How to Bet on the NFL Football Betting Explained

Moneyline Example:

Let’s take the example of Dallas at home against Philadelphia. The moneyline odds might have Dallas as the favorite at -120. Favorites will always be shown with a negative sign. This means you would bet $120 to win $100 on Dallas. Philadelphia would be the underdog, indicated by a positive sign, and their odds might be +110. Here, you would need to bet $100 to win $110 on the Eagles.

Spread Bet Example:

Keeping with Philadelphia at Dallas, the Cowboys might be favored at -2.5, so Dallas would have to win by 2.5 points or more for the bet to come through. In this example, Philadelphia is the underdog at +2.5, so they would need to lose by 2.5 points or fewer, or win outright to cash their side of the bet. Most spreads are set by a half-point to avoid a push. A push means the outcome lands on that number, and the bettor just wins their wager amount back.

Totals Example:

The total for Dallas/Philadelphia might be 49.5. In this type of bet, you would wager on whether the final score will be over or under a certain total. If the final score if 30–27, that adds up to 57 points and would count as the over on a 49.5 bet.

Player Prop Example

An example of a player prop in the NFL could be Patrick Mahomes’ passing yards line, set at 299.5. You would bet the over/under on that number for Mahomes’ total passing yards, trying to predict his outcome.

Team Prop Example

An example of a team prop might be, “Will the Packers score on their first drive?” You would bet a simple yes/no answer for this. Do your research on these types of props, as you might find out that the Packers are a fast-starting team.

Futures Examples:

For example, betting on Super Bowl winners can be a futures bet. Odds for Super Bowl winners are usually released as soon as the season ends, so you can bet on the outcome long before the season even starts. Other examples of NFL futures are NFL MVP, Rookie of the Year, Offensive Player of the Year, Coach of the Year, and NFC/AFC Conference Champions.

Parlay Example:

Let’s stick with moneylines for this example. Say that Dallas is favored at -120, but you want to parlay that with Miami, who are -150 against New England, and Seattle is a +140 underdogs at San Francisco. Those odds would be calculated at +633, which means you would win $633 on a $100 bet. However, all three legs of the parlay have to win, or you lose the entire bet. It’s one of the more high-risk NFL bets, so do your research.

Teaser Example:

Let’s take the above three teams and say that Dallas is favored at -2.5, Miami is favored at -4.5 and Seattle is a +3.5 underdog. You can tease the lines to make it more tenable for you. If it’s a four-point teaser bet, you can make it Dallas -6.5, Miami at -8.5, and Seattle +7.5. The odds’ price change would vary, but you would receive less of a payout since you are buying points. Also, similar to parlays, all three legs of your teaser have to win to get paid out.

For Example:

An NFL matchup between Kansas City and Denver might start with Kansas City’s spread at -7.5, meaning KC is favored by 7.5 points at kickoff. However, Denver is playing well and leading the game into the fourth quarter. The live odds for this game might have Denver’s spread at -1.5 at the start of the final quarter, making them the new favorites. If you had bet on Kansas City at the beginning of the game, you might want to bet on Denver at this point to hedge your bet and attempt to come out even. Live betting odds can also adjust moneylines, totals, and more.