NFL Week 18 parlay: Let's make some money

Kevin Erickson | Staff Writer

Well, depending upon what combination of teams you used from this column in Week 17, it could have been a successful week.

We started out with the Los Angeles Rams (9-7) blowing the cover as 6.5-point favorites against the New York Giants (5-11) thanks to a late 94-yard punt return for TD with just 3:27 left in regulation by the New York. To make matters worse, the Giants elected to go for a 2-point conversion and failed, leaving the score Rams 26-25 and taking overtime out of the equation for a potential cover for L.A.

That was the 1st leg of last week's parlay, and the only loser. We benefited from the backdoor cover as 3.5-point underdogs when the Las Vegas Raiders (7-9) scored a TD vs. the Indianapolis Colts (9-7) with just 43 seconds left to slice the lead to 23-20, which ended up being the final.

We had the Arizona Cardinals (4-12) catching 12.5 points from the Philadelphia Eagles (11-5) on the road. Something is off with the Eagles, but no one expected an outright 35-31 victory by Arizona. The loss for the Eagles is equivalent of a Q4 loss in college hoops. If this was college football, Philly might be left out of the College Football Playoffs by the committee. Thankfully, the NFL doesn't use that idiotic system.

In the optional 4th leg, the Jacksonville Jaguars (9-7) kept hope alive for an AFC South Division title, smoking the Carolina Panthers (2-14). The Jaguars, who closed as 4-point home favorites, won 26-0.

Now that the ball has dropped, it's 2024. Let's start off the new year on the right foot in Week 18. After looking at FanDuel Sportsbook's NFL Week 18 odds, here is a "Let's make some money" NFL parlay bet to cash in on among SportbookWire's NFL expert picks and predictions.

FOOTBALL NEVER STOPS

Live games, analysis and more 7 days a week: Get ESPN+

NFL Week 18: Let's make some money parlay

Odds provided by FanDuel Sportsbook; access Paste BN Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated Friday at 10:29 p.m. ET. All games Sunday and ET unless noted.

Leg 1: BUCCANEERS -4.5 (-115) at Panthers – 1 p.m. (FOX)

It's a tale of 2 teams. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-8) are playing for an NFC South Division title in Charlotte Sunday. The Panthers are playing to pack up their lockers and go home after a dismal season, perhaps the worst in franchise history.

The Bucs topped the Panthers just 21-18 in Week 13 at the Ray Jay as Carolina backdoored bettors with a Chuba Hubbard 1-yard run TD and successful 2-point conversion with 5:02 left to turn a 21-10 win and cover for the home side into a disappointing ticket. Even the TD would have been fine, but the Bucs allowed QB Bryce Young to run in for the 2-pointer. Ugh. It won't happen again.

The Panthers hit rock-bottom last week, posting a goose egg in Jacksonville. The offense is gross, the defense has had too much lopped onto its shoulders, and overall, the team broke down late in the season.

Look for the Bucs and QB Baker Mayfield to come away with an impressive win.

Leg 2: PATRIOTS -1.5 (-110) vs. Jets – 1 p.m. (FOX)

The New England Patriots (4-12) might not have had the season they wanted, but coach Bill Belichick and his team aren't throwing in the towel. The Pats hit the road and dealt the Denver Broncos (Week 16) and Pittsburgh Steelers (Week 14) crushing blows to their playoff hopes, while going a respectable 2-2 straight up (SU) and 4-0 against the spread (ATS) in the past 4 games.

The New York Jets (6-10) aren't going to the playoffs, either. The season has been a mess from the jump. The Jets suffered a 15-10 home loss back in Week 3 against the Pats, and that was the 15th consecutive win in the series by the Patriots. New England has covered 6 in a row in the series, too. It could be Belichick's final game on the sideline in Foxborough after a historic run, as well. Look for the Pats to continue finishing strong.

Leg 3: BENGALS -7 (-105) vs. Browns – 1 p.m. (CBS)

The Cleveland Browns (11-5) punched their ticket to the playoffs with a 37-20 home win over the Jets in the Week 17 Thursday night game. QB Joe Flacco threw for 309 yards and 3 TDs. It was his 4th consecutive 300-plus yards passing outing. Believe it or not, that's the 1st time in his career that has happened. As a reward, he will get the day off Sunday, preserving the 38-year-old signal caller for the playoffs.

The Browns are locked into the No. 5 seed, so Sunday's game with the Cincinnati Bengals (8-8) is meaningless. Coach Kevin Stefanski is taking the resting thing to new heights, however, as he gives backup QB Jeff Driskel the start.

The journeyman will be the 5th different QB to start for Cleveland this season as Stefanski decided against QB PJ Walker, who ran the offense a few games earlier in the season. Driskel, wearing No. 19, certainly won't be giving off Bernie Kosar vibes in his first NFL start since Sept. 27, 2020, with the Broncos.

The Bengals aren't playing for anything but pride after being eliminated in Kansas City last week. It would be nicer to get this line below a flat 7, however, Cleveland will have a bevy of reserves, and Driskel isn't likely to do much.

Parlay payout: Bet $10 to profit $59.68 (payout = $69.68).

Try out the Paste BN Parlay Calculator.

Leg 4-*: BILLS -2.5 (-115) at Dolphins – 8:20 p.m. (NBC)

*-If you want to add a 4th play to this parlay.

In the NFL's final game of the regular season, the Buffalo Bills (10-6) face the Miami Dolphins (11-5) for the AFC East division title in South Florida. With the win comes the No. 2 seed in the conference. Plus, there is a playoff scenario which has the Bills missing the playoffs with a loss.

If Pittsburgh wins in Baltimore against backup QB Tyler Huntley, and if Jacksonville were to lose to the Tennessee Titans, Buffalo might be playing to avoid missing the postseason entirely. Even so, with a division title on the line, the Bills shouldn't need the "win or go home" motivation.

Buffalo handled Miami in Western New York back in Week 4, winning 48-20, an embarrassing loss for the Dolphins. With Miami coming off a 56-19 emasculation in Baltimore last weekend, some of the luster from this Dolphins teams has been lost.

Is Miami simply good against bad and mediocre teams, while not measuring up against the league's best? I guess we'll see.

Parlay payout: Bet $10 to profit $120.28 (payout = $130.28).

Play our free daily Pick’em Challenge and win! Play now!

For more sports betting picks and tips, check out SportsbookWire.com and BetFTW.

Follow Kevin J. Erickson on Twitter/X. Follow SportsbookWire on Twitter/X and like us on Facebook.

Access more NFL coverage:

[]

Facebook Twitter Email