Friday, September 30

NFL Week 4 Free Picks

MLB Playoffs and NFL football can it get any better ???

Can Detroit and Buffalo remain undefeated?

Below are the weekend NFL Week 4 "Free Picks" that we have consolidated from various web sites around the web.

Denver Broncos +12.5
Arizona Cardinals +1
Seattle Seahawks +4.5
Tennessee Titans pickem
Dallas Cowboys -1.5
Oakland Raiders +4.5
Bengals +3
Lions/Cowboys UNDER 46
49ers / Eagles OVER 44

For a view of which sites these NFL picks came from and a table view of the overall weeks NFL odds; Click Here

Don't forget to factor in the weather into your east coast selections as discussed HERE

Final Thought:  Can the Vikings defeat the Chiefs to win their first game for their new head coach? or another question is can they hold the lead in the 2 nd half ?

Good Luck !!!!

NFL Week 3 - Free Picks Results

Another good week in the NFL during week 3.

Great night games on both Sunday and Monday.

The 3 handicappers we followed again this weeks had some good and bad results:




Results
Week 3
Season


Wunderdog
1-0 100% 2-2 50%

FootballLOCKS
0-1 -100% 1-2 50%

PredictEM
4-2 67% 8-9-2 42%









Note:  Wunderdog also publishes results for its paid service HERE; results for Season 18-14 (56%)



A couple of interesting results from this past week in the NFL included:

-  Only 7 games covered the OVER vs 13, 11 in week 1 & 2 respectively
-   Panthers won leaving only 1 new coach (Vikings) remaining winless

Saturday, September 24

NFL Handicapping Tool - Weather

As with any hobby or profession, a person must have the correct tools to be effective.

The first 2 tools we presented in our week 1 post were:

NFL Trends

This weeks tool is:

NFLWeather

Since we entered fall this past Friday, it is time to consider the impact of weather in your handicapping of NFL games.


NFL game weather and resulting stadium conditions can have a dramatic impact on player performance and the outcome of many NFL games. Sometimes that last minute in NFL game weather can make the difference between winning and losing.

NFL Week 3 Free Picks

Below are the weekend NFL Week 3 "Free Picks" that we have consolidated from various web sites around the web.

Minnesota Vikings + 3
San Francisco 49ers +2.5
Cincinnati Bengals -3
Buffalo Bills +7.5
Philadelphia Eagles -9
Jacksonville Jaguars +3.5
Oakland Raiders +3
Tampa Bay Buccaneers -1.5
Seattle Seahawks +3.5

For a view of which sites these NFL picks came from and a table view of the overall weeks NFL odds; Click Here

Final Thought:  Only 2 of the 7 new NFL coaches(Panthers & Vikings) have not won a game, is this the week?

Good Luck !!!!

Wednesday, September 21

NFL Week 2 Free Picks Results

Some good, some bad !!!  A couple of dominant teams (Patriots & Packers) continued to shine and a couple of teams showed their true lack of potential (Chiefs & Seahawks) and many teams in between.

NFL had its first shut out; with two other teams only scoring a field goal !!!

The 3 handicappers we followed again this weeks had some good and bad results:









Results
Week 2
Season


Wunderdog
0-1 -100% 1-2 33%

FootballLOCKS
0-1 -100% 1-1 50%

PredictEM
3-3-1 43% 4-7-2 31%










Note:  Wunderdog also publishes results for its paid service HERE; results for week 2 = 6-4; Season 12-8 (60%)



A couple of interesting results from NFL Week 2 included:

-   11 games covered the OVER vs 13 in week 1
-   9 home teams covered the spread
-   4 of 7 New head coaches lost; 2 coaches (Panthers & Vikings) remain winless

Friday, September 16

NFL Week 2 Free Picks & Betting Opportunities !!!

Can the NFL week 2 beat week 1 for excitement and drama?  Lets hope so.

As in shown in an previous post this week,  "NFL Week 2 is the most interesting week for oddsmaking and handicapping".  Remember the most important quote in the article:

      “Remember that the rule of thumb for the betting public tends to be, ‘Accept Week 1 as gospel’ rather than aberrations.”

Take this into consideration in your handicapping work this week.

Below are the weekend NFL Week 1 "Free Picks" that we have consolidated from various web sites around the web.

