NFL Preseason Betting Trends To Remember As Schedule Drops

• The NFL’s preseason schedule has been officially announced.
• Certain coaches have interesting NFL preseason habits, giving bettors a potential edge.

NEW YORK – Preseason football is back for the first time in two years as the 2020 preseason was canceled due to COVID-19. A notable change to the postseason structure in response to the new 17-game season is that there are only three preseason games for each team as opposed to four like in years past.

The preseason might not have the most exciting games or have the best on-field product, but there are still storylines throughout the weeks that matter moving into the season.

• Green Bay Packers vs Houston Texans (Aug. 14) – Two teams with major question marks at the quarterback position will face off in the first week. Both of these teams may be looking to find their starter of the future and the preseason performances could play a big part in that decision.
• New England Patriots vs Philadelphia Eagles (Aug. 19) – The Patriots and Eagles, a rematch from Super Bowl LII, will face each other in the second week of play but will both be with new quarterbacks. Cam Newton’s recent hand injury should be healed in time, but it’s likely Bill Belichick will let the rookie, Mac Jones, get some reps. On the Eagles side, they’re fully invested in Jalen Hurts and will be looking for him to make some big strides.
• Jacksonville Jaguars vs Cleveland Browns (Aug. 14) – A couple of years ago if someone was told that the Jaguars and Browns would be a notable game they’d laugh, but that’s our reality. Trevor Lawrence will have all eyes on him while the Browns will look to keep improving and solidify themselves as a playoff team moving forward.

NFL Preseason Betting Trends

How a preseason game plays out has less to do with what players are on the roster and more with whether the coach decides to play their best players and call real plays.

John Harbaugh for example has an impressive 37-12 record in preseason games including four straight years without a loss. NFL betting fans should note Harbaugh is exceptionally successful in Week 1 with a 12-1 record on the moneyline.

Jon Gruden, similar to Harbaugh, is both successful overall, but especially in the first week of play. Gruden, before taking over in Oakland/Las Vegas, was 36-18 overall in the preseason but had an undefeated record of 10-0 in Week 1 of the preseason.

Mike Zimmer has an overall record of 20-5 in preseason games and has been undefeated in both Week 1 and Week 3 games with a combined record of 13-0. Just how much this changes with there no longer being a Week 4 is yet to be seen, but we at least know he’s successful in Week 1.

Sean Payton has around a .500 record overall but is notably bad in the final week of the preseason. As a head coach, Payton’s teams are 2-12 straight up in the final week of preseason play. When the time comes, see if legal online betting sites have caught on with Payton’s preferences.

News tags: football | John Harbaugh | Jon Gruden | Mike Vrabel | Mike Zimmer | NFL | NFL Preseason | Sean Payton