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NFL Odds and Best Bets for Exact Finishing Position

by Mike Allen - 8/25/2025

NFL division exact finishing order Patrick Mahomes Kansas City Chiefs

With the NFL Kickoff Game between the NFC East rivals, the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles, just over a week away, the pre-season betting markets are officially wide open for business.

We’ve already hit you with the best bets to win the various divisions, as well as more best bets for a particular team’s division finishing position.

Today’s odds and best bets are slightly different, but with the potential for much higher payouts. Seriously, guys, some of these are going to surprise you.

In order to win one of these, we'll need to pick the exact finishing position for all four teams in a particular division. Essentially, we're predicting the standings at the end of the regular season.

I took a unique approach to two of the divisions and avoided three others altogether. Unless we had excellent betting value, I stayed away from divisions that didn't have a "clear" or better yet, a highly likely winner.

The divisions we will omit today are the AFC East, because yes, you have the Bills at the top, but the next three teams are all struggling and expected to miss the playoffs. We also steered clear of the NFC West because I could see any of the four teams winning it. Lastly, the NFC North is strong all around. We’re expecting a bit of regression from Detroit and even more so from the Vikings, while the Chicago Bears could finish anywhere from 4th to 2nd.

We have the rest, though. Read up. 

Doc’s Sports offers NFL expert picks for every game on our NFL predictions page.

NFL Best Bets for Exact Finishing Position

AFC West Value Bet

+1400

  1. L.A. Chargers
  2. Denver Broncos
  3. Kansas City Chiefs
  4. Las Vegas Raiders

While we don't have a clear #1 anymore, with the Kansas City Chiefs expected to fall back, the Raiders are a solid bet to finish last. The Chiefs may prove me a fool here, but both the Broncos and Chargers are on the rise.

Each team has a strong defense, and even with all the improvement we saw from Bo Nix as the season progressed, I still have him on a lower tier than the underrated Justin Herbert. Now that the 6’6” slinger has both an over-the-top threat and a speedy crossing route receiver at the same time, the passing game will finally open up.

There is no clear #1 and #4, but for (+1400), it's worth a few bucks. 

NFC East Best Bet

+2000

  1. Philadelphia Eagles
  2. New York Giants
  3. Washington Commanders
  4. Dallas Cowboys

We have a clear #1. Philly might win 14 games this year. They were one of the best Super Bowl teams in recent memory, and they weren't dismantled, nor are they getting too old.

From there, many experts have the Commanders regressing as Kyle Kingsbury-led offenses generally do, and there’s the potential for a sophomore slump and/or injury to thinly built Jayden Daniels.

The New York Giants, though? Yes. They have depth at quarterback and the scariest front seven in football. The G-Men had one of the best pass rushes in the league last year, and they did that mostly playing from behind.

Like most seasons, the Cowboys are, for lack of a better term, a wild card, and that's okay because the odds are 20-1!

NFC South No Trouble Double Bet

+1000

  1. Atlanta Falcons
  2. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
  3. Carolina Panthers
  4. New Orleans Saints

+550

  1. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
  2. Atlanta Falcons
  3. Carolina Panthers
  4. New Orleans Saints

We don't have a clear #1 and #2, but I feel pretty good about the improving Panthers outplaying what may be the worst team in the NFL, the Saints. From there, I actually like the Falcons to take the division over the Bucs. They would have done it last year had Kirk Cousins not slowed them down.

Michael Penix Jr. still has to prove it, but the Falcons have one of the best offensive lines and running backs in the league, which will take you very far.

AFC South Best Bet

+750

  1. Houston Texans
  2. Indianapolis Colts
  3. Jacksonville Jaguars
  4. Tennessee Titans

AFC South teams to play one another close in the divisional matchups is almost always a good bet. However, I feel good about the Texans at #1 and the Titans in the cellar at #4. Houston's defense should make things pretty easy on C.J. Stroud, who thankfully has his second season "slump" out of the way.

We could have split our money into two bets, as we did with the previous one. I'm just not sold yet on the Jags being "back", and underrated Colts head coach Shane Steichen made me love him even more when he recently went ahead and named Daniel Jones the starter.

I also just read they will likely be trading the “talented” Anthony Richardson soon for some talent who can help them win this season.

AFC North No Trouble Double Bet

+285

  1. Baltimore Ravens
  2. Cincinnati Bengals
  3. Pittsburgh Steelers
  4. Cleveland Browns

+350

  1. Baltimore Ravens
  2. Pittsburgh Steelers
  3. Cincinnati Bengals
  4. Cleveland Browns

Perhaps the best example of a clear #1 and #4 is the AFC North. The Baltimore Ravens have higher ratings overall than the Philadelphia Eagles. I don't think they're better because of the difference in their offensive lines.

Other than the o-line, though, the Ravens are a problem, a professional problem. Maybe the Bengals can catch up to them with the help of the best quarterback in the game. I just don't see it, though.

The NFC North is a battle for 2nd and 3rd. Aaron Rodgers took more heat from the media than he deserved. That whole team was a mess.

As for the Browns, they have a big drama show at quarterback waiting to happen and one of the lowest-rated rosters in football.

The payouts are much, but they point toward the NFC North being a division you can attack from an arbitrage perspective.

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