All I want for Christmas is a profitable gambling day and to not get new socks for the 4th year in a row. So, I decided instead of spending a bunch of money on pictures of my wife and daughter, I’d bring you a different type of Christmas Card. This year is different from almost every other Christmas before it. Legal sports gambling is now up to 20 states with BOTH legal online and in-person gambling. In total, 33 have either one or the other. Plus, another handful of other states will have it January 1st or pending voting results in 2023. What makes this year so special? Games. So. Many. Games.
We won’t just have a handful of NBA games this year. We have *ahem*
- 5 NBA games
- 5 College basketball games
- 3 NFL games
- And a partridge in a pear tree
The Christmas Card
Knicks/76ers U218
This game is the first game of the day. Noon Eastern time. It’s all about the timing. The guys are waking up, presents with the families, maybe a little Christmas brunch/breakfast. They’re going to be either too full and be sluggish OR they’ll be starving and not focused. The ball will not be going through the hoop.
Aaron Rodgers O1.5 TD passes (-102)
The Packers are coming off a Monday Night Football victory at home against the Rams. The Packers came with a very balanced attack where they were able to run the ball efficiently. Christmas Day in Miami is going to be a 180. The Dolphins have given up the 6th most passing yards in the NFL this season. They upgraded their pass rush by getting Bradley Chubb before the trade deadline. That, coupled with the Packers offensive line issues and both running backs being on the injury report, means Aaron Rodgers will be getting the ball out quick and be in rhythm. Rodgers has thrown 2 or more touchdowns in 9 of 14 games this season.
DePaul +16
Creighton just got off the mat against Butler after losing 6 straight games to dominate the Bulldogs by 22. This first month and a half of basketball has been confusing for Greg McDermott’s squad. They beat a 21st ranked Texas Tech and a 9th ranked Arkansas at the Maui, but lost by in the championship to Arizona. They then lost to a really good Texas team in Austin and dropped a home game to Nebraska. I think it’s obvious this team’s ceiling is high after shooting 50% from 3 and 56% from the floor in the aforementioned Butler game on Thursday. That being said, 16 is too many points for a conference game and the struggles they’ve had.
Hopefully, you’ll be rockin’ around the Christmas tree Christmas night with some extra cash in your pockets with these picks!
