2017 NFL Playoffs: Odds for Each Wild Card Game
Point spread and odds for each Wild Card game in the 2017 NFL Playoffs.
After a grueling regular season, the start of the 2017 NFL Playoffs sits just six days away. The 12 teams ready to vie for a Super Bowl championship have been settled and now it’s time to get on the road to Houston for the big game. That all starts on Saturday, Jan. 7 and Sunday, Jan. 8 with the Wild Card Round getting underway between the No. 3-6 seeds in both the AFC and NFC.
Looking at many of these matchups, three of the four games are rematches from what we saw at one point in the regular season. What’s interesting, though, is that all three of these rematches have a completely different feel about them. Subsequently, it’s almost not even worth it to consider what happened in the first meeting between the two teams now meeting in the Wild Card Round. Everything’s different in the NFL Playoffs.
So to gather where teams sit entering the 2017 NFL Playoffs and how they match up with their Wild Card Round opponents, perhaps the best thing to do is see what the oddsmakers have to say. After all, those in Vegas usually have a strong finger on the pulse.
With that in mind, let’s look at the point spread, odds, and more for each of the four Wild Card matchups to start the 2017 NFL Playoffs (all odds per 5Dimes):
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Oakland Raiders at Houston Texans (Sat., Jan. 7 – 4:35 p.m. ET)
Point Spread: Texans -2.5; Moneyline: Texans -150, Raiders +130; O/U: 37
There’s admittedly not a great deal of excitement for this one and it’s hard really to conjure any. Derek Carr isn’t going to play for the Raiders and Matt McGloin might be out as well. That leaves Connor Cook to face off with Brock Osweiler after Tom Savage suffered a concussion in Week 17. Given Osweiler’s experience, though, this line seems right as slightly in favor of Houston.
Detroit Lions at Seattle Seahawks (Sat. Jan. 7 – 8:30 p.m. ET)
Point Spread: Seahawks -7.5; Moneyline: Seahawks -320, Lions +260; O/U: 43
Though this line reportedly hasn’t moved since opening, it feels like this is an overcorrection. Sure, the Seahawks might be the better team than the Lions. But a full touchdown—and a half point—better? I’m not so sure about that. Seattle is a flawed team every bit as much as Detroit is. This should be much closer as I think this game winds up being incredibly close.
Miami Dolphins at Pittsburgh Steelers (Sun., Jan. 8 – 1:05 p.m. ET)
Point Spread: Steelers -10; Moneyline: Steelers -420, Dolphins +335; O/U: 47.5
When the Dolphins and Steelers met earlier in the season, Ben Roethlisberger suffered his knee injury and Pittsburgh looked all kinds of discombobulated before and after the injury. However, now it’s Miami with quarterback woes as Matt Moore starts again for the injured Ryan Tannehill. In the end, this line might be a little high, but isn’t far from being right with a healthy Pittsburgh team and the banged-up Fins.
New York Giants at Green Bay Packers (Sun., Jan. 8 – 4:40 p.m. ET)
Point Spread: Packers -4; Moneyline: Packers -175, Giants +155; O/U: 44
Of the four Wild Card games in the 2017 NFL Playoffs, this is reportedly the line that moved the most drastically. In some places, Green Bay opened as favorites by a full touchdown or more and the line has moved this far down due to heavy money on New York. The spread might be a bit low, but that’s what happens with a hot team like the Giants. It’s worth noting, though, that the Packers beat the Giants by seven points earlier in the season when both teams were struggling.
There is sure to be more movement in these lines and odds throughout the next week simply because there always is when it comes to these things. Right out of the gate, though, this gives a good idea of how these games are viewed and what the expected outcome is initially. But if there’s one thing this regular season taught us, it’s to expect the unexpected. So we should do the same in the 2017 NFL Playoffs.
