Even on a day when the Giants, one of the worst teams in the NFL, won outright, the STN Sports Books still managed to get hammered like a New Year’s Eve reveler.
On Sunday, every single favorite won and covered, with the exception of the New York football Giants. This is undoubtedly the story of the 2024 NFL season — favorites win one week, then the next week and then the next. The story is being recycled like a sappy Christmas tree.
“Favorites are winning at a historic clip, the highest that I can ever remember,” said Chuck Esposito, Station Casinos Race and Sports Book Director. “So, although the Giants game definitely helped out and inverted a catastrophe, it wasn’t quite enough to give us a late Christmas present from our side of the counter.”
With all that in mind, let’s quickly review the past week in sports and peek at what’s ahead on the STN Sports app and the STN Sports Books…
Ravens Big Favorites
The Baltimore Ravens are favored by an astronomical number — three possessions — against the Browns on Saturday. It’s believed to be the largest spread in three years.
Should Baltimore win on Saturday, they will win the AFC North and become the No. 3 seed in the playoffs, and there’s little reason to believe they won’t prevail. “When you look at the way the Browns played against the Dolphins, they could muster nothing,” Esposito said. “Their offense is dismal, and now you’re playing in Baltimore. How do you score? Baltimore is probably going to score close somewhere between 30 and 40 points. I don’t see a scenario where the Browns can score 12 points.”
Of course, what happens if the Ravens are up big and sit their starters? Can Cleveland pull off the old backdoor cover? Esposito has his doubts, adding, “I’m not sure the Browns starters are good enough to compete with the Ravens’ second and third and fourth stringers. That’s the key.”
NFC North Night
Sunday night will offer a whale of a game with massive implications: Minnesota at Detroit. The winner takes the NFC North and gets home field advantage throughout the playoffs. The loser will have to start a playoff run on the road without a bye week. This game is bigger than a post-Christmas meal waistline. The Lions have been talked about all season long, but the Vikings — who enter Sunday night’s game as field goal underdogs — might be the least-hyped, most under-the-radar 14-win team ever.
“I think there’s some value with the Vikings,” Esposito said. “They only lost to Detroit by two points earlier in the season. I think they’re playing great.” Detroit, meanwhile, has continued to win despite an absolute haul of injuries to star players and rotation guys. In a way, Minnesota is playing with house money, as they were projected to finish dead last in the NFC North.
“There’s much more pressure on Detroit, who’s kind of been the darling and the number one seed the entire year. If they lose that game on Sunday night, it’s almost catastrophic,” Esposito said. “In Detroit’s case, you could go from the No. 1 seed to a wild card team. You played every game but three in a dome this year, and you now have to play every game outdoors. It flips the entire script in the NFC dramatically if the Lions lose Sunday night. I think there’s more pressure on the Lions than any team this upcoming week.”
Week 18 Betting
The final installment of the NFL season is usually the single most challenging week to bet, given that some teams have nothing to play for. The Chiefs, for instance, have already locked up the No. 1 seed and are now double-digit underdogs against the Broncos, who have plenty to play for.
Houston vs. Tennessee only has NFL draft implications, as does San Francisco vs. Arizona. Several games are meaningless. Does Philly rest its starters knowing they’ve already secured the No. 2 seed and can’t move from the seed? Probably.
“It’s hard for the guests to bet this week, but it’s that hard for us, as well,” Esposito said. “It’s almost like an exhibition week. It’s a really tough week for us, where you’re going to see way more dramatic line moves a lot quicker than you’ve probably ever seen during the regular season.”
VGK
The Vegas Golden Knights were supposed to toil in obscurity this season, be a middle-of-the-road team and rebuild like I-15/Tropicana project, but they seemed to have other plans. VGK is off to its best start ever.
“We’re losing them on a nightly basis on the puck line, on the over and on the Knights, so hockey has not been good for us,” Esposito said. “We love it from a fan side, but from the Book side, there haven’t been many bright spots.”
Bets To Know
We’re still Bowl-ing! As we cross into the new year, the STN Sports App and the sportsbooks continue to see tons of action on college football, as the stakes continue to build to the championship.
Weekly Winners
A huge $5 parlay to win $847 this past Sunday! Congrats to this STN Sports bettor:
-Commanders/Falcons over 47
-Commanders -4
-Bills -10
-Bengals -3
-Chargers -5.5
-Dolphins -6.5
-Eagles -7.5
-Cowboys/Eagles over 38