Overall Surge in NFL Wagering Doesn’t Have any Impact on NFL Week 16 Numbers

Nothing seems good for the National Football League (NFL) now. The body is once more facing the possibility of having to reschedule games, rethink of the previous fixtures and hope that they don’t do away with the whole season. With the season now heading to the playoffs, there’s a huge possibility that a majority of the games will have to be played but only a few players not affected by COVID-19.

Based on a recent report by the Wall Street Journal, some 321 NFL players along with their team members had tested positive for COVID-19. To add salt to injury, there’s been a surge in NFL wagering especially by Week 16 of the games. Even though the NFL doesn’t really benefit from sports betting as such –they aren’t taking bets on NFL- betting activity goes hand in hand with viewership numbers that seem to have been plunging as well.

NFL Week 16 Wagering Numbers Fall

A recent report released by GeoComply that was analyzed and aggregated by Morgan Stanley, however, indicates wagering on the NFL has been increasing year after year, and now stands at 58%. But the numbers for NFL Week 16 betting fell rapidly in comparison to the weeks before.

Meanwhile, several narratives are there trying to explain why NFL crypto betting enthusiasts are no longer wagering on such games. One popular theory is that many players have been forced to miss the games after testing positive for COVID-19. Much worse, the rapid surge in the transmission of Omicron has discouraged players even more.

Without clear guidelines on who’s scheduled to play and who isn’t, many punters gone ahead and withdrawn from the activity. Sharp bettors appear to be the affected lot, as they try to win or come up with predictive models that can win them quick cash.

Bookmakers have also seen a slowdown, especially from recreational bettors who may not be interested in placing bets especially with their big love for players who are missing such games. The good news is that the coming months are still on track with more games expected to take place, something that’s set to encourage fans into watching and partaking the betting action.

While the threat of COVID-19 infections haven’t reduced with players continuing to test positive, on the good side, the NFL squads are quite big, and without any injuries, a majority of teams are able to play even with their fringe players.

What lies ahead for the NFL Betting?

Whether the coming weeks prove to be challenging is another matter with the fourth quarter action of any year action normally being action-packed. But the last two years have been very challenging, including the maintenance of a regular schedule. The NHL seems highly impacted, with the fate of betting not really known exactly.