NFL betting

The 2026 NFL season at a glance

The NFL has 32 teams in two conferences, the AFC and the NFC, each split into four divisions. Every team plays 17 regular-season games over 18 weeks. The 2026 season opened on Wednesday, September 9, with the New England Patriots at the Seattle Seahawks, the reigning Super Bowl champions. On October 21, 2026, the league is between Week 6 and Week 7.

These are the dates the NFL has published for the rest of the season:

Fourteen teams make the playoffs, seven from each conference, and the top seed in each conference skips Wild Card Weekend.

The Canadian angle

There is no NFL team in Canada, but Canadian bettors follow the league closely, and a few things are different when you bet it from here.

Kickoff times across Canadian time zones

NFL kickoff times are set in Eastern Time. Sunday's early games usually start at 1 p.m. ET, the late games at 4:05 or 4:25 p.m. ET, and Sunday Night Football at 8:20 p.m. ET. Thursday and Monday night games usually start at 8:15 p.m. ET. Here is what that looks like from November 1, after the clocks change:

Newfoundland is half an hour ahead of Halifax. Saskatchewan does not change its clocks, so until November 1 Regina is one hour behind Winnipeg, and the 1 p.m. ET games start at 11 a.m. there. For live betting, the time zone matters: a 10 a.m. kickoff in Vancouver means lines move while many BC readers are still having breakfast, and injury news from the morning lands earlier in your day.

Bills and Seahawks: the nearby teams

Two NFL teams sit close to the border. The Buffalo Bills play at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, New York, about 160 km from Toronto, and have a long-standing following in eastern Canada. The Seattle Seahawks play at Lumen Field, about 230 km from Vancouver, and are the closest NFL team for British Columbia readers.

Sportsbooks that take Canadian bets see a lot of money on these two teams. As with the Canadian NHL teams, a heavy flow of fan money on one side can push its price shorter than the team's real chance would justify. Sportsbooks also tend to add more props and specials for teams with a big local following. Betting on the team you follow is fine as entertainment; keep the stake the same as for any other game.

Canadian players in the NFL

Canadians are on several NFL rosters in 2026. Three examples, with hometowns as listed on NFL.com on October 21, 2026:

• Chuba Hubbard, running back, Carolina Panthers (Sherwood Park, Alberta).
• Chase Brown, running back, Cincinnati Bengals (London, Ontario).
• Akheem Mesidor, linebacker, Los Angeles Chargers, a rookie in 2026 (Ottawa, Ontario).

For a running back, the common props are rushing yards, rushing attempts and anytime touchdown; for a defender, tackles and sacks. Rosters change through the season, so check the team's active list before you bet a player prop.

NFL and CFL rules side by side

If you bet both leagues, remember the differences: the NFL plays four downs with 11 players a side on a 100-yard field, while the CFL plays three downs with 12 players on a 110-yard field in 2026. NFL games are usually lower-scoring than CFL games, so totals and spreads are not comparable between the two. Our CFL betting guide covers the Canadian game.

Moneyline: who wins

The moneyline is a bet on the winner, overtime included. In the regular season, overtime is one 10-minute period in which both teams get a chance to have the ball. A regular-season game that is still level after that ends in a tie. Sportsbooks handle a tie differently: on a two-way moneyline, many void the bet and return your stake, while a three-way market prices the tie as its own result. Check the rules before you bet. Playoff games cannot end in a tie.

Example prices only, not current odds: Seattle -175 (1.57) against an opponent at +145 (2.45).

• -175: you stake $17.50 to win $10 profit, so the bet returns $27.50.
• +145: a $10 bet wins $14.50 profit and returns $24.50.

Point spread

The spread is the main NFL market. The favourite gives points and the underdog gets them: at -6.5 a team has to win by seven or more, and at +6.5 the other side covers if it wins or loses by six or fewer. Both sides are usually priced near -110 (1.91).

NFL scores come mostly in threes and sevens, so many games end with a margin of 3 or 7. A spread of 2.5 or 3.5, or 6.5 or 7.5, is not a small difference: the half point decides whether a common final margin wins or loses your bet. If you know hockey, the spread is the football version of the puck line; the difference is that the NHL line is nearly always 1.5 goals, while NFL spreads move with every matchup. Our NHL guide shows the hockey side.

Totals: over or under

A total is a bet on the combined points in a game. NFL totals are often set in the 40s.

