We might be midway through December but in the NFL it remains Brocktober.
The 49ers, led by third-string quarterback and “Mr. Irrelevant” Brock Purdy, extended its winning streak to seven in a row with San Francisco kicking off Week 15 with a dominant win over Seattle.
Regular-season bye weeks are over and done with. There’s a full slate of games, including a triple-header on Saturday, that'll have a significant impact on the standings as the various playoff races heat up with four weeks remaining before the post-season.
Here’s the Week 15 board with betting lines, totals, tidbits, and picks.
SATURDAY TRIPLE-HEADER
Indianapolis Colts (+3.5) at Minnesota Vikings (-3.5) | Over/Under: 47.5
Baltimore Ravens (+2.5) at Cleveland Browns (-2.5) | Over/Under: 38.5
Miami Dolphins (+7.0) at Buffalo Bills (-7.0) | Over/Under: 44.5
Minnesota is 4-2 ATS as a home favourite this season but the defence has allowed an average of 30.4 points against over the past five games. Also, Colts interim coach Jeff Saturday is coaching on a Saturday, which feels important to note.
Baltimore has covered five of the past six games against Cleveland. Browns QB Deshaun Watson is 0-2 in his career against the Ravens, who’ll again be without Lamar Jackson.
In the past 10 meetings between the Bills and Dolphins in Buffalo, the Bills are 7-2-1 ATS. Miami beat Buffalo 21-19 back in Week 3.
SUNDAY/MONDAY SLATE
Detroit Lions (-1.5) at New York Jets (+1.5) | Over/Under: 43.5
Kansas City Chiefs (-14.0) at Houston Texans (+14.0) | Over/Under: 49.5
Pittsburgh Steelers (+3.0) at Carolina Panthers (-3.0) | Over/Under: 37.5
Philadelphia Eagles (-9.0) at Chicago Bears (+9.0) | Over/Under: 48.5
Atlanta Falcons (+4.0) at New Orleans Saints (-4.0) | Over/Under: 43.5
Dallas Cowboys (-4.0) at Jacksonville Jaguars (+4.0) | Over/Under: 48.0
Arizona Cardinals (+3.0) at Denver Broncos (-3.0) | Over/Under: 37.5
New England Patriots (+1.5) at Las Vegas Raiders (-1.5) | Over/Under: 44.5
Cincinnati Bengals (-3.5) at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (+3.5) | Over/Under: 44.5
Tennessee Titans (+3.0) at Los Angeles Chargers (-3.0) | Over/Under: 46.5
New York Giants (+4.5) at Washington Commanders (-4.5) | Over/Under: 40.5
Los Angeles Rams (+6.5) at Green Bay Packers (-6.5) | Over/Under: 39.5
With Mike White not cleared to play, the Jets will be turning back to Zach Wilson against a Lions team that has won five of six. The Jets went 5-2 ATS in games Wilson started.
Kansas City is the biggest chalk of Week 15 – favoured by two touchdowns over Houston – but the Chiefs are just 1-9-1 ATS in their past 11 games following a straight up victory.
The Panthers, still in the NFC South playoff hunt at 5-8, haven’t beaten the Steelers since the first time the franchises met back in 1996.
Chicago has the worst pass rush in NFL and they are going up against Philadelphia’s elite offensive line and the current MVP frontrunner in Jalen Hurts.
Atlanta is turning to rookie QB Desmond Ridder with Marcus Mariota on injured reserve. The NFC South is a combined 20-32 this season and all four teams have a shot at the division title with four games remaining even though none are above .500. Ridder was the second QB off the board in the 2022 NFL Draft, selected in the third round with the 74th pick, after going 44-6 with Cincinnati in college.
Jacksonville is 3-0 ATS and straight up when a home underdog this year, while Dallas is 1-1 ATS as road favourites and 3-2 straight up in road games.
Arizona is one of 10 teams to go over the listed total in more than 50 per cent of games through 14 weeks. Kyler Murray is out for the season. Denver is still the top under team in the league at 11-2.
Patriots unders have hit in five of the past six games; Las Vegas unders are 3-1-1 in Raiders home games this season.
The Bengals are an NFL-best 10-3 ATS and the Bucs are an NFL-worst 3-9-1 ATS and 0-5-1 ATS at home.
The Chargers are a top-three passing team; the Titans have a bottom-two passing defence. L.A. has a bottom-five run defence and Tennessee’s Derrick Henry ranks second in rushing yards and third in touchdowns.
Washington is 6-1-1 ATS over the past eight games but the Giants have covered four in a row when these NFC East teams play in Washington.
Aaron Rodgers is 5-1 in his career against the Rams.
MIKEY J'S CARD…
(Each week throughout the regular season I’ll be sharing some picks for the Sunday/Monday slate and will track my record, so you can follow or fade responsibly all season long. 2022 overall record to date: 105-128-4)
Favourites ATS (27-33-1): Lions -1.5, Panthers -3.0, Chargers -3.0, Bengals -3.5, Packers -6.5, Eagles -9.0
Underdogs ATS (27-23-3): Patriots +1.5, Falcons +4.0, Jaguars +4.0,
Overs (10-23): TEN/LAC 46.5, ARI/DEN 37.5
Unders (26-32): NE/LV 44.5, DET/NYJ 43.5, NYG/WAS 40.5, LAR/GB 39.5
Moneyline dogs (16-19): Falcons
(Listed odds above via Covers as of Friday and subject to change)
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