Each day, one of our experts will offer up a best bet (or two or three) that mobile sportsbooks are offering. It might be a traditional spread bet, a player prop or one of the various odds boosts that books offer.
Here are our best bets for Sunday, Oct. 9:
TOP PLAY
The play: NFL teaser, Vikings -1.5 over Bears and Browns +7.5 over Chargers
The odds/bet: -120 ($36 to win $30)
The book: Caesars Sportsbook
Time/TV: Both games at 1 p.m. (Check local TV listings)
Our take: We have done well with our teasers, so we’re going back to the well. And if you’re new to betting or haven’t played a teaser, it’s similar to a parlay. The good for the bettor: You get six points for each leg. The bad for a bettor: The line is generally -120 and like a parlay, you must win both legs to win.
As we have said, the key for teasers is going through key numbers, and that works here for both legs. We go through 7, 6 and 3 for the Vikings, so they simply need to beat the Bears at home, while the Browns are doing the same thing the other way, getting a touchdown and a hook against a Chargers team that really shouldn’t be laying points on the road.
This nearly was a straight parlay for us, but the 7.5 the Vikings would have to lay is a bit scary, considering they’re back from a trip to London, and it’s a division game. Also, for the Browns, it looks like Joe Q. Public is all over them, which is enough to scare us away from a line that opened at Los Angeles -3.
PLAYER PROP
The play: NFL player prop, Jacksonville’s Trevor Lawrence to throw at least one interception
The odds/bet: -120 ($12 to win $10)
The book: BetMGM and DraftKings
Time/TV: 1 p.m. (Check local TV listings)
Our take: We went to the well with our teaser, and we’re doing it again with this player prop, which helped us go 2-0 last Sunday.
Anyone with any common sense knew Lawrence wasn’t as good as he opened up the first three weeks when he only tossed one pick. Through his career, he has thrown at least one interception in 10 of his 21 games, which means he is due to get back to 50 percent.
In all seriousness, in his previous two starts against Houston, he has three total picks, and the Texans have four on the season in 2022 and have forced six total turnovers. This seems like great value, as we try to keep our hot October rolling. (We hate to pick on Trevor Lawrence. Well, not really.)
HOW WE’VE FARED
Saturday’s results
NCAA football: Oregon -13.5 over Arizona (WON $30)
MLB playoffs: Blue Jays to beat Mariners and Phillies to beat Cardinals (LOST $10)
Saturday’s profit/loss: +$20 (1-1)
Total for the week: +$103.70 (7-3)
Total for October: +$120.70 (10-3)
Total for 2022: -$80 (255-286)
NOTE: If a line or odds are minus, it considers the juice one must lay to place the bet. Ex: Team A is -160 on the money line, one would have to bet $160 to win $100 (or $16 to win $10). OR Team B is a 5-point favorite at -110, one would have to bet $110 to win $100 (or $11 to win $10.)
Conversely, on positive lines, if Team C is +140 on the money line, a $100 would bring in $140 (or $10 to win $14).