Patriots get respect from oddsmakers

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BEHIND THE LINES

Patriots get respect from oddsmakers
They are heavy favorites in Buffalo.

By Lonnie White
Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

November 18, 2007

Now that the second half of the NFL season has begun, the New England Patriots find themselves in glorified territory with oddsmakers.

At 9-0, the Patriots have defeated opponents by an average margin of 23.1 points and are 8-1 against the spread, which includes four wins with double-digit lines. At Bodog.com, New England has gone from 9-1 favorites to win this season's Super Bowl to 1-3 and are listed at 2-3 odds to finish the regular season undefeated.

The Patriots have an opportunity to add to their "oddsmakers season to remember" tonight at Buffalo. They are listed as 15 1/2 -point favorites over the Bills, who have won four games in a row.

Yes. A double-figure line in favor of a road team against a hot team. That's not good news for oddsmakers.

"Closer games are better," said Reed Richards from BetUS.com. "A lot of times, those are the ones that don't make the spread, even when the underdog upsets anyway."

Close games with tight point spreads are not what the Patriots have been about this season and experienced bettors have known this since Game 1.

"Normally, the wise guys [big bettors] realize how difficult it is for a team to go undefeated and compete at that kind of level week in and week out with everybody gunning for them," Las Vegas Hilton's Jay Kornegay told the Associated Press. "But the pros realize how good this team is."

The New York Giants will play at Detroit today and the line for the game has gone from even at the start of the week to the Giants being favored by three points.

The Giants are 6-4 against the spread but have attracted strong money most of the season. They have picked up 65% of the wagers against the Lions, according to theSpread.com's betting trend.

Auto racing

Jimmie Johnson has all but wrapped up this year's NASCAR Nextel Cup with an 86-point lead over Jeff Gordon heading into today's final race, the Ford 400 at Homestead, Fla.

Johnson needs an 18th-place finish or higher, regardless of where Gordon finishes, to clinch the title.

Oddsmakers at SBGglobal.com have Jeff Gordon the favorite to win today's race at +450 odds, followed by Johnson at +550.