Here’s what the Vegas odds say about the Chiefs-Bills AFC Championship Game
It’s difficult to put an actual point value on Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
But it wont stop the Vegas oddsmakers from trying.
In a glimpse of perhaps just how critical Mahomes is to the Chiefs, the oddsmakers opened the AFC Championship with two potential lines (before actually placing one on the board) — a hypothetical line if Mahomes plays and one if the concussion protocol prevents him from taking the field.
The difference between the two? Six points, per some sportsbooks, and as many as seven according to others. That was enough to flip the Chiefs from a favorite to an underdog.
By Monday morning, they’d put their faith in Mahomes taking the field. The Chiefs are therefore a 3-point favorite against the Bills in the AFC Championship Game on Sunday at Arrowhead Stadium.
The Bills are on quite the streak — eight wins in a row since losing on a Hail Mary in Arizona. And they’re nearly as hot against the spread. The Bills have covered the line in all but one of those games.
The Chiefs, on the other hand, have covered the spread only once in their last nine games — and that was by a mere half a point in New Orleans. They seemed to be well on their way to it last week before Mahomes departed with the injury in the third quarter. Instead, with a 22-17 loss, Cleveland covered the 7 1/2-point line.
The over/under for Sunday’s game is 54 points, in a matchup between two teams that combined to score 60.9 this season (Bills at 31.3 and Chiefs at 29.6).
In the NFC Championship Game, the Packers are favored 3 1/2 points against the Buccaneers — the same number in which it opened this week. The over/under for that game is 51 1/2 points.