Nfl Parlay Betting Strategy

A football parlay betting strategy can help you churn consistent income without much research or effort. A successful parlay can give a sizable push to your bankroll, on a relatively small outlay. Also known as accumulator bet, combo bet or multi bet, a parlay combines two or more wager legs. NFL Betting Strategy #2 Teams on the Road for the 2nd Straight Week. Since 2015 the teams that have been on the road on week 1 and week 2 generally have a poor success rate as they have had to play an opening game in front of a large opposition crowd that is ready and excited for the new season.

Learn to shop for the best lines and make the most of time-tested strategies to get an edge on the public and your sportsbook. Sports betting is hard, and we want to see you get the best possible return on your investment. With these tips n’ tricks, you’ll be betting like a sharp in no time. Let’s talk strategy! A parlay bet is a combination of individual bets that are made in tandem. These bets allow a bettor to risk a small amount of money in hopes of scoring a big payday. In the example on the left, there are two unrelated games that we can combine into one bet. At most sportsbooks, one can add up to fifteen games to a parlay.

If you are looking to bet on the NFL to make money you have found the right website. Sure, betting adds a lot of excitement to watching the NFL games, but here at TheSportsGeek.com we are in it to make money over the course of each NFL season.

Making a profit of the course of the NFL season is tough, and the average bettor will not do it, but I am here to give you a few NFL betting tips and strategies (most that follow the normal sports betting strategies) that will help you have a better shot at making money this NFL season.

NFL Betting Strategy Articles (Advanced):

» Teaser Betting Strategy
» Prop Betting Strategy
» How To Get Max Value When Betting
» Future Betting Strategy
» NFL Bye Week Betting Strategy

Basic NFL Betting Strategies and Tips

Did you know that you need to hit above 52.4% of your NFL bets (assuming you are betting -110 odds) in order to profit? Doesn’t sound too hard does it? It is actually extremely tough to do, and only the best of the best can consistently hit 53%+ winners year in and year out in the NFL.

Use the basic NFL betting strategies below to help you on your way to a profiting NFL season.

#1 NFL Betting Strategy – Money/Bankroll Management

When you are betting on the NFL season you will want to set aside a certain amount of money to bet with that you can afford to lose, known as your “bankroll”. I suggest you either make a weekly bankroll, monthly bankroll, or full season bankroll (I do full season).

For example, you may set aside a $3000 bankroll for the full NFL season that you can use to bet with. A general rule of thumb for NFL betting I go by is to only use 2-5% of my bankroll for each bet. In this example, it would allow us to make $60-$150 wagers on each game we bet. You can use 2% for your smaller plays and 5% for plays you really like.

One common mistake is to increase the size of your bets as you start winning or to chase losses with biggers bets – remember the NFL is a long season and to profit over the course of the season you need to manage your money smartly.

#2 NFL Betting Strategy – Look For Weekly Edges

I can’t believe how many times I will see bettors who play every game (or close to) in the NFL each week. This is a recipe for disaster in the long run – to be a winning NFL bettor you need to find edges and capitalize on them.

Find what you think may be an edge in the NFL lines and make your bets based on that. Some weeks you may be making 4 bets, some weeks 6 NFL bets, and hell some weeks even just 1 or 2 NFL bets on the whole weekend. Don’t force bets because you want action and want to make the NFL games more exciting. If you want to make a profit this NFL season find a few good plays each weekend and bet them with 2-5% of your bankroll like we mentioned above.

#3 NFL Betting Strategy – Line Shopping

Nfl Football Parlay Card Picks

In order to have the best opportunity of making money this NFL season, you will need to make sure you do a little bit of “line shopping”. Line shopping is simply checking a few different sportsbooks and comparing the lines on the plays you like. For example, you may like the Bears to cover the 5 point spread on Monday night. Before you place your wager you should check other sportsbooks, as one of them might have the Bears listed as 4.5 point favorites instead of 5 point favorites.

