This NFL season has been extremely difficult for trend players to decipher. The year began with the favorites dominating the action with a 58% winning percentage at 33-24-2.

The tide turned in Week 5, when the underdog bettors began cashing in on the action winning 46 of the next 83 games. In fact, the favorites have not been able to put together a winning week since all the way back in September.

Overall, it's an even split at 70-70-2 so whatever money the favorite players accumulated the first month of the season, they gave back over the course of the last six weeks.

However, something extraordinary has taken place along the way.

There have been 35 games this year in which one team has been favored by eight points or more. The underdogs hold the slight edge with 19 covers for a winning percentage of 54%. Those numbers would not break the bank but in order to get the real skinny, one has to dig deeper and find where the real money lies.

In 20 of those 35 games, the favorite was giving between eight and 9.5 points. Surprisingly, the bettors' choice has walked off with a 14-6 record and an outstanding 70% winning percentage.

In addition, there have been a couple of consistent losers in that set of 20 games. St. Louis has accounted for five of those 14 underdog defeats, coming out on the short end of the stick vs. Philadelphia, 38-3 (+9), the Giants, 41-13 (+8.5), Seattle, 37-13 (+8), Buffalo, 31-14 (+8) and the Jets, 47-3 (+9.5).

The only time the Rams were able to cover came at New England, and they did so by just two points as the Patriots won 23-16 while giving nine on October 26.

Another club that has helped those numbers grow has been Cincinnati, as the Bengals failed in all three appearances when getting between eight and 9.5 points. The losses came vs. the Jets, 26-14 (+9.5), Pittsburgh, 38-10 (+9.5), and Houston, 35-6 (+9).

If heavy favorites have produced a 70% winning percentage when favored by slightly more than a touchdown, one would assume that the numbers should not deviate much when the betting choice is favored by double digits.

UNDERDOGS RULE DOUBLE-DIGIT SPREADS

Never assume, because we all know what happens when we do. There have been 15 games this season when a team has been favored by 10-points or more and astonishingly, the underdog has covered 13 of them. Not only that, the favorite has lost outright four times. In the 20 other games, the dog pulled off just one straight up victory.

What gives? Why are teams covering the higher lines? Are the favorites not taking their opponents seriously? How can double-digit underdogs be winning at an 87% clip, when they are losing at a 30% rate in cases where they're getting almost as many points?

Cincinnati is a perfect example of this wild phenomenon. I mentioned earlier how poorly the Bengals have played when getting between eight and 9.5 points going 0-3 ATS. Would anyone believe they are 2-0 ATS as a double-digit dog?

They covered on September 21, getting 13 points from the world champion Giants and almost won the game outright before failing 26-23 in overtime. Two weeks later they were in Dallas, with the Cowboys favored by a whopping 16 points. Dallas prevailed by only nine, 31-22.

Not to be outdone are the St. Louis Rams. We already know how poorly they have played when getting slightly higher than a touchdown (0-5 SU and 1-5 ATS), but wouldn't you know it, they won and covered in their only matchup as a double- digit underdog?

The win came on October 12 against a Redskins team that came into the game on a four-game winning streak. The Rams hardly needed the 12.5 points, as they upset Washington for their first win of the season.

There is no rhyme or reason for these numbers, just another example of how wild and wacky betting the NFL can be.

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