Can Favourites Avoid Upsets in Divisional Round?
Published on January 11th, 2019 5:33 pm ESTWritten By: Dave Manuel
This weekend will see the divisional round games take place in the NFL, with the Colts battling the Chiefs, the Cowboys taking on the Rams, the Chargers squaring off against the Patriots and the Eagles trying to knock off the Saints. There are a number of compelling stories heading into this weekend, including:
1) Can Nick Foles continue to lead the Eagles deeper into the playoffs against arguably the best team in football, the New Orleans Saints?
2) Can Andrew Luck and the Colts score another upset, this time against the Kansas City Chiefs?
3) Speaking of the Chiefs, how will phenom Patrick Mahomes perform under the brightest of lights?
4) Can Tom Brady and company score another post-season victory, this time against the very tough Los Angeles Chargers?
5) Will Ezekiel Elliott and the Cowboys be able to stop the insanely talented Rams team on the road?
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Let's take a look at the betting odds for this week's contests, courtesy of Bet365:
Source: Bet365
Time Stamp: January 11th, 2019 5:23 pm EST
Odds Subject to Change
Indianapolis Colts, +5, -110
Kansas City Chiefs, -5, -110
Dallas Cowboys, +7, -105
LA Rams, -7, -115
LA Chargers, +4, -110
New England Patriots, -4, -110
Philadelphia Eagles, +8, -110
New Orleans Saints, -8, -110
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The Chargers/Patriots game is expected to be the closest, which certainly makes the most sense, as the Chargers are a 12-4 team that just happened to be a wild card team.
The biggest "mismatch" this week is the Saints playing host to the Eagles, though we all know about the magic of Nick Foles, so the Eagles should never be written off.
The most intriguing game of the week is likely the Chiefs vs Colts, which will feature two of the biggest gunslingers in the NFL in Patrick Mahomes and Andrew Luck. There are weather considerations for this game, as snow is expected before the game, which may help to bring down the total a bit.
