By Canadian Press on January 21, 2025.
The Kansas City Chiefs continue to be a popular pick with Proline bettors.
The Chiefs began their quest for a third straight Super Bowl title with a 23-14 win over the Houston Texans on Saturday in the NFL divisional playoffs. According to the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp., 78 per cent of bettors correctly had Kansas City winning however a late safety likely removed smiles from many players’ faces as the spread was the Chiefs at -9.5 points.
As a result, 44 per cent of players successfully backing the Texans at +9.5. And only seven per cent of players correctly had Kansas City’s Kareem Hunt as the first TD scorer. Thirty-two per cent had Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce as an anytime TD scorer for his team while 21 per cent had running back Joe Mixon for the Texans.
On Saturday night, the Washington Commanders upset the top-seeded Detroit Lions 45-31. Just 22 per cent of bettors backed the Commanders’ win while 29 per cent had them at +7.5 on the spread.
Detroit running back Jahmyr Gibbs was the most popular bet for first TD scorer, with 27 per cent of bettors ultimately cashing in. And 36 per cent had him anytime for the Lions.
Twenty-eight per cent had Terry McLaurin as the anytime TD scorer for Washington along with 20 per cent for Zach Ertz.
On Sunday, Saquon Barkley ran for 205 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Philadelphia Eagles past the Los Angeles Rams 28-22. A solid 78 per cent of bettors correctly picked the Eagles to win while 47 per cent backed the Rams +7.5 on the point spread
Barkley rushing for more than 113.5 yards was the most popular player prop this week and 52 per cent of players had him as the Eagles anytime scorer.
On Sunday night, the Buffalo Bills downed the Baltimore Ravens 27-25. Sixty-five per cent of bets successfully backed the Bills’ victory while 56 per cent of players had them at +1.5 on the point spread.
The Ohio State Buckeyes captured U.S. college football’s championship Monday night with a 34-23 win over Notre Dame. Heading into the contest, 57 per cent of bettors backed a Buckeyes victory, while 55 per cent supported Ohio State -8.5 on the spread.
On Saturday night, the Toronto Maple Leafs rallied from a 3-0 deficit to down the Montreal Canadiens 7-3. Fifty-five per cent of players backed the Toronto win while 58 had the Leafs at -1.5 goals.
And a whopping 91 per cent of players had the over at 5.5.
In other action, 45 per cent of players backed the Ottawa Senators’ 6-5 shootout win over the Boston Bruins but only 16 per cent supported the Calgary Flames’ 3-1 victory over the Winnipeg Jets. Also, 26 per cent backed the Vancouver Canucks and their 3-2 victory over the Edmonton Oilers.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 21, 2025.
The Canadian Press
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