NFL - NFC Win Totals Odds and Picks: Expect the Lions to Make Gains and the Bucs and Seahawks to Fade

NFC Win Totals Odds – Recommended Bets

• Seattle Seahawks: Under 5.5, +115 at FanDuel
• Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Under 11.5, -135 at PointsBet
• Detroit Lions: Over 6.5, -125 at BetMGM

NFC Win Totals Odds and Predictions

After enduring a winless preseason, the Seahawks appear poised to take a step back from last season’s 7-10 finish. Meanwhile, the Buccaneers looked lost in preseason without the unexpectedly absent Tom Brady. Conversely, on the heels of an NFC-worst 3-13-1 record in 2021, the Detroit Lions look ready to start reaping the benefits of their rebuild.

With the preseason in the books and the kickoff of the 2022 NFL regular season just days away, we’re breaking down the NFC win totals odds and sharing our favorite NFC team win total picks for 2022. For the full breakdown of all NFL teams' win totals, be sure to check out our other article. 

Seattle Seahawks 

2021 Regular Season SU Record: 7-10-0 

The Seahawks committed to a full-blown rebuild after pulling the trigger on an offseason deal that sent star quarterback Russell Wilson to the Denver Broncos. It showed in preseason action, as the Seahawks surrendered an average of 28.7 points per game, the third-worst in the NFL. 

The greater concern in Seattle is centered around who will be running the Seahawks’ offense. The Seahawks acquired Drew Lock as part of the Wilson trade, hoping that the much-maligned third-year man could step into the starting role, at least temporarily. Instead, Lock failed spectacularly in his preseason audition, particularly in Seattle’s third and final preseason game, a brutal 27-26 loss in Dallas. Lock sealed the Seahawks’ fate by tossing three interceptions, two of which the Cowboys converted into touchdowns. 

Lock’s failure has forced head coach Pete Carroll to put the Seahawks’ offense in the hands of Geno Smith. Smith’s three starts for Seattle last season in place of an injured Russell Wilson were his only starts under center since 2018 and, before this season, the 31-year-old journeyman last entered an NFL season as a starter in 2014. The sight of Smith under center should embolden sports bettors to fade the Seahawks via the under on their season win total and, very interestingly, at +600 at FanDuel to be the lowest scoring team in the NFL.

NFC Win Totals Odds – Recommended Bet

• Seahawks Under 5.5 (+115) @ FanDuel

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

2021 Regular Season SU Record: 13-4-0

The “Dream Team” approach paid dividends in Tampa two seasons ago when the Buccaneers marched to their first Super Bowl title in a generation. However, following a massively disappointing preseason, during which they struggled to generate offense and suffered some critical injuries, NFL bettors would be wise to temper their enthusiasm.

There’s still plenty to like about this team, of course. Veteran receiver Julio Jones has reportedly been a standout in training camp, providing Tom Brady with a talented and experienced downfield target to ease the pain of Rob Gronkowski’s (for now) departure. 

However, the offensive line has emerged as a significant concern in the wake of Pro Bowl guard Ali Marpet’s retirement, a significant (potentially season-ending) knee injury to Pro Bowl center Ryan Jenson and injuries to his expected replacements, Robert Hainsey and Nick Leverett. There is no doubting the greatness of Brady and his ability to continue to play at a high level at age 45.

However, he is FORTY-FIVE YEARS-OLD and not exceptionally mobile. Given the serious concerns on the O-line, combined with one of the league’s most demanding schedules (which opens with road contests in Dallas and New Orleans and includes home dates against Green Bay and Kansas City), it wouldn’t be shocking if the Bucs’ fall short of a rather lofty team wins total line. 

NFC Win Totals Odds – Recommended Bet

• Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Under 11.5 (-135) at PointsBet

Detroit Lions

2021 Regular Season SU Record: 3-13-1 

After closing out yet another losing campaign in 2021 with a joint-league-low three wins, the Lions have nowhere to go but up. Following a busy offseason and a promising preseason campaign, the question in Detroit is not whether the Lions will add to last season’s win total in 2022 but how many W’s they’ll tack on. 

Free of the injury woes that plagued them in 2021, the Lions are looking forward to entering the new season with one of the league's most talented and deepest offensive lines. This unit should allow quarterback Jared Goff - who, after watching the Rams march to a Super Bowl title immediately after kicking him to the curb, has as much to prove as any NFL QB in 2022 - ample opportunity to target a talented young receiving corps that second-year star Amon-Ra St. Brown leads. 

Meanwhile, the Lions’ defense, which ranked 31st in the league last season, remains a work in progress. However, the team took a huge step towards respectability by selecting defensive end Aidan Hutchinson with the second overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. 

Most importantly, this improving team enjoys a 2022 schedule that is a delight. Two of the Lions’ opening four games are home contests against perpetually underwhelming Washington and the rebuilding Seahawks. Even the Week 5 trip to New England doesn’t look all that menacing these days. Then, after a bye week and a Dallas/Miami/Green Bay (the last two at home) “gauntlet,” six of the Lions’ final nine games are against the Bears (twice), Giants, Jaguars, Jets, and Panthers. That, my friends, is the stuff that NFL win total pick dreams are made of! 

NFC Win Totals Odds – Recommended Bet

• Detroit Lions over 6.5 (-125) at BetMGM