Betting on NFL totals is in theory 50/50 proposition as to whether you think the combined scores of both teams in given a game will be over or under the total offered. An example NFL total line will look like :
New Orleans Saints Over 47 -105
Green Bay Packers Under 47 -105
In that instance the sportsbooks have estimated a game total of 47 which you can place a bet on depending on your evaluation of the number. If you see plenty of points being scored you would likely bet over 47 while if you foresee a defensive low scoring game you would take the under 47 line. If the exact combined team scores equal exactly 47 the bet is a push and your money refunded.
You might not be confident as to who will win the Monday night football game or maybe you can't bring yourself to bet on a team you dislike then the over under bet might be just the ticket. You can sit back and cheer the offenses if you bet the over or root for the defense if you took the under. Like point spreads there are game total key numbers which occur more often than others, these include 37 & 41 which occur in about 5% of games, followed by 30, 41, 33 and 48 .
While most gamblers are happy to bet either the over or under in a given game, NFL over under betting can also be bet with the chance of getting a middle or side in much the same ways as with point spreads. Lets look at an example from week 1 2010 where the Jacksonville Jaguars hosted the Denver Broncos. The opening line total was 41.5 which worked its way down to close at 40, with the end score being a win to the Jaguars by 24 points to 17 for a total of 41. An early bet on the under 41.5 coupled with a bet on the later line of over 40 would have produced two winning bets which is called a middle as the result landed in the middle of two bets. Had you taken under 41 coupled with over 40 the over bet would have won while the under would have been a push and therefore refunded, this is called a side.
On our NFL over under page you will find the latest opening and closing total lines for the current weeks games, we also have archived over under details week by week dating back to the NFL 2007 season. We provide handy color coded season to date over under records for each team and each week dating back to the 2007 season on our NFL over under spread results pages. These easy to reference tables show how each team has done against the total, giving you easy access to current streaks and trends in over under betting with the Green dots representing an over, the red equaling an under and the yellow a push.