5 situational betting tips for Week 13 of the NFL season

Need some help spotting situational edges with a new slate of NFL action fast approaching? We've got you covered.

Here are five tips as you do your homework for Week 13.

Falcons faltering vs. AFC

Whether it's a lack of preparation, unfamiliarity, or just nine flips of a coin landing on the same side every time, the Atlanta Falcons can't figure out the AFC. A 28-16 loss to the Cleveland Browns in Week 10 means head coach Dan Quinn has failed to cover the spread against nine straight non-conference opponents. The competition hasn't been all too stiff, either - the Falcons lost outright to the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 4 and needed a comeback win over the New York Jets last year to avoid being swept by the AFC East. They host the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday and will be short underdogs, looking to snap a three-game losing streak.

Broncos in bad spot at Bengals

At first glance, the Denver Broncos have a favorable matchup on their hands against a banged-up Cincinnati Bengals team that's lost five of six. But the Broncos have struggled in Eastern Time during the early slate of games - a well-documented situation in our previous betting tips. Since head coach Vance Joseph took over in 2017, Denver's 0-7 straight up, 1-6 against the spread, and has allowed an average of more than 31 points in those games. The Broncos are laying four points on Sunday, the third time they've been favored in this scenario.

Questionable price for Packers

The 4-6-1 Green Bay Packers are slumping, but they're still giving two-plus touchdowns at home against the 2-9 Arizona Cardinals.

It's rare that a team with a winning percentage of 40 percent or worse is favored by double digits, but it's been a pretty fun fade. BetLabs found that teams in this situation are 15-28 against the spread (34.9 percent), meaning the Cardinals, as incompetent as they've looked this season, would be the play in this spot. Additionally, teams that are double-digit underdogs coming off a double-digit loss - Arizona fell by 35 last weekend to the Los Angeles Chargers - have been profitable in the past.

Giants inconsistent against spread

The New York Giants are consistently inconsistent. They've had trouble stringing together solid performances over the last few years, going 2-13-1 against the spread the week after covering the number. You'd have to go all the way back to Week 15 of the 2016 season to find the last time the Giants covered the spread in consecutive weeks. So, after coming through as 4.5-point underdogs in a 25-22 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, New York is ready for another letdown as another 4.5-point underdog against the Chicago Bears.

It doesn't help that the Giants will be at home - where they've failed to cover five straight spreads - against a red-hot Bears team that's getting extra rest.

Two angles oppose Chiefs

After failing to cover the 14.5-point spread in a 26-14 win over the Cardinals in Week 10, Andy Reid fell to 1-5 against the spread as a double-digit favorite as head coach of the Chiefs. He's now laying 14.5 more points to the Oakland Raiders.

We also mentioned last week that taking double-digit favorites playing teams out of conference has been profitable; on the contrary, double-digit favorites against conference opponents are covering well below the 50 percent mark.

Alex Kolodziej is theScore's betting writer. He's a graduate of Eastern Illinois who has been involved in the sports betting industry for 11 years. He can quote every line from "Rounders" and appreciates franchises that regularly wear alternate jerseys. Find him on Twitter @AlexKoIodziej.