Betting Odds For Week 14 NFL Games
Week 14 of the NFL season came and went like the rest of the 2017-2018; that is to say, it had more ups-and-downs than we usually see the league go through in all but the most turbulent years. Nevertheless, taking a look back at week’s proceedings will help us understand why the betting odds for Week 14 NFL games ended up like they did and may also provide some insight for bettors about the teams that survived into the post-season. The current NFL betting odds for Week 14 were available through leading offshore sportsbooks sites like Bovada, BetOnline, SportsBetting and 5Dimes, all of which list updated betting lines each week of every season.
Late in the NFL season, teams aren't taking bye weeks anymore. That means even more games per week than usual, and lots of opportunities for sports bettors to lay down money on high-value contests. By this point in the season, the top teams will have already secured spots in the playoffs while, at the same time, Divisional battles make just about every game consequential. Let's take a look back at the best the NFL had to offer in Week 14.
Week 14 Thursday Night Matchup
On Thursday of Week 14, New Orleans made the comparatively short trip over to Atlanta to take on the Falcons in front of their enthusiastic home crowd. Though both these teams made it into the Playoffs, it was the Dirty Birds that came out on top on the night of Dec. 7, 2017, if however narrowly. ATL outlasted the Saints and scored 10 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to secure a fairly tight 20-17 victory. Who knows – maybe this late-season game could portend a rematch deeper into the Playoff brackets?
Notable Sunday Matchups For Week 14
With the majority of the games of the weekly NFL docket scheduled for Sunday, it should come as no surprise that there were many notable Sunday matchups for Week 14 of the 2017-2018 season. We saw Playoffs-bound teams like the Minnesota Vikings fall to those that didn’t make the cut like the Carolina Panthers (31-24), we saw the woefully bad Denver blank the even worse New York Jets to the tune of 23-0. We even saw some really strange and inconceivable upsets like the 12-7 victory Arizona posted over the Tennessee Titans, which is still looking good even into the Playoffs proper. It just goes to show that even late in the season there is still plenty of drama to be had for sports fans and sports bettors as well. This week showed that it’s often a tempting proposition to take the underdog, even against one’s better judgement.
Week 14 Sunday Night Football Matchup
The Sunday Night Football entry of Week 14 was one of the more exciting editions of the venerable prime-time game. Baltimore almost – almost – took out the Pittsburgh Steelers, though the PA team squeaked by 39-38. The Steelers, led by Le’Veon Bell, ran up a 14-0 lead fairly early in the game, but Baltimore wasn’t to be put away that easily, retaliating all along on the back of some good passes by Joe Flacco and timely runs by Alex Collins. The Ravens actually managed to take the lead with 5:20 to go in the third quarter on a 1-yard scramble from Javorius Allen, and they scored again with 2:43 remaining on a short Flacco pass to Patrick Ricard to make it 31-20 going into the final period of play. But the Steelers weren’t having it, scoring 19 points to Baltimore’s 7 in a wild conclusion to an already crazy game, ultimately sealing the deal, however inconclusive the conclusion was.
Week 14 Monday Night Football Matchup
As nutty as Sunday Night Football was, the Week 14 Monday Night Football matchup was even more incredible. The mighty New England Patriots were gunned down 27-20 by the lowly Miami Dolphins. That’s the same Miami Dolphins that finished third in the AFC East Division with a pretty lousy 6-10 record on the year and not a Playoff hope in sight. How did it happen? Well, let’s just say Miami straight up worked Brady, Belichick and the Boys, staying just enough ahead to keep out of trouble then holding strong in the fourth quarter when the Pats went on a 10-0 push to snatch a comeback. Dolphins kicker Cody Parkey put up the first points of the game with field goals of 30 and 44 yards, then QB Jay Cutler hooked up with Jarvis Landry and Jakeem Grant on a couple occasions in the first and third quarter, but this wasn’t a terribly high-scoring game and it didn’t help the Fish to do anything in the post-season while the Pats are still the favorite to win the Super Bowl; Miami just had it and the Patriots didn’t on the night.