TheLines: NFL home-field advantage not as strong in 2021 so far

NFL Week 14 has a large portion of home favorites, but the 2021 season hasn’t particularly been dominated by home teams so far, according to TheLines.
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The NFL’s Week 14 slate features a larger portion of home favorites than any other week this season, but the year hasn’t particularly been dominated by home teams so far, according to TheLines.com, which tracks odds in the US regulated sports betting market.

As of Monday, 11 out of 14 games this week have home favorites, according to a consensus of that nation’s largest legal online sportsbooks — including DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM, BetRivers, Caesars, and PointsBet

The New Orleans Saints (-6) over the New York Jets, the Dallas Cowboys (-5) over the Washington Football Team, and the Seattle Seahawks (-7.5) over the Houston Texans are the only games on this week’s schedule where the visiting team is the favorite.

However, 2021 hasn’t been kind to home teams so far. Home teams are 81-108-1 against the spread for a winning percentage of 42.6% through the first 13 weeks of the season, down from nearly 49% in 2020.

This season’s home record against the spread is well below the historic winning percentage as well. Home teams have gone 1,463-1,549-76 against the spread since the start of the 2010 season, covering 47.4% of all matchups during that span, including this year.

Brett Collson, lead analyst for TheLines.com, commented: “The presumption might be that home favorites would have fared worse in 2020, when stadiums were largely empty, than in 2021. But that is not the case so far.

“Thirteen weeks of football is a relatively small sample, though, and a reversion to the mean would not be shocking. That might be something for bettors to consider with such a home-heavy slate this week.”

The consensus point spreads for Week 14 games, as of Monday, December 6:

  • Pittsburgh Steelers at Minnesota Vikings (-3); over/under 45
  • Baltimore Ravens at Cleveland Browns (-2); over/under 43
  • Jacksonville Jaguars at Tennessee Titans (-10.5); over/under 44
  • Las Vegas Raiders at Kansas City Chiefs (-9.5); over/under 52.5
  • New Orleans Saints (-6) at New York Jets; over/under 43.5
  • Dallas Cowboys (-5) at Washington Football Team; over/under 49
  • Atlanta Falcons at Carolina Panthers (-3); over/under 43.5
  • Seattle Seahawks (-7.5) at Houston Texans; over/under 43.5
  • Detroit Lions at Denver Broncos (-8); over/under 43.5
  • New York Giants at Los Angeles Chargers (-10.5); over/under 45.5
  • San Francisco 49ers at Cincinnati Bengals (-1.5); over/under 47.5
  • Buffalo Bills at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (-3.5); over/under 53
  • Chicago Bears at Green Bay Packers (-12.5); over/under 44.5
  • Los Angeles Rams at Arizona Cardinals (-2.5); over/under 52