The regular season is only four weeks old, and it’s even less certain which clubs will still be competing in the postseason. All of the top Pennsylvania sportsbooks are giving new players a variety of attractive welcome bonus offers to take advantage of before to the start of Week 15.
However, as the NFL season nears its conclusion, which teams will take advantage of the situation and who will have to wait until the following year?
Playoff seeding more unclear by the day
Just a few weeks ago, most people seemed to have concluded that the Chiefs and Bills would face one other in the AFC title game, and that the Eagles in Detroit or the Lions in Philadelphia would play each other in the NFC Championship.
However, the main topics of discussion right now are the issues with these teams, the relationship between Jalen Hurts and AJ Brown, Dan Campbell’s excessive aggression, Josh Allen’s duties, and the Chiefs’ apparent incapacity to cover.
What about Baltimore?
The Ravens, who have the lowest odds (+450) of any team not currently ranked as a 1 or 2 seed, are favored by the bookies.
As I’ve said before and will say again, Lamar Jackson’s record is increasingly resembling that of the legendary Atlanta Braves of the 1990s: regular season dominance, but inconsistencies against playoff-caliber competition. Baltimore has a very favorable matchup against the Giants, as Harbaugh & Co. emerge from the bye as -16.5 road favorites.
Naturally, Jackson is not the issue in 2024, as he has been for the majority of his tenure in Baltimore. But I doubt he can make up for the team’s shortcomings in kicking, pass defense, and offensive line pass blocking. He can’t, in my opinion.
Pittsburgh is lurking
At +750, the Steelers? Yes, they have performed far better than most people anticipated, but can they win three straight postseason games after going eight years without winning? Color me doubtful.
If I believed the Chargers could defeat Kansas City, I would give them more attention at 15/1, but I’ve been down that path far too often and come up empty-handed.
The NFC is a battleground
I believe there are more significant opportunities in the NFC. Will Tampa Bay defeat Atlanta to win the NFC South? Will the Rams, who are charging hard, be able to catch up? What about Green Bay? at their previous nine games, they are 7-2, with both defeats occurring at Detroit.
I will not, however, take the Packers at 9/1 in spite of this. Although Jordan Love and his teammates are obviously talented and ready for a postseason push, they are currently 0-3 against Detroit and Philadelphia this season. Intriguing as well, the Vikings (8/1) are easy to support thanks to Sam Darnold. Do you believe Darnold can perform well when traveling to play Detroit and Philadelphia, possibly in consecutive weeks? No, I don’t.
Seattle is circling their prey
The strange thing is that the team I favor is not the Niners and it’s in the West. As I’ve been saying since he was brought away from Baltimore, Mike Macdonald turning that defense into a beast was inevitable—it was just going to take a minute. The Seattle Seahawks are headed for the division title and a difficult home game against one of those North wildcards.
However, there are now few things to dislike about Seattle and a lot to admire, particularly with Geno performing at a high-end quarterback level. If you have a pessimistic outlook, Seattle’s last stretch may surprise you at GB, MIN, CHI, and LAR, but I imagine that by New Year’s Eve, I will be celebrating my success in spotting the NFC’s rising power when they were 30/1 longshots to make it to the Super Bowl.
I still believe the Rams have a potential to make an impact in January (25/1) because my heart is as big as the Pacific Ocean. Of course, there’s the minor issue of qualifying for the playoffs first. Meanwhile, Week 15 features a number of intriguing matchups, beginning with the Philadelphia Steagles matchup:
Steelers vs. Eagles:
Prediction: Eagles 27–20
FanDuel: O/U 42.5:Over 42.5 -113
Player prop bets:
Anytime, A.J. Brown TD +155 (FanDuel)
Mike Williams -110 over 21.5 rec yards
Brown, A.J. -110 over 5.5 rec (BetMGM)
Ravens vs. Giants:
Forecast: Ravens 34-7
O/U 42.5:BetRivers, below -109
Player prop bets:
Anytime TD +500 (FanDuel), Zay Flowers
Lamar Jackson More than 2.5 touchdown passes (BetRivers) +330
Chiefs vs. Browns:
Forecast: 26-19 Chiefs
O/U 43.5:BetRivers Over +114
Player prop bets:
FanDuel: Isiah Pacheco TD +110
(BetRivers) Patrick Mahomes 25+ run yards +205
Bengals vs. Titans:
Forecast: Bengals 28–26
O/U 46.5:BetRivers Over -106
Player prop bets:
Tee Higgins DraftKings TD +150
(BetRivers) Will Levis over 229.5 throwing yards +148
Colts vs. Broncos:
Forecast: 20–19 Broncos
O/U 44:BetRivers, below -109
Player prop bets:
Anytime TD +105 for Jonathan Taylor (bet365)
Bo Nix (BetRivers) over 25 rush yards +195
Bills vs. Lions:
Forecast: 37–33 Bills
Over -102 O/U 54.5 (bet365)
Player prop bets:
Josh Allen (BetRivers) TD +120
Amon-Ra St. Brown -115 (BetRivers) 70.5+ reception yard
Jahmyr Gibbs (BetRivers) 24.5+ reception yards +112
More stories on Sports Betting
Note: Every piece of content is rigorously reviewed by our team of experienced writers and editors to ensure its accuracy. Our writers use credible sources and adhere to strict fact-checking protocols to verify all claims and data before publication. If an error is identified, we promptly correct it and strive for transparency in all updates, feel free to reach out to us via email. We appreciate your trust and support!