AFC Title First Half Spread Prediction
The Chiefs are laying four points in the first half of Sunday’s AFC Championship Game. Is Kansas City the best bet in the first half or will the Titans hold their own until halftime?
What are the first half lines?
According to oddsmakers from Caesars Casino currently list the Chiefs as 4-point favorites to cover the first half line, although the juice is shaded to -115. As for the total, the number sits at 25 in the first half, with the standard -110 juice on both the over and the under.
What is the line for the entire game?
As of early Sunday morning, the Chiefs are still laying 7 points to the Titans in today’s AFC Championship Game, while the total sits at 52 points. Our NFL Public Betting Chart page shows that 63% of public bettors are currently backing the Chiefs to cover the spread, but that’s been the case all week and the line hasn’t budged.
First Half Prediction
The Titans have covered the first-half line in four straight games dating back to Week 16 of the regular-season, through the first two rounds of the NFL playoffs. Overall, they’re 9-9 against the spread in the first half of games this season, but one thing to remember is that Ryan Tannehill didn’t replace Marcus Mariota at quarterback until Week 6. He didn’t start until Week 7 and since that point, the Titans are 7-5 against the number in the first half of games.
As for the Chiefs, they’re 10-7 against the spread in the first half of games this season, including the contests in which Patrick Mahomes was out with injury. When you take a deeper dive into these trends, the Titans are 6-5 against the spread in the first half of games when playing on the road, while the Chiefs are 5-4 against the number in their nine home games this year, including playoffs.
Thus, as you can see, not much separates these two teams when it comes to the first half. That said, teams catching four or more points in the first half of NFL playoff games this year are 3-0-1 against the spread, which includes Tennessee’s ATS win in the first half last Saturday night in Baltimore as a 6.5-point dog. There’s value in backing the Titans if you believe they’ll give the Chiefs a game this afternoon, which I do. I’m also willing to ride the Titans’ 4-0 ATS mark in the first half of games over the last four weeks and see if they can’t make it five straight today in Kansas City.
AFC CHAMPIONSHIP FIRST HALF BETTING PREDICTION: TITANS +4