It’s conference championship time, and Andre from UnitedGamblers.com is back to talk more football. He appeared on JetNation throughout the 2025 NFL season to provide betting information, tips, and predictions for the New York Jets and the NFL. After this weekend, the AFC and NFC will have new champions.
Last weekend was eventful, to say the least. While the Jets are trying to figure out their QB situation, other teams had new ones pop up. The Denver Broncos lost Bo Nix to an ankle injury in a win, the Houston Texans have a lot more questions about C.J. Stroud after another awful performance, and the Buffalo Bills seem hell-bent on embarrassing themselves instead of admitting that MVP Josh Allen had a bad day at the office.
However, Sunday’s games aren’t about any of those guys. It’s about four teams, two from the NFC West and two from the AFC, who have danced on this stage before, inching closer to immortality. Wondering what the best bets are for the penultimate Sunday of this football season? Keep reading to see our picks, and check out New York’s list of sportsbooks to see where you can tail them.
Pick 1: Denver Broncos Under 17.5 Total Points (+104) via FanDuel Sportsbook
Let’s address the elephant in the room. Most of the country west of Hartford, Connecticut, will be rooting against the Patriots. It’s also true that New England, as a solid road favorite due to the aforementioned Nix injury, will likely represent the AFC in Super Bowl LX.
With this bet, we acknowledge the strength of New England’s defense, the brutal injury limiting the Broncos offensively, and still leave the door open for Denver’s defense to carry them to Santa Clara in a couple of weeks.
New England finished fourth in scoring defense this season and has held four consecutive foes under 17 points. They’ve only allowed 19 points through two playoff games. This isn’t a unit that needs a break to dominate.
Of course, they’re likely getting one with former Patriot Jarrett Stidham starting under center. Stidham has four career starts, and his team only exceeded 17 points in one of those games. He has as many career interceptions (8) as touchdown passes.
The formula for the Patriots is pretty simple. Stop the run, and make Stidham beat you with his arm. Considering how New England imposed its will on C.J. Stroud and Justin Herbert, that shouldn’t be an issue. It would be shocking if the Broncos scored more than 17 points this weekend.
Pick 2: Jaxon Smith-Njigba Over 90.5 Receiving Yards (-110) via Fanatics Sportsbook
Jaxon Smith-Njigba (JSN) led the NFL in receiving yards this season with 1,793. His 105.5 receiving yards per game came playing for an offense that finished 29th in passing attempts. JSN is the focal point of the passing game and leveraged that to lead the league in yards per touch.
Guess who couldn’t slow him down in either regular-season matchup? That would be the Los Angeles Rams, Seattle’s opponent again on Sunday. JSN racked up 105 receiving yards in round one and another 96 in the December battle.
After a few sleepy weeks (by his 2025 standard) because the Seahawks have controlled those games, expect JSN to explode again this weekend.
Unlike Seattle’s last three games, this one should be tight, as their first two tilts with the Rams finished 21-19 and 38-37. The Seahawks are also missing an important weapon, Zach Charbonnet (874 scrimmage yards and 12 TDs), which means the rest of Seattle’s playmakers have to step up.
When the Seahawks need a play, expect Sam Darnold to turn JSN’s way as he has all season.
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