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No rookie minicamp, no training camp, no preseason games, and the season opener is still four months away - but we've got point spreads anyway.
On Thursday, CG Technology, formerly known as Cantor Gaming, released lines for every single NFL game between Week 1 and 16, 2017. Most sportsbooks will not post Week 17 lines this early because there's always a chance that teams who've locked up a playoff spot will rest their starters, making the game even harder to predict than it already is four months before the season starts.
We've already looked at the Week 1 lines, which have the Cowboys as 5.5-point favorites over the Giants in the season opener, though that line has since gone down a bit to -5.
Here are the 2017 lines for the Cowboys per CG Technology.
Date
Opp.
Favorite
Underdog
Cowboys
Giants
PK
Mon, Sep 25
Mon, Sep 25
@ Cardinals
Cowboys
Cardinals
Cowboys
Rams
Cowboys
Packers
-3.0
Sun, Oct 22
Sun, Oct 22
@ 49ers
Cowboys
Cowboys
49ers
-8.5
Sun, Oct 30
Sun, Oct 30
@ Commanders
Cowboys
Commanders
-2.5
Sun, Nov 5
Sun, Nov 5
Cowboys
Chiefs
Chiefs
-6.5
Sun, Nov 12
Sun, Nov 12
@ Falcons
Falcons
Falcons
Cowboys
+1
Sun, Nov 19
Sun, Nov 19
Cowboys
Eagles
-7
Thu, Nov 23
Thu, Nov 23
Cowboys
Chargers
-10
Thu, Nov 30
Thu, Nov 30
Commanders
Cowboys
Commanders
-7
Sun, Dec 10
Sun, Dec 10
@ Giants
Cowboys
Giants
-1
Sun, Dec 18
Sun, Dec 18
@ Raiders
PK
Mon, Dec 26
Cowboys
Seahawks
-3
Sun, Dec 31
Sun, Dec 31
@ Eagles
n.a.
Setting the lines so far in advance is quite a challenge, so it doesn't surprise that the lines look a little formulaic. Where the lines are available, the Cowboys are favored in all eight home games and favorites in four road games. The Eagles game in Week 17 does not have lines yet, the games in Denver and Oakland each are a pick em, and the game in Atlanta is the only one in which the Cowboys currently are underdogs.
As usual, keep in mind that the lines shown don't necessarily reflect the actual chances of either team winning the game, as the lines are usually set to encourage betting and to make sure that the money being bet is spread 50/50 over both teams (the key to remaining a profitable bookmaker).
Because the Cowboys are huge betting draws, these lines could easily be set to lure the millions of Cowboys fans in the betting public to get in on the action. Of course, they also expect the anti-Dallas sentiment to jump on the spreads before they get out of hand. While these opening odds reflect the bookmakers' best guess as to where the action would remain even on both sides of the bet, once the action starts coming in on one particular side of the line, the bookmakers could easily adjust the line to reflect the betting public's betting pattern.
Overall, the opening lines here point to a 12-1 WL record, as the Cowboys are favored in twelve games and are the underdog in just one. Three more games are undecided of now, including the season finale in Philadelphia, but I'll take those 12 wins now and worry about the other games later.
Also of note, where the Cowboys are favored in 12 games, the Eagles are favored in just seven, the Giants in six, and the Commanders in five games.
Now that you know what Vegas thinks, what's your prediction for the Cowboys 2017 record?
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