I was told reverses are big in Baltimore. They work like this (I'll keep it simple for a 2 game reverse, they get complex for 3 or more teams): say you want to bet Dolphins +6.5 and Jets +7.5, you could parlay the two and bet $100. But if either the Dolphins or the Jets don't cover, you lose $100. You could bet $110 to win $100 on each (assuming -110 juice). With a reverse, you are in essence betting $110 to win $100 on each game. If both the Dolphins and Jets cover, you will win $400 and get back $620 ($400 profit plus $220 you risk). If just one of the two games win, you will lose $120 ($110 on, say, the Jets not covering and an additional $10). Only if both teams lose will you lose $220. There's not much of a loss, just juice if you go 1-1.
If you hit both legs of the reverse, you win $400 profit instead of $260 on a 2-team parlay. Granted, I somewhat misspoke above about limiting downside because you really, really don't want to go 0-2 on a reverse. But if you're confident about winning one of your 2 games, I think a reverse is better because you're losing practically the same money as a parlay if you hit one of the two games, but your upside is much higher.
