Say what you want to about watching NFL preseason games, but it is nice to have a slew of professional football matchups, even exhibition ones, lined up on a Friday night.
Sure, if you're young and fun and go out on Friday nights, then you probably don't care.
But if you're the opposite of young and fun, like me, putting the kids to bed to watch Cincinnati's backups in action sounds like one helluva time!
There are five NFL preseason Week 1 games tonight, and yes, people are betting each and every one of them.
In fact, some of these games have taken so much action that oddsmakers are moving lines as well.
Using the Action Network's NFL betting trends, let's examine the spread and total bets attracting the most attention from football bettors.
Friday NFL Preseason Betting Trends
*NFL odds and betting trends as of Friday afternoon
Falcons vs. Lions Betting Trends
6 p.m. ET | NFL Network
Betting for tonight's Falcons vs. Lions matchup has been very interesting as 68% of bettors are lining up on this season's Hard Knocks team.
What's even more noteworthy is that sharps, those with the respect and resources to move NFL odds, pounded this line on Friday morning (click here to see our Falcons vs. Lions sharp report).
Browns vs. Jaguars Betting Trends
7 p.m. ET
While the Browns vs. Jaguars spread hasn't moved much since opening, the over/under movement has been fun to monitor.
This number has pushed from 33 to 37.5 at FanDuel Sportsbook, however, with 80% of the money wagered now on the under, this line has fallen to 36.5 at many shops, including BetMGM and DraftKings.
So, why is this number dropping in hours leading to tonight's kickoff?
Perhaps this 57.2% betting trend can shed some light…
Jets vs. Eagles Betting Trends
7:30 p.m. ET
The total pops off the page for Jets vs. Eagles as well, specifically the difference in tickets vs. money wagered.
Ninety-eight percent (!) of bets are on the under to this point, yet 78% of the money is on the over.
You know what they say: follow the money. And if we do just that, we see a total that has risen from 33 to 35.5.
Cardinals vs. Bengals Betting Trends
7:30 p.m. ET
We have another tickets-vs.-money situation going on here with the Cardinals vs. Bengals spread.
The Cards have garnered 80% of the money for tonight's game against the Bengals, and have needed just 47% of the tickets to do just that.
This has convinced a handful of books, like FanDuel and DraftKings, to knock their price down from Arizona +2.5 to +2, while others, like Circa and Westgate SuperBook in Las Vegas, are already at +1.5.
Packers vs. 49ers Betting Trends
8:30 p.m. ET | NFL Network
In terms of betting market activity, Packers vs. 49ers is the calmest of Friday's five NFL preseason Week 1 games.
Still, the combination of 75% of tickets and 64% of the loot has popped the Packers vs. 49ers over/under up to 35.5, after opening at 33.5, as of Friday afternoon.
