Solid majority of Proline bettors support Chiefs in playoff win over Texans

The Kansas City Chiefs continue to be a popular pick with Proline bettors.

The Chiefs began their quest for a third straight Super Bowl title with a 23-14 win over the Houston Texans on Saturday in the NFL divisional playoffs. According to the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp., 78 per cent of bettors correctly had Kansas City winning however a late safety likely removed smiles from many players' faces as the spread was the Chiefs at -9.5 points.

As a result, 44 per cent of players successfully backing the Texans at +9.5. And only seven per cent of players correctly had Kansas City's Kareem Hunt as the first TD scorer. Thirty-two per cent had Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce as an anytime TD scorer for his team while 21 per cent had running back Joe Mixon for the Texans.

On Saturday night, the Washington Commanders upset the top-seeded Detroit Lions 45-31. Just 22 per cent of bettors backed the Commanders' win while 29 per cent had them at +7.5 on the spread.

Detroit running back Jahmyr Gibbs was the most popular bet for first TD scorer, with 27 per cent of bettors ultimately cashing in. And 36 per cent had him anytime for the Lions.

Twenty-eight per cent had Terry McLaurin as the anytime TD scorer for Washington along with 20 per cent for Zach Ertz.

On Sunday, Saquon Barkley ran for 205 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Philadelphia Eagles past the Los Angeles Rams 28-22. A solid 78 per cent of bettors correctly picked the Eagles to win while 47 per cent backed the Rams +7.5 on the point spread

Barkley rushing for more than 113.5 yards was the most popular player prop this week and 52 per cent of players had him as the Eagles anytime scorer.

On Sunday night, the Buffalo Bills downed the Baltimore Ravens 27-25. Sixty-five per cent of bets successfully backed the Bills' victory while 56 per cent of players had them at +1.5 on the point spread.

The Ohio State Buckeyes captured U.S. college football's championship Monday night with a 34-23 win over Notre Dame. Fifty-one per cent of players backed Ohio State's win while 60 per cent had the winners on the spread of -7.5.

Less than one per cent had Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard as the first TD scorer of the game but 40 per cent had him anytime for the Irish. Jaden Greathouse had two touchdowns for Notre Dame but less than one per cent of bettors had him as an anytime scorer for the team.

Meanwhile, 30 per cent of players had Jeremiah Smith as an anytime TD scorer for Ohio State as well as 21 per cent having Quinshon Judkins. And 35 per cent of bettors successfully backed the Buckeyes for the season-long national championship outright future selection.

On Saturday night, the Toronto Maple Leafs rallied from a 3-0 deficit to down the Montreal Canadiens 7-3. Fifty-five per cent of players backed the Toronto win while 58 had the Leafs at -1.5 goals.

And a whopping 91 per cent of players had the over at 5.5.

In other action, 45 per cent of players backed the Ottawa Senators' 6-5 shootout win over the Boston Bruins but only 16 per cent supported the Calgary Flames' 3-1 victory over the Winnipeg Jets. Also, 26 per cent backed the Vancouver Canucks and their 3-2 victory over the Edmonton Oilers.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 21, 2025.

The Canadian Press