The road to Super Bowl LVII begins now. With the regular season in the rearview mirror, the playoff picture is set and Super Wild Card Weekend is on the horizon. This opening weekend of the playoffs features all rematches from the regular season, marking just the fifth time since the 1970 merger that this has occurred and the first time since 2009. With that in mind, these teams have plenty of knowledge of their opponent, which may help those wagering on these games have a clearer view of how they'll bet on the upcoming action.
As we wait for the postseason to officially get underway, let's take our first glimpse of all the matchups and get our impression of the opening lines to see if there is anything they can tell us about who the oddsmakers see coming out on top.
Super Wild Card Weekend early odds
(All lines from Caesars Sportsbook)
Seahawks (9-8) at 49ers (13-4)
Saturday, 4:30 p.m. ET (Fox, FuboTV)
Opening line: 49ers -10
San Francisco is a double-digit favorite over the Seahawks as these NFC West rivals are set to open up the postseason on Saturday. Seattle squeaked into the postseason thanks to an overtime win over the Rams in Week 18 coupled with the Lions upsetting the Packers at Lambeau Field on Sunday night. Meanwhile, the Niners are arguably the strongest contender in the NFC, sitting as the No. 2 seed and wrapping up the regular season on a 10-game winning streak.
San Francisco swept the season series and outscored Seattle, 48-20. The 49ers also ended the season as one of the better bets to make throughout the year, finishing with an 11-6 ATS record. Their 10.2 margin of victory was also the second-highest in the NFL. They come into this matchup on a 5-0 ATS winning streak at home and have also covered their last eight games against the NFC West. Meanwhile, the Seahawks were 7-10 ATS on the season, which included a 1-7 ATS record in their final eight games.
Chargers (10-7) at Jaguars (9-8)
Saturday, 8:15 p.m. ET (NBC, FuboTV)
Opening line: Chargers -1.5
The Chargers are the road favorite in their opening playoff matchup with the Jaguars. With their playoff spot already set, L.A. head coach Brandon Staley made the head-scratching decision to play his starters in Week 18, which ended up burning him as Mike Williams and Joey Bosa both left the game due to injury. Naturally, their statuses will be worth monitoring throughout the week. The Chargers went 11-5-1 ATS, which was the fourth-best mark in the NFL. What's noteworthy about that record as it relates to this game is L.A.'s 7-2 ATS record on the road. That 77.8% cover rate away from SoFi Stadium is tied for the second-best mark in the NFL.
As for the Jaguars, they rode their defense to an AFC South title on Saturday by taking down the Titans. They went 4-3 ATS at home and each of those four ATS wins came as a home dog.
Dolphins (9-8) at Bills (13-3)
Sunday, 1 p.m. ET (CBS, Paramount+)
Opening line: Bills -11
Buffalo is currently laying the most points on Wild Card Weekend, spotting Miami 11 points in this matchup. Of course, it's unclear who the quarterback will be for the Dolphins between Tua Tagovailoa (concussion), Teddy Bridgewater (finger), and rookie Skylar Thompson. Naturally, if Tagovailoa can play, that should bring this number down. These clubs split the season series, and the Dolphins did play the Bills hard at Highmark Stadium in Week 15 despite losing, 32-29.
These AFC East rivals provided similar results to bettors this season, with the Bills owning an 8-7-1 ATS record, while the Dolphins finished with a 9-8 ATS record. You may find it surprising, however, that Buffalo was just 3-4 ATS at home during the regular season. That said, Miami didn't fare much better on the road as they were 4-5 ATS away from Hard Rock Stadium. In their last 11 trips to Buffalo, the Dolphins are 3-7-1 ATS.
Giants (9-7-1) at Vikings (13-4)
Sunday, 4:30 p.m. ET (Fox, FuboTV)
Opening line: Vikings -3
Minnesota is a field goal favorite heading into their playoff matchup with a Giants team that rested most of its key starters in Week 18. New York was a fantastic team to lean on throughout the season and finished with a league-best 13-4 ATS record. That includes covering in nearly 86% of their games on the road (also best in the NFL). Historically, the Giants are very good at playing the role of an underdog in the postseason. The club is 13-8 SU in that setting since 1970, which is the best record in the NFL over that stretch.
As for the Vikings, they found themselves in the bottom third of the league in those standings as they finished with a 7-9-1 ATS record (4-5 ATS at home). Back in Week 16, Minnesota was able to pull out a last-second win over the Giants thanks to a 61-yard field goal by Greg Joseph as time expired, but it was a tightly contested game.
All eyes will certainly be on the quarterbacks in this matchup as Daniel Jones gets his first taste of playoff football, while Kirk Cousins tries to clean up his postseason resume. Cousins is 1-2 as a starter in the playoffs with a 62.1 completion percentage and an 86.6 passer rating.
Ravens (10-7) at Bengals (12-4)
Sunday, 8:15 p.m. ET (NBC, FuboTV)
Opening line: Bengals -6.5
These clubs will be squaring off for the second time in as many weeks when they cap off Sunday's triple-header. Cincinnati made easy work of Baltimore in Week 18, running away with the 27-16 win at home. Of course, things quite possibly could be much different in this upcoming matchup for the Ravens if Lamar Jackson can play. Jackson has not suited up since suffering a knee injury against the Broncos in Week 13. When Jackson was healthy and faced the Bengals back in Week 5, he helped Baltimore to a 19-17 victory.
Cincinnati was one of the top teams to bet on this season as they finished with a 12-4 ATS record (75% cover rate), which was second-best in the NFL. Given the state of flux the quarterback position has been in, it's no surprise to see Baltimore under .500 ATS at 7-9-1. However, the Ravens were among the better road teams to bet on this year as they went 6-3 ATS away from M&T Bank Stadium. Something will need to give in that regard as the Bengals have been strong at home, covering or pushing in 10 of their last 11 games at Paycor Stadium.
Cowboys (12-5) at Buccaneers (8-9)
Monday, 8:15 p.m. ET (ABC, FuboTV)
Opening line: Cowboys -3
Dallas is a field goal favorite on the road as they travel to Tampa to take on the Buccaneers to wrap up Super Wild Card Weekend. With an opportunity to possibly ascend to the NFC East title and have an outside chance at the No. 1 seed, the Cowboys played their starters in Week 18 and rolled out a dud against the Commanders, who ran away with a 28-6 win. Interceptions continue to plague Dak Prescott, who threw another pick-six in that loss.
Here, they are looking to shed some poor history of playing a playoff game on the road. Dallas is currently on an eight-game road playoff losing streak, which is tied for the second-longest in playoff history. They also have seven postseason one-and-dones since 1996, which is tied for second-most over that span. The Cowboys are also 4-5 SU as a playoff favorite since 1996.
As for the Buccaneers, they are the lone team in the postseason with a losing record. However, it's never wise to dismiss them so long as Brady is still under center. He is 7-0 against the Cowboys in his career, which includes a 19-3 win over them back in Week 1. It is worth pointing out, however, that the Bucs have not been a good team to bet on at home this year. In fact, their 1-6-1 ATS record at Raymond James Stadium was tied for the worst home ATS record in the league.
