Blowouts in NFL games aren’t as common as they seem. We all love watching close games. But simply betting teams against the posted spread often finds us on the wrong side of the winning bet. Teaser bets offer us an option to increase our odds of winning instead of getting beat by the razor-thin margin the spread usually results in. 

The most common teaser strategy is the “Wong teaser. Scoresandstats.com details one of the advantages of the “Wong” teaser:

“A Wong teaser is a six-point teaser that concerns favorites of -7.5 to -8.5 and underdogs of +1.5 to +2.5. Wong realized that most NFL games are decided by these numbers, meaning you can enhance your chances of winning a teaser bet.”

The benefit of "Wong" teasers, which are two-team, 6-point teasers that cross the key numbers of 3 and 7 (more on that later).

When I handicap games, I like to use “Wong” teasers when the analysis and the picks intersect. Other times, there will be games and weeks when picks go through just one key number, such as a 3. In my mind, strong analysis is always the starting point.

RELATED: NFL Week 18 Picks, Betting Predictions & Best Bets To Back: That’s All, Folks

You can tease up to six sides at DraftKings, though we don’t advise straying from two-team teasers, despite how tempting it might be (3-team teasers pay out at +160). We also don't advise teasing NFL over/unders. There's no value in teasing NFL totals. There is too much variance with those markets for a specific key number to emerge. 

As far as totals, there is something to look for when it comes to aiding your teaser handicapping process: Low totals are games you want to target (we advise looking for totals in the low-to-mid 40s). Those games have less of a chance of getting out of hand.

Now that we have that out of the way, let’s get to my best NFL Week 18 teaser bets to back on sports betting apps.

Best Week 18 NFL Teaser Bets

Note: Based on the early lines, only one of the weekend games has a line that falls within the Wong teaser range.

• Arizona Cardinals (+2.5) vs. Seattle Seahawks (Teased to Cardinals +8.5)
• New York Jets (+2.5) vs. New England Patriots (Teased to Jets +8.5)
• Tampa Bay Buccaneers (-5) vs. Carolina Panthers (Teased to Buccaneers +1)

Best NFL Week 18 Teaser Bet:  -120 at Caesars Sportsbook

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Arizona Cardinals (+2.5) vs. Seattle Seahawks (Teased to Cardinals +8.5)

Yes, the Seahawks need to win to have any chance of qualifying for a playoff spot in the NFC. So in theory, they should come into this home game ready to take care of business. However, this team has come up small in several important situations all season. Take a quick look back to Week 17, and the Seahawks were unable to win at home against the Steelers. 

Defensively, Seattle has fallen apart on defense. They have had major issues tackling opposing running backs. Also, their once-solid pass coverage has been ineffective down the stretch. They’ll face an Arizona offense that has run the ball effectively over the last month. Last week, the Cardinals dominated the Eagles with their rushing attack. Look for more of the same against Seattle. Also, when they need to pass, Kyler Murray should have success against this secondary. If the Seahawks get their ass rush going, Murray’s mobility should counteract that pressure.

Even though the Arizona defense is one of the worst in the league, the Seattle offense has been inconsistent. Despite having above-average talent at the skill positions, the offense rarely strings together successful drives. Although I expect the Seahawks to have periods of success moving the ball against the Cardinals, it also seems likely they won’t light up the scoreboard.

Overall, Arizona should continue to be able to keep up on the scoreboard with Seattle. The Cardinals should also be able to control the clock with their rushing attack. If the Seahawks can win, probably, it won’t be by more than a touchdown.

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New York Jets (+2.5) vs. New England Patriots (Teased to Jets +8.5)

In this battle, we have two teams closing out disappointing seasons. The Patriots will end the year with the worst record in the AFC. Meanwhile, the Jets will look back and wonder what might have been if they had a reasonable quarterback play all year.

Simply put, not only have the Patriots won just four games this year, but they haven’t won a game by more than five points. That said, their five-point win was against this week’s opponent, the Jets. However, that was back in Week 3. At that time, New England was still playing strong defense. There was also hope that their offense would be good enough to keep them competitive. Now, the Patriots are a mess on offense. Facing a Jets defense that is still playing at a high level, don’t expect New England to score many points.

