NFL Odds: Patriots Huge Favorites Vs. Bills Despite Recent Struggles
The New England Patriots will try once again to clinch a 10th straight AFC East title when they host the Buffalo Bills on Sunday as 13.5-point favorites on the Week 16 NFL odds at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
New England finds itself amid a rare December losing streak entering Sunday afternoon’s Bills vs. Patriots betting matchup at Gillette Stadium. With last weekend’s 17-10 loss in Pittsburgh as 2.5-point road chalk, the Patriots now have dropped consecutive contests in the month of December for the first time since 2002.
The Patriots’ current straight-up swoon began with a stunning 34-33, last-second loss in Miami as 9-point favorites in Week 14 and has dumped the team to 3-5 SU on the road this season. However, New England continues to be a reliable wager in contests on home turf, winning 13 straight since October 2017 and going 11-2 against the spread during that stretch, according to the OddsShark NFL Database.
In addition to locking up a playoff spot for the 16th time in 18 years, a win also will keep the Patriots in contention for a first-round bye in the playoffs. New England currently controls the third seed in the AFC, trailing Houston by one game, but holds the edge in tiebreakers over the 10-4 Texans by virtue of a 27-20 victory over Houston back in Week 1.
A win also could boost the Patriots on the Super Bowl odds, where they now sit fourth at +700 and trail the AFC-leading Kansas City Chiefs as a +325 wager to win the conference.
The Bills will be looking to spoil the Patriots’ party, as they arrive in New England aiming to record consecutive SU wins for just the second time this season. Buffalo eked out a 14-13 win over the Detroit Lions as 2.5-point home chalk last weekend and has produced mixed results on the road this season, going 2-5 SU in seven dates away from New Era Field.
But when the Bills have won on the road, they have won big, dominating the Minnesota Vikings in a 27-6 win as 16.5-point underdogs back in Week 3 and routing the New York Jets 41-10 as 7-point underdogs in Week 10.
The Bills also have claimed victory in two of their past four visits to New England. Buffalo’s early-season victory over the Vikings marked its first outright win as double-digit road chalk in 15 contests since 2005, and the team is a respectable 5-3 ATS in its past eight road dates with the Patriots while pegged as underdogs by 10 or more points.
