It’s been six long months, but NFL sports betting is finally back. The preseason kicks off on Thursday night, Aug.4, with the Las Vegas Raiders taking on the Jacksonville Jaguars in the annual Hall of Fame Game in Canton, Ohio, at 7 p.m. CT.
Although it may just be preseason, it’s a welcomed appetizer to tide over football-starved fans until the main course arrives on Sept. 8.
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How to Bet the Las Vegas Raiders vs. Jacksonville Jaguars Game
Betting on preseason games in the NFL is always tricky. The games are hard to analyze because, most of the time, they are just glorified practices with each team working on execution and testing out new plays from the playbook.
The starters never see much action (especially in the early weeks), so you are essentially betting on the teams’ backup players. That’s not to say that there isn’t money to be made.
It can pay dividends to do your research on each team prior to the game to see if you can glean information on who is going to play and for how long. And remember, there will always be motivated rookies and walk-ons looking to put on a show and impress the coaching staff.
Preseason games usually have limited betting options compared to regular season games but will still feature the most popular bets of moneyline, point spread, and total.
Moneyline
A moneyline bet is when you pick the team you think is going to win the game. It doesn’t get any simpler than this, and many bettors prefer it that way. The wager will include any extra time in case of a tie at the end of regulation, and there is no point spread involved.
The average odds across the sportsbooks for the Raiders and Jaguars in the HOF game is -110 for both teams. This means that you would need to wager $110 to make a $100 profit if your team wins.
Point Spread
A point spread is when the sportsbook calculates a handicap and assigns it to a favorite. It’s a way of evening the playing field for more exciting betting options. For instance, in the HOF game, the Raiders are currently favored at most sportsbooks by -1.5 points as of Wednesday morning.
That means that if you were to bet the Raiders on the spread, they would have to win by two points for you to win your bet. Conversely, if you took the Jaguars at +1.5, they could lose by one point, and you would still win your bet.
Total
A total bet is the combined points in the game, and you have to pick whether it will be over or under the amount set by the sportsbook. The total in the Raiders/Jaguars game is currently set at 30.5 points at most sportsbooks.
Interesting Notes About Hall of Fame Game History
You can almost put it in the bank that neither Raiders starting QB Derek Carr nor Jaguars starting QB Trevor Lawrence will play in this game. The last starting quarterback to suit up in the HOF game was Lamar Jackson back in 2018.
It’s safe to say that not many other starters will see action either. With that out of the way, here are five interesting tidbits to note about recent history in the HOF game.
- Favorites have won the last five HOF games going 3-1-1 against the spread (ATS)
- The Raiders are 3-0 in HOF games
- The Jaguars are 0-1 in HOF games
- The under has hit seven of the last nine times in the HOF game
- The team that has led at halftime has won eight of the last 10 HOF games
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