The New England Patriots are in a familiar position of hosting an AFC Divisional Round playoff game, but their spot in the latest Super Bowl and AFC championship odds is not all too familiar.
The Patriots have the fourth-best odds to win Super Bowl LIII in Atlanta and the second-best odds to win the AFC for the third consecutive season, according to the latest betting lines Wednesday afternoon.
The Patriots, at +550 to win the Super Bowl, might be a pretty good value bet, especially if you think the Indianapolis Colts will upset the AFC's No. 1 seed in the Kansas City Chiefs on Saturday. If the Colts and Patriots win, New England would host the AFC Championship Game at Gillette Stadium and be the favorites to reach the Super Bowl.
The Pats don't have an easy game Sunday, though. They host the 12-4 Los Angeles Chargers for a tough divisional round matchup Sunday. The Patriots are 8-0 at home this season but the Chargers are 8-1 on the road. Those numbers, plus the recent history between these teams, suggest it should be a close, evenly matched game. The Patriots began the week as 5-point favorites against the Bolts, but the spread has fallen to Pats by 4.5 or four points in a lot of places over the last few days.
If you like the Chargers, this might be the best time to bet on them. They are an enticing pick to win the AFC at +425, and if they defeat the Patriots, you'd have to like their chances to beat the Chiefs because they already went into Kansas City and won this season.
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