Happy Thanksgiving! Thursday’s menu features no shortage of turkey, mashed potatoes, and football, in no particular order. The NFL’s annual Turkey Day showcase features two games after the Ravens-Steelers nightcap was pushed back to Sunday. The two games we have left may leave something to be desired without a single playoff contender in action, but football is football.
BetOnline has a handful of odds boosters posted ahead of Thursday’s action. Let’s try to unearth some betting value.
NFL: Rams to Win NFC Championship (+800)
The Los Angeles Rams picked up a big win on Monday Night Football, as they went into Tampa and came away with a 27-24 win over a fellow NFC contender. Los Angeles is now 7-3 on the year, which means they’re tied atop the NFC West with the Seattle Seahawks entering Week 12.
The Rams have gotten very little buzz as a legit NFC contender to this point, but perhaps it’s time to start taking them seriously. This has quietly been one of the most imposing defenses in the league this season, and we know Sean McVay’s offense is capable of doing serious damage. Let’s not forget the Rams won the NFC just two years ago.
LA is now listed at +115 to win the division, which puts them slightly behind Seattle (+110). The Rams now have the fifth-best odds to win the conference at +600, so the +800 odds you’re getting here do look appealing.
NFL: Texans and Cowboys BOTH to Win (+275)
The Texans and Cowboys are both favored on Thanksgiving, which is surely a rare occurrence. These have been two of the more disappointing teams in the NFL, but they have shown signs of turning it around. Houston picked up a nice win at home over New England in Week 11, while the Cowboys pulled the upset on the road over a surging Vikings squad.
Instead of three, there will only be 2 Thanksgiving Day games — #Texans–#Lions and #Cowboys–#Washington. “This decision was made out of an abundance of caution to ensure the health and safety of players, coaches and game day personnel and in consultation with medical experts.” https://t.co/BmIl66Fa9a
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) November 25, 2020
Houston is a 2.5-point favorite in Detroit on Thursday, while the Cowboys are favored by a field goal at home vs. Washington. The Lions failed to crack the scoreboard last week against the Panthers, but D’Andre Swift and Kenny Golladay may both return for this game. That should give Detroit’s offense a much-needed boost.
Washington trounced the Dallas Cowboys at home last month, but Dallas looked like a more impressive all-around team this past week. Whether that continues just four days later remains to be seen, but the Cowboys should win this game given the talent discrepancies between the offenses.
NFL: Ezekiel Elliott to Score At Least Two Touchdowns (+450)
Ezekiel Elliott is having a down season, thanks in large part to the array of injuries that has plagued the Cowboys’ offensive line. Zeke finally found the end zone over the weekend in Minnesota, though, which was his first TD since way back on October 11 against the Giants.
Elliott was held to just 45 rushing yards by Washington last month, but the Cowboys fell into an early hole and were forced to take to the air. Elliott has two multi-TD games through the first 10 games of this season, though he hasn’t found the end zone twice since that aforementioned outing against the Giants a month-and-a-half ago.
Washington Football Team has allowed 0.9 rushing touchdowns per game this season, which is tied for the 12th-best mark in the league.
Zeke isn’t a huge factor in the passing game, so if he does find paydirt, he’ll likely have to do it on the ground.
NFL: Steelers To Go 16-0 (+750)
The Steelers are 10-0 for the first time in franchise history, which is a bit hard to believe given the rich tradition of the franchise. Pittsburgh will look to get to 11-0 on Sunday at home against the Ravens. The Steelers picked up a four-point win over their archrivals back on November 1, and this will likely be the Steelers’ toughest game for the remainder of the season.
As the Steelers make their run at perfection, no one seems to notice https://t.co/1puzxsLBfw
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) November 23, 2020
If they’re able to escape this week unbeaten, the Steelers will close out the season with games against Washington, Buffalo, Cincinnati, Indianapolis, and Cleveland. Three of those games are against likely playoff teams, while the games against the Football Team and Bengals are likely Ws.
The Steelers are looking to be the first team to finish a regular season with a perfect record since the 2007 Patriots. The only other team to accomplish the feat was the 1972 Dolphins.
NFL: Steelers (-5.5) to Cover AND Over 44.5 Points (+400)
Pittsburgh is justifiably favored in this game, especially given the Ravens’ recent struggles. Baltimore was beaten in overtime by the Titans in Week 11 to drop to 6-4 on the year. The Steelers essentially have the AFC North title all locked up already, but the Ravens would love to be the first team to hand them a loss.
As you may expect, the Steelers have been the NFL’s best team against the spread this season. Pittsburgh is 8-2-0 ATS, which puts them just ahead of the Raiders, Dolphins, and Giants for the best mark in the league. These two teams combined to put 52 points on the board when they met in Baltimore earlier this month.
The Pittsburgh Steelers are 4-4-2 over/under/push so far this season, while the Ravens are 4-6-0.
What’s The Best Bet?
The Steelers have been quite impressive, but betting on any team finishing the season undefeated is obviously a risky endeavor. The Steelers may have the top seed in the AFC locked up before the season even ends, which could mean the team decides to rest some regulars in the final few weeks of the campaign. The potential for that alone makes this look like a pretty easy bet to avoid at +750.
I’ll also pass on Elliott scoring multiple touchdowns on Thanksgiving. He gets enough work in the Cowboys’ attack to potentially find the end zone twice, but some other bets just look more appealing. I will also pass on a Steelers cover plus the over on 44.5, as these have been two of the riskiest “over” bets all season long.
The Rams winning the NFC for the second time in three years is possible, but not particularly likely. LA has benefited from a fairly easy schedule to this point. The Texans and Cowboys both picking up wins on Thanksgiving Day is the best option here at +275. Both teams are favored. While both have taken rocky paths to get here, it’s not like Detroit and Washington are the most daunting opponents.
Bet on the Texas teams to pick up victories on Turkey Day.
Boosted Odds Prop Bet:
Texans and Cowboys BOTH to Win (+275)
Taylor Smith
Taylor Smith has been a staff writer with GamblingSites.org since early 2017. Taylor is primarily a sports writer, though he will occasionally dabble in other things like politics and entertainment betting. His primary specialties are writing about the NBA, Major League Baseball, NFL and domestic and international soccer. Fringe sports like golf and horse racing aren’t exactly his cup of tea, bu …
