NFL Week 3 Top 10 Betting Picks

 The new NFL season moves to Week 3 with a few early 'must win' scenarios on the board for teams still looking for their first win. 

Monday night's showdown between the 2-0 Kansas City Chiefs and the 2-0 Baltimore Ravens is the biggest game of the week with each team vying for the early edge in the race for the No. 1 seed in the AFC. The key showdown in the NFC sends the 2-0 Green Bay Packers on the road to face the 1-1 New Orleans Saints on Sunday night.

As far as this week's top betting picks, I started things on a strong note with Miami's 31-13 upset over Jacksonville as a road underdog. I actually took the UNDER on 47 1/2 points. For the rest of my picks please check out the following post on the popular sports betting site Scores & Stats:

Dave’s Top 10 Best Bets for NFL Week 3

NFL Week 2 Top 10 Picks

 My Top 10 picks for the second week of the NFL season got off to a great start with Cincinnati covering the six-point spread in Thursday night's 35-30 loss against the rival Cleveland Browns. The Bengals have now been able to cover against the spread in 10 of their last 12 games against Cleveland.

Making picks solely based on past trends ATS is not the best idea in the world since so many different factors go into handicapping any upcoming game. However, these types of trends among division rivals do carry more weight. 

In sports betting, familiarity does lead to a higher level of predictability.

Recapping my Top 10 picks from Week 1, my overall record ATS was 6-4. I was actually very happy with that result in the absence of any preseason play. Bettors were going into the 2020 season blind as far as what to expect.

A few takeaways from the first round of games would include Kansas City and Baltimore being as good as advertised. You could also add that the betting public has over hyped both Dallas and Tampa Bay.

San Francisco's loss to Arizona was one of my straight-up upsets of the week. Once again, the recent trends came into play. They all leaned heavily towards towards the Cardinals in this matchup. Second, hangovers can be severe for the team that lost last season's Super Bowl.

As far as my nine other 'best bets' for Week 2, you can find them all posted at Scores & Stats:

NFL Week 2 Best Bets

NFL Week 1 Top Parlay Picks

 It is Week 1 of the 2020 NFL season and to kick things off on a high note I have released my Top Three Parlay Plays including a two-team upset special.

For all three parlay picks, check-in with Scores & Stats at the following link:

Best NFL Games to Parlay for Week 1 to Cash in Big

2020 Kentucky Derby Betting Strategy

 Four months late is 10 times better than no Kentucky Derby at all. The grandstands at Churchill Downs will remain empty this Saturday, but the races go on. The coronavirus pandemic may have put a kink in this year's Triple Crown racing series for the best three-year old Thoroughbreds but the Crown Jewel is up for grabs among 18 worthy contenders.

You could say that this year's 'Run for The Roses' offers one strong favorite and 17 contenders giving chase. 

Tiz the Law has already won the Belmont Stakes, which was the first Triple Crown event this year. In the midst of a four-race winning streak, this New York-bred three-year old was opened as a 3/5 favorite to win the second leg this Saturday.

Even though he will be breaking from the far outside No. 17 post, the oddsmakers are more than confident he is the horse to beat. Jockey Manny Franco is once again on board after guiding Tiz the Law to each of those first four victories. 

Picking the favorite to win will be a very popular betting strategy for the 2020 Kentucky Derby. However, the return on any bet will be minimal. 

You need to develop of betting strategy that can maximize your overall return on investment. This is a two-step process that involves bets at both your favorite online sportsbook and racebook.

The first step is to find a few high-value contenders to go along with Tiz the Law. I am putting Thousand Words at 15/1 high on my list. He will break from the preferred No. 10 post with jockey Florent Geroux. The mastermind behind this three-year old Kentucky-bred colt is famed trainer Bob Baffert. 

Another contender with excellent value in his longer odds is Money Moves at 30/1. Trained by Todd Pletcher, he will also break from a favorable post at No. 6 with jockey Javier Castellano getting the ride.

We are going to use these three entries in three different bets. The first is a Tiz the Law and Thousand Words exacta through the actual racebook. You can place this bet straight-up since the favorite is winning this race.

