Vikings cover would end historic week for faves

NFL betting history can be made on “Monday Night Football” if the Minnesota Vikings can cover as 3-point favorites against the Chicago Bears.

Favorites have covered the spread in 12 of 15 games in Week 12, tying the record for most in a single week (Week 12 of 2017) in the Super Bowl era. According to ESPN Stats & Information, there has never been a week in the Super Bowl era in which favorites covered the spread in 13 games.

The week began with one of the largest upsets ever on Thanksgiving Day. The Green Bay Packers beat the Detroit Lions 29-22 as an 8.5-point underdog — the third-largest upset by point spread on Thanksgiving since the 1970 AFL/NFL merger. It was also one of the most heavily bet games of the season and started off the holiday weekend with a win for the sportsbooks.

Bettors would bounce back in a big way, starting with blowout wins by the Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers to close out Thanksgiving and followed by the Miami Dolphins‘ easy win over the New York Jets on Friday. Favorites kept rolling on Sunday, going 8-2 straight up and against the spread. The New York Giants and Atlanta Falcons were the only underdogs to win outright Sunday.

“Probably the biggest week [of the football season] for the customers,” Craig Mucklow, vice president of trading for Caesars Sportsbook, said Sunday.