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Sports Betting Futures Odds: College Over, NFL Takes Center Stage


by - 1/9/2018

Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback Tua Tagovailoa

The last two weeks of the college football season were positively wild, so now it's time to see what the NFL will produce for an encore. Divisional round weekend will soon be upon us, with a historical first in the department of NFL spreads. At the same time, it is never too early to start thinking about the 2018-19 college campaign. Alabama is already favored to defend its latest championship.

All odds provided by Bovada Sportsbook .

2018-19 College Football Playoff

Alabama (+275) - Alabama won its fifth National Championship since 2009 when it stormed back from deficits of 13-0 at halftime and 20-7 in the third quarter to outlast Georgia 26-23 in overtime on Monday night in Atlanta. Tua Tagovailoa replaced Jalen Hurts in the second half and became an instant star. He was only a freshman.

Clemson (+600) - The 2016-17 National Champions made it back to the College Football Playoff but got bounced by 'Bama 24-6 in the Sugar Bowl. Clemson has Kelly Bryant returning under center and heralded freshman Trevor Lawrence arriving to challenge him. Head coach Dabo Swinney's program is not going anywhere.

Georgia (+750) - Like Alabama and Clemson, Georgia is loaded at quarterback. Jake Fromm was only a freshman this season, and Justin Fields is the No. 1 overall recruit in the nation. Running backs Nick Chubb and Sony Michel will be gone, but D'Andre Swift and others can pick up the slack. The Bulldogs will reload as opposed to rebuild.

Ohio State (+750) - Ohio State is like that basketball team that is always on the NCAA Tournament bubble (Virginia Tech, for example). Except with football it means you are the fourth- or fifth-best team every year instead of the 68 th- or 69th-best team. The Buckeyes missed out on the CFP this time around, but they may be back soon.

NFL Divisional Matchups

Atlanta Falcons (-3) vs. Philadelphia Eagles - For the first time in NFL history, a No. 1 seed is a home underdog in its first playoff game. That, of course, can be attributed to the fact that Eagles' quarterback Carson Wentz is out and Nick Foles is in. Moreover, Atlanta is the defending NFC champion and looked good against the Rams.

New England Patriots (-14) vs. Tennessee Titans - The No. 1 seed in the AFC? Definitely not an underdog. The defending Super Bowl champions tied for the NFL's best regular-season record at 13-3, and Tom Brady is likely to win another MVP award. Tennessee did not look like a playoff team in the first half against Kansas City.

Pittsburgh Steelers (-7.5) vs. Jacksonville Jaguars - Ben Roethlisberger threw a whopping five interceptions-two of which were returned for touchdowns-in a 30-9 home loss to Jacksonville back in Week 5. But the playoffs may be a different story, and the Jaguars' offense was anemic in last weekend's 10-3 wild-card victory over Buffalo.

Minnesota Vikings (-4) vs. New Orleans Saints - This should be an intriguing battle between Minnesota's defense and New Orleans' offense. Drew Brees picked apart Carolina this past Sunday as the Saints just barely managed to hang on 31-26. The Vikings led in the NFL in total defense (275.9 ypg) and scoring defense (15.8 ppg).

Sony Open

Jordan Spieth (+500) - Dustin Johnson dominated last week in Kapalua to the tune of an eight-shot victory, but he is throwing the rest of the PGA Tour a bone by not playing in Honolulu. Spieth placed ninth in Kapalua after rebounding nicely from an opening-round 75, and he was third at the 2017 Sony Open.

Justin Thomas (+750) - Thomas went back-to-back in Hawaii last year, winning in Kapalua and then dominating the Sony by seven shots. He has Jim "Bones" Mackay, former caddie of Phil Mickelson, on his bag this week. And he will surely be fired up by alma mater Alabama's national title.

Marc Leishman (+1400) - Leishman has quietly played his way up to No. 12 in the world golf rankings. He led for a while last week in Kapalua and perhaps could have competed with Johnson if not for a Saturday 76. The 34-year-old Austrian finished a decent T20 at the 2017 Honolulu tournament.

Brian Harman (+1800) - Harman was T13 at this event in 2016 and T20 last season. The 30-year-old American is coming off a solo third performance in Kapalua. Kevin Kisner, a +2200 fifth choice, has to wear an Alabama jersey on the 17th hole after losing his National Championship bet with Thomas.

Australian Open

Roger Federer (+185) - The season's first Grand Slam begins next Monday, and Federer is the only top man who heads into it without any real question marks. Not only is the 36-year-old the defending champion, but he is also 100 percent healthy. The same cannot be said for many of his fellow competitors.

Rafael Nadal (+400) - Despite a lingering knee issue, it looks like Nadal will be able to play. That is not the case of Andy Murray and Kei Nishikori, among others. The top-ranked Spaniard, a one-time Australian Open champion (2009), lost a five-setter to Federer in last year's final. He went on to triumph at Roland Garros and the U.S. Open.

Novak Djokovic (+450) - Due to inactivity (an elbow injury has kept him out since Wimbledon last summer), Djokovic is wallowing down at No. 14 in the world. That means he could face either Federer or Nadal as early as the fourth round in Melbourne. Rust and a bad draw could make life extremely difficult on the Serb.

Alexander Zverev (+900) - At 20-years-old, Zverev surged all the way up to No. 3 in the rankings (currently fourth). But he has never done anything at slams. In 10 career appearances at the four majors, the German is a mere 12-10 overall with no trips past the fourth round. World No. 3 Grigor Dimitrov is also a +900 fourth choice.

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