Originally, I was following a hunch that Vegas wanted to take advantage of the most popular NFL teams, and set up lines that would screw over bettors who were wagering on their favorite teams.
So I looked at the 5 most popular teams every season, and ran their ATS numbers in that season.
Turns out… the 5 most popular teams every season that Harris Interactive ran the poll from 2008-2013 (They didn’t include 2012 for some reason) actually had a winning ATS record, albeit the house still would win after its take.
Except for the Cowboys. While the 5 most popular teams overall have a winning record against the spread, from 2008 to 2013, the Dallas Cowboys have a record of 44-53-1 ATS, including the postseason. If you blindly faded the Dallas Cowboys, you’d be up 450 bucks over the last six years.
The Football Clod 