NFL Week 16 Odds: Patriots Huge Home Favorites In Matchup Vs. Jets
The New England Patriots will look to avoid a repeat of last year’s season-ending swoon that cost them the top seed in the AFC when they host the New York Jets on Saturday as heavy 16 1/2-point betting favorites at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
With straight-up wins in each of its past five games, New England already has clinched the AFC East crown and a first-round playoff bye. However, it remains a two-team race for the top seed in the conference heading into Saturday afternoon’s Jets vs. Patriots betting matchup at Gillette Stadium.
The 12-2 Patriots have shown little sign of reliving last season’s slide, in which they lost three of their final four games to finish second to the Denver Broncos in the AFC. However, the Patriots remain just one game up on the Oakland Raiders, who would get the nod as top seed if they finish the season deadlocked with New England.
The Patriots have been dominant during their current 5-0 SU run, outscoring opponents by a 124-70 margin and twice covering as double-digit chalk, to improve their against-the-spread record to 11-3.
But New England has experienced letdowns on home turf this season, suffering outright losses in two of its past five, including a 31-24 loss to the Seattle Seahawks as 7 1/2-point chalk in Week 10.
The 4-10 Jets travel to New England looking to bounce back from a 34-13 beating last week against the Miami Dolphins as 2 1/2-point road underdogs, extending the club’s slide to 1-5 SU over its past six.
Scoring points has been a real problem for New York, which has averaged just 11.5 points per game over its past four SU losses. However, the Jets rose to the occasion in their most recent road date, getting past the woeful San Francisco 49ers 23-17 two weeks ago, winning outright as three-point underdogs.
That marked the Jets’ second ATS win in the past four weeks after covering as 9 1/2-point home underdogs in a 22-17 loss to New England on Thanksgiving weekend.
New York also has been a solid bet when pegged as double-digit underdogs, going 6-2-1 ATS in its past nine such outings, according to the OddsShark NFL Database, including a narrow 17-14 win over the Patriots as 10 1/2-point road underdogs way back in 2006.
The Patriots are 9-2 SU in their past 11 meetings with New York, but the Jets regularly have picked up the win at the sportsbooks, going 6-0-1 ATS in their past seven games against their division rival.
Thumbnail photo via Robert Deutsch/USA TODAY Sports Images
