We've always had a warped view of women's basketball here in Connecticut. It's a pastime for us, but not so much for the rest of the country, the game's overall growth notwithstanding.

And so maybe that's why I was surprised the other day when Lee Elci, the king of radio around here, asked me a question on air about why betting mavens Draft Kings and FanDuel don't offer the opportunity to bet on women's college basketball yet. (They do make lines and allow customers to bet on the WNBA, however).

I told Elci I didn't know the answer. But when I inquired to both Draft Kings and FanDuel later in the day, the answers were similar: It's coming, but the interest just isn't there yet — at least outside Connecticut.

This is something to watch. It's doubtful women's college basketball will have some seminal moment to mark its official arrival in the national sports psyche. But the day lines become more mainstream and bets are taken is the day the game's keepers ought to rejoice.

They probably won't, of course, because of all the stigmas related to gambling. But you know your game has arrived when you can start betting on it.

Last thought: In the old days before legalized gambling, bookmakers might have lost their businesses if their clients could bet on the UConn women. The Huskies (at least before this season) would have likely covered every line, no matter how high.

This season? Not so much. But there's a long way to go.

Here are the week's best bets in football:

• Ned Griffen: Atlanta (+3 at Carolina). "The Dirty Birds have been as messy as expected and we wouldn't trust them to light a candle. However, the Dixie Kitties sure look like a bigger mess right now. Perhaps there's a bit of recency bias involved here but the Panthers were gruesome in their last game (a 33-10 loss to Miami on Nov. 28), lowlighted by the combination of Christian McCaffrey's season-ending injury and Cam Newton regressing back to his 2020 Patriots' Cam Newton. And then they fired OC Joe Brady after just 29 games. Blurgh.

• Chuck Banning: Chiefs (-9.5 at home vs. Raiders). "It's two weeks before Christmas so I'm going with the team in red. I apologize to all the stat freaks, but sometimes you just have go with your gut (of in this case Santa's)."

• Gavin Keefe: Chiefs (-9 at home vs. Raiders). "Going with the hottest team in the NFL."

• Vickie Fulkerson: Army (-7.5 vs. Navy). "My dad won't like this pick ... I'm actually a Navy kid. There are so many amazing things about this game. It's being held at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., in the shadow of New York City, to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks. Navy will wear "Fly Navy" alternative uniforms while Army's alternative uniforms will honor the Special Forces team which deployed to Afghanistan in the wake of Sept. 11. And ... did you know that former Norwich Navigators starting pitcher Mike Buddie is the athletic director at Army? That said, Army is just the much better team."

• Dave Davis: Army (-7.5 vs. Navy). "Army, like the Patriots last week, will run the ball on almost every play. Control the clock and run the ball. Football like all of us over 50 remember. And Navy got blasted by Air Force early in the season. That can't happen."

• Mikey D: Bills (+3 at Tampa). Think about it: Who in their right mind would bet Buffalo here? The Bills have a short week and must travel, after scoring all of 10 points in Monday night's wind-a-thon. Worse, they travel to the presumptive NFC favorite, where St. Tom of Brady only has to win by three?

It's too easy. The public will bet Tampa with both hands. That's why you bet Buffalo.

This is the opinion of Day sports columnist Mike DiMauro