Of course, the Jets have struggled to score points. However, they still gave Breece Hall and Garrett Wilson, who are both capable of making enough plays to keep New York competitive in lower-scoring games. When this team has been blown out, it’s usually to good teams. That’s not the case here. Even though the Patriots can still game plan on defense with the best coaching staff in the league, they have lost personnel over the season. The diminished talent should keep them from completely shutting down the Jets.

To sum it up, the Patriots are unlikely to beat any team by more than a touchdown. Teasing the Jets over a touchdown makes sense.

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Tampa Bay Buccaneers (-5) vs. Carolina Panthers (Teased to Buccaneers +1)

Last week, the Buccaneers merely needed to win at home against the Saints to win the NFC South. Well, that didn’t go well. A couple of fourth-quarter scores made the game look respectable, but Tampa Bay was soundly beaten. Fortunately, they get one more shot to win their division. Just like last week, the Bucs only need to win to claim their playoff spot. To make things better, they are facing the worst team in the league, the Panthers. Sure, this game is at Carolina, but does it matter?

To their credit, the Panthers have won twice at home. Coming out of their bye, they stunned the then-hot Houston Texans by two points. Then, in Week 15, they took advantage of a game in which it rained heavily, and they beat the Falcons 9-7. 

Although Carolina showed some resilience in the second half of the season, their offense has almost no explosiveness. Also, the Buccaneers have already faced them this year. That should allow the Bucs to create a game plan to limit this offense even further.

For the Bucs offense, it comes down to the fact they have a pair of stars at wide receiver. Mike Evans and Chris Godwin should be able to outplay the middling secondary of the Panthers. Also, the Carolina run defense is one of the worst in the league. Even though Rachaad White may not be a star runner, he has shown the ability to do very well against bad defenses. Look for a balanced offense that allows Tampa to put up enough points to get them to win.

The beauty of this teaser leg is that the Buccaneers simply need to win outright.

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Other Best Teaser Legs For Week 18

These NFL teasers do not  fit the Wong teaser criteria: 

• Denver Broncos (+2.5) vs. Las Vegas Raiders  (Teased to Broncos +8.5)
• Houston Texans (+1) vs. Indianapolis Colts (Teased to Texans +7)

Best NFL Week 18 Teaser Bet: -120 at Caesars Sportsbook

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How Do Wong Teasers Work?

Teasers are a way to level the playing field a bit if you pick the right spots. Here’s why: There are key numbers in NFL betting that every bettor needs to know. They are 3 and 7. Those are the most common margins of victory in NFL games – shocking right?  

So what is a teaser bet? A teaser is a bet of at least two teams that allows you to “buy” points on each leg to create a more favorable spread. As with parlays, all legs of a teaser must cover for the bet to cash. 

The NFL odds of a teaser are based on how many teams you combine and how many points you’re buying. 

The proven way to profitability when betting the NFL is through two-team, six-point teasers, which are known as “Wong” teasers. Gambling author "Stanford Wong" (real name John Ferguson) wrote about this strategy providing positive expected value (EV+) in his 2001 book, Sharp Sports Betting. 

The end game of Wong teasers is to cross the key numbers of 3 and 7, thus giving yourself a mathematical advantage in the long haul. They work like this: You should tease a home favorite of -7.5 down 6 points to -1.5 points (crossing 7 and 3) and tease an underdog (mostly road 'dogs) of +2.5 to +8.5 (again, crossing 3 and 7). 

Of course, you can also create a 7-point teaser (if the line on the favorite is -9.5, to cross through 3), but you're going to pay more "juice." Lines of 9.5 are actually becoming more common as sportsbooks try to protect themselves against Wong teasers. 

Wong teasers provide value because you're moving the spread significantly, through key numbers, and you're only paying slightly more "juice" than an average NFL moneyline (-120 vs. -110). 

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