The 2021 regular season came to a close in wild fashion on Sunday as we saw multiple overtime games that had a direct hand in how the playoff picture has come into shape. Now, it’s a mad dash to SoFi Stadium for Super Bowl LVI in Los Angeles, beginning with Super Wild Card Weekend.
With all the matchups of the opening postseason slate solidified, now seems as good of a time as ever to take a look at the early betting lines for all of these contests. Below, you’ll find the initial lines and a quick breakdown of the six games that are on deck.
Super Wild Card Weekend odds
(All lines from Caesars Sportsbook, all games on Sunday unless noted)
Raiders (10-7) at Bengals (10-7)
Latest Odds: Cincinnati Bengals -6.5
Opening line: Bengals -6.5
Las Vegas has flown somewhat under the radar over the final month of the season as they made this playoff push. They’ve won four straight to get into the postseason, including two road wins against the Browns and Colts. Of course, they also put together that thrilling win on OT in Week 18 against the Chargers. They come into this game against Cincinnati as an underdog, but that’s a situation where they’ve recently performed well in. The Raiders are 6-2 ATS in their last eight games as a road dog. However, the Bengals have been a good bet over the last month as well, owning a 4-0 ATS mark over its last four games. Joe Burrow did not play in the regular-season finale as Cincy kept its quarterback out of harm’s way in a meaningless game, but he did injure his knee in Week 17 and was unable to finish that contest. While it seems unlikely he’d miss this game, it will be worth monitoring to see if it’ll limit him in any way.
Patriots (10-7) at Bills (11-6)
Latest Odds: Buffalo Bills -4.5
Opening line: Bills -4.5
For the third time this season, the Patriots and Bills will go head-to-head. Buffalo’s win over the Jets in Week 18 secured the AFC East for the second consecutive year, but the Patriots didn’t put themselves in a position to leap up in the standings either as they fell to the Dolphins in Miami. These two teams split the season series and it was the road team that was able to come out on top each time. This season, New England was 5-3 ATS on the road while Buffalo turned in a 4-3-2 ATS record at home. Similar to their previous matchup in Buffalo, the weather could be a factor for this matchup as the early weather forecast is calling for sub-zero wind chills.
Eagles (9-8) at Buccaneers (13-4)
Latest Odds: Tampa Bay Buccaneers -8.5
Opening line: Buccaneers -9
With their playoff position already set in stone, the Eagles treated Week 18 essentially as a bye as they rested a number of key starters, including quarterback Jalen Hurts. On the other side, the Buccaneers played their starters for the bulk of Week 18 as they went on to beat the Panthers and improve to 13-4 on the year. Now, they sit as the No. 2 seed in the NFC and will have home-field advantage at least through the divisional round. Raymond James Stadium has been kind to the Buccaneers this season as they are 6-2 ATS at home, which is tied for the second-best home record in the league. To their credit, the Eagles have held their own on the road as they are 5-4 ATS in that setting this season with a +7.3 point differential.
49ers (10-7) at Cowboys (12-5)
Latest Odds: Dallas Cowboys -3
Opening line: Cowboys -3
The 49ers were able to punch their ticket into the playoffs with an overtime win over the Rams in Week 17, which included Kyle Shanahan’s team outscoring L.A. 24-7 over the final two quarters and OT. Deebo Samuel continues to be the ultimate all-around weapon for this offense as he threw for a touchdown rushed for a score and caught four of his six targets for 95 yards. The Niners will now look to carry this momentum into Dallas as they face a Cowboys team that just scored 50+ points for the second time in three weeks. The Cowboys were a league-best 13-4 ATS this season and had an average margin of victory of roughly 10 points. They are also 5-1 ATS in their last six games as the favorite.
Steelers (9-7) at Chiefs (12-5)
Latest Odds: Kansas City Chiefs -12.5
Opening line: Chiefs -12.5
Pittsburgh was able to squeak into the playoffs thanks to an overtime win over the Ravens and the Raiders taking down the Chargers in OT later on Sunday night. Their prize for getting into the playoffs, however, is a trip to Arrowhead to face the Chiefs. Kansas City was able to take down the Broncos on Saturday and is now looking to make another deep playoff run after reaching the Super Bowl last year. K.C. is 4-0 in its last four home games and is 6-2 ATS in its last eight overall coming into this matchup. Meanwhile, the Steelers were .500 on the road against the spread this season and just barely were averaging 20 points per game, so this could be tough sledding for Ben Roethlisberger’s club.
Cardinals (11-6) at Rams (12-5)
Latest Odds: Los Angeles Rams -4
Opening line: Rams -4.5
Cardinals vs. Rams III will wrap up Super Wild Card Weekend when these division rivals square up on Monday night. These teams split the season series at a game apiece with both clubs defending their home turf. Arizona has been a tough bet as of late as they went 1-4 SU and ATS in their last five games to end the season. However, they do own an 8-1 ATS record on the road this season, which is tied for the best mark in the NFL. Meanwhile, the Rams are .500 ATS at SoFi Stadium this season and have not performed well as the favorite, owning a 3-7 ATS record in the last 10 games in that setting.
