When the N.F.L. season kicks off Thursday night, Patriots and Steelers fans will enthusiastically cheer for their teams. There will also be enthusiastic cheering from another set of viewers: those who bet on football. They will be celebrating the end of seven wager-free months.
There is an anomaly in the first week of action: An inordinately large number of games have low point spreads, indicating the teams are evenly matched. On the 16 game-schedule, 13 games have spreads of 4½ points or less, and nine of them are 3 points or less, according to Football Locks, which archives betting lines.