“Wait, why does this NFL team have a -235 next to its name? What’s with New England Patriots (-15) vs. Miami Dolphins (+15)? Help! HEEEELPPPP!”

Buccaneers odds, line, spread: NFL picks, 2021 Super Bowl predictions from top model on 120-78 run SportsLine's advanced computer model simulated Buccaneers vs. Chiefs in Super Bowl LV.

If that sounds like you, we’re here to assist you. If you’ve stared at a board at a sportsbook or just seen spreads and moneylines on the Internet and been utterly confused, don’t worry. It’s not just you. Those numbers can be confounding.

One of the best features on the NFL Vegas Odds is the Open Line. This numbers consists of the first betting line received from one of our Las Vegas or Global Sportsbooks. The opening line varies depending on the sportsbook but it provides a clear-cut rating that the oddsmakers use. Los Angeles Rams vs Green Bay Packers odds, line, over/under and prediction. John McCoy/Getty Images Rams vs Packers Divisional Round Game Info NFC Divisional Round Game Los Angeles Rams (10-6, 4-4 Away) vs. Green Bay Packers (13-3, 7-1 Home) Date: Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021 Time: 4:35 p.m. EST Venue: Lambeau Field — Green Bay, WI Coverage: FOX. Get the latest NBA odds, spreads and betting lines from this week's games, as well as full coverage of the National Basketball Association from USA TODAY.

But hopefully, once you’re done reading this, you’ll completely understand how they work. As you prepare to dive into the world of sports betting, here’s a breakdown of how the lines work, starting with …

Spreads

It would be really easy to bet on a game if you could put money on a heavy favorite to win.

That’s where point spreads come in. Let’s look at an example:

Philadelphia Eagles (-4.5)

New York Giants (+4.5)

In this case, you can bet on either two outcomes: you can put money on the Eagles to win the game by 4.5 points OR MORE, which makes them the favorites. Or you can bet that the Giants will either win or lose by LESS THAN 4.5 points. They’re the underdogs.

Now, sometimes the spread “moves” during the days leading up to the game. Perhaps the Eagles’ spread ends up being -3.5 (in which they must win by 3.5 points or more to give you a victory in your bet). Your bet all depends on whichever spread you bet on, whether it was when the Eagles were favored by 4.5 or 3.5 points.

If you ever see “PK” or “pick” next to a team, it means there’s no spread and you can bet on who will win, no matter what the score is.

Moneylines

Let’s take that same example above but use moneylines:

Philadelphia Eagles (-200)

New York Giants (+150)

The team with a minus symbol is the favorite, and the number is how much money you would need to bet to win $100. In this case, you would have to bet $200 on the Eagles in order to win an additional $100.

The Giants are the underdogs. If they’re +150, that means you could bet $100 to win $150.

Note that you can bet any amount you want, but those numbers are always calculated and posted the same way, either in how much money you would need to wager to win $100 or how much money you could win by wagering $100.

Odds

If you’re betting on something like the team who will win the Super Bowl in the future, you might see it look like this:

New England Patriots — 3/1

Baltimore Ravens — 5/1

Kansas City Chiefs — 8/1

If you were betting on the Patriots and their 3/1 odds, you would win $3 for every $1 you spend. So if you bet $50 on the Pats and they ended up winning the Super Bowl, you’d win $150 (plus your original wager) back.

Good luck!

How to Use the Odds Comparison Tool

Compare odds across legal US sportsbooks at ScoreandOdds.com to help you profit over the course of the NFL season. Find out how to use the odds comparison tool, along with other NFL betting tips below.

Are you in a state or traveling to a state with legal sports betting, such as New Jersey, Pennsylvania or Indiana? Our odds comparison tool is perfect for you.

Highlighting the best lines — spreads, totals and moneylines — from multiple sportsbooks across the legal US sports betting industry, you can outsource line-shopping in your betting process, saving you time and money in all of your sports betting endeavors. Simply click on spreads, totals or moneylines underneath Bet Type. The best line will be outlined in red, showing you which sportsbook you should use for each respective bet.

Additionally, all of the sportsbooks featured in our odds comparison tool will have a welcome promo, which might include free bets or deposit bonuses, for all new users. Be sure to take advantage of the offers by clicking on the bet you want and signing up!

Of course, if you are new to NFL betting, or sports betting in general, you will first need to understand what you are looking at in terms of NFL spreads, moneylines and point totals. A few complementary NFL betting tips never hurt anyone, either. Let’s get started.

NFL Betting Glossary & Tips

Spread – The most popular way to bet on NFL football is by betting on a team against the spread (ATS). You will either wager on the favorite or the underdog to cover the spread. The Favorite is the team giving or laying points (ex: Chiefs -7). The underdog is the team getting points (ex: Colts +7).

