Among other reasons, the Cincinnati Bengals are big favorites against the Miami Dolphins due to their track record of avoiding extending losing streaks.

Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com

The Bengals are listed as 7.5-point favorites against the Miami Dolphins, with a total of 45 points, for the two 1-2 teams’ Thursday Night Football betting matchup. Cincinnati is a -360 moneyline favorite, while Miami is a +280 underdog on those odds.

Cincinnati, which is coming off losses against the Pittsburgh Steelers, is 5-0 both straight-up and against the spread in its last five games after consecutive losses. The biggest concern about the Bengals is whether their offensive line, which has already allowed 12 sacks, will be able to protect QB Andy Dalton.

A tight point spread is often daunting for Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints, who host the Atlanta Falcons in a potential Monday Night Football scoring battle to wrap up Week 3 of the NFL season.

Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com

New Orleans is listed as a three-point favorite on the betting lines, with a total of 53.5, which is the highest of the week.

The Saints are 2-3 straight-up and 1-3-1 against the spread in their last five games as a favorite of three or fewer points. New Orleans is 5-0 ATS in their last five NFC South games, and has a good chance of getting RB Mark Ingram going since the Falcons and rookie MLB Deion Jones are allowing 4.6 yards per rushing attempt.

Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys will try to capitalize on the Chicago Bears being shorthanded and get above .500 in a compelling Sunday Night Football betting matchup. The Cowboys are seven-point favorites against the Bears – who face a choice about whether to have QB Jay Cutler play with a sprained thumb – with a total of 44.5.

Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com

The scenario – no Cutler, and star Bears WR Alshon Jeffery (knee) possibly limited – seems tailor-made for Dallas, which is off to a 1-1 start. However, the Cowboys are only 2-10-2 against the spread in their last 14 home games at AT&T Stadium. They are 9-1 straight-up and 1-9 ATS in their last 10 home games where they were favored by at least 6.5 points.

The visiting team is 4-1 SU and ATS in its last five games in this matchup.

We’re prepping for week 3 of the season and one thing has become brazenly apparent already: teams aren’t very good this year. Want to know how I know this? The best team in the league doesn’t even have their two best players active right now and the rest of them just experienced some pretty serious injuries and have no threats to their statusPAt in the elite class.

I promise that the rankings get sorted by Week 4 but until then we have to carry some biases that will inevitably impact how we wager. Remember that all rankings are based on performance in real life and in gambling life, so a team like Seattle which isn’t covering (or playing well) will get dropped despite reputation. As for the rest, you’ll have to read on to find out.

1. New England Patriots (2-0 SU and ATS)

I really don’t know who else to put in this slot. The Patriots have looked outstanding without Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski, and they’ve still managed to score an average of 27.0 points. Make an argument for another team that looks better than New England right now, and will only get better in two weeks time. You can’t.

You know what I hate? I hate boring blurbs in power rankings. “Denver lost a close one last weekend. Hopefully they can do better next week.” Thanks for coming out, Joe Sportswriter. I really appreciate the hard work you put in.

Instead, I’ve cobbled together my own version of the NFL Power Rankings where I basically scream and TYPE YELL about all the things I love and hate about what’s happening in the league. It’s more fun for me to write an opinionated rankings piece, and (hopefully) more entertaining for you to read.

Plus, you might learn something!

So a couple introductions on how this whole thing works:

You know what I hate? I hate boring blurbs in power rankings. “Denver lost a close one last weekend. Hopefully they can do better next week.” Thanks for coming out, Joe Sportswriter. I really appreciate the hard work you put in.

Instead, I’ve cobbled together my own version of the NFL Power Rankings where I basically scream and TYPE YELL about all the things I love and hate about what’s happening in the league. It’s more fun for me to write an opinionated rankings piece, and (hopefully) more entertaining for you to read.

Plus, you might learn something!

So a couple introductions on how this whole thing works:

AFC West Preview

The AFC West has the look of a very competitive division for this upcoming season. Denver won’t only be looking to repeat as division winners, but are also the defending world champions. Kansas City will be out to make the playoffs for the third time in four years under veteran head coach Andy Reid. Oakland seems to be a consensus pick as a playoff sleeper, and that’s usually a curse instead of the alternative. Head coach Mike McCoy and his Chargers will try avoid missing the playoffs for a 3rd consecutive season, and prove last year’s 4-12 record was a fluke.

