More low-scoring games are expected during the NFL’s Week 15 slate than any other week this season, as 12 games feature a projected point total of 45 or less, according to TheLines, which tracks odds in the US-regulated sports betting market.
Thursday night’s contest of Kansas City Chiefs @ Los Angeles Chargers (over/under of 50.5) is the only matchup this week with a projected point total of 50 or more, according to a consensus of that nation’s largest legal online sportsbooks — including DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM, BetRivers, Caesars, and PointsBet.
While wintery weather and injuries can bring a halt to offenses at this time of year, scoring is also down significantly this season when compared with the record-shattering 2020 season.
So far in 2021, teams have scored 414 points while averaging 23.04 points per game. By contrast, teams scored 24.8 points per game in 2020 for a record total of 12,692 points, which smashed 2013’s scoring record when teams scored 23.4 points per game and 11,985 total points.
Brett Collson, lead analyst for TheLines.com, commented: “We are seeing a return to historically normal levels of scoring. 2020 was so unusual in so many ways that a reversion to the mean was a near certainty. It’s not as if the NFL has morphed into a defense-first league.”
The consensus point spreads for Week 15 games, as of Monday, December 13:
- Kansas City Chiefs (-3.5) at Los Angeles Chargers; over/under 50.5
- Las Vegas Raiders at Cleveland Browns (-6); over/under 42.5
- New England Patriots at Indianapolis Colts (-2); over/under 45
- Carolina Panthers at Buffalo Bills (-11.5); over/under 43.5
- New York Jets at Miami Dolphins (-8.5); over/under 43
- Washington Football Team at Philadelphia Eagles (-4); over/under 43.5
- Arizona Cardinals (-13.5) at Detroit Lions; over/under 47.5
- Dallas Cowboys (-10.5) at New York Giants; over/under 45
- Tennessee Titans (-2) at Pittsburgh Steelers; over/under 41.5
- Houston Texans at Jacksonville Jaguars (-3); over/under 41
- Cincinnati Bengals at Denver Broncos (-1.5); over/under 44
- Atlanta Falcons at San Francisco 49ers (-8); over/under 45.5
- Green Bay Packers (-6.5) at Baltimore Ravens; over/under 43
- Seattle Seahawks at Los Angeles Rams (-7); over/under 47.5
- New Orleans Saints at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (-11); over/under 46.5
- Minnesota Vikings (-4) at Chicago Bears; over/under 43.5
