How To Bet On The NFL: A Beginner’s Guide

A beginner’s guide to betting on the NFL, including how to bet on the point spread, moneyline, and total points.

Introduction

If you’re new to betting on the NFL, this guide will teach you the basics so that you can get started with confidence. We’ll cover topics like how to choose an online sportsbook, what types of bets are available, and how to read NFL betting odds. By the time you’re finished reading this guide, you’ll know everything you need to start placing wagers on your favorite team.

How To Bet On The NFL

People bet on the NFL for a variety of reasons. Some people bet on their favorite team, some people bet on the team they think will win, and some people bet on the team they think will lose. There are a lot of ways to bet on the NFL, but the most popular way is to bet on the point spread. The point spread is the number of points that the oddsmakers think the better team will win by.

The Different Types of Bets

There are many types of bets that can be placed on an NFL game. The most common are the moneyline, point spread, and over/under (totals) bets.

Moneyline Bet
The moneyline is a bet on which team will win the game outright, regardless of the point spread. If you bet on the favorite, you will win less money than you bet if they win, but if you bet on the underdog and they win, you will win more money than you bet.

Point Spread Bet
The point spread is a bet on how much better one team is than another. The favorite will have to win by more points than the point spread for a bet on them to pay off, while an underdog only needs to lose by less points than the point spread for a bet on them to pay off.

Over/Under Bet
The over/under (or totals) is a bet on whether the two teams will score more or less than a certain number of points combined.

Moneyline

In football, the Moneyline bet is price of a given team to win the game outright. No point spreads are involved. If you bet on Team A at -200, you need to risk $200 to win $100. If you bet on Team B at +150, you need to risk $100 to win $150. A Moneyline bet is also called a Straight-Up bet.

Point Spread

The most common type of NFL bet is the point spread bet. In this type of bet, the sportsbook will set a point spread for the favored team and the underdog. The favored team will have to win by more than the point spread for a bet on them to win, while the underdog can lose by less than the point spread and still win the bet.

For example, let’s say that the New England Patriots are playing the Buffalo Bills and the Patriots are favored to win by 7 points. If you bet on the Patriots, they would have to win by more than 7 points for you to win your bet. If they won by 7 points, it would be a push (a tie) and you would get your money back. If they won by less than 7 points, you would lose your bet.

If you bet on the Bills in this example, they would have to lose by less than 7 points for you to win your bet. If they lost by 7 points, it would be a push and you would get your money back. If they lost by more than 7 points, you would lose your bet.

Future

The future book is where you can bet on NFL outcomes that haven’t happened yet. This is usually done at the end of the regular season or the beginning of the playoffs. For example, let’s say that you want to bet on who will win Super Bowl 54. The Kansas City Chiefs are currently +350 to win (wager $100 to win $350), while the New England Patriots are +500 and the Los Angeles Rams are +600.

Prop

In football, a prop is a type of bet that doesn’t necessarily have anything to do with the final outcome of the game. Instead, props are bets on individual player or team milestones that will occur during the game. For example, a prop bet might be: “Which player will catch the most passes in the game?” or “How many yards will the leading rusher have?”

Prop bets can be made on both team and individual statistics, and they’re usually offered for the entire game, not just for specific quarters or halves. In some cases, props may also be offered for special events that happen outside of the game itself, like the coin toss or who will score the first touchdown.

While props can be found in other sports, they are most commonly associated with football. That’s because football offers a wide range of potential outcomes and statistics that can be bet on, making it the perfect sport for prop bets.

Conclusion

Now that you have a firm understanding of how to bet on the NFL, you can begin placing wagers with confidence. Remember to always do your research before placing any bets and to never bet more than you can afford to lose. With a little practice, you’ll be an expert in no time!