Shifting to your top online sportsbook, we are going to look for some favorable head-to-head matchup odds for Thousand Words and Money Moves.

Turning to BetOnline as my preferred online book to bet the Kentucky Derby, I am going with Thousand Words at +200 against Honor A. P. as a heavy -260 favorite.

Another high value matchup bet is Money Moves as a -130 favorite against Storm the Court as an even-money +100 underdog.

Anything can happen when you send 18 thundering three-year old Thoroughbreds down a dirt track over a distance of 1 1/4 miles. The opens the door to a small hedge bet in case things do not go as planned. 

In this case, I am going to take The Field at +105 plus-money odds against the favorite, Tiz the Law at -135 odds.

For my full preview of Saturday's Kentucky Derby, you can click through to Scores & Stats using the following link 2020 Kentucky Derby Picks, Odds & Preview.

I turned to BetOnline as my top online book to bet the Kentucky Derby. 

NFL Week 1 Top 10 Picks

 As the calendar turns the page to September this upcoming week, the countdown is on to the start of the 2020 NFL regular season. The defending Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs kick things off on Thursday, Sept. 10 with a home game against the Houston Texans.

Sunday's Week 1 slate features nine head-to-head division matchups. There is a pair of games on Monday night to cap off some excellent opportunities to beat the book right out of the gate. 

As an early preview for all the betting action at America's Bookie, I put together my Top 10 bets for Week 1. It was previously posted at the highly popular sports betting site Scores & Stats under the title link below.

NFL Week 1 Picks - Dave's Top Ten Best Bets

Betting That Cam is the Man in New England

 With NFL training camps underway at all 32 teams, anticipation for the upcoming season is running high. One of the biggest offseason storylines in the league was the departure of Tom Brady as the starting quarterback in New England.

After leading the Patriots to six Super Bowl titles over the span of nearly two decades, Brady has headed south to Tampa Bay to lead the Buccaneers' offense this season. Change of scenery in the NFL is a regular part of the landscape. It will definitely be different to see a NFL legend under center for the Bucs instead of the Patriots but those are the kind of changes that keep things interesting.

A subplot during the offseason was Carolina moving in a different direction as well. Cam Newton missed most of last season due to injury. This opened the door for Teddy Bridgewater as the team's new starting quarterback. Cam found a new home in New England as a potential replacement for Brady.

Newton has been plagued with shoulder and leg injuries the past few seasons. In typical Bill Belichick fashion, he is not even guaranteed to be the team's starter on opening day against Miami. However, as long as he remains healthy and productive, the job should be his.

Anyone looking to bet on Cam's performance this season can find a list of betting props at HRWager. As part of my weekly NFL coverage for the popular sports betting site, Scores & Stats, I have released a few 'best bet' plays in the recent post 

Cam Newton NFL Props Predictions at HRWager

Saratoga's Saturday Race Card Highlights

Last Saturday, Kentucky Derby favorite Tiz the Law stole the show at Saratoga Race Course by winning the Grade 1 Travers Stakes. This New York-bred three-year old's next stop is Churchill Downs in preparation for the next leg of the 2020 Triple Crown racing series.

The son of Constitution has already won the 2020 Belmont Stakes on June 20. This year's Kentucky Derby will be run on Saturday, Sept. 5.

This Saturday's race card at Saratoga features the Grade 1 Alabama Stakes for a few top three-year old fillies. Headlining the field is Swiss Skydiver. Trained by Ken McPeek, she is one of the top contenders to win this year's Kentucky Oaks on Derby Day. 

Sired by Daredevil, her odds to win the Alabama among seven total entries are 4/5 as the morning line favorite. McPeek will also run Envoutante at 8/1 opening odds. Trainer Bob Baffert's Crystal Ball will break from the No. 3 post as a 5/1 second-favorite.

As part of my weekly horse racing coverage for the popular sports betting site Scores & Stats, my complete preview of this race as well as the Saratoga Derby for three-year old turf racers is listed below.

Saturday’s Horse Racing “Best Bet” Events