REVIEWING THE TOP-PERFORMING TEAMS AGAINST THE SPREAD

The best NFL teams to bet on come in all shapes and sizes.

There are underdogs like the Giants and Lions, who covered at a high clip and exceeded their low preseason expectations, and then there are Super Bowl contenders like the Bengals and 49ers, who were favored for the vast majority of their schedules and covered the spread often all the same.

One common denominator for the five teams with the best records against the spread: They all finished with winning records straight up, and all but one (Detroit) made the postseason.

Let’s look back at the 2022 season and review which teams delivered most often for bettors. This information can potentially be informative for 2023, though the Lions were the only team that repeated as

a top-five team against the spread (ATS) from 2021.

NEW YORK GIANTS

Record Against the Spread: 13-4

Record Straight Up: 9-7-1

The Giants, who were installed as underdogs 12 times last season, covered in 10 of those games and pulled off six upsets on the way to a surprising postseason appearance. New York’s biggest upset of the year, according to Vegas, came in a 2722 victory as a nine-point underdog against the Packers in London. Head coach Brian Daboll’s team also won outright as a 5.5-point underdog twice — once on the road against the Titans in the season opener and at home against the Ravens. The Giants finished 3-2 ATS as a favorite, well short of their sterling 10-2 underdog mark. New York went 6-3 ATS at home and posted an impressive 7-1 record on the road.

CINCINNATI BENGALS

Record Against the Spread: 12-4

Record Straight Up: 12-4

The Bengals finished the regular season on an eight-game winning streak in which they covered in all but one game: a 27-16 Week 18 win against the Ravens as an 11.5-point favorite. Cincinnati’s season began with two outright losses to the Steelers and Cowboys, both times as seven-point favorites, but Zac Taylor’s squad rebounded and finished the year as one of the most reliable teams to bet on, even though it was consistently installed as a favorite. The Bengals were listed as underdogs only twice and covered both times — they lost 19-17 as 3.5-point underdogs on the road to the Ravens and beat the Chiefs 27-24 as 2.5-point underdogs at Arrowhead Stadium.

DETROIT LIONS

Record Against the Spread: 12-5

Record Straight Up: 9-8

The Lions were a team of runs in 2022. They began the season with three straight covers ATS, then failed to cover four in a row and followed that up with a seven-game cover streak. That run of covers late in the year also corresponded with outright victories. Following a 1-6 start, Detroit went 8-2 over its final 10 to secure a winning record for the first time since 2017. Dan Campbell’s nail-biting team finished 8-3 ATS as an underdog with five upset wins. The Lions hosted the Commanders Week 2 in a contest that closed as a pick ‘em; that ended their run of 24 consecutive games as an underdog; (Detroit won, 36-27). It wasn’t often that the Lions were giving points, though they finished 3-2 ATS in that position.

LOS ANGELES CHARGERS

Record Against the Spread: 11-5-1

Record Straight Up: 10-7

The Chargers were listed as a favorite 11 times last year and finished a respectable 6-4-1 ATS in those games. As an underdog, Los Angeles posted a stout 5-1 mark ATS but won outright only once: a 23-17 victory against the Dolphins while getting three points at home. The largest letdown of the season was a 38-10 home loss to the Jaguars in which the Bolts closed as 6.5-point favorites. L.A. finished 7-2 ATS in away games, including a 4-1 record ATS as a road favorite. Justin Herbert improved to 5-1 ATS in games against the division-rival Chiefs with two covers last season, though the Chargers lost both games and are 2-4 straight up against Kansas City since 2020.

SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS

Record Against the Spread: 11-6

Record Straight Up: 13-4

The 49ers were a different team after the Christian McCaffrey trade. They were 3-3 ATS and straight up before the deal, lost to the Chiefs 44-23 in McCaffrey’s debut in San Francisco as a one-point home underdog and then ripped off a 10-game winning streak to end the regular season. The Niners went 8-2 ATS over that stretch and were favored in all but one game. Kyle Shanahan’s team entered just two games as an underdog all year: against the Chiefs in Week 7 and a week later against the Rams on the road, a contest they won 31-14 as a one-point underdog. San Francisco was favored by more than a touchdown six times and finished 4-2 against the spread in those games, including a 14.5-point cover against the Cardinals in the season finale.