I suggest you sign up at 3-4 of the best NFL sportsbooks listed in our Online Sportsbook section and compare the lines on each before you make any bets this NFL season. This NFL betting strategy can help you win a few extra wagers this NFL season and help you on your way to a winning season!

#4 NFL Betting Strategy – Bet Sober and Don’t Tilt

Bet Sober – This may seem pretty obvious, but there are hundreds of thousands of bettors who don’t follow this week in and week out during the NFL season. Do you think it’s a coincidence that Vegas casinos offer gamblers free alcoholic drinks? Drinking will impair your judgment while betting – save the beers for when the games start and you are done making bets.

Don’t Tilt – Everyone losses. Even the best NFL handicappers lose bets 40% of the time. Don’t let your emotions get the best of you. Some bettors may take a few bad losses and start to make very poor decisions as their emotions have taken over. Make sure you have a clear mind when making your NFL bets. If you feel like you are on tilt go for a walk or do something to calm down and don’t bet until you are back to your normal state of mind.

You are now ready to become a winning NFL bettor – Follow our Sports Picks for weekly NFL prediction articles and sign up at Bovada.lv for a $250 Free Money bonus for this NFL season!

See All Guides

Betting on the NFL isn’t necessarily easy, but making smarter bets is always possible for those motivated to learn a bit of new strategy.

Try these nine thoughtful tips when wagering at online football betting sites and watch your bankroll grow.

1. Bet With Your Head, Not Your Heart

It may sound obvious, but avoiding emotion when wagering remains a challenge for many bettors. We all have our personal biases. Whether it’s a favorite team or one we despise, putting aside these preferences isn’t easy.

But here’s the thing: becoming more objective towards NFL betting online is literally the easiest way to make smarter bets. It doesn’t require a detailed strategy on mathematical analysis, it just requires common sense.

Cheering on your favorite team (at least) 16 times per year is a lot of fun, but losing money in the process is not. To become a smarter bettor, be aware of your biases and try to avoid decisions based solely on favoritism.

2. Pay Attention to Where the Game Is Played

Home-field advantage matters, and it matters more at certain stadiums. For example, the New England Patriots, went 42-6 straight-up (32-14-2 ATS) at home from 2014-2018. The Seahawks also perform exceptionally well in Seattle: they are 92-31 at home since 2003.

But they’re not the only two teams with such an advantage. Do your research by comparing each team’s home vs. away record when handicapping for home team advantage.

West Coast teams traveling to the Eastern Time Zone tend to have less difficulty overcoming the time change, but East Coast teams are at an inherent disadvantage when forced to play on the Pacific Coast, three hours later than they’re used to.

There are also teams who don’t travel well. From 2014-2018 (a five-season span), the San Francisco 49ers were a terrible 9-31 on the road, third-worst in the league. They weren’t much better against the spread, going 16-22-2 (fourth-worst in the NFL). The Texans also struggled to cover the spread on the road in 2016, posting a 2-6 record ATS.

Knowing where and when the teams played the previous week is also an important factor to consider. Some teams suffer from real disadvantages. West Coast teams traveling to the Eastern Time Zone tend to have less difficulty overcoming the time change, but East Coast teams are at an inherent disadvantage when forced to play on the Pacific Coast, three hours later than they’re used to.

Lastly, certain dome (indoor) teams can struggle to perform outdoors. For example, Drew Brees’ passer rating drops from 102.5 in a dome to 90.3 when playing outdoors. And this is all extremely useful information for bettors.

3. Know the Individual Matchups

Football is often referred to as the ultimate team sport, but there are certain one-on-one matchups that can dramatically affect the outcome of a game.

For example, a weak offensive tackle should not be expected to perform well against the premier edge-rushers in the league. Pay attention to major skill discrepancies between players who will be going head-to-head.

Coaches are perhaps the most significant head-to-head matchups that bettors should consider. Every coach uses recurring strategies that fare very well against some opponents and flop against others. Coaches get to know each other’s approaches to the game, and some are better at responding to these strategic considerations.

