2021-2022 NFL Playoffs Wild Card Betting Odds And Picks

After the longest regular season in NFL history, the NFL Playoffs are finally here.

This year, the NFL announced Wild Card weekend would feature a playoff game on Monday night.

The NFL Wild Card weekend will provide us a jam-packed weekend with six total games, three on Saturday, two on Sunday, and for the first time, one game featured on Monday Night.

Below we will break down each of those six games and provide you with analysis, betting odds, and picks.

Las Vegas Raiders At Cincinnati Bengals

For the first time, the Las Vegas Raiders will be making an appearance in the NFL Playoffs. Before the Raiders moved to Las Vegas, they only made one appearance since their Super Winning season back in 2002.

On the other side, the Cincinnati Bengals are back in the playoffs for the first time since 2015. The Dynamic duo of Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase looks to end a drought of eight straight playoff losses.

Raiders	vs.	Bengals
+200	Moneyline	-240
+5.5 (-110)	Spread	-5.5 (-110)
O 49 (-110)	Total	U 49 (-110)
Bet On Raiders vs. Bengals At BetUS

Las Vegas Raiders @ Cincinnati Bengals Game Info:

• Date: Saturday, January 15^th, 2022 | 4:30 PM ET
• Venue: Paul Brown Stadium, Cincinnati, OH
• TV: NBC

The Cincinnati Bengals opened up as -6.5 point favorites, and with heavy action coming in on the Raiders early, the line has dropped to -5.5.

A lot of the action could be recency bias as the Raiders pulled off an impressive upset win against the Los Angeles Chargers last week to punch their ticket to get into the playoffs. 

This Wild Card matchup will be the second time these two teams face off against each other, as they met in week 11 when the Bengals won on the road 32-13.

With both Quarterbacks making their playoff debut, it will be interesting how each Head Coach decides to let this play out.

Both Derek Carr and Joe Burrow have been very successful in throwing the ball, and if they are allowed to let the ball fly, this could be one of the highest-scoring games of the weekend.

Both teams are below average on defense, ranking 17th and 19th in total Defensive DVOA.

New England Patriots At Buffalo Bills

Ding, Ding, Round 3 Begin! These division foes are getting ready to battle for the third time this year. New England and Buffalo split their season series, with the home team losing each time. 

The Buffalo Bills have won the AFC East title for the second straight year and looking to live up to their preseason Super Bowl or bust expectations. Their first obstacle? Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots.

Life after Tom Brady has officially begun, and they are back in the postseason for the first time since Brady left for Tampa Bay.

Patriots	vs.	Bills
+170	Moneyline	-200
+4 (-110)	Spread	-4 (-110)
O 44 (-110)	Total	U 44 (-110)
Bet On Patriots vs. Bills At BetUS

New England Patriots @ Buffalo Bills Game Info:

• Date: Saturday, January 15^th, 2021 | 8:15 PM ET
• Venue: Bills Stadium, Orchard Park, NY
• TV: CBS

This line hasn’t moved since the odds were first released, meaning the oddsmaker got this line right and is receiving money on both sides.

While both teams are evenly matched up on paper, I’d give the Bills a slight edge because of the Quarterback play. Josh Allen is an MVP candidate and having another stellar year, while the Patriots are going with rookie quarterback Mac Jones.

Jones is having a great year and is a candidate for Rookie of the Year, but historically rookie QBs don’t play well in their playoff debut.

Quarterbacks making their playoff debut against a quarterback with at least one previous postseason start under their belt have gone 14-30 straight up and 12-31-1 ATS since 2002.

Mac Jones has faltered down the stretch, with five interceptions over his final four games and under 60% completion rate. Look for Josh to play well at home and make plays with his legs when needed.

Philadelphia Eagles At Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Another quarterback is making his playoff debut as Jalen Hurts and the Eagles travel to Tampa Bay to take on the defending Super Bowl Champions.

Hurts and the Eagles look to avenge their 22-28 loss against these same Buccaneers back in Week 6. The Eagles went 7-2 over its last nine games to clinch a playoff spot for the 4th time in the previous five years.

Eagles	vs.	Buccaneers
+320	Moneyline	-400
+9.5 (-120)	Spread	-9.5 (EV)
O 47 (-110)	Total	U 47 (-110)
Bet On Eagles vs. Buccaneers At BetUS

Philadelphia Eagles @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers Game Info:

• Date: Sunday, January 16^th, 2021 | 1:00 PM ET
• Venue: Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, FL
• TV: Fox

The growth of Jalen Hurts in his second season has been fun to watch, and this Eagles team is very easy to root for, but unfortunately, the ride comes to an end during Wild Card weekend.

Philly went on a nice 7-2 run to end the season, but looking at its competition over that span helps understand why they were able to make the run they did.

Of those seven wins, two came against the Giants, another two wins over the Football Team, and wins over the Jets and Broncos, all teams in the league’s bottom half.

