Teaser Bets

How a Standard Teaser Works

Many first-time bettors view teasers as easy money, and it’s easy to see why. After all, how often do games come in right on the spread, or darn close to it? A teaser is basically a bet that two (or more) teams will come within a touchdown of covering the spread. What’s not to love, right?

A standard teaser offers seven points on football spreads, and five points on totals. The odds vary but are usually no better than -120 for a two team teaser. Many books offer five, six, or even seven+ team teasers, and many places also offer teasers that allow 10+ points to be added to your team.

These bets seem like sure things, but as we all know, there is no such thing as a lock in sports. We have all seen crazy upsets and huge blowouts, as well as last second, ‘backdoor cover’ situations. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on who you’ve got), these same events play out when a teaser bet is made.

Different Types of Teasers

There are many different sports betting sites operating today. Likewise, there are many different types of teaser bets offered online.

The most basic teasers are two-team teasers that offer seven points on sides and five on totals. This means you can either add seven points to the underdog, or subtract seven from the favorite, or you can either add or subtract five points from the total to help increase your chances of a win.

However, there are of course three-team teasers, there are teasers that offer more or less points, there are teasers that count pushes as a loss, and many, many more. An article dealing with every type of teaser would read more like a novel, and new options pop up from time to time amongst the more aggressive books.

A quick glance as your favorite sportsbook’s rules will help clear up exactly which options your site offers. At SBO.net, we cover another popular form of teaser betting known as sweetheart teasers.

One type of teaser that some bettors enjoy is known as a ‘jake’. This bet is where both teams in the same game are teased.

Basic Strategy Teasers

A good (and profitable) spot to bet teasers is what is known as a basic strategy teaser. This occurs when you tease a team’s spread through both the ‘3’ and the ‘7’.

For instance, Buffalo is playing at Miami and Miami is +2. Also, Minnesota is playing at Chicago and Chicago is -9. This would call for a basic strategy teaser, where we would play Miami +9/Chicago -2.

An example of a basic strategy teaser would be any game that, when teased, causes the favorite’s spread to cross through the ‘3’ and the ‘7’ or the underdog to also cross through the ‘3’ and the ‘7’ as well. These teasers can include any combination of favorites with a spread of -9.5, -9, -8.5, -8, or -7.5 and any underdogs with a spread of +.5, +1, +1.5, +2, and +2.5.

Use Discretion With Teasers

If you’re interested in a big payday, parlays are probably a better bet for you. However, if you’re looking for more of a ‘sure thing’, then teasers may be correct.

My basic advice is to really look for underdogs in the +.5 to +2.5 range and favorites in the -9.5 to -7.5 range (for 7 point teasers) to spot opportunities for basic strategy teasers.

As with parlays, generally speaking, the more teams you add to your teaser, the worse odds you will face. The chances of two teams covering are obviously better than three teams, or four, or so on. Also, the more points you use in your teaser, the more expensive (worse odds) the bet.

It is best to search for sportsbooks that offer basic, two or three-team teasers with good odds and try to find some lines that will pass through both the 3 (field goal) and the 7 (touchdown + extra point).

Of course, line shopping is critical here, as it is with any bet. Searching for an extra half point is crucial and must be done if you are to bet with any level of seriousness.