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[J. Falcon]

McAdoo says Giants will play to win, Vegas doesn’t believe him

The Giants continue to say they’ll play their starters and play to win on Sunday in Washington, but the people who set the point spreads in Las Vegas do not believe it.

Giants coach Ben McAdoo insisted today that his team is playing to win, and he intends to have starting quarterback Eli Manning play the entire game. That echoes what Giants players have said about their preparations this week.

And yet in Las Vegas, Washington opened as a five-point favorite, and the money has come in significantly for Washington, which is now favored by eight points. Based on the teams’ records, season-long point differentials and other traits, Washington would ordinarily be about a three-point favorite at home against the Giants. For Washington to be an eight-point favorite suggests that the bettors don’t believe McAdoo’s team is really going to play to win on Sunday.

The Lions and Packers are hoping McAdoo is telling the truth: If Washington loses, both the Lions and Packers will go to the playoffs. If Washington wins, only the winner of Sunday night’s Lions-Packers game will go to the playoffs.