2016 NFL Week 17 Opening Line Report
After tonight’s game between the Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys, the penultimate week of the regular season will be over. The final week of the season is not entirely meaningless. There are a few playoff contenders that have little room for error. Other teams are fighting for playoff seeding, while the remaining eliminated teams try to finish out the season on a high note.
Week 16 featured a litany of injuries to key players, including season-ending injuries to two quarterbacks. Tennessee’s Marcus Mariota and Oakland’s Derek Carr suffered broken legs, cutting short what were bright seasons for the pair of young quarterbacks. Carr’s injury is especially damaging for his Raiders, who are making their first postseason appearance since 2002.
In the chart below, are the opening and current odds from Bookmaker.
| Matchup | Current Line | Opening Line |
|---|---|---|
| CAR @ TB | TB -6.5 | TB -3.5 |
| HOU @ TEN | TEN -3 | TEN -3 |
| BAL @ CIN | CIN -2.5 | CIN -2.5 |
| NE @ MIA | NE -9.5 | NE -6 |
| CLE @ PIT | PIT -7.5 | PIT -12.5 |
| JAX @ IND | IND -4.5 | IND -7 |
| DAL @ PHI | OFF BOARD | OFF BOARD |
| CHI @ MIN | MIN -5 | MIN -6.5 |
| BUF @ NYJ | BUF -6 | BUF -5 |
| NO @ ATL | ATL -6.5 | ATL -6.5 |
| NYG @ WAS | WAS -8 | WAS -5 |
| ARI @ LA | ARI -6 | ARI -7.5 |
| KC @ SD | KC -4.5 | KC -4 |
| SEA @ SF | SEA -9.5 | SEA -9 |
| OAK @ DEN | DEN -3 | DEN -3.5 |
| GB @ DET | OFF BOARD | OFF BOARD |
With one week left in the regular season, the wild, wild (AFC) West race is far from over. Following the Chiefs’ win against the now-eliminated Broncos on Christmas night, KC still has a chance to win their division. Although both teams will be playing postseason football, the team that fails to win the division would be the No. 5 seed, so there’s an incentive to lock up the AFC West. KC opened as 4.5-point favorites against San Diego (shout out to the Browns for avoiding a winless season) and the Derek Carr-less Raiders opened as 3.5-point ‘dogs.
Remaining in the AFC, the New England Patriots can secure the No. 1 seed in the AFC and home field advantage throughout the playoffs with a win or a Raiders loss. For the second straight year, New England will finish their season in Miami, which is playoff-bound for the first time since 2008. Thus far, this game is the most heavily bet game of the week. 60% of spread bets are taking New England, now 9.5-point favorites after opening as 6-point favorites.
One of the most fascinating Week 17 matchups will be Green Bay at Detroit, a game in which the winner takes home the NFC North trophy and a postseason bid. At the time of publication, this game remains off the board at most books, however, for what it’s worth BetOnline is offering NFC North winner odds. The visiting Packers are the favorite at -155 to win the division.
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