Betting the NFL Preseason

NFL Preseason Betting

August means one thing to sports fans in the United States: the start of football season. And while many fans find the NFL preseason to be a waste of time, these games actually represent great opportunity for bettors. If you know what you’re doing, you can make a nice amount of money in the preseason and set yourself up for when the games count.

Before you place your first bet on the preseason, there are a few things you need to know. Here are a few things to keep in mind with preseason betting.

❓Why Bet on the Preseason?
🔍What Are the Odds Like?
📊Preseason Betting Strategies
📝Where to Bet on the Preseason?

Why Is Betting the Preseason a Good Idea?

Betting the NFL preseason gives you opportunities to wager on football when you’re mostly getting sharp prices. Sharps represent 80 to 90% of the money in preseason, because the general public just doesn’t care. That means sharps control the market, and the more of them are on a certain play, the easier it is for you to ride that play with them.

However, you need to watch lines even more carefully in the preseason. Because sharps make up most of the money in the preseason, the lines can change very rapidly. Betting on a line you like is something you need to do immediately, because you aren’t going to see it again once sharp money enters the picture.

NFL Preseason with FanDuel

How Do Odds Look Different In the Preseason?

In general, totals will be around five to 10 points lower in the preseason than in the regular season. That’s because neither team is running their main offense in the preseason. Even teams who care about winning games in the preseason have the same goal for the preseason: get out with as few injuries as possible.

No team wants to lose a key player in a game that won’t count in the standings. And that means they’ll try to shorten the game as much as possible. They won’t be trying to pull off complicated fakes or wear down the defense; they’ll be trying to run their offense and keep the clock moving. That leads to low totals and scores in the mid 30s. In general, you won’t see many totals get above 37 points in the preseason.

Spreads are a little different, as there can be blowouts in the preseason. But because starters don’t last long in the preseason, you usually see spreads of no more than one score in these games.

What Strategies Exist For the Preseason?

Betting the preseason isn’t like betting the regular season. The key numbers of the regular season don’t mean as much here, as teams don’t want to go to overtime under any circumstances. You’ll see teams go for 2 in order to avoid the possibility of a tie, simply so they can get the game over with. With that in mind, here are a few things to keep in mind.

Know the Teams and What They Value

The best teams to bet on during the preseason fall into two categories: teams that have a known track record of caring about the preseason and teams that have a major position battle. The Baltimore Ravens are always going to be a team worth backing in the preseason for as long as John Harbaugh is there, because that’s the kind of culture he has built in Baltimore. The Ravens want to win every time they take the field, which helped Baltimore win 24 consecutive preseason games until it finally lost to Washington last year. From 2015 to 2023, you could have blindly bet the Ravens in the preseason and cashed every time.

The other type of team to bet on is a team with a position battle. The Las Vegas Raiders are a perfect example of this in 2024. They have a genuine battle at quarterback between Gardner Minshew and Aidan O’Connell. They’re likely going to play both men a little longer than they otherwise would, and both will be trying to convince the coaching staff that they’re the right one for the job. That means both will be playing more like you’d see in the regular season. Contrast that with a team like the Detroit Lions, which has Super Bowl aspirations and plenty of experience on the roster. The Lions won’t need to focus much on preseason; they know who they can count on in 2024.

Get In and Get Out

Betting the first quarter or first half are often the best ways to bet the NFL preseason. That’s because these are often the spots where the starters or the guys who are fighting for a starting job will play. These players will be playing the closest thing to regular season football that you’ll see in the preseason.

Once the starters leave the game, things can get crazy. Remember, just because the coaches don’t care about winning the game at that point doesn’t mean the third-stringers don’t care. For some players, the fourth quarter is their only chance to get game tape from NFL action. Even though they’re going against other third-stringers, they’re still on an NFL roster facing players who were good enough to make an NFL training camp. That can land them a job with another NFL team or earn them a spot in the UFL in the spring. It’s much easier to just bet the first half or first quarter and not mess with the desperate players.

Where Can I Bet on the NFL Preseason?

Anywhere that accepts NFL bets in the regular season is going to offer something in the NFL preseason. Usually, you’ll find spreads, totals, moneyline bets and quarter and half bets, along with live betting options.

As always, it’s a good idea to shop around and make sure that you’re getting the best line when betting the NFL preseason. Because the lines can vary wildly with sharp money, make sure you take the extra few minutes to check multiple books for the best bet. If DraftKings is the first to raise the total, FanDuel and BetMGM probably won’t be far behind. Shopping around is the best way to lock in the number you want before it rises.