Pro football gamblers that aren’t getting their offseason fix by betting on the XFL or USFL can potentially scratch that itch by wagering on NFL sims at legal online sportsbooks.
NFL simulations are basically two CPU-controlled teams competing in the realm of Madden, the popular home-console video game created by EA Sports. The online sportsbook declares the settings that will be used for each NFL sims matchup, what time the game will start, and then creates betting lines and prop bets for each contest.
There is no limit to how many games can be produced per day, but there are usually no more than a handful as they do not overlap or run concurrently. Here is a betting line for a Madden sim that kicks off at 4 PM this afternoon.
New York Giants @ Dallas Cowboys Betting Line (Sims)
- Point Spread: Giants +14.5, Cowboys -14.5
- Moneyline: Giants +400, Cowboys -650
- Over/Under: 57.0
Enthusiasts of NFL betting may notice that the above projections seem to favor the Dallas Cowboys too heavily over the New York Giants. Before betting on NFL sims, be sure to investigate what the settings are, including the version of Madden that is being used. Here are the NFL sims settings over at Bovada.LV.
Bovada’s Pregame Settings:
- Rosters Updated As Of The End Of The 2019-2020 NFL Season
- 15-Minute Quarters
- 12-Minute Halftime
- 5-Minute Pause Between End Of Regulation And Overtime
- No Ties
- Rookie Mode
- 20-Second Accelerated Clock
- Party-Cloudy Weather
- No Action If Stream Is Interrupted And Cannot Be Reconnected
- Sims Can Be Viewed Within Bovada By Clicking On The “More Bets” Link In The NFL Game Line Or On The Live Football Sims Channel On Twitch
Online football betting sites tend to use older software versions due to their stability and are slow to adopt new releases of the game. Bovada is still using Madden 20, and that becomes evident when browsing the player prop bets that include retired players and roster members that are no longer with the teams in play.
First Touchdown Scorer Prop Bet
- Amari Cooper (DAL) +800
- Dak Prescott (DAL) +700
- Ezekiel Elliott (DAL) +400
- Jason Witten (DAL) +1000
- Michael Gallup (DAL) +1100
- Randall Cobb (DAL) +1400
- Tony Pollard (DAL) +2500
- Daniel Jones (NYG) +4000
- Darius Slayton (NYG) +1300
- Evan Engram (NYG) +950
- Golden Tate (NYG) +1100
- Russell Shepard (NYG) +1800
- Saquon Barkley (NYG) +550
- Sterling Shepard (NYG) +1100
- Field +325
Betting on NFL sims works exactly the same as wagering on the real thing, from covering spreads, to moneyline winner odds, over/under totals, and props.
Of course, if you end up digging Madden sims gambling, you don’t have to wait until betting on the Super Bowl has concluded each February. NFL sims betting lines are offered all year long, it just takes a little extra searching around while the season is in play due to the overabundance of odds produced for real-life gridiron action.
There are even live betting opportunities that allow for sims wagering while the clock is running and pauses during all breaks that allow for bets to be placed before the game resumes.
Madden 23 is the current standard-bearer for the series, and Madden 24 is estimated for release on August 18th.
NFL Sims Betting Lines Provided By Bovada