The Broncos are 5.5-point underdogs against the Patriots in Sunday’s AFC Championship Game, an unprecedented point spread for a home team in a conference championship.
Since the NFL moved to the AFC-NFC format in 1970, there have been 112 conference championship games, and the home team has never been as big an underdog as the Broncos are.
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The previous record for the biggest home underdog belonged to the 2012 Falcons, who were 4.5-point underdogs against the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game. The 49ers won 28-24.
Those Falcons were underdogs simply because the 49ers were considered the better team, but the Broncos are underdogs because starting quarterback Bo Nix is out, and Jarrett Stidham, who hasn’t thrown a pass in an NFL games in two years, is replacing Nix. Before Nix’s injury, the Broncos were projected to be one-point favorites.
Stidham hasn’t played in so long that no one knows quite what to expect from him, but the betting community is expecting a Patriots road win.