Miami Dolphins +3
Chicago Bears +6.5
Oakland Raiders +3.5
Cincinnati Bengals +3.5
San Diego Chargers +7
Atlanta Falcons +2.5
Panthers +10

For a view of which sites these NFL picks came from and a table view of the overall weeks NFL odds; Click Here

Final Thought:  Only 1 of the 7 new NFL coaches won their first game.  Have the other 6 found out how their teams can perform or do these 6 teams still not understand the playbook of the new coach?

Good Luck !!!!

Guest Blog - NFL Betting With An Edge

A friend of mine sent me a link the other day to a great podcast.  ESPN's Chad Millman interviews Geoff Kulesa, founder of Wunderdog Sports Picks, about the value of week #1 NFL lines.  My friend knows I'm a fan of Wunderdog but up until now I did not know much about the founder or the founder's philosophies.  Although I am a horse racing bettor and the his discussion centers around football, I found the interview fascinating.  I'll warn you, the interview lasts 37 minutes, but if you would like to listen to the podcast click on this link .  Don't forget to come back!!

What impressed me most about Jeff's interview is his use of systems and statistics to determine his selections. He details his use of over 500 systems that he constantly monitors to be certain that assumptions and rules for picking football winners does not change.  Geoff gives an example of one of his systems.  He states that in week 1, teams that lost 10 or more games last year and are an underdog in week one cover 57% of the time.  He stresses that use of these rules simply highlight teams to be considered for play.  This system fits Geoff's contrarain nature but warns that other factors have to be considered before a decision is made.  In week 1, 7 teams qualify for consideration under Geoff's system.

Jeff's comes from the corporate world where he worked in a marketing job at Hewlett Packard Co.  It is there he learned the value of  and developed his love of statistics.  10 years ago he decided to take his talent for statistical analysis to the world of sports betting.  As a long time horse player I can identify with his unemotional numbers approach to sports betting.  I have long held the belief that the past is a good predictor of the future and was comforted by the fact that the Wunderdog philosophy is embedded in unemotional basics.

The interview continues into the all important and much overlooked subject of money management.  Money management is a tool I learned over the years the hard way.  It has since become a very important tool in my handicapping.  Geoff speaks of betting 1-2% of your bankroll for any situation and fight the temptation of varying bets, or making "save" bets on Monday night after a losing weekend.  Proper money management gives you a clear path to profitable betting and provides the confidence and capital you need to survive the enviable loosing streaks.

It's Geoff's unemotional banker like approach to sports betting that gives me confidence to use his selections in my own systems.  If are not familiar with the Wunderdog Sports Betting Service you should go to their web site.  They cover a wide range of sports betting services and information and many of them are free.

If your interested in horse racing and wondering how to use Wunderdogs picks visit my blog at http://freeunderdog.blogspot.com. I think you will enjoy the site.

Almost forgot!! One last thing.  Of the 7 opening week system plays from above, 5 teams covered (70%).  I love when a plan comes together.

ESPN Podcast - Wunderdog







Wednesday, September 14

NFL Week 1 Free Picks Results

What a great weekend of NFL football !!!!

The 3 handicappers we followed this weeks had some good and bad results:














Wunderdog
1-1








FootballLOCKS
1-0








PredictEM
1-4-1


















Note:  Wunderdog also publishes results for its paid service HERE; results for week 1 were 6-3

A couple of interesting results from NFL Week 1 included:

-   13 games covered the OVER; so much for defense !!!
-   Only 8 home teams covered the spread
-   5 of 7 teams (70%) from the "Week 1" underdog system (Details Here) covered the spread !!!

Lets hope that the rest of the NFL season is as exciting as week 1 !!!

Tuesday, September 13

NFL Week 2 is the most interesting week for oddsmaking and handicapping

Interesting read about NFL week 2 can be found at:

NFL odds: Week 2 opening line report

Questions raised include:

"Are the Chiefs that bad? Are the Ravens that good?

Where was the Falcons’ explosiveness? Did Cam Newton prove something with 422 passing yards?"


A couple of the key betting insights from the article include:

“...Remember that the rule of thumb for the betting public tends to be, ‘Accept Week 1 as gospel’ rather than aberrations.”

".... “because the performances in Week 1 didn’t match the quality of the teams…More data means you can tell whether one game was a fluke or the start of something.”

