NFL HelmetsTrying to fix season win totals for NFL teams in the middle of the summer is tricky business. How many times has a team looking great at the beginning of September faded into the sunset by January?

Take for instance the Atlanta Falcons who were almost everybody’s sweetheart team at the beginning of the past two seasons but never got any further that the first round of the play offs.  In 2012 the Falcons had 13 regular season wins but were unable to parlay that record into a Super Bowl appearance.

Jay Kornegay, vice president of race and sportsbook operations at the LVH SuperBook told the press, “the Falcon’s don’t have many ‘gimmes’ on their schedule. That’s one reason why Atlanta’s regular season win totals sits at 10 (Under -140) at LVH.” The Falcons will be facing five playoff teams from last season including San Francisco and the Seattle. And, lest we forget, the Saints are back this year and have their sights set on victory over their NFC South rivals.

No surprise to see the Falcons way back at 14-to-1 on their odds to win Super Bowl XLVIII.  In fact Atlanta is the bettors fourth choice with the Green Bay Packers at 12-to-1, the Seattle Seahawks at 7-to-1 and the San Francisco 49ers coming in first at 5-to-1 at this point in the pre-season.

But how about the Indianapolis Colts with their brand new star quarterback Andrew Luck primed to have a go at his second season in the NFL?  The early win totals for the Colts came out at 8.5 wins for the season. Considering the rest of their division and home games against the Raiders and the Dolphins, that total number might just prove to be of significant value to summer bettors.

Veteran oddsmaker Jimmy Vaccaro, the director of public relations for William Hill USA, who has over 40 years in the industry pointed out that the Colt’s win total this year is set at a full 3 games higher than last year…that’s a big move.

But wait, the Kansas City Chiefs, the Philadelphia Eagles, the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Detroit Lions all are shown with win totals at least three games higher that their 2012 victory totals. The Lions win total is 7.5, with the Chiefs and the Eagles at 7 and the Jaguars holding on to last place, again, with only 5.