The AFC and NFC Conference Championship teams have been set and the odds for betting on the NFL Playoffs are granting an edge to the home team in both contests.
It is not out of the ordinary for the hosting team to be favored in the NFL’s postseason. The home team is a higher seed for a reason, and that usually plays out in the betting odds.
That designation didn’t seem to help much last weekend, as the Kansas City Chiefs were the only team to defend their home turf, and they had to win in overtime against the Buffalo Bills just to do so.
The other three Divisional Round playoff games were won by the visitors, creating a one-and-done scenario for the number one seeds in both the AFC and NFC.
The first game on the schedule for Sunday is the AFC Championship between the fourth-seeded Cincinnati Bengals and the second-seeded Kansas City Chiefs which begins at 3 PM on CBS.
AFC Championship Betting Line: Cincinnati Bengals @ Kansas City Chiefs
- Point Spread: Chiefs -7.0, Bengals +7.0
- Moneyline: Chiefs -320, Bengals +260
- Over/Under: 54.5
The last time these two teams met was on January 2nd in Cincinnati where the Bengals got the better of the Chiefs by a final score of 34-31.
The AFC Title Game is projected to finish with an opposite outcome where KC wins by at least a touchdown but consider these playoff odds carefully before any NFL betting ensues.
The reason? Kansas City had no answer for the Bengals’ quarterback/wide receiver tandem of Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase who combined to set a rookie receiving yards record for a single game with 266.
The Chiefs are hopeful that safety Tyrann Mathieu will be available for the AFC Championship Game, but his status remains uncertain as of this writing. KC will need Mathieu’s presence in the secondary if they hope to slow down Burrow and this explosive Cincinnati passing game.
NFC Championship Betting Line: San Francisco 49ers @ Los Angeles Rams
- Point Spread: 49ers +3.5, Rams -3.5
- Moneyline: 49ers +160, Rams -185
- Over/Under: 46.0
Capping off the evening at 6:30 on FOX is the NFC Championship Game that is being played at SoFi Stadium, the home of the LA Rams and where Super Bowl 56 will be held on February 13th.
Just last season, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were the first team in NFL history to play in a Super Bowl at their home stadium, and now there’s a chance for it to happen a second time in as many years.
If San Francisco can overcome the -3.5 point spread and defeat the Rams for the third time this year, they’ll be playing a home game in Super Bowl LVI as well.
The 49ers are just a few hours up the coast from Los Angeles, and due to that proximity and the passion of San Francisco fans, there appeared to be a lot more red than blue in the stands when they played at SoFi in Week 18 of the regular season.
Rams management has made efforts to stall the ticket buying tactics of 49ers fanatics in advance of Sunday’s NFC Championship, but the lack of a large fanbase for the Rams in Southern California is likely the culprit.
Fairweather Rams fans would rather reap the profits of reselling a ticket to the opposition than watch their team advance to the big game.
If the stands at SoFi Stadium are filled with screaming 49ers fans, that will impact the final result, so include that into your Super Bowl betting rationale.