Betting terms
Point Spread
A margin set by sportsbooks to make two teams roughly even for wagering. A team listed at -7 must win by more than 7 points to "cover".
How we use it
We explain the term because it appears throughout NFL coverage. Our predictions are football analysis, not betting advice, and our win probabilities and predicted scores come from our own simulations rather than from the market. Please read our disclaimer.
Where to see it
Related terms
- Moneyline
- A wager on which team wins outright, with no point spread. The odds are written as positive or negative numbers that set the payout; they also imply a win probability that includes the sportsbook's margin.
- Over/Under (Total)
- A sportsbook number for the combined score of both teams; wagers are on whether the final total lands above or below it.
- Win Probability
- The model's estimated chance that a team wins a game, from the share of simulated games it wins. A 70% favorite should still lose about 3 games in 10.