The NFL Playoffs are the dominant sport this weekend. Two games on Saturday, followed by three on Sunday.
The staff at Tipico Sportsbook takes a look at the five games and offers a best bet for each one.
(logo/link) At Tipico Sportsbook Colorado and New Jersey customers can deposit $100 or more of real money on their first deposit to receive up to $500 in protected bets!
Cleveland Browns at Houston Texans
C.J. Stroud has already proven to be a franchise quarterback by leading the 10-7 Houston Texans to the AFC South Division title in his rookie season.
The 11-6 Cleveland Browns have a superior roster from top to bottom. Cleveland finished with the fewest scrimmage yards allowed per game (270.2). Houston’s defense ranked in the middle of the pack (330.7).
Stroud is 22 years old and Cleveland counterpart Joe Flacco is nearly 39, but Flacco racked up a 4-1 record as the team’s fourth starting QB with 1,616 yards passing. He had multiple touchdown passes in all five starts.
The Texans are banged up at wide receiver, as Noah Brown (back) and Robert Woods (hip) both sat out the must-win Week 18 game against the Colts, and exciting rookie Tank Dell hit the IR back in November. Houston won 23-19, partly because Colts coach Shane Steichen’s subbed out star running back Jonathan Taylor for fourth-string Tyler Goodson, who failed to catch a pass on a late 4th-and-1 deep inside Houston territory.
Star pass rusher Myles Garrett and cornerback Denzel Ward should help the Browns slow down Houston’s passing game. Taking away the splashy plays to keep the Houston crowd quiet will be key to Cleveland’s chances.
Best Bet: Browns moneyline (-145)
Watch: Saturday, 4:30 p.m. ET, NBC or fuboTV
Miami Dolphins at Kansas City Chiefs
The Kansas City Chiefs survived down years from Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce. They also had some of the worst wide receiver play in the league. Rookie Rashee Rice’s late-season emergence did help, but they still finished 11-6.
The Miami Dolphins were 11-6 as well, but were 1-5 with a -91-point differential against teams that made the playoffs. The speedy team is built for nice weather, but KC is expected to get a snowstorm this week followed by a cold front.
Mahomes is 9-1 in his playoff career at Arrowhead Stadium, and this is probably the best defense he has had to support him. The Chiefs allowed 17.3 points per game, second fewest behind Baltimore’s 16.5. Tyreek Hill will do all he can to help the Dolphins beat his former team, but Miami’s other playmakers are banged up.
The Chiefs beat the Dolphins by a touchdown in Germany during the regular season, and the gap could be even larger with KC’s home-field advantage.
Best Bet: Chiefs -3.5 (-108)
Watch: Saturday, 8:15 p.m. ET, Peacock
(logo/link) At Tipico Sportsbook Colorado and New Jersey customers can deposit $100 or more of real money on their first deposit to receive up to $500 in protected bets!
Pittsburgh Steelers at Buffalo Bills
These two teams have the longest winning streaks among AFC playoff teams. The Buffalo Bills with five straight and the Pittsburgh Steelers with three. The Bills are the clear favorites, especially with perennial DPOY candidate T.J. Watt (knee) likely unavailable for the Steelers.
But covering a 10-point spread could be too much to ask. Since Week 5, the Bills have won by more than seven points only twice. Meanwhile, the Steelers have found new life on offense since inserting Mason Rudolph under center, averaging 27 PPG while going 3-0.
Pittsburgh likely will try to shorten the game with a run-heavy approach and win the turnover battle. Luckily for the Steelers, their running game heated up down the stretch, while Bills quarterback Josh Allen is both a touchdown and turnover machine. In the last two games of the season, Najee Harris had two straight 100-yard games and three touchdowns total.
Allen posted 44 combined passing and rushing TDs for Buffalo but also threw 18 interceptions and fumbled seven times, losing four.
Best Bet: Steelers +10 (-110)
Watch: Sunday, 1 p.m. ET, CBS or fuboTV
Green Bay Packers at Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys had some of the NFL’s widest home/road splits, going 8-0 at home while averaging 37.4 PPG and giving up 15.9 PPG. Dallas’ offense excels at AT&T Stadium, where the crowd quiets down enough when the Cowboys have the ball for Dak Prescott to yell his now-signature “Yeah, here we go!” pre-snap. That cadence is used to help clue in the offense on the upcoming play and dictate the snap count.
Post-snap, the Prescott to CeeDee Lamb connection has been on fire all season. Prescott led the league with 36 passing TDs, while Lamb led the league with 135 receptions. He finished second to Tyreek Hill with 1,749 receiving yards. That is just one receiving TD back of the league lead shared by Hill and Mike Evans.
While Dallas went 12-5 to claim the No. 2 seed, the Green Bay Packers were lucky to make the postseason at 9-8. The Packers beat up on the weak NFC North, going a combined 3-1 against the Vikings and Bears, who both finished 7-10. Green Bay also were fortunate to face the Rams while Matthew Stafford was injured, and they were down 17-0 to the Saints before Derek Carr’s injury helped propel a Packers comeback.
Take away those two injuries and the Packers would likely join the Vikings and Bears at 7-10. While quarterback Jordan Love making the playoffs in his first year as a starter is a nice story, this game should be one-way traffic in Dallas’ favor.
Best Bet: Cowboys -7.5 (-108)
Watch: Sunday 4:30 p.m. ET, FOX or fuboTV
Los Angeles Rams at Detroit Lions
What a time for former Detroit Lions QB Matthew Strafford’s first visit back to Ford Field. After spending 12 years in Detroit, Stafford was traded to the Los Angeles Rams prior to the 2021 season. Stafford won a Super Bowl in his first year with Los Angeles. This year he has the Rams back in the playoffs this year at 10-7.
With Stafford slinging it, coach Sean McVay calling the plays, record-setting rookie Puka Nacua joining Cooper Kupp as a threat at WR, Kyren Williams breaking out as one of the NFL’s best running backs, and Aaron Donald still causing plenty of interior pressure at age 32, the Rams have playmakers up and down the roster. They are also playing their best football, having won seven of their last eight games.
The Lions (12-5) have home-field advantage, but their pursuit of the 12th win came at a cost, as standout rookie tight end Sam LaPorta hurt his knee in the season finale and is unlikely to play Sunday. Detroit still has an elite backfield duo with David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs, plus a star pass catcher for Goff to throw to in Amon-Ra St. Brown. But the loss of LaPorta could prove costly for a franchise searching for its first playoff win since the 1991 season.
Gibbs and Montgomery combined for 24 scrimmage touchdowns in the regular season, while the Rams’ seven TDs allowed to RBs were tied with the Buccaneers for the fewest in the NFL, so that matchup could be the key.
Best Bet: Rams moneyline (+145)
Watch: Sunday, 8:15 p.m. ET, NBC or fuboTV
(logo/link) At Tipico Sportsbook Colorado and New Jersey customers can deposit $100 or more of real money on their first deposit to receive up to $500 in protected bets!
