Know This: The Super Bowl's Gonna Be Close

Yes, the sportsbooks like Tom Brady and the New England Patriots this weekend.

Dudes are favored to claim their second straight Super Bowl title when they take on Nick Foles and the high-flying Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LII.

With news that heavy bills are being laid on the underdogs, the line's been dropping. Currently, some services are offering the Pats -4.

 

If that's the premise, this weekend -- as it is every year -- will be a huge one for morality.

And don't forget the side bets on your way to the big one:

 

New England has had a few chinks in their armor this season, and Philadelphia’s defense is playing out of its collective mind right now.

This brings us to the ultimate question:

Are Brady and the Pats ripe for the picking against an Eagles team that's reveling in its underdog status?

 

Bet Philadelphia against the spread because …

Nick Foles seems to be up to speed in relief of Carson Wentz as the Eagles reached Super Bowl LII in stunning fashion:

• They laid an emphatic 38-7 smackdown on the Minnesota Vikings as a 3-point home underdog in the NFC Championship, after
• Getting past Atlanta 15-10 in the NFC divisional round.

More importantly, against the Vikings, Foles played his best game since taking over for an injured Carson Wentz in Week14.

 

Foles completed an efficient 26 of 33 passes for 352 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions in that win and now heads into Super Bowl LII with a ton of confidence.

Philadelphia’s defense also looked absolutely phenomenal for the fourth straight game, dating back to Week 16. The Eagles’ defense picked off Case Keenum twice while holding the Vikings to 70 rushing yards to get the win.

Here's the pick-six:

 

Bet New England against the spread because …

As far as the Patriots are concerned, they reached Super Bowl LII by doing what they always do.

No problem!

After falling behind 14-3 at one point and 17-10 after three quarters against the feisty Jaguars, Tom Brady & Co managed to take control of the AFC Championship by outscoring Jacksonville 14-3 in the final quarter.

Ergo, yet another hard-fought, last-minute 24-20 victory.

 

Brady passed for 290 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions.

The Pats defense held Jaguars powerful rookie running back Leonard Fournette to a modest 76 yards rushing while sacking Jax slinger Blake Bortles three times in the win.

Here's our Super Bowl ATS Pick ...

I’m going to advise you to back the high-flying Eagles to pull off the huge upset for a couple of reasons.

First, Philadelphia’s defense is playing lights-out football, and I believe they'll at least keep Brady in check, especially after seeing the way Jacksonville just did it in the AFC Championship.

 

Second, I also believe that head coach Doug Pederson is going to come up with another masterful plan that both maximizes Foles' chances for success while simultaneously hiding his deficiencies.

I'm fully aware of these stats:

• Tthe Patriots are 4-1 ATS in their last five playoff games and 16-5 ATS in their last 21 games against a team with a winning record, however,
• The Eagles have gone 8-2 ATS in their last 10 games following an ATS win, 9-3 ATS in their last 12 games against a team with a winning record and 11-4 ATS in their last 15 games overall.

 

After going against the Eagles in both of their two playoff games this post-season, my eyes have been opened.

Now, I can clearly see Philadelphia getting the outright win!

ATS Pick: Philadelphia +4

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Sportbet Columnist: Noah Williams

Noah lives and works with a simple philosophy of “Eat, Drink, Football.” This is embodied through a dedication to satellite TV, Indian delivery, Folgers in his cup, and Budweiser. He lives in a secret lair with his beautiful concubine.