As for the defending Super Bowl Champs, the Buccaneers locked up the NFC Title and are poised to make a run to defend tier title. This season wasn’t as smooth as last year, but they did what they needed to do and now look to duplicate last year’s success.

For the second straight postseason, they’ll start their journey against an NFC East foe. Last season was Washington; this season, it’s Philadelphia. I’d expect Tom Brady and the Bucs to move past Wild Card weekend with ease with similar success.

San Francisco 49ers At Dallas Cowboys

Let one of the oldest, most storied rivalries begin again. These two teams have met in the playoffs on seven occasions, the first time since 1994 in which the 49ers went on to win the Super Bowl that year.

This game has the potential to be the best game of the weekend. Both teams are playing extremely well heading into the playoffs and have the capabilities to make a Super Bowl run.

49ers	vs.	Cowboys
+140	Moneyline	-160
+3 (-105)	Spread	-3 (-115)
O 51 (-110)	Total	U 51 (-110)
Bet On 49ers vs. Cowboys At BetUS

San Francisco 49ers @ Dallas Cowboys Game Info:

• Date: Saturday, January 16^th, 2021 | 4:30 PM ET
• Venue: AT&T Stadium, Arlington, TX
• TV: CBS and Nickelodeon

The Cowboys started the season as one of the hottest offenses in the league, scoring 30+ points in four of its first six games.

But the Cowboys’ offense really struggled in the second half of the season, and it all starts with quarterback Dak Prescott. Dak hasn’t looked 100% since coming back from his ankle and calf injuries.

Running the ball on offense and stopping the run on defense has really been a problem for Dallas, and that could pose a huge issue going up against the 49ers. The 49ers rank 5th in Rushing DVOA and average 127.4 rushing yards per game, which is 7th best in the NFL. 

The health and status of Trent Williams, George Kittle, and Jimmy Garoppolo are a little concerning, but if all three are healthy and play on Sunday, I have San Francisco pulling off the upset and winning outright.

Pittsburgh Steelers At Kansas City Chiefs

I am still trying to figure out how the Steelers snuck their way into the playoffs. Big Ben’s retirement tour will be extended at least one more week as the Steelers travel to Kansas City looking to dethrone the back-to-back AFC Champion Chiefs.

Beating the Chiefs is a tough task in itself, but knowing the Steelers just got blown out by these same Chiefs 36-10 two weeks ago makes it that much harder.

Steelers	vs.	Chiefs
+500	Moneyline	-700
+13 (-120)	Spread	-13 (EV)
O 46 (-110)	Total	U 46 (-110)
Bet On Steelers vs. Chiefs At BetUS

Pittsburgh Steelers @ Kansas City Chiefs Game Info:

• Date: Sunday, January 16^th, 2021 | 8:15 PM ET
• Venue: Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, MO
• TV: NBC

Almost three months ago, the Kansas City Chiefs were 4-4, and everyone was starting to write them off and end their 2-year dynasty.

Now fast forward to the present; the Chiefs are one of the hottest teams heading into the playoffs, winning six of their last seven games and finally figuring out their issues on offense.

This is the biggest mismatch of Wild Card weekend, and I expect the final score to reflect that. The Steelers lucked their way into the postseason and really don’t do anything great.

They rank 29th in the league in rushing yards per game at 93.1 and 15th in passing yards per game with 222.2 yards. Defensively they aren’t much better as they rank 20th in opponents per game (23.4).

Arizona Cardinals At Los Angeles Rams

This is the second matchup for the NFL Wild Card Weekend that will be facing off for the thirst time this season.

Once again, these two division foes split their season series, with the home team losing each time. 

This matchup should provide some fireworks. Kyler Murray finally makes his playoff debut along with the Rams’ high-powered offense led by Cooper Kupp and newcomers Matt Stafford and Odell Beckham Jr.

Cardinals	vs.	Rams
+170	Moneyline	-200
+4 (-110)	Spread	-4 (-110)
O 49.5 (-110)	Total	U 49.5 (-110)
Bet On Cardinals vs. Rams At BetUS

Arizona Cardinals @ Los Angeles Rams Game Info:

• Date: Monday, January 19^th, 2021 | 8:15 PM ET
• Venue: SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, CA
• TV: ABC, ESPN

Ideally, you want to hit your stride heading into the playoffs and getting hot at the right time. The exact opposite has been happening for the Arizona Cardinals.

Arizona went 1-4 its last five games, entering the postseason and allowing 354 yards per game which is the worst in the league.

Matt Stafford and the Rams offense have been inconsistent at times but seem to be hitting their stride as they won the last 6 of 7 games and have put up at least 325 yards offensively in every game but one since their bye week. 

Stafford is 0-3 in the playoffs, but that was back with the Detroit Lions, and his supporting cast is better than ever. Also, the Rams have won nine of the last 10 in this rivalry, with the Cards failing even to reach double digits in half of those games.

Coach Sean McVay is 4-1-1 against the spread (ATS) head-to-head against Kingsbury.