NFL Prop Bet Payday: 1 vs. 6 Division Playoff Edition

Previewing Saturday’s NFL divisional-round playoff games between the Vikings at 49ers and Titans at Ravens matchup, with NFL betting odds, picks and best bets

The two No. 1 seeds — San Francisco in the NFC and Baltimore in the AFC — arrive to the postseason dance looking to tango the first Sunday in February. They’ll take their first steps in their hopeful collision course against a pair of No. 6 seeds in Minnesota and Tennessee, respectively.

With No. 6 seeds having lost 11 of the last 12 meetings against No. 1 seeds, the chances of the 49ers and Ravens moving on look good.

But we’re not looking at final scores here. We’re looking at individual yardage prop bets that we think have a good chance of hitting.


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These are our Fab Four for the Saturday games.

NFL odds courtesy of BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports for a full set of today’s betting odds. Odds last updated Saturday at 12:30 a.m. ET.

Hands off Jimmy! Don’t Touch Jimmy!

Will 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo throw enough to hit the number on his yardage prop?(Photo credit: Kirby Lee – USA TODAY Sports)

Niners QB Jimmy Garoppolo has a pretty solid over/under for passing yards at 254.5 (-112 for both the over and the under). Despite Minnesota’s secondary being thinned by injury, this one seems about 20-30 yards too high (which is a lot). Minnesota won’t blow out the Niners, but San Francisco could blow out the Vikings. If so, expect the 49ers to run the ball more. If it is a defense-dominated game, both offenses will do what they do best — run the ball. Jimmy G is making his first playoff start and he’s likely going to come out cautious by design. He has hit over this number in just three of his last 11 games. TAKE UNDER 254.5 for too many reasons.

Dalvin and the Chest Bumps

The Vikings’ Dalvin Cook could hit his number in a couple of carries. But will the 49ers give him the room to do it? (Photo credit: Brace Hemmelgarn – USA TODAY Sports)

Dalvin Cook has an interesting line for rushing yards at 69.5. Most yardage props come in with the same bet for the over and the under. Cook’s rushing line is -125 for the over and -106 for the under. Why? Vegas wants you to bet the under. Anyone who has seen Cook play this season, he isn’t breaking off a lot of 40- or 50-yard runs, but he has a lot in the 10-20 range. At this number, Cook likely needs just two or three of those splash play runs to hit the over. Unless the Vikings fall behind by 14 or more early on, Cook will get 15-20 rushes. He can hit 70 with ease if that happens. TAKE THE OVER.

Henry Err-Run

The Titans’ Derrick Henry may be up against his biggest test of the season. (Photo credit: Jim Brown – USA TODAY Sports)

Titans running back Derrick Henry has a pretty stiff number for the over/under for rushing yards at 93.5 (-112 for both the over and under). But there is a number even more imposing — 128-31. That is the combined scores of the first quarter in the Ravens’ 16 regular-season games. Baltimore has routinely built early leads and expanded on them — the Ravens scored 294 first-half points. Tennessee has scored 146 first-half points. If those numbers come even close to replicating Saturday night, Tennessee will have to abandon the run at some point. Seeing as Henry isn’t viewed as the best receiving back on the team, Tennessee will have to keep the game close for three quarters to hit that number. TAKE THE UNDER.

Heady Lamar

How much will the availability of running back Mark Ingram impact Lamar Jackson’s passing yards on Saturday? (Photo Credit: Tommy Gilligan – USA TODAY Sports)

The Ravens’ run game will be fine whether or not Mark Ingram plays. It’s what they do. But, the Titans are likely to leave themselves open to a big play over the top and few QBs can flick 50-yard passes with the ease that Lamar Jackson can. His over/under for passing yards is 213.5 yards (-112 for both over and under). The Ravens are going to look to take advantage of the perception that all they do is run. In the last nine games, Jackson has thrown 25 or fewer passes in eight of them. If he’s going to get over that number, he will need to have a lot of yards per completion. But, at 213.5 against a defense willing to force him to pass, it LOOKS GOOD FOR THE OVER.

