The battle for the top of the AFC East heats up Saturday when the New England Patriots take on the Buffalo Bills as 6.5-point home favourites on the Week 16 NFL odds at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
With an 11-3 straight-up record, New England maintains a narrow one-game lead over Buffalo in the division standings and can clinch an 11th straight AFC East crown with a victory in Saturday afternoon’s matchup at Gillette Stadium.
While the Patriots find themselves on the verge of yet another division title, they have been far from dominant in recent weeks. New England opened its schedule with SU wins in its first eight contests, but has struggled to maintain that momentum, going 3-3 SU in its past six games. Those struggles extend to recent home dates, with the Patriots averaging just 14.5 points per game over their past two outings, capped by a 23-16 loss to Kansas City as 3-point chalk at online sports betting sites two weeks ago.
The Bills travel to New England after clinching a playoff spot last weekend with a 17-10 win in Pittsburgh as 1-point underdogs. Buffalo has been a model of consistency while compiling a 10-4 SU record, which includes a 6-1 SU road record. However, the Bills have work to do to snap an 0-6 SU run in meetings with New England, and they continue to lag well behind the favourites on the Super Bowl odds at +3500.
Elsewhere on the Week 16 NFL odds, first place in the NFC East will be on the line on Sunday when the Dallas Cowboys visit the Philadelphia Eagles as 2.5-point chalk. The Cowboys remained deadlocked with the Eagles at 7-7 by knocking off the Rams 44-21 as 1-point home underdogs last week, and continue to hold the edge over Philadelphia on tiebreakers.
The Eagles staged a second-half comeback for a second straight week in last Sunday’s 37-27 win in Washington as 6.5-point favourites, and can clinch the division with victories in each of their final two games. However, Philadelphia remains at odds of +205 to make the playoffs for a third straight year.
Elsewhere, the battle for the second AFC wild card continues this weekend as the Pittsburgh Steelers visit the New York Jets as 3-point favourites, while the Tennessee Titans host the New Orleans Saints as 3-point underdogs.
As well, a SU win over Tampa Bay as 3-point road favourites on Saturday combined with a Steelers loss clinches a playoff spot for the Houston Texans. The Texans also hold a one-game lead over Tennessee and are -1200 favourites on the odds to win the AFC South.
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