NFL Thursday Night Football Betting
Widely viewed as a gimmick when first introduced nearly two decades ago, Thursday Night Football has become a staple for NFL fans kicking off the betting week. And in 2023 the TNF schedule had a little bit of everything for NFL fans. This season 28 of the 32 teams made at least one appearance on Thursday night with six teams playing twice. The Chicago Bears and Detroit Lions were the only teams to play multiple games on Thursday without a loss.
One of the arguments against playing on Thursday is the short week for teams that play the prior Sunday. The participating clubs both have fewer days to prepare with the visiting team seen as being at a disadvantage due to travel. That sort of played out in 2023 with the home team winning 11 of the 16 contests after Week 1, including the last three matches and eight of the final 10.
NFL Betting Lines
Both conference champions made an appearance giving a national audience a glimpse of what was to come. The San Francisco 49ers registered a 30-12 home win over the Giants in Week 3 with the Baltimore Ravens posting a 34-20 triumph over AFC North rival Cincinnati in Week 11. The season opener on Thursday night showed us the Detroit Lions were for real. They eked out a 21-20 road victory over the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs giving them a start on their way to their first division title in nearly three decades.
We saw plenty of offense this season with the winning team scoring at least 30 points in 11 of the 17 games. That was a boost for OVER bettors who would have cashed a winning ticket in all 11 of those games. We also went from one extreme to another on Thursday night with eight games decided by seven points or less, including three separated by just a field goal or less. Seven other games were decided by two converted touchdowns or more. Two games fell within those parameters – the Chiefs beat Denver 19-8 in Week 6 and the Rams took out New Orleans 30-22 in Week 16.
While we saw a lot of points there was nothing like the record-setting night the Las Vegas Raiders had in Week 15. Coming off a shutout loss to the Vikings and with their playoff hopes shriveling, the Raiders scored a franchise record in their 63-21 obliteration of their AFC West rival LA Chargers. It was also the most points ever allowed by the Bolts. Aidan O’Connell threw four TD passes and the Raiders scored a pair of defensive touchdowns. They led 63-7 in the fourth quarter before the Chargers tacked on two late scores. It was also the final game for LA coach Brandon Staley, who was fired the next day.
Thursday Night Football Schedule
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