NFL Odds: Here Are Three Betting Favorites To Avoid In Week 11

How exactly do you navigate an NFL stretch run amid a raging pandemic that shows absolutely no signs of improving?

We’re about to find out.

Week 11 of the NFL season is here, and it has been met by stronger league-imposed guidelines to fight the spread of COVID-19. That makes for a potentially difficult balancing act for teams fighting for a playoff spot. But that’s life in the NFL in 2020.

There’s no shortage of important games this week, and if you’re making bets or picks, here are a few favorites you might want to avoid taking.

(-10) Pittsburgh Steelers at Jacksonville Jaguars
It’s perfectly reasonable to believe the Steelers will blow out the Jaguars on Sunday. That’s what should happen. However, there are reasons to believe this one will be a little tighter than most expect. For starters, the Steelers haven’t been especially impressive despite their 8-0 record. Five of those eight wins have been by a touchdown or less. And as Odds Shark’s Joe Osborne pointed out this week, Pittsburgh is just 4-13 against the spread in its last 17 games as a double-digit favorite. Lastly, it feels like there’s a very good chance the Steelers get ahead of themselves in this spot with a big Thanksgiving night matchup with the Ravens looming in Week 12.

(-6) Baltimore Ravens vs. Tennessee Titans
We swear this isn’t an overreaction to the Ravens’ loss Sunday night in Foxboro. That was kind of fluky, what with the bad snaps and the rain and all that. Also, Bill Belichick. But this matchup isn’t especially conducive to a bounce-back effort. The Patriots seemingly exposed an issue for the Ravens when it comes to stopping the run, and losing nose guard Brandon Williams only makes that worse. Now, they’re tasked with stopping Derrick Henry at a time of the year the Titans running back comes alive. From Week 10 and on last year, Henry averaged 149 rushing yards per game, and the Titans went 5-2 down the stretch — with one of those losses coming when Henry sat out.

(-5) New Orleans Saints vs. Atlanta Falcons
Are you really ready to trust Jameis Winston? The ex-Bucs quarterback has been forced into action with Drew Brees injured, and the former
No. 1 pick might be trying to save his career. Don’t forget, we’re one year removed from Winston throwing 30 interceptions. He didn’t look especially good in relief last week, either, taking a pair of sacks and throwing a couple of questionable balls. The Falcons, meanwhile, have at least been competitive and competent since firing Dan Quinn, and this is a perfect spoiler spot for them. It’s just hard to trust Winston in this spot until we see more.