers got a boost themselves with a huge overtime win over the Cincinnati Bengals. The 49ers are a big favourite here but are the Falcons being disrespected?
San Francisco is a 9-point favourite to win on the NFL odds, with a total of 46.0.
NFL Point Spread and Betting Analysis
The Falcons are 5-1 against the spread in their last six games on the road and 7-3 ATS in their past 10 matchups played during the month of December. Atlanta has struggled against NFC opponents this season though, with a 3-7 ATS record in their last 10 in that spot.
Meanwhile, the 49ers are 4-1 ATS in their last five games overall. However, they are 5-11 ATS in their past 16 contests when they get listed as the favourite.
The over has cashed the last five times these two teams have squared off against each other.
Atlanta Falcons
On one hand, it seems hard to know what bettors will get from the Atlanta Falcons on a weekly basis. The team has mostly been hanging around .500 all season long and they get big wins where they look competent, and then have discouraging losses where they get blown out.
The pattern seems to be that they beat teams with a losing record and struggling against winning squads. They don’t have a single win against a team that has a winning record right now. Their losses haven’t been pretty either. Their last three – to Tampa Bay, Dallas and New England – have come by a combined score of 98-20.
This week, the face the 49ers, who have a winning record. Does that mean that the result should be fairly clear?
San Francisco 49ers
The 49ers have a fantastic run game, ranking eighth in the league with 123.9 rushing yards per game. They have been able to put these numbers up due to a stacked backfield – even with rookie Trey Sermon not getting touches and Raheem Mostert missing the majority of the season, they still have a great rotation. Elijah Mitchell has been excellent with 759 rushing yards and five touchdowns, but he’s still recovering from a concussion and is questionable. Meanwhile, rising star Deebo Samuel has played a good chunk of his snaps in the backfield. Samuel has 240 rushing yards and six touchdowns on the ground while being a serious x-factor for this offence when teams try to take away George Kittle.
For the 49ers to win, they need to run the ball well. The Falcons allow 4.2 yards-per-carry, so if the 49ers are hammering them on the ground, they’re likely to be playing with a comfortable lead most of the game.
ATL
SF