2017 Futures Odds to Win AFC West

Denver Broncos (+190)

The AFC East will be arguably the best division in football this season from top to bottom. New England is once again the clear cut favorite, despite having to be without star quarterback Tom Brady (suspension) for their first four games. It should otherwise be competitively balanced regarding the other three teams. The Bills (8-8), Dolphins (6-10), and Jets (10-6) combined to go 24-24 last year. You can certainly make a strong case for either the Jets or Bills as a possible playoff team. Miami should improve upon last year’s disappointing 6-10 finish with new head coach Adam Gase in charge.

Futures Betting Odds on AFC East Division Winner

Patriots (-220)

Bills (+550)

Just when two of the big three American sports leagues – the NBA and MLB – have warmed up to the idea of US sports betting in the future, money-making enterprise NFL is having cold feet about jumping on the bandwagon.

Yahoo! Finance reported that the NFL is not rushing to join calls for the legalization of sports betting in the US, as it expresses their apprehension on how legalized gambling would affect the football games itself.

The NFL, known for being tight-lipped on all issues, gave a hint of its position on legalized sports betting through its senior labor relations counsel Brook Gardiner, who spoke at the 30th annual National Conference on Problem Gambling, in Tarrytown, New York.

Gardiner expressed fear that the integrity of the sport will be compromised should NFL throws its support for the legalization of sports betting.

The Denver Broncos have a major hole to fill at quarterback as Peyton Manning retires to golf and Brock Osweiler goes for the money in Houston.

The annual NFL free agency frenzy has just begun Wednesday, but it’s never too early to see some significant moves. Osweiler, drafted and groomed to succeed Manning, has agreed to sign a hefty four-year, $72 million deal with the Houston Texans, with $37 million guaranteed.

Apparently, the move was not much of a surprise when the Broncos didn’t hear back from Osweiler several days after they tabled their original offer. But since Osweiler was an offseason priority after the Super Bowl 50 victory,  Denver made a strong push to keep him and increased its bid to four-year, $64 million deal with more than $30 million. But it didn’t work.

It looks like money, although a big factor, wasn’t the only reason why Osweiler chose to leave Denver. Osweiler was benched in the 17th week and while he did most of the heavy lifting on offense to put the Broncos in the playoffs, the team stuck with Manning until the end of the season. With any luck, the Texans would be the team that finally lets him prove his worth.

The Denver Broncos have a major hole to fill at quarterback as Peyton Manning retires to golf and Brock Osweiler goes for the money in Houston.

The annual NFL free agency frenzy has just begun Wednesday, but it’s never too early to see some significant moves. Osweiler, drafted and groomed to succeed Manning, has agreed to sign a hefty four-year, $72 million deal with the Houston Texans, with $37 million guaranteed.

Apparently, the move was not much of a surprise when the Broncos didn’t hear back from Osweiler several days after they tabled their original offer. But since Osweiler was an offseason priority after the Super Bowl 50 victory,  Denver made a strong push to keep him and increased its bid to four-year, $64 million deal with more than $30 million. But it didn’t work.

It looks like money, although a big factor, wasn’t the only reason why Osweiler chose to leave Denver. Osweiler was benched in the 17th week and while he did most of the heavy lifting on offense to put the Broncos in the playoffs, the team stuck with Manning until the end of the season. With any luck, the Texans would be the team that finally lets him prove his worth.

Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo’s fantasy football lawsuit against the National Football League took a real life hit on Monday after a judge dismissed one of his claims.

On Monday, Judge Carl Ginsberg dismissed Romo’s claim of tortious interference by the NFL in last year’s cancellation of the National Fantasy Football Convention (NFFC). Romo’s claims for breach of contract and estoppel (aka legal hypocrisy) are still hoping to reach a trial by jury.

The NFFC was scheduled to take place last July at the Sands Expo, a convention center associated with Las Vegas Sands’ Venetian Resort Hotel Casino in Las Vegas. Romo, who own a piece of the show’s organizer, The Fan Expo LLC, was set to appear at the NFFC along with a number of other current NFL players.

But the NFL intervened one month before the event was supposed to take place, threatening those players set to attend that they would be in violation of the league’s anti-gambling policy, which prohibits players from participating in events held at or sponsored by casinos.