NFL betting guide for 2023

To learn how to bet on NFL games at the best betting sites, we'll take you through an example. For the 2021 season opener between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Dallas Cowboys, we've reviewed the main NFL betting odds market – the moneyline:

We'll now take you through the best NFL bets to place and how to read NFL betting lines with some examples. Read on…

When you simply want to bet on which team you think will win, look for NFL moneyline bets. To make betting on the underdogs fair, wagers on them will result in a higher payout to compensate you for taking the risk.

The moneyline is part of the NFL betting lines for the game. In our example below, the moneyline for the Cowboys-Buccaneers 2021 NFL season opener is:

What does the spread mean in NFL betting? Known as NFL point spreads, NFL spreads or handicap betting, this market indicates how much bookmakers think one team will win by and is a way of levelling the two teams as they display the same odds. This kind of bet is also referred to as NFL betting lines against the spread.

For instance, if the Cowboys are +5.5 underdogs, you win the bet if they win or even lose by less than 5.5 points. For the Buccaneers, if the spread is -5.5 then they have to win by more than 5.5 for you to win your bet. NFL point spread betting is explained in our example below:

If you're unsure who will win, you can choose over/under betting odds on the NFL. Over/under odds require you to bet on what the combined score total of a game will be.

For example, if the Cowboys-Buccaneers' NFL over/under betting odds are listed at 52 points, you can choose for the combined total to be over or under that amount. It is best to look at past form and head-to-heads between the teams, and check out expert NFL betting picks.

NFL prop bets or NFL proposition bets are wagers you can place on aspects of the game other than the final outcome. Sportsbooks will often include a couple hundred for each game covering markets such as:

• Who scores the first touchdown for each team
• Over/under for passing yards (and other production related stats) by quarter/half/game
• Halftime score
• NFL prop bets for Divisional outcomes, including: exact finishing order, finishing position per team, etc
• Other common prop bets can be found relating to Super Bowl betting
• Unusual or funny NFL bets can be found at top NFL betting sites, too
• Many NFL combine bets are also prop bets

NFL futures bets are wagers bettors can make on an outcome beyond just a game. These can be bet on before and during the season, where the odds will fluctuate depending on the current standings and stats.

You'll often find the best NFL bets preseason, such as for NFL Championship betting, as this is before a game has been played and all teams are still in contention. Some of the most popular NFL futures odds include:

• Super Bowl winner
• Division winner
• Conference winner
• NFL betting odds to make the playoffs
• NFL MVP winner and other individual player awards
• First pick in the NFL draft

Online NFL parlay betting, or accumulator betting, gives you the chance to win more money in a single wager by wagering on several games at once. Such bets are made up of selections in which bettors pick an outcome (ie game result, prop bet, etc).

Your potential payout increases with each added leg (and depending on the odds for the desired outcome/result of each leg). But so does the risk. While you can win more with parlays with just a small bet, if just one selection loses then you lose the whole bet.

The best NFL parlay bets will include selections where you pick mainly favourites and with more options. This way, your payout can still be big, but with less risk as most bets are more likely to win than not. It is recommended to always bet small with parlays, as the odds are stacked against you.

NFL live betting, or NFL in-play betting, is a newer segment of the sports betting online industry. It gives bettors a chance to bet on aspects of the game while it is in progress.

Depending on how the game is going, the odds may fluctuate far more compared to normal pre-game prop and futures markets to reflect the probability of a particular outcome. Types of bets include the point spread, totals, the moneyline, next scorer and winner of the next quarter.

You can often win big if you feel a team that is losing a certain game can come back and win, as their odds will be more profitable if they are behind.

We've put together the following NFL betting tips to help you develop a strategy and winning NFL betting picks come game day: