Handicapping Football Means Making Adjustments By  Tom Wilkinson Show me a successful handicapper and I’ll show you a man that knows how to make adjustments.  One of the toughest things about handicapping football is to know when to change your handicapping strategies and go in a different direction. Handicapping is a series of adjustments and what has worked in the past is not guaranteed to work in the future.  I am as guilty as anyone of sticking with something that has run its course.  Odds makers adjust their lines,  the game changes;  coaches change their strategies,  players change,  etc.  For example,  many times a system will come along that is working great and then suddenly it goes into the tank.  When do you get off of the system?  It is a question that is always on the mind of every handicapper.  Many times small adjustments need to be made so that a system does not lead you into ruin.  A good example comes from the NFL.  A successful handicapping strategy in the National Football League says teams that can run the ball are usually very successful and have traditionally covered the spread at a high percentage.   But if this worked so well why were most of the top rushing teams out of the post season one year?  Why didn’t it work as it had in the past?   It is up to the bettor to decide what went wrong and decide if the system is worth following in the future. It is important to adjust your own handicapping as well.  For example,  let’s say you bet New England -3 against Miami and that the Patriots lost the game.  You now have to ask the question  -  would you do the same thing again?   If you answer yes,  then your handicapping was sound.  If the answer is no,  then you need to review what got you on the side of the Patriots to begin with.  I am as stubborn as anyone when it comes to sticking to something.  It can often cause me trouble because I am not flexible enough to change my handicapping ways.  Learn to be flexible and it will definitely help your handicapping. Whenever you review your losses for the day always ask the question  -  would you bet the game again?   If you can answer yes,  then you can feel good about the wager and continue on.  If the answer is no,  then try and discover what made you fall in love with the losing bet. It is a big factor in handicapping to review the losses and learn from them.  Hopefully I can do a better job of reviewing my losses and become a better handicapper.  Hopefully you can do the same.