In a stunning turn of events this week, Tom Brady won his case against the NFL and has had his four-game suspension for the upcoming season lifted. The Patriots finished their Super Bowl campaign last year with a 15-4 SU and 11-8 ATS record, and their chances of having another successful season rise considerably with this news.
NFL playoff odds 2015: Patriots on move with Tom Brady back
Tom Brady’s suspension reversal puts New England in a good position to make the postseason for the seventh straight year.
Mark L. Baer-USA TODAY Sports
New England is a -400 favorite to advance to the playoffs this season, according to sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com, moving up on Thursday from the -350 line that they had been sitting at prior to Brady having his suspension squashed.
The Patriots have won the AFC East 11 times over the last 12 years and have won 10 or more games in every one of those seasons. With Brady back in the fold, New England should be one of the NFL’s safest bets to make the postseason.
The only teams going off as bigger favorites to make the playoffs this season are the Green Bay Packers at -600, the Seattle Seahawks at -800 and the Indianapolis Colts at -800. Green Bay has made the playoffs every year for the last six years and has won the NFC North each of the last four seasons.
Opinions among fans and bettors are split on this year's Pittsburgh Steelers team, and so are the team's odds to make the playoffs with both "Yes" and "No" going off at -115 apiece.
Pittsburgh should be excellent on offense this year with Ben Roethlisberger, Le'Veon Bell and Antonio Brown, but the defense has a lot of holes and inexperience. The Steelers went 8-3 SU and 7-4 ATS over their last 11 games last season according to the OddsShark NFL Database.
Per usual, the AFC North looks to be wide open on paper. Cincinnati is going off at +100 to make the playoffs and -130 to miss them while Baltimore is a -125 favorite to make the playoffs and -105 to miss them.
It isn't a good idea to put too much stock in the preseason, but the Minnesota Vikings have looked very strong. Teddy Bridgewater took nice strides forward at quarterback last season, and the return of running back Adrian Peterson could do wonders for the offense.
The Vikings are a +180 underdog to make the postseason, but they could find their way in if they play well on defense.
Odds to Make the NFL Playoffs
Seattle Seahawks -800
Indianapolis Colts -800
Green Bay Packers -600
New England Patriots -400
Baltimore Ravens -125
Pittsburgh Steelers -115
Cincinnati Bengals +100
Minnesota Vikings +180
