Final results NFL 2021 week 3 (adjusted for point spread)

29 September 2021

NFLbets figures that in a typical NFL season, week 3 is when NFL bettors start getting the desired results, i.e. winning the bets we should be winning, and a sense of normalcy pervades until the next headline injury. In 2021, that bias was confirmed.

In week 3, Home teams were a solid 11-5 SU and a reasonable enough 9-7 ATS. Favorites went just 9-7 SU/7-9 ATS, but the Giants and Patriots apparently had no business giving points, anyway. Looking back on this particular week from the vantage point of season’s end, we may not see a single upset in these results. Here’s to hoping you didn’t try to get too cute in your betting.

Below runs the official NFLbets Pointspead-Adjested Final Results™ for week 3. Game results in bold are those in which the straight-up (SU) winner failed to cover and thus losing against the spread (ATS).

• Carolina Panthers 15 at Houston Texans 9
Who’d’ve thought that Tyrod Taylor’d be the man to lead the 2021 Houston Texans to relevance in the season’s first half at least? Well, this game was evidence that it’s all over now…

• Tennessee Titans 19½, Indianapolis Colts 16
NFLbets was admittedly irrationally kinda hoping that betting AFC South games might get a bit easier this season. Fat chance of that and the word (OK, words) on intradivisional matches remains STAY AWAY. Although as this may be the weakest division in the NFL, betting against the Titans, Colts, Texans and Jaguars could be fun and profitable this season…

• Buffalo Bills 36, Washington Football Team 21
That sound you hear is the last few stragglers trying desperately to find a way off the Washington bandwagon as it plummets into obscurity for another season. As for Buffalo, could the Bills be the beast of the AFC? And what happens if Buffalo gets the Chargers in the championship game to pit the Bills’ hard luck against the Chargers’ chokery…?

• Los Angeles Chargers 30 at Kansas City Chiefs 17
Speaking of the Chargers, we’d expect the over to start hitting in their games. Between weeks 4 and 10 of the 2020 season, the over was 7-0 in Chargers games and since then, the sportsbooks have punished Justin Herbert & Co., increasing the numbers to Air Coryell levels. From week 11 of ’20, the over in Chargers games has gone 2-7 ATS…

• Cleveland Browns 18½, Chicago Bears 6
Then there are the Browns, who week to week impress across the roster top to bottom. Baker Mayfield seems to have eight options to throw to on every play and the defense brings a pass rush with six or seven no. 1 overall picks. With the primary competition of the sad-sack Bills and the self-immolating Chargers, could this finally be the … nah, we can’t finish that sentence.

• Cincinnati Bengals 24 at Pittsburgh Steelers 7
Sorry, Steelers fans, but this result is going to seem a lot less surprising when we look back on 2021…

• Minnesota Vikings 30, Seattle Seahawks 15
Among 2021’s disappointments for NFL bettors has been the Seahawks, now 1-2 SU/ATS and not looking any different than the many near-misses from this team over the past seven seasons. This week’s game against the 49ers should be telling, and NFLbets is expecting Seattle to lose handily. And soon we can get to talking about how Russell Wilson’ll be asking for trade…

• Denver Broncos 16, New York Jets 0
So the Broncos are now 3-0 SU/ATS and the under has hit all three times in Denver games. Against the Giants, Jets and Jaguars. So, yeah.

• Atlanta Falcons 17, New York Giants 11
See, sportsbooks? These Giants really have no business giving points against anyone…

• Arizona Cardinals 23½ at Jacksonville Jaguars 19
What can stop the Cardinals from getting to the Super Bowl this season? Maybe the kind of coaching that gives a greenlight to a 68-yard FG attempt doomed to failure with no defense against a return – how about that…?

• Detroit Lions 17, Baltimore Ravens 11½
’Member 2018 when Jared Goff’s Rams beat the as-yet uncrowned Kansas City Chiefs 54-51, and then the Rams went 3-2 SU/2-3 ATS the rest of way before stumbling into the worst Super Bowl appearance since the Richard Dent was tormenting Tony Eason? Here’s to thinking that’s the blueprint for the ’21 Ravens – though without the Super Bowl…

• New Orleans Saints 28 at New England Patriots 10
After this result, NFLbets would not be surprised if he screwed the primetime audience, pundits and the interwebs in general by starting Jason Stridham against the Buccaneers on Sunday Night Football…

• Miami Dolphins 28 at Las Vegas Raiders 27
At 3-0 SU/ATS, the Raiders may be on surface level the shocker of the NFL, but the Gruden-deteriorated Raiders is looking at a serious challenge in week 4 against the Chargers…

• Los Angeles Rams 24, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 22½
NFLbets can say we were not all at stunned by this outcome … you know, all Magic tom Brady stuff aside. The Rams can hardly relax as they attempt to keep hold of no.1 seed possession, but having the suddenly monstrous Matt Stafford and, what, five quality WRs out there is certainly proving soothing for L.A. backers…

• Green Bay Packers 30 at San Francisco 49ers 25
Necessary win for Green Bay, hard loss for San Francisco, and the EEEEevil NFL schedule-makers are denying the adoring public a Rams-49ers game until week 10.

• Dallas Cowboys 37½, Philadelphia Eagles 21.
Well, at least one team in the NFC East will have a winning record this season – barring injury to Dak Prescott, that is. (Sorry for the jinx, Jerry...)

–written by Os Davis

Os Davis has been covering sports for longer than he’d care to admit. For personality, check his Twitter feed; for professional acumen, here’s his Linkedin profile.