Will the Super Bowl Curse come back to bite the Atlanta Falcons? They’re one win away from making it back into the playoffs after suffering arguably the biggest comeback defeat in the history of sports at Super Bowl LI, but if the Falcons (9-6 SU, 6-9 ATS) don’t beat the Carolina Panthers (11-4 SU, 9-6 ATS) on Sunday, they could miss the postseason altogether. It’s an important game for the Panthers, too; they can take the AFC South title with a win and some help, and maybe even land the No. 2 seed in the conference. The Panthers are 4-point road dogs on the NFL odds board at press time, kicking off at 4:25 PM ET on FOX.
Because there are so many important games on the Week 17 NFL betting board, most of them have been moved to the late afternoon – and all 16 games this week are being played on Sunday. Here are four more key matchups to watch out for, all times Eastern:
Cleveland Browns at Pittsburgh Steelers (1 PM, CBS)
In the most important early matinee, the Steelers (12-3 SU, 7-8 ATS) have the No. 1 seed in the AFC, and they can keep it – along with home-field advantage through to the Super Bowl – by beating the winless Browns (0-15 SU, 3-12 ATS). Pittsburgh is laying 11 points.
Jacksonville Jaguars at Tennessee Titans (4:25 PM, CBS)
The Titans (8-7 SU, 7-7-1 ATS) are No. 6 in the AFC, and they can clinch that last Wild Card berth with a win over the Jaguars (10-5 SU, 9-6 ATS), who are frozen in place as the No. 3 seed in the conference. Tennessee is a 3-point home favorite.
Arizona Cardinals at Seattle Seahawks (4:25 PM, FOX)
If the Falcons lose to Carolina, the Seahawks (9-6 SU, 6-8-1 ATS) can vault over them and take the final NFC Wild Card berth. They’ll have to beat Arizona (7-8 SU, 5-9-1 ATS) to do it; the ‘Hawks have already steamed from –8 to –9.5 against the wounded Cardinals.
Cincinnati Bengals at Baltimore Ravens (4:25 PM, CBS)
It’s very likely that the Ravens (9-6 SU, 8-6-1 ATS) will enter the playoffs as the No. 5 seed in the AFC, but a loss to the Bengals (6-9 SU, 8-7 ATS) as 10-point favorites could end Baltimore’s season if everything else breaks the wrong way for them.
*Odds as of December 29, 2017