The lines are from Oddsshark.com and the home teams in CAPs.
L.A. Rams +6.5 over GREEN BAY
The Rams might actually have been the wild-card team that stood the best shot at slowing down Aaron Rodgers and the Packers. With Jalen Ramsey limiting Davante Adams and Aaron Donald – who says he’s feeling “no pain†after suffering a rib injury last week – up front creating pressure on Rodgers, the Rams defence isn’t one to mess with. Green Bay being without David Bakhtiari can be an issue, too. The big concern is at QB, where it’s four-fingered Jared Goff under centre. Some cold weather does provide somewhat of a home-field advantage for the Pack, but it’s not enough to lay this many points.
BUFFALO -2.5 over Baltimore
The Bills and Ravens are probably the league’s two hottest teams right now and their QBs are on absolute tears. Josh Allen is looking like a game-changer while Lamar Jackson has returned to his MVP form. While Buffalo’s defence didn’t look so hot against the Colts last week, the passing game isn’t the Ravens’ forte. Lamar and Co. didn’t do much to exploit the Titans’ weak pass defence last week, which would’ve made the game a lot easier. Baltimore’s defence did an excellent job against Derrick Henry, but the Bills aren’t a team that wins with its ground game. This game will be decided in the air and that should favour the Bills.
Cleveland +10 over KANSAS CITY
The Browns got a bit lucky last week, starting with the game’s first snap against Pittsburgh. While they do deserve credit for the big win, it’s hard to expect that sort of outing again. But, it’s incredibly hard to back a Chiefs team that rarely seems interested in covering. As good as Patrick Mahomes, Andy Reid and Co. are, they just haven’t scored blow-out wins this season. Cleveland should be getting some key players back, too, including their coach. We don’t doubt K.C. advances, but it shouldn’t be by double-digit points.
Tampa Bay +3 over NEW ORLEANS
We have two ancient QBs by NFL standards, but only one really looks it. Drew Brees isn’t putting much on his throws these days while Tom Brady seems just fine. The Saints handled the Bucs in both of their regular-season matchups, but this is a much different position with several key Saints not at 100%. It’s hard to put any stock into the Week 1 matchup, occurring four months ago, while the Bucs ran the ball a record-low five times in Week 9 – which also served as Antonio Brown’s first game. While we’d prefer getting an extra half point, we’re still happy to take the three in this excellent matchup.
Last week: 4-2
This playoffs: 4-2
This season: 112-124-9