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What is Public Betting on NFL – How to Use it Gain an Edge
Public betting on NFL refers to the bets placed by casual or recreational bettors, in contrast to professional or “sharp” bettors.
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Public bettors tend to be more reactionary and often less informed than sharp bettors. They tend to let outside factors influence their betting habits. This includes making a bet based off of
- The popularity of a team
- Recent performances
- Player star power
As a result, public betting trends can sometimes be a good indicator of which teams or outcomes are favored by the betting market as a whole and skewing betting lines in a particular direction. Some of the best betting apps, readily provide this information for users.
How to Use Public Betting Data
Bettors can use public betting data to analyze individual games and identify where public sentiment lies on NFL betting sites.
Sometimes, you can see where the public is heavily favoring a team (or outcome) and decide if you want to bet with the public or fade them.
For example, let’s say the Dallas Cowboys are playing the Chicago Bears, and 70% of the public is betting on Dallas. This might mean the betting line is skewed toward Dallas, and a bet on Chicago actually has better value.
Of course, public betting data is not always a reliable indicator of future results. Sharp bettors can often identify and exploit public betting trends, and drive betting lines back in the other direction.
It’s worth evaluating not just the percentage of bets made at sportsbooks on a particular team, but also the percentage of money on each side since professional bettors tend to bet much higher amounts.
By looking at these trends, you might be able to identify a game where the public and the pros are at opposite ends of the betting spectrum and use this to your advantage.
Ultimately, public betting data can be a helpful tool for bettors looking to gain an edge over the market.
Devin is a diehard New York sports fan and betting expert. He supplies a wealth of knowledge about everything online gambling, providing readers with up-to-date tracking on the latest trends, industry news, and betting offers.