Weekend football predictions: Pro sports bettors pick NFL playoff games
The road team has won and covered the past four meetings between the San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks, and the Niners have won and covered their past four trips to Seattle.
“Dr. Alan” Dumond, who hit his two best bets in the Las Vegas Review-Journal last week, expects San Francisco to cover at Seattle again as a 7-point road underdog in Saturday’s NFL divisional round playoff game.
“The 49ers arrive into Seattle confident off their upset win over the Eagles and have a chance to avenge their Week 18 loss to the Seahawks,” Dumond said. “The 49ers’ coach-quarterback combo of Kyle Shanahan and Brock Purdy have a huge playoff experience edge over the Seahawks’ coach-quarterback combo of Mike Macdonald and Sam Darnold, neither of whom has won a playoff game.
“For as well as the Seahawks have played this year, this is simply too many points for them to be laying in a game of this magnitude.”
Dumond also likes the Los Angeles Rams-Chicago Bears game Sunday to go under 48½.
“Despite both sides being involved in high-scoring affairs last week, we expect both defenses to play better this week,” he said. “Both squads will likely lean on their running games more in the expected frigid weather conditions, with the possibility of high winds.”
Here are four more best bets (home team in CAPS):
Rams (-3½) over BEARS
The Bears have seven fourth-quarter comeback wins this season, including last week’s home victory over the rival Green Bay Packers. But pro sports bettor Scott Pritchard (Pritchardspicks.com) expects their magic to run out against the Rams.
“Congrats to the Bears with another miracle fluke comeback win last week,” he said. “Luck is not a strategy. Rams with No. 1 offense in yards and points is.”
BRONCOS (-1) over Bills
“Denver seems to be downgraded by many in the pundit class because Sean Payton’s team cut it awfully close on many occasions this season, standing 11-2 in one-score games,” CBS Sportsline handicapper Bruce Marshall said. “Yet the truth might rather be that Denver is very comfortable playing these sorts of games.
“Denver’s NFL-best pass rush is going to force (Bills quarterback) Josh Allen into lots of improvising, at which he is very good, but … we still maintain the Bills aren’t quite to recent levels because of the defense, and pulling a rabbit out of the hat last week at Jacksonville is no indicator it will happen again.”
PATRIOTS (-3) over Texans
“It’s hard to find value with sharp playoff lines, but New England shows value in my model. They get the benefit of home cooking and field the possible MVP in quarterback Drake Maye,” said pro bettor Cris Zeniuk (@lasvegascris). “Experienced coaching will be a benefit versus the very capable Texans, who are faced with key injuries, not to mention some seriously poor play by quarterback C.J. Stroud last week.
“I also like a money line parlay of Seattle and New England for +105.”
Texans (+3½) over PATRIOTS
“I bet Houston +3½ and still like it at +3 even,” said pro bettor Randy McKay (@RR39), who correctly called the Texans’ win and cover over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Monday night. “The Texans defense reminds me of the 2001 Baltimore Ravens. Hopefully quarterback C.J. Stroud doesn’t mess it up like he did versus the Steelers (with three turnovers).
“I believe their offensive line is better than the Patriots’ and will have the offensive success that the Los Angeles Chargers didn’t (in last week’s 16-3 wild-card loss). New England is still a young team, and Houston’s experience will win out.”
