Bethereum’s American Football Betting Series — Part 3: What to Know as a First-Time Viewer
American football is now available on the Bethereum platform, and we’re giving you everything you need to know in order to confidently bet against your friends and the worldwide Bethereum community as American football season continues to heat up.
Have questions about betting on American football? Our American football expert Michael Luchies will be answering your questions in the final part of this six-part series. Everyone is welcome to send questions here.
In Part 1 of the Bethereum American Football Betting Series, we covered the basics of American football terminology and scoring. In the second, we looked at each of the positions and their purpose. In this edition of the series, we’ll look at things our American football expert thinks you should know as a first-time viewer of American football.
Note: If you do want to watch your first game ever, a good place to start would be looking at the availability of NFL games through your television/streaming packages. If you can’t watch a live game, here are a few games in full on YouTube worth watching:
· Super Bowl 42 (New England Patriots vs. New York Giants)
· Super Bowl 45 (Green Bay Packers vs. Pittsburgh Steelers)
· Dallas Cowboys vs. Detroit Lions 2013
Here are several tips for watching your first American football game (NFL or NCAA):
· Take a Look at Predictions and The Spread
American football is a great sport to bet on. Before watching a game, search for a couple of predictions on the game and see what the “spread” is. The spread shows you which team is favored and by how much. For example, my Detroit Lions hosted the Kansas City Chiefs on 9/29. The Chiefs were -7, meaning they were expected to beat the Lions by 7 points. If you bet on the Lions and took the points, if the Lions lost the game by less than 7 points, you would win the bet. If betting on the Chiefs -7, you would need the Chiefs to beat the Lions by more than 7 points. Also, by looking at predictions and betting spreads, you will quickly know which teams are considered to be good, and which teams are not expected to perform at a high level.
· Watch, Listen, and Learn
Although not every game gets the best announcers since any Saturday there may be 100 televised college football games and any Sunday there may be up to 15 NFL games, you can learn a lot from announcers. Pay attention to the game, breakdown of the plays, and mentions of rules by the announcers. You can pick up a lot just by really paying attention to a single game.
· Know the Yellow, Green, and Red TV-Generated Lines
Graphics are added to live football games to help the audience understand what’s going on. During a single game, you may see computer-generated yellow, green, and red lines. The yellow line is the most-used line, and it represents a first down. A team with the ball is given a total of four downs to gain 10 yards and get a new set of downs. If a team fails to get a first down on third down, they will likely kick the ball to avoid turning the ball over and giving the other team great field position. The green line, most relevant at the end of the game, represents where a team needs to get in order to have a realistic chance of making a field goal. The red line represents the “red zone,” which is inside the opponents 20-yard-line.
· Don’t Celebrate Until You Hear “No Flags On The Play”
American football has some of the most incredible and exciting plays you will see in all of sports. However, many never go in the record books because a penalty was committed on the play. For example, if a quarterback connects with a wide receiver for a 70-yard touchdown, but an offensive lineman is flagged for holding (an illegal move) a defensive player, the touchdown is negated and the team will start the next play 10 yards behind where the foul was committed. So before you celebrate, make sure there are no flags on the play.
· Watch for Challenges
Similar to VAR reviews if soccer, there are many plays that can be challenged in the NFL. Each team gets two challenges a game, and if they are correct on both challenges, are awarded a third. Since referees make a lot of mistakes, challenges are very common and can play a large role in the outcome of a game. If the team you’re cheering for scores a touchdown where the receiver barely gets his feet inbounds, a replay will be automatic (all scoring plays are reviewed), so you may be held in suspense for a couple of minutes while the referees decide if the touchdown should stand or be waived off.
· Expect In-Game Strategy to Shift Based on Results
In nearly every sport, a team’s strategy changes as the game moves on. In American football, strategy can shift from possession to possession. A team may abandon passing the ball because they have a big lead and want to run out the time clock on their opponent. A defensive injury may also change the strategy of the team on offense in order to exploit that weakness.
Because of in-game adjustments, the ends of games can be surprisingly exciting. In the first week of the year, my Detroit Lions had a massive 17-point lead in the last quarter of the game. Because of several mistakes and adjustments by the Arizona Cardinals, the Cardinals were able to make an epic comeback and tie the game to force overtime.
· Injuries Come Early and Often
American football is a violent sport. Unfortunately, major injuries to important players happen often. Be prepared to see a gruesome injury or two and pay attention to how that team makes changes to minimize the impact that injury will have on their team.
Summary
American football is a fantastic game and a lot of fun to watch. Give yourself time to get adjusted to the game, I know you’ll fall in love with it just as I’ve fallen in love with soccer. And even if you don’t love watching the game, understanding it will help you have a leg up on the rest of the world when betting on it on Bethereum.
Read part 1 of this series here.
Read Part 2 of this series here.
This series of articles is written by Michael Luchies. Read more of Michael’s articles on his Medium.
