Resident tipster Ross Williams breaks down four of this weekend’s key NFL match-ups and delivers his latest Best Bets as the 32 teams jostle for position in week two.
NFL betting tips: Week 2
2pts Kansas City Chiefs (-2) to beat the Baltimore Ravens at 5/6 (Sky Bet)
2pts New England Patriots (-6) to beat the New York Jets at 19/20 (Unibet)
1pt Denver Broncos (-6.5) to beat the Jacksonville Jaguars and Over 44.5 Total Match Points at 5/2 (Sky Bet)
1pt Kyler Murray & DeAndre Hopkins (Cardinals) both to score a touchdown at 11/4 (Sky Bet)
New England Patriots @ New York Jets
- When: Sunday at 18:00 BST
- TV: NFL Redzone on Sky Sports Mix/Free to watch on Sky Bet
Week two provides a battle of the rookie quarterbacks at Metlife Stadium, and it’s an AFC East scrap I fancy Mac Jones to get the better of.
The former Alabama quarterback didn’t pick up a win on his NFL debut, but his performance was the pick of the new crop. In an incredibly accurate display, Jones managed to complete more than 74% of his passes – an NFL record for a rookie on his debut and a sign that he has brought the traits that made him a star in college over to the big leagues.
On the other side of the equation, second overall pick Zach Wilson had a perfectly adequate debut for the Jets in their loss to the Panthers, throwing for more than 250 yards and picking up a pair of touchdowns. However, he faