CG Technology has the lines for Weeks 1-15 of the 2019 NFL season. They will change, but it provides a fun starting point.
Training camp for the San Francisco 49ers isn’t for another two months or so. Then you have another couple of months until the regular season starts. That won’t stop us from talking about the team’s schedule. Gambling lines are a good talking point because it gives you an idea of how Vegas views the teams that are going head-to-head.
The 49ers opened up as 2.5-point underdogs against Tampa Bay for the first week of the season. That line is already down a full 1.5. I doubt it stops there. I’d guess that the 49ers end up being favorites by kickoff. The folks at CG Technology released their annual spreads from Weeks 2-16.
It’s crazy to set lines for games in December, let alone earlier in the season, but it is a fun exercise as we consider the state of the 49ers. They don’t include lines for Week 17 because of the unpredictability of starting lineups for teams getting ready for the playoffs or done for the season. Of course, given how much unpredictability there is for the rest of the season, it is rather amusing they factor it in there. So let’s talk about it. Before we do that, let’s look back at this time last year.
The 49ers were favored in eight of their games headed into the 2019 season. That doesn’t count the regular-season finale against the Los Angeles Rams. That was with a healthy Jimmy Garoppolo, of course. A year later, what’s CG Technology think? The 49ers are current favorites in six of their games. So when you read the Week 5 line as -2.5, that tells you that the 49ers are 2.5 point favorites. The following week is +8.5. That tells you that they are 8.5 underdogs. In three separate games, they’re listed as a “pick ‘em,” which is essentially a coin flip.
When you count how close their Week 1 and 7 lines are, it’s pretty clear that Vegas expects this to be a good year for the 49ers. Of course, the Niners aren’t going to win every game that they’re favored in. I would feel very confident betting them on the road against the Bengals, though. If the team takes care of business early in the season, that’ll put less pressure on them to win the tougher games late in the season.
Week 1: @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers (+1)
Week 2: @ Cincinnati Bengals (PK)
Week 3: vs. Pittsburgh Steelers (PK)
Week 5: vs. Cleveland Browns (-2.5)
Week 6: @ Rams (+8.5)
Week 7: @ Washington (+1)
Week 8: vs. Carolina Panthers (-2.5)
Week 9: @ Arizona Cardinals (-3)
Week 10: vs. Seattle Seahawks (-1.5)
Week 11: vs. Cardinals (-8.5)
Week 12: vs. Green Bay Packers (PK)
Week 13: @ Baltimore Ravens (+4)
Week 14: @ New Orleans Saints (+8.5)
Week 15: vs. Atlanta Falcons (-1.5)
Week 16: vs. Rams (+2)
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