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The NFL playoffs have arrived, and what stands out in the wild card round is that in three of the four games, the road team has the better record. That should increase the likelihood of several wild cards advancing to the next round, especially with one of the host teams being the Seattle Seahawks, who made the playoffs with a losing record.

The closest game, if the Wild Card odds are to be believed, will be either the Jets at Colts or the Packers at Eagles with both teams at -2.5. The biggest spread is in the Saints at Seahawks with the Saints, unsurprisingly, at -11.

The Carolina Panthers (2-12) are coming off of just their second win of the season vs. the Arizona Cardinals while the Pittsburgh Steelers (10-4) came up short at home against the New York Jets.

The NFL betting spread for this contest is Pittsburgh -14½ with betting odds of -115 at home, with the betting total set at 37.

The Pittsburgh Steelers missed Troy Polamalu against the Jets and it showed, as a previously struggling New York offense had more success vs. the Pittsburgh defense than most teams have all year, accumulating 276 total yards including 106 on the ground, and the damage could have been worse if not for some questionable play calling late in the game.

The New York Jets (9-4) remained in a funk last week after getting destroyed by New England the previous Monday, as they lost at home 10-6 to the Dolphins, while the Pittsburgh Steelers (10-3) were not exactly exhilarating offensively themselves in a lackluster 23-7 win over the Bengals.

The NFL betting line for this contest is Pittsburgh -6 at home, with the betting total set at 35½.

The Pittsburgh Steelers failed to score an offensive touchdown vs. a banged up Cincinnati defense, as their scoring consisted of three field goals and two interceptions returned for touchdowns. Pittsburgh had no trouble moving between the 20s, as they did manage 356 total yards in the game.

We are getting in to the home-stretch of the NFL season where the teams that can truly win under pressure separate themselves from the talented teams that can’t function under pressure (ahem, Dallas). With that said, if you are going to bet on Super Bowl futures, you can get some pretty good deals if you think you know which teams have the right make up to win in high-pressure situations.

The New York Jets are coming off of a bye week, which probably did not come at a good time considering their five-game winning streak, while the Green Bay Packers are coming off of a big 28-24 over the Vikings, beating old friend Brett Favre for the first time.

The NFL spreads have the Jets at -6 at home, with the betting total set at 42½.

Aaron Rodgers actually did not have one of his better games against the Vikings, as he made many more unnecessary off balance throws than usual, but a very encouraging thing that came out of the victory for the Packers was that their pass protection was fantastic.

The first game of the NFL Monday night doubleheader pits the Baltimore Ravens vs. the New York Jets in the Jets’ first regular season game at New Meadowlands Stadium, and we may see some ugly quarterbacking in this game.

The Monday Night Football odds have the betting spread on this contest at Jets -2½ at home, with the betting total set at 35½.

That posted NFL betting total is the lowest of the entire weekend, and there is very good reason for this when you look at these offense vs. defense matchups.

A Look Back – The combination of a rookie head coach and a rookie quarterback probably wasn’t meant to go this well. However, QB Mark Sanchez and HC Rex Ryan pulled it off. Not only did the New York Jets make it to the playoffs, but they ended up coming up a few drives shy of the Super Bowl as well.

Winners

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Gerald McCoy is perfect for them and they got him exactly where he should go.

Kansas City Chiefs: Eric Berry is exactly what they needed. They might have been able to trade down a few spots and still pick him, but Berry is exactly what they needed.

Seattle Seahawks: Russell Okung probably shouldn’t have fallen to Seattle, so great for them to pick him up. Earl Thomas is another great pick at 14. The Seahawks probably did the best of anyone on Day 1.