NFL Odds: Patriots Betting Favorites Vs. Chargers In Divisional Round
The New England Patriots will be seeking a ninth straight home playoff victory when they host the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday in AFC Divisional playoff action as 4-point favorites on the NFL odds at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
New England enjoyed a bye on Wild Card Weekend after posting straight-up victories in its final two regular season contests to clinch a 10th straight AFC East title, and sits as the conference’s No. 2 seed going into Sunday afternoon’s Chargers vs. Patriots betting matchup at Gillette Stadium.
The Patriots’ win streak comes on the heels of a shaky 2-3 SU run, and the team also has rewarded bettors with wins against the spread in just one of their past four outings. However, the Patriots have remained consistently dominant when playing at home, posting outright wins in 15 straight contests since October 2017, while going 12-3 ATS.
Historical trends also favor the Patriots when they battle the Chargers at home. New England has held the Chargers to 17 or fewer points on five occasions while posting victories in eight of nine meetings since October 1983, and also has covered in three of four.
New England also remains entrenched among the favorites on the NFL futures. The Patriots sit a close second to Kansas City as a +200 wager to claim a third straight AFC Championship game victory, and are also set at +550 on the Super Bowl odds.
The Patriots are likely to face a huge challenge this time around against a Chargers team that makes the trip to New England riding a seven-game SU win streak on the road. Los Angeles finished the regular season among the top teams in the NFL, deadlocked with the top-seeded Chiefs with a 12-4 record, but was forced to settle for the No. 5 seed after coming up short on tiebreakers.
The Chargers ranked sixth in the NFL this season at 26.8 points per game, and have scored 29 or more points in four of nine road contests, but it is an unheralded defense that has been a difference maker. Los Angeles surrendered just 13 points per game over its past two outings, both on the road, capped by a 23-17 win in Baltimore as 3-point underdogs at sports betting sites on Wild Card Weekend.
Los Angeles also has been a reliable bet on the road this season, going unbeaten ATS in its past seven including five outright victories as a betting underdog. But with just one playoff win to their credit since 2009, the Chargers lag behind the favorites on the Super Bowl odds at +900.