By betting on the underdog, the team does not have to win the game for you to win your bet. You need them to lose by less than the number of points they are getting. If they win outright, you will win your bet too. Example: If you bet on the Indianapolis Colts +7, the bet wins if the Colts lose by six points or less (or win outright), you push (no money won or loss) if they lose by exactly seven points, and you lose if the Colts lose by eight or more.

NFL Betting Tip: Be aware of NFL key numbers when betting, the two most important numbers being 3 and 7. It is more common for teams to win by 3 or 7 points than any other margin of victory. The third-most common margin of victory is 10 points. Often, you will find different point spreads across different sportsbooks. If one sportsbook has a team favored by 7 points, by using our odds comparison tool, you can quickly find out if another sportsbook has the spread at 6.5 or 7.5 points. Finding the best spread is arguably the biggest factor in making you a profitable bettor over the long term.

Money Line – By betting on the moneyline, you are only wagering on what team will win or lose. Large favorites require you to risk more money than you will win (ex: Chiefs -300, requires you to risk $30 to win $10). Conversely, betting on underdogs will earn bettors more money than they risk (ex: Bengals +300, a $10 bet will earn you $30 profit).

NFL Betting Tip: While it is important to take or give points when the team you like is on the right side of key numbers, what do you do if the spread is not on the right side of the key number? Maybe you love an underdog and even think they have a chance to upset the favorite but the spread is +2, not quite reaching that key number of 3. The moneyline might be more enticing here. Some historical data shows that break-even percentages on moneyline underdogs are better than that on moneyline favorites

Rx Line And Odds

Total (Over/Under) – When you bet on the point total, you’re betting on the total number of points scored by both teams. So if a game has a total (or Over/Under) of 49 points before kickoff, you can bet on Over or Under 49 total combined points between the two teams for the entire game. Points scored in overtime are included. There are also point totals for quarters and halves.

NFL Betting Tip: Try to spot teams who have changed things up, whether by adding a key player in the NFL free agency or identifying a generational talentbefore others do, such as Patrick Mahomes. During the 2018-19 season, in Mahomes’ first year as a starter, the Kansas City Chiefs went Over their respective point totals in each of their first three games. By the end of the season, Chiefs Over/Under record was 10-5-1.

Vigorish (vig) or Juice – The vig or juice is the cut sportsbooks take from bettors to place their bets. This is the house edge. Sportsbooks typically have a vig of -110 on both sides of a bet, meaning you have to risk $11 for every $10 you want to win. Taking into account the vigorish, you need to win not half of your bets but at least 52.4% to break even.

NFL Betting Tip: While -110 is most common, some sportsbooks are nicer than others when it comes to vigorish. You will want to use SAO’s odds tool to find which sportsbooks are charging the least amount for your NFL picks.

Other NFL betting Terms

Line Scores And Odds

Parlay – A parlay involves two or more picks, all of which have to win for your parlay to pay out. You have a three-team parlay, and two of your picks win but the last game loses? Tough luck, you lose the entire bet. Parlays are attractive to bettors because of their large payouts. Two-team parlays traditionally pay 2.6-to-1, three-team parlays pay 6-to-1, four-team parlays pay 10-to-1, etc. Though we refer to these as “two-team parlays,” parlays can consist of picks on the point totals and sometimes even props. Use our parlay calculator for your convenience.

NFL Betting Tip: Remember, NFL lines are extremely efficient. In fact, the NFL is arguably the toughest sport to beat over the long haul. Parlays require perfection, making it even more difficult for you to win on Sunday.

Teasers – Like a parlay, teasers require more than one pick, and all picks in your teaser must hit. NFL teasers are a popular way of moving multiple point spreads (or totals) to bettors’ advantage. Since the points are adjusted in the bettor’s favor, teasers do not have as large of payouts as parlays

Vegas Lines And Odds

NFL Betting Tip: Generally speaking, teasing football point totals does not raise your win rate enough to make teasing advantageous. This is especially true in college football, but even in the NFL, it is much sharper to focus on teasers that move point spreads through key numbers like 3 and 7.

Live Betting – Live betting occurs after a game starts. Did you sleep in or forget to place a bet, missing the kickoff of an NFL game you wanted to bet on? Most US sportsbooks will have live lines available for you to bet on while the game is still in progress.

Lines And Odds College Basketball

NFL Betting Tip: Live lines are not as efficient as closing lines in sports betting. Watch games closely, take in the extra information available, and use live lines to your advantage, especially if you notice something that you believe sportsbooks’ live algorithms are not accounting for.