Let the week of big home favorites commence.
The Green Bay Packers opened Week 7 as 9.5-point favorites over the Washington Football Team, according to Tipico Sportsbook, and they aren’t alone.
The Packers, now on a five-game win streak, are one of four teams opening the week favored to win by 9.5 points or more at home, joining the Los Angeles Rams (-14.5 over Detroit Lions), Tampa Bay Buccaneers (-13.5 over Chicago Bears) and Arizona Cardinals (-16.5 over Houston Texans).
Sunday’s matchup at Lambeau Field is a battle of two division winners from last season, but the two teams are headed in opposite directions to start 2021.
Washington, the NFC East champion last season, has lost three of the last four games and is 2-4 after six games. The defense, once expected to be one of the NFL’s best to open the season, has allowed 30 or more points in four straight games and currently ranks 32nd in the NFL in points allowed.
Ron Rivera’s team has lost three straight games as an underdog, while Matt LaFleur’s team has won four straight games as a favorite.
The Packers opened as 4.5-point favorites last week and beat the Bears by 10 points. The week before, they opened as 3.5-point favorites and needed a game-winning field goal in overtime to beat the Bengals by three.
In terms of final lines, the Packers are 5-0 straight up and against the spread over the last five weeks.
Favored in both previous home games, the Packers won each game (vs. Lions, vs. Steelers) by double-digits.