“.....Rex Grossman looked very comfortable, and they played with a lot of confidence, energy and enthusiasm,” SuperBook manager Jay Kornegay told Covers.com. “The key is how good Grossman looked. Of course, he can change colors at any times.”


Sunday, September 11

NFL Week 1 Free Picks & Betting Opportunities !!!

NFL Football gets in full swing this Sunday and Monday.  Great NFL games provide great betting opportunities !!!!!

If the 1st NFL game on Thursday with the Packers and Saints is any indication, we are in for a great Sunday of NFL football.

NFL Week 1 will provide some interesting betting games due to the NFL "Lockout", new players with new teams, new coaches with new teams and new rule changes.

Remember to look at unique NFL Week 1 strategies such as the "underdog who lost 10 games in 2010" discussed by Wunderdog's  Geoff Kulesa on the ESPN Podcast discussed in our previous post located HERE

Below are the weekend NFL Week 1 "Free Picks" that we have consolidated from various web sites around the web.

Falcons -2.5
 Bengals +6.5
 Buccaneers -1.5
 Jaguars -2
 NE/MIA UNDER 45.5
49ers -5.5

For a view of which sites these NFL picks came from and a table view of the overall weeks NFL odds; click here

Good Luck !!!!

Remember to take a moment on Sunday to honor the victims and heroes on 9/11

Saturday, September 10

NFL Handicapping Tools


It may be early in the NFL season, but it is never to early to start tracking the tools that provide you easy to understand information to help your football handicapping.

This weeks tools are:



Both tools are easy to view and use by providing consolidated information in a single view by team or game.

Good Luck as NFL Week 1 continues.


Friday, September 9

CFB Returning Starter Angle Plays Week 2 (2011)

CFB Returning Starter Angle Plays Week 2 (2011)

An interesting College Football handicaping system we found in our searches today is the "Returning Starter Angle" described in the link above. As quoted at the site:

"The Returning Starter angle is as follows: Play On: Any team returning five or more net starters against their opponent."

Missouri(17) vs Arizona State (11) Play On: Missouri
Toledo (18) vs Ohio State (13) Play On: Toledo
Mississippi State (15) vs Auburn (6) Play On: Mississippi State
UTEP (11) vs SMU (18) Play On: SMU
Hawaii (9) vs Washington (15) Play On: Washington


An additional 6 plays can be found in the article HERE

As indicated in the article "... Keep in mind several other factors should go into your handicapping methods, so be sure to use this as an addition to your overall handicapping formula..."

Thursday, September 8

NFL week 1 - Saints @ Packers - Free Betting Picks

NFL is finally ready for kickoff !!!!

In our inaugural season of providing unbiased analysis of Football Betting Picks by various handicappers, we will start with the NFL Thursday nite game of New Orleans Saints at Green Bay Packers.

The free picks we have scoured the web for today are: (Results updated after game)


Saints @ Packers






Spread Over / Under
Results

Current Odds (@ time of post) GB -4.5 to 5 47.5 to 48 Link GB – 34-28








WunderDog
Under Details Loss

Doc Sports (Doc Moseman) Packers Under Details Loss (2)

Predict Em (Badger) Saints
Details Win





As the season begins we will consolidate the results from each week in consolidated worksheet providing the results by week and for the entire season.

Betting NFL Week 1?

Behind The Bets: 8/31 - ESPN

Wunderdog Sports about the value in Week 1 NFL betting lines.

Podcast by ESPNs Chad Millman as he talks with Geoff Kulesa of Wunderdog Sports. Insights into a football handicapper that had a 60% success rate with his picks last year.

Interesting "blind system" discussed near the 24 minute mark of podcast;

  NFL week 1; bet underdog if they have lost 10 games or more last year

Betting every week 1 NFL team that met this criteria since 1990, results in a 57% winning record.

Entire Podcast can be listened to HERE

Saturday, September 3

Lets Play Some Football !!!

College Football begins its first full Saturday of action.

Football Betting Capper is also beginning its first Saturday of unbiased tracking the performance of a number of football newsletter services.

A couple of good sites for current NCAA football odds are:

College Football Lines and Odds

College Football Las Vegas Odds, Betting Lines and Point Spreads at VegasInsider.com

Free sports betting trends and statistical analysis at ScoresAndOdds.com