The New England Patriots are good. The Buffalo Bills just started Derek Anderson at quarterback. That's all you need to explain why oddsmakers opened the Patriots as the largest road favorites of the 2018 NFL season.
Pinnacle opened New England as a 13-point road favorite for Week 8's matchup on Monday Night Football (8:15 p.m. ET on ESPN) against Buffalo, and 71% of bettors are already laying the points.
According to Bet Labs, 17 NFL teams have opened as favorites of at least 13 points on the road since the 2005 season.
The Kansas City Chiefs (-13.5) were the most recent team to open as such large road favorites in a Nov. 19, 2017 matchup against the New York Giants. The Chiefs actually lost that game, 12-9 in overtime.
In fact, NFL visitors that open as favorites of 13 points or more are just 7-10 (41.2%) against the spread (ATS).
Please note that this refers only to teams that opened as this number. For example, the Chiefs actually closed at -10 against the Giants last season.
When looking at closing spreads, the Pittsburgh Steelers are the most recent team to close as road favorites of at least 13 points, doing it against the Cleveland Browns on Jan. 3, 2016. Pittsburgh won 28-12.
NFL road teams that close at -13 or more are 9-10 (47.4%) ATS since 2005.
