NFL betting tips: Week 8 best bets including Detroit Lions @ Tennessee Titans
Ross Williams was a perfect four from four with his NFL selections last weekend – don't miss his preview of Week 8 here.
NFL betting tips: Week 8
1pt Tennessee Titans to score 0-13 points v Detroit Lions at 13/10 (Sky Bet)
1pt Haason Reddick (Jets) to record a sack at 7/5 (bet365)
2pts Cade Otton (Buccaneers) Over 44.5 receiving yards at 10/11 (General)
1pt Cade Otton (Buccaneers) to score a touchdown at 2/1 (Sky Bet)
Detroit Lions @ Tennessee Titans
- Sunday 1700 BST, live on Sky Sports
Detroit are big favourites over the visiting Tennessee Titans and it isn’t difficult to see why. The Lions are 5-1 and a week removed from dispatching the previously undefeated Vikings in a huge NFC North clash. The loss of Aidan Hutchinson hasn’t affected the Lions’ momentum and they absolutely fancy themselves as a bonafide Super Bowl contender at this stage of the season.
Meanwhile, Tennessee are in a hole. A sole victory over a poor Miami team has been the one bright spot of their season and they’ve been poor in recent weeks, falling to a Joe Flacco-led Colts before crumbling against Buffalo.
The Titans managed just ten points on the road against the Bills and I’m hopeful of something similar when they pitch up in Michigan this weekend.
Detroit actually allow fewer yards than Buffalo on average and they match up very well against this struggling Titans outfit.
Teams have been able to pass against the Lions this season, but that is far from Tennessee’s strength. In fact, they have the least effective passing attack in the NFL, averaging a measly 145.8 yards per game, so this isn’t an area in which they should be able to successfully exploit a chink in the Lions’ armour.
The Titans’ minimal success this year has come via a rushing attack that’s at least a little closer to mediocre, averaging 113 yards per match-up. However, the Lions have the #5-ranked rush defence in the league, meaning the efforts of Tony Pollard and co. are likely to be stifled too.
All-in-all, this is a really tough spot for an 11-point underdog in hostile territory and Titans fans will be – justifiably – fearing the worst.
Their relatively quick starts to games this season – almost 60% of their points have been scored in the first half – have given those fans a glimmer of hope at times in 2024, but an inability to kick on has ultimately been the Titans’ downfall as only five teams have scored fewer second-half points.
In their last three games, Detroit have commanded a 55% possession share in the first half and averaged 23 points before the break, a league-high.
In other words, a Tennessee team dependent on starting quickly and getting points on the board early, simply won’t have the opportunity to do so. I’m predicting a comfortable Detroit blow-out and Tennessee to be restricted to less than 14 points at Ford Field.
New England Patriots @ New York Jets
- Sunday 1700 BST, live on Sky Sports
The Jets and Patriots always bring headlines when they face off and, this time around, one of the biggest will be the debut of Haason Reddick.
The powerful edge-rusher has ended his hold-out and is expected to play on Sunday, with no snap-count or limit on his game-time, according to reports.
Reddick may have some rust, but he’s healthy and his recent stats show exactly how destructive he is. He has four back-to-back double-figure sack seasons and he’s accumulated 58 sacks over the course of his career so far.
Only four players who have entered the league since Reddick’s 2017 draft have picked up more sacks: T.J. Watt, Myles Garrett, Trey Hendrickson and Maxx Crosby.
That is some elite company.
Reddick is a solid, plus-money price to record a sack on his return this weekend and I think there’s some value there. I don’t suspect this kind of price will be around in future weeks; it’s simply driven by his absence so far this season.
New England quarterbacks have been sacked 25 times already this year – only the Browns have allowed more – and with the Patriots’ running game losing its efficacy by the week, more and more is being asked of rookie Drake Maye. The youngster is taking to the task well, but Maye is spending plenty of time in vulnerable pocket positions and it’s no surprise that he’s been sacked six times in his first two career starts.
Reddick will be eager to make an immediate impact in the green of the New York Jets, and he’ll attempt it by doing what he does best: quarterback-hunting.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ Atalanta Falcons
- Sunday 1700 BST, live on Sky Sports
A massive game in the NFC South has been made that much tougher for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Baker Mayfield’s team need a victory over Atlanta to redeem their week five defeat, but the losses of Chris Godwin and Mike Evans are hammer blows to the passing game.
With the Bucs’ two standout receivers on the shelf, Tampa will have to pivot as they host Atlanta. Of course, the likes of Rachaad White and Bucky Irving will be the first port-of-call in the run game but, to keep up with a Falcons team that put 36 points on them just over a fortnight ago, Tampa will have to pass the football.
Enter, Cade Otton.
The 25-year-old Tight End is having a decent year, with 263 yards already racked up, but crucially 100 of those yards came last weekend, with Tampa reverting to plan B.
Down on troops – as he will be this week – Mayfield looked to his check-down option plenty as they looked to chase down the Ravens.
When all was said and done, Otton had been targeted ten times and he’d caught eight passes.
He’s clearly a receiving option that Mayfield’s comfortable with and that brings his player props well into contention from a betting perspective this week.
Otton is 10/11 to clear 44.5 receiving yards – a feat he’s already managed three times this season with a more crowded group of receiving options around him – and 2/1 to score a touchdown. He only has one touchdown grab this season but with the obvious redzone threats of Evans and Godwin absent, he’s worth a stab at that price.
Posted at 1500 BST on 26/10/24
Safer gambling
We are committed in our support of safer gambling. Recommended bets are advised to over-18s and we strongly encourage readers to wager only what they can afford to lose.
If you are concerned about your gambling, please call the National Gambling Helpline / GamCare on 0808 8020 133.
Further support and information can be found at begambleaware.org and gamblingtherapy.org.