Bet on the Dolphins to lose in the wild card, other NFL best bets

National Football League

Published Aug. 30, 2024 10:07 a.m. ET

The long wait for the return of the NFL season is almost over.

It’s been nearly seven months since the Chiefs defeated the 49ers in Las Vegas to win last year’s Super Bowl, as Patrick Mahomes will now set his sights on an unprecedented third straight Super Bowl victory.

The fun thing about the current betting climate, however, is there are now more options than ever on the betting menu. If you have an unconventional opinion on a team or a player, there are so many opportunities to follow through with a bet supporting that hunch.

With that being said, let’s look at some unique bets I think provide value heading into the 2024 season.

Miami Dolphins — Exact Stage of Elimination

Wild Card Round +225 (DraftKings)

The Dolphins are a fantastic regular-season team when things are set up the way they like them. Mediocre defenses and perfect weather conditions are a recipe for monster offensive performances from the Fish, as we saw for the majority of last season.

However, when they are forced to travel to cold weather venues late in the season, their scoring goes down as much as the temperatures.

This year is set up to repeat the same trajectory as last season, as they are likely to get off to a hot start considering they are favored in six of their first seven games. But when the weather begins to change, things may get dicey again for the Fins.

From November on, they have road games in Buffalo, Green Bay, Cleveland and in New York against the Jets. That schedule might not keep them out of the playoffs if they build up a cushion early against a soft schedule, but could put them on the road to start the playoffs.

If Miami is on the road, cold weather cities such as Buffalo, Kansas City, Baltimore, New York or Cincinnati could await it in the wild card round. If that’s the case, I expect a similar exit to last year, when it was uncompetitive in a blowout loss in frigid conditions against the Chiefs on Wild Card Weekend.

The Dolphins are good enough to get in the playoffs, but +225 to make another early exit is a good bet to make.

Eagles, Dolphins, Jets to miss playoffs on Nick’s Picks

Minnesota Vikings — To Be a Wild Card Team

+500 (DraftKings)

Another fun market.

This is a two-part handicap. You want a team who is good enough to make the playoffs, but not quite good enough to win the division.

The Vikings check both of these boxes.

The Lions are loaded and could be the team that not only wins the division, but could win the NFC title for the first time in franchise history. The NFC, however, is not as deep as the stacked AFC, and there is room for a team to sneak in unexpectedly.

The Vikings are loaded at the skill positions, with Aaron Jones being added to the likes of Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison, and eventually T.J. Hockenson, who is recovering from injury. They have a defense that was much improved under Brian Flores, and coupled with head coach Kevin O’Connell, Minnesota has an elite coaching staff.

Questions remain at quarterback with the now well-traveled Sam Darnold, but at 5-1 odds, there’s a path here for the talented Vikings to sneak into one of the three wild card spots.

Will Hill, a contributor on the Bears Bets Podcast, has been betting on sports for over a decade. He is a betting analyst who has been a host on VSiN, as well as the Goldboys Network.

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