Bookmakers competing in the 2021 Bookies Battle are grabbing the low-hanging fruit that are the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 9 of the NFL season.
Listed early in the week as 2.5-point favorites over the Packers, the Chiefs are the pick of 75% of Bookies Battle contestants, who are taking advantage of the point spread swinging in K.C.’s direction upon news that Aaron Rodgers will miss Sunday’s game after testing positive for COVID-19. As of Friday, the line sits at Chiefs -7.5 on most oddsboards, including DraftKings and Caesars.
Crossing the key numbers of ‘3’ and ‘7’, this week’s top consensus play has the feel of one leg of a Wong teaser.
The Chiefs lead the way as the first of four favorites that top the Week 9 consensus picks. In fact, nine of the 10 most popular picks are chalk.
The Chargers, who have seen the market move against them this week, are the second most popular Bookies Battle play. While about 73% of contestants are laying 2.5 points at the Eagles, the line ranges from -1 to -2 on Friday.
So far this season, Los Angeles has the look of a team that cashes tickets against mediocre opponents (wins and covers against Washington, Kansas City, Las Vegas, and Cleveland), but doesn’t get it done against better competition (straight-up and against-the-spread losses against Dallas, Baltimore, and New England). At 3-5, Philly looks to be among the former.
Ravens -5.5 (vs. Vikings) and Rams -7.5 (vs. Titans) garnered the third- and fourth-most support among our competing bookmakers.
There’s a four-way tie for fifth.
| Team | Percentage of picks | Contest line (Tuesday) | Market line (Friday morning) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chiefs | 75.8% | -2.5 | -7.5 |
| Chargers | 72.7% | -2.5 | -1.5 |
| Ravens | 66.7% | -5.5 | -6 |
| Rams | 63.6% | -7.5 | -7 (-115) |
| Bills | 60.6% | -14 | -14.5 |
| Raiders | 60.6% | -3 | -3 (-120) |
| Patriots | 60.6% | -3.5 | -3.5 |
| Jets | 60.6% | +10.5 | +10 |
2021 Bookies Battle To Date
Our bookmakers’ consensus picks went 8-7 last week and are 63-56 on the season.
Rafael Figueroa from Borgata in Atlantic City led the way with a 12-3 record in Week 8.
Nick Smith (Snoqualmie Casino Sportsbook) maintains a one-game lead with 72 winners on the year after going 8-7 in Week 8.
Mike Lewis (Suncoast Hotel & Casino) lurks in second place, and there is a three-way tie for third, with Atif Chaudry (Meadows), Max Schmerin (Rivers Pittsburgh), and Bert Cirincione (Green Valley Ranch) all tallying 69 winners on the season.
Check out the full leaderboard here.
Also read: Week 9 odds and early moves | Week 9 totals
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