With quality teams such as the Packers, Eagles, Patriots, Chargers, Jets, Saints, Steelers and Falcons on the 2011 schedule, the slate of games on Monday Night Football should be among the most entertaining and challenging for NFL betting fans in the show's 42-year history.
And while sophisticated football betting practitioners warn that it's never wise to place too great an emphasis on just one game, many novice bettors will do just that, either hoping to rescue a losing week or turn a winning week into an even bigger score by doubling or tripling up on the MNF game. The action drives up handle, turning Monday Night Football into the most important game of the week for bet makers and bet takers alike.
Let's see if decades of statistical data yields any wagering clues to this year's Monday Night Football schedule:
Sept. 12
New England at Miami: The Patriots are 12-8 against the spread (ATS) on the road on Monday Night Football but the Dolphins can counter with a 9-4 mark as a home underdog. More telling, the "over" is 33-24 in Miami's MNF games and 19-11 in New England's for a combined "over" of 52-35.
Oakland at Denver: At 23-22 ATS, the Raiders have been mediocre on MNF but that record looks stellar compared the Broncos' bankroll busting 19-31 record against the spread. Denver is just 8-14 as a home favorite and has lost five straight pointspread decisions to Oakland at Mile High Invesco Field.
Sept. 19
St. Louis at NY Giants: The Rams have lost five straight ATS to the Giants but since 1980 have been 8-5 as road underdogs on MNF. New York is 7-7 ATS at home on Monday nights.
Sept. 26
Washington at Dallas: The Redskins are one of only two teams (the other is Atlanta) that have a losing record in all four MNF categories, home favorite (5-9), home underdog (3-5), road favorite (0-5) and road underdog (5-9). That adds up to 13-28 ATS. But the Cowboys are only 6-12 as home favorites on Monday nights.
Oct. 3
Indianapolis at TampaBay: The line could matter here since the Colts are 3-0 as a road favorite (RF) but 1-4 as a road dog (RD) while the Buccaneers are 1-2 as a home favorite (HF) and 6-0 as a home dog (HD).
Oct. 10
Chicago at Detroit: These teams are 8-8 ATS over the last 16 meetings and neither has excelled on MNF though both the Bears (21-23) and the Lions (5-11) have played more "under" than "over" games.
Oct. 17
Miami at NY Jets: The Dolphins are just 4-12 ATS on the road on Monday Night Football.
Oct. 24
Baltimore at Jacksonville: Watch the line. The Ravens are 3-1 as a RF but 4-8 as a RD while the Jaguars are 4-1 as a HF and 1-3 as a HD.
Oct. 31
San Diego at Kansas City: The Chargers are just 4-8 ATS on the road on MNF while the Chiefs are 8-5 ATS at home on Monday nights. What's more, KC has covered nine of its last 12 in Arrowhead against San Diego.
Nov. 7
Chicago at Philadelphia: While the Bears are 7-10 as a RD, the Eagles are 12-4 as a HF, second only to the Colts (8-2) in that category.
Nov. 14
Minnesota at Green Bay: The Vikings are 11-7 as road underdogs on Monday nights.
Nov. 21
Kansas City at New England: The Pats are 1-7 ATS in this situation if coming off a straight up (SU) win (Jets).
Nov. 28
NY Giants at New Orleans: The Saints have covered last three games versus the Giants in New Orleans.
Dec. 5
San Diego at Jacksonville: The Chargers are 9-2 ATS versus non-division foes on MNF.
Dec. 12
St. Louis at Seattle: The Seahawks are 12-4 ATS at home on MNF and have covered seven of their last eight games versus the Rams.
Dec. 19
Pittsburgh at San Francisco: The Niners are 18-7 ATS at home on MNF while the Steelers are just 2-5 as a RF.
Dec. 26
Atlanta at New Orleans: At 5-18 ATS, the Falcons never are a good play on Monday Night Football.
Clearly, if used with care, Monday Night Football can be a helpful tool for NFL betting fans.
This article was written by Luken Karel for http://www.thegreek.com. The Greek Sportsbook & Casino is host to one of the top online sportsbooks offering college football betting and sports betting on NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL and all other major sports. The Greek is a must have sports betting and entertainment portal with one of the largest wagering menus available online. Article reproductions must include a link pointing to http://www.thegreek.com