Example only: Under 44.5 at -110 (1.91). A 24-17 final (41 points) wins the under; 27-20 (47 points) loses it.

Things that move totals: the starting quarterback, injuries on the offensive line, wind and snow at open-air stadiums in December and January, and whether the game is played indoors. Sportsbooks also offer team totals and first-half or quarter totals.

Player props

Props are bets on what happens inside a game. The common NFL props are:

• Quarterbacks: passing yards, touchdown passes, interceptions, completions.
• Running backs and receivers: rushing or receiving yards, receptions, anytime touchdown scorer.
• Defence and kickers: sacks, tackles, field goals made.

Teams announce their inactive players shortly before kickoff, and a late scratch can void a prop or leave you holding a bet on a backup. Read each sportsbook's rule for players who do not play. Prop prices carry a larger margin than the main lines, so they need to win more often to pay off.

Parlays and same-game parlays

A parlay links several bets; every leg must win and the decimal prices multiply.

Example only: two spreads at -110 (1.91) each give a price of 3.65, so $10 returns about $36.50. Add a third leg at -110 and the price is about 6.97, so $10 returns about $69.70. A same-game parlay combines bets from one game, such as a team to cover plus its quarterback's passing yards. Those legs are often linked, and sportsbooks price that with an extra margin. Our parlay guide shows how the margin builds up.

Live betting

Live betting follows every snap, with lines that shift after scores, turnovers, injuries and fourth-down decisions. Sportsbooks hold each live bet for a few seconds before accepting it, and a TV feed or stream can run behind the sportsbook's own data. Halftime is a common point for new lines on the second half. Decide your live stake before kickoff.

Futures: the road to Super Bowl LXI

Futures are bets that settle later: division winners, conference winners, playoff qualification, season awards such as Most Valuable Player, and the Super Bowl winner. Super Bowl LXI is on February 14, 2027, at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.

Example only: a team at +1200 (13.00) to win the Super Bowl returns $130 on a $10 bet. Futures prices move after injuries, trades before the November 10 deadline and every weekend's results. Your stake stays tied up until the market settles, and the margin on a 32-team market is wider than on a single game.

Super Bowl week also brings a long list of props, from player statistics to novelty markets. They are entertainment markets with large margins; treat them that way.

American and decimal odds

A minus price shows what you stake to win $100, a plus price what $100 wins, and a decimal price the total return per $1. The odds formats guide explains the conversion in full.

Two sides of a spread at -110 (1.91) each add up to about 104.8% implied chance. The 4.8 points above 100% are the sportsbook's margin, which is why you need to win about 52.4% of bets at -110 just to break even.

Where you can bet and how to pay

Single-game sports betting has been legal in Canada since August 27, 2021, when the Safe and Regulated Sports Betting Act came into force. Before that, Canadians could only bet parlays through the provincial lotteries. The provinces now run their own sportsbooks: PlayNow in British Columbia, Manitoba and Saskatchewan, Mise-o-jeu from Loto-Québec, and Proline from Atlantic Lottery. The sportsbooks in our list are offshore operators licensed outside Canada; each casino page shows the licence we found. Ontario and Alberta players are not covered by this site.

Our Interac e-Transfer guide explains deposits and withdrawals. Current sportsbook offers are on the sports betting hub, and the sports betting bonus guide explains how bet credits and rollover terms work in general.

Four checks before an NFL bet

1. Read the injury report. Teams publish practice participation and game status during the week; a quarterback listed as questionable can move every line in the game.
2. Check the kickoff time in your zone so you are not betting a live line on a game you thought had not started.
3. Read the market rules for ties, overtime and players who do not play.
4. Compare prices. A spread of +6.5 at one sportsbook and +7 at another is not the same bet, even at the same price.

Bet responsibly

Sports betting is entertainment, not income, and the margin means the sportsbook comes out ahead over time.

• Set a weekly budget for NFL Sundays and use your account's deposit limits.
• Do not chase losses from the early games into the late games or Sunday night.
• Keep stakes the same whether you bet the Bills, the Seahawks or a team you never watch.
• Take breaks with the time-out and self-exclusion tools most operators offer.

Betting is for adults only: 19+ in most provinces, 18+ in Quebec and Manitoba. Our responsible gambling page lists free, confidential help in every province we cover.