We’ve reached the halfway point of the 2020 NFL season and it’s time to reflect on the best and worst moneymakers to date and whether there are some betting trends bettors can bank on for the remainder of the year.
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As always with trends, it’s never foolproof to simply count on these as can’t-miss options. Some could be outliers or just plain weird. That being said, I’ve pinpointed a few cases that bettors should take note of and keep on their radar going forward.
NOTE: All figures below are based on $100 bets per wager.
Here are the most and least profitable bets across many different scenarios entering the second half of the 2020 NFL regular season:
Which NFL Teams Were The Best Bets in the First Half of 2020?
Best & Worst NFL Bets Of First Half Of 2020 Season
| Bet Type | Most Profitable | Least Profitable |
|---|---|---|
| Full Game Moneyline | Steelers: $481.10 | Jets: -$800.00 |
| Home Moneyline | Seahawks: $203.79 | ATL/NYJ: -$400.00 |
| Away Moneyline | Raiders: $461.90 | NYG/DAL/NYJ/JAX: -$400.00 |
| Moneyline Favorite | Steelers: $211.20 | Falcons: -$400.00 |
| Moneyline Underdog | Cardinals: $510.24 | NYG/NYJ: -$700.00 |
| ATS | Steelers: $445.45 | Cowboys: -$800.00 |
| ATS Favorite | Steelers: $263.64 | Cowboys: -$600.00 |
| ATS Underdog | Bengals: $350.59 | Jets: -$509.09 |
| First Half Moneyline | Chargers: $549.76 | Washington: -$516.67 |
| First Half ML Home | Bengals: $363.00 | DEN/JAX: -$300.00 |
| First Half ML Away | Chargers: $391.43 | NYJ/NYG: -$400.00 |
| Evening Games ML | Eagles: $363.89 | DAL/NYG: -$300.00 |
Best OVER & UNDER NFL Bets Of First Half Of 2020 Season
| Bet Type | OVER | UNDER |
|---|---|---|
| Full Game | Saints (7-0, $636.36) | Cardinals (1-5-1, $345.45) |
| Full Game Home | Saints (4-0, $363.64) | Rams (0-3, $272.73) |
| Full Game Away | HOU/NO (3-0, $272.73) | Cardinals (0-3-1, $272.73) |
| First Half | Saints (6-0-1, $569.48) | Patriots (2-5, $274.14) |
| First Half Home | WAS/TEN (4-0, $372.73) | Eagles (1-3-1, $190.91) |
| First Half Away | Rams (5-0, $459.68) | Cardinals (1-3, $190.91) |
Pittsburgh Steelers – Best ATS and Moneyline Bet
In a division with the Baltimore Ravens and Cleveland Browns, it almost seemed like the Steelers were forgotten as a juggernaut in the AFC. Well, they put those doubts to rest in Week 7 by winning on the road vs the Ravens. The Steelers won that game as an underdog and are now 6-1 ATS on the season while being the lone undefeated team left in the NFL at 7-0 SU. If you had bet $100 on the Steelers moneyline in every game, you’d be up to $481.10 in profit.
However, the well might be running dry on Steelers moneyline profits going forward because they’ve got some cupcake matchups coming up on the schedule. The next three opponents for Pittsburgh are the Cowboys, Bengals and Jaguars, who are a combined 5-17-1 SU. Safe to say the Steelers will be favorites in each of those games and it wouldn’t be far-fetched to think they’ll cover the spread in those ones too.
Arizona Cardinals – Best Moneyline Underdog
A sexy pick to make the playoffs in the NFC, the Arizona Cardinals have been a nice surprise in arguably the toughest division in football, the NFC West. The Cardinals have outright wins as an underdog over the 49ers, Cowboys and Seahawks and what might be most impressive is two of those wins came on the road. If you had bet $100 on the Cardinals moneyline in every one of their games, you’d be sitting pretty with $510.24 in profit.
Arizona may not be an underdog for a couple more weeks as the Cards host the Dolphins and Bills, but they then go on the road for games vs the Seahawks and Patriots. At this point, if you ever get the Cardinals as underdogs, forget the spread and take the moneyline.
New Orleans Saints – Best OVER Bet
When initially looking at NFL OVER trends, the Seattle Seahawks would’ve likely been the first team that comes to mind as a good OVER bet considering they lead the NFL in points per game and are a bottom-five scoring defense. Five of their seven games have gone OVER, but it’s actually the New Orleans Saints who are Teflon when facing an UNDER bet.
All seven of the Saints games have gone OVER this season and if you had bet $100 on the OVER for each of their games, you’d be up to $636.36 in profit. The Saints offense is typically prolific with Drew Brees at QB as they average 29.4 points per game but it’s the defense (or lack thereof) that has gotten bettors paid because it’s allowing 28.1 points per game. Will this trend continue? Well, the Saints offense is only going to improve with WR Michael Thomas back in the lineup so if you ever see a game total in the range of 48 to 51, hammer the OVER.
Philadelphia Eagles – Best Prime-Time Moneyline Bet
Hard to believe a team like the Eagles is considered to be a good bet in any scenario this season, especially considering how awful QB Carson Wentz has looked, but Philadelphia has shown up under the bright lights of prime time. The Eagles are 3-0 SU when playing in the evening slot this season with outright wins over the Cowboys, Giants and 49ers.
The latter is actually why the Eagles profits are so high, because Philly won that game vs San Francisco as an 8.5-point dog. If you had bet $100 on the Eagles moneyline in every prime-time game this season, you’d be up $363.89.
Bettors will get one more shot to bet on the Eagles in prime time when they host the Seattle Seahawks in Week 12, a game in which they’ll likely be a 3- or 4-point home underdog. Considering the vast number of betting trends that support the case for Russell Wilson and the Seahawks in prime time, take this Eagles trend with a grain of salt.
For more NFL betting coverage, check in with our NFL section often and follow me on Twitter @GDAWG5000 for all football betting shenanigans.
