NFL Betting Guide & Season Preview

The NFL regular season gets underway on Friday 9 September at 2:20 AM SAST as defending champions the Los Angeles Rams kick off their Super Bowl title defence against the Buffalo Bills at the SoFi Stadium.

We’ve put together a guide on the NFL for punters looking to understand American football and decide who to back for the season ahead.

What You Need To Know

The NFL consists of 32 teams, with 16 apiece in the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC).

The regular season will span precisely four months. Although the first game is technically a Friday match in South Africa’s time zone, it will still be Thursday 8 September in the USA and the regular season will end on 8 January, giving way to the playoffs, which are scheduled to start six days later.

The playoffs are the start of the NFL postseason, a 14-team elimination tournament. Each conference is split into four divisions during the regular season and each of the division winners compete in the playoffs, along with three wildcard teams from each conference.

Eventually, the conference champions clash at the end of the NFL postseason for the Super Bowl title, which will be decided on 12 February.

Teams And Players To Watch

As defending champions, the Los Angeles Rams are unquestionably one of the teams that punters should keep their eyes on, but they are likely in for a difficult ride.

The Buffalo Bills are the favourites to win the Super Bowl this year in a pick which seems to have consensus from bookmakers and many journalists.

Wide receiver Isaiah McKenzie has been struggling with a groin injury and is somewhat doubtful for the Bills’ season opener against the Rams. However, he is expected to star this season.

Although they won the 2020 and 2021 AFC East, the Bills have not appeared in the Super Bowl since January 1994, when they lost 30-13 to the Dallas Cowboys.

They will be banking on their offensive talent to land them the Super Bowl championship this time and will be raring to go, looking for a strong statement of intent against the Rams in their season opener.

The Rams should also be counted as one of the strongest teams in the NFL, but they are slightly short of depth heading into the new campaign.

Watch out for the Denver Broncos, under the guidance of a new president, Damani Leech.

Crucially, they also have a new star quarterback, Russell Wilson, who they signed from the Seattle Seahawks as part of a trade deal. This plugged a gaping hole in the Broncos’ roster and they are now in good shape to pick up a playoff spot.

The Cleveland Browns are another dangerous team as far as contending for playoff spots is concerned, but they are now the ones with a messy situation on their hands in the quarterback position, with Deshaun Watson, suspended for 11 games due to sexual misconduct allegations against him from over two dozen women. The scandal is all but certain to have had an effect on team morale.

Nevertheless, keep an eye on Myles Garrett, the Browns’ star defensive end. He is widely reported to have missed practices in order to attend to a gravely ill family member, but when available, he is bound to have a galvanising effect on his team.

One of the most intriguing subplots of the season will be the return of Tom Brady, who was initially supposed to retire at the end of last season but called it short in an attempt to add one last Super Bowl title to his name. Aged 45, even Brady is running a tight race against time, but he relishes being counted out and proving people wrong – hence why he is a seven-time Super Bowl champion.

His Tampa Bay Buccaneers are rated second-favourites for the Super Bowl by our odds, with the Kansas City Chiefs and Aaron Rodgers’ Green Bay Packers also in the mix.

Ultimately, however, it will take a lot to stop the team from Buffalo billed as the favourites for this season.

Best Bets

Best Outright bet: Buffalo Bills to win the NFL @ 6.50

Best Opening week bet: Tampa Bay Buccaneers to beat Dallas Cowboys @ 1.71

Leonard Solms

Leonard Solms is a sports journalist who features regularly on various local and international platforms including ESPN, New Frame, FARPost, Tagged Online and Careers Magazine, as well as this one. He enjoys the occasional bet and the most important tip he can give you is to bet within your means.