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Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services.  Newsrooms are independent of this relationship, and there is no influence on news coverage.

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Divisional Round: Tennessee Titans at Baltimore Ravens odds, picks and best bets

Previewing Saturday’s AFC Divisional Round showdown between the Tennessee Titans and Baltimore Ravens, with betting odds, picks and bets.

The top-seeded Baltimore Ravens (14-2) host the sixth-seed Tennessee Titans (9-7) in an AFC Divisional Round showdown at M&T Bank Stadium Saturday. Kickoff is at 8:15 p.m. ET. We analyze the Titans-Ravens odds and sports betting lines, while providing NFL betting tips and advice on this matchup.

Titans at Ravens: Divisional Round preview, betting trends and notes


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  • The Ravens come off the Wild Card Round bye on a 12-game winning streak. Eight of those victories were decided by at least two scores.
  • The Titans took down the New England Patriots 20-13 on the road in the Wild Card Round. QB Ryan Tannehill passed for just 72 yards with one touchdown and one interception as RB Derrick Henry rushed for 182 yards and a touchdown.
  • The Ravens ranked fifth in the regular season with 93.4 rushing yards allowed per game as they go up against the 2019 rushing champ in Henry.
  • Baltimore lost 23-17 to the Los Angeles Chargers in last season’s wild-card game. QB Lamar Jackson threw for 194 yards with two TDs and one INT. He added 54 rushing yards.
  • The Ravens haven’t won a Divisional Round game since 2012 when they beat the Denver Broncos 38-35 in double overtime and went on to win Super Bowl XLVII.
  • The Titans’ last second-round win came in 1999 when they beat the Indianapolis Colts 19-16 en route to a 23-16 loss to the St. Louis Rams in Super Bowl XXXIV.
  • Baltimore and Tennessee ranked No. 1 and 3, respectively, in team rushing yards per game in the regular season. The Titans ranked 12th with 104.5 yards allowed on the ground per game.
  • The Ravens are 38-2 when allowing fewer than 22 points in a game since the start of 2016. The Titans topped that number in eight of 10 regular-season games since making the switch from QB Marcus Mariota to Tannehill.

Titans at Ravens: Key injuries

The Titans made it through the Wild Card Round healthy, but the season-long losses of DL Cameron Wake (undisclosed) and CB Malcolm Butler (wrist) will be factors against the top-ranked offense of the Ravens.

Ravens RB Mark Ingram (calf) and TE Mark Andrews (ankle) are expected to play after sitting out the regular-season finale.

Titans at Ravens: Odds, betting lines and prediction

Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated Monday at 11:30 a.m. ET.

Prediction

Ravens 27, Titans 13

Moneyline (?)

The Titans (+350) pulled off the upset as road dogs against the Patriots in Round 1, but the Ravens (-455) have a much more dominant offense and will be able to pull away. Some early scores will force Tennessee to turn away from Henry and the ground attack and keep the ball in Tannehill’s hands.

These odds are far too chalky, however, so look to better odds on the spread.

New to sports betting? A $10 bet on the favored Ravens to win outright returns a profit of only $2.20. It’s not worth the minimal risk.

Against the Spread (?)

The RAVENS (-8.5, -115) are just the second-largest favorites of the week next to the Kansas City Chiefs, who are laying -9.5 points against the Houston Texans. Feel comfortable backing the home side to win by at least 9 points, as they did frequently while running the table from Week 5 on.

Baltimore was 10-6 against the spread in the regular season and covered the number by a league-high 10.2 points per game.

Over/Under (?)

The projected total of 47.5 is the second-highest of the second round, behind only Chiefs-Texans (48.5). Take the UNDER 47.5 (-110) with the Ravens expected to pull away and take away the Titans’ No. 1 scoring threat in Henry. The 13 points allowed by the Titans last week matched the second-lowest total they gave up all season.

Want action on this game? Sign up and bet at BetMGM. For more sports betting picks and tips, visit SportsbookWire.com.

Esten’s NFL betting record: 57-48

Follow @EstenMcLaren and @SportsbookWire on Twitter.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services.  Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

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