A great example of this is Tom Coughlin and Bill Belichick. The Patriots have been dominant since Belichick has been steering the ship, but he was 2-5 when coaching against Coughlin following the 2018 season.

4. Know More than Just the Trends

When it comes to betting on NFL games, following the trends isn’t a bad idea — patterns sometimes provide valuable information. For example, from 2010 to 2018, the Bears went 12-5 ATS when coming off a bye week, while the 49ers, on the other hand, were just 5-11 ATS in that same time frame.

The sharpest bettors always look at the context behind the numbers when evaluating statistical trends.

Noticing that a team just scored 49 points the previous week doesn’t necessarily mean that their offense is firing on all cylinders. Go back and look at how all the points were scored. Maybe a defensive back fell down to allow a long touchdown pass. Perhaps the defense scored a couple of those touchdowns. Maybe they were just playing the Browns.

The sharpest bettors always look at the context behind the numbers.

Football Parlay Bet

5. Check the Injury Reports

As we mentioned, football is the ultimate team game, and small changes can throw off the entire unit. Make sure you know which players have missed practice during the week, what their status is for the upcoming game, and what role they play on the team.

Team injury reports can be a little vague, so it’s always a good idea to check the Twitter accounts of beat-writers for each team. Often, they will provide a little more detail.

6. Take Caution with Divisional Matchups

Teams that play each other twice per season get to know each other very well, and even bad teams tend to dig a little deeper when they are battling a division rival.

Looking to 2016, the Jacksonville Jaguars, Chicago Bears, and San Francisco 49ers were three of the bottom-four teams in the NFL, but they all posted a 4-2 record ATS within their respective divisions.

Even though one team may appear superior on paper, divisional matchups are often much closer than anticipated. This makes the great choices to bet on the NFL point spread, but they can be risky choices on the moneyline.

7. Don’t Fall in Love with Value

Betting the underdog on the moneyline can certainly pay off, but you need to consider why long odds are so long in the first place. Make sure you have very specific reasons and logic behind taking a +800 underdog on the moneyline, because you can be sure the sportsbook used reason and logic to set that moneyline in the first place.

We strongly recommend limiting parlays and teasers to 2-5 events when betting on the NFL.

You also need to be careful when constructing parlays and teasers. Don’t load them up with too many events. NFL teams are generally closely-matched compared to other sports, and it’s far too difficult to correctly predict the outcome of more than a handful of games. We strongly recommend limiting parlays and teasers to 2-5 events.

8. Monitor the Lines Throughout the Week

Monitoring the betting lines throughout the week is a big part of maximizing your chances. Some online books may provide more favorable NFL odds, and as the week progresses, you may find the odds change.

It’s important to keep in mind the influence of public perception here. Popular teams like the Dallas Cowboys, Green Bay Packers, and New England Patriots will always have loyal supporters betting with their hearts. They’re often referred to as public teams, and it’s very likely they’ll be more heavily favored than the statistics suggest they should be.

If you’re planning on betting against the public, wait around and let emotional bettors drive the odds in your favor. Conversely, if you’re planning to bet on a public team, jumping on an early line is likely the best decision.

9. Diversify Your NFL Bets

There is success to be had betting on the moneyline, the spread, and game totals. But to maximize your success, it’s crucial to know all the alternative bets you can make.

Many sportsbooks will allow you to bet on alternate spreads or buy and sell points. Instead of settling for a -3.5 spread that makes you a little uncomfortable, you can opt for a -2.5 spread with a more modest payout.

Enjoy the Action this NFL Season

The strategies above are great to keep in mind while wagering this football season, but they’re only a start. In the end, finding success is all about putting in the time and effort to research your pick and manage your bankroll effectively.

If you’re looking to for more football action than the NFL can provide, open up your Saturdays and take a look at our intro to betting on college football for more helpful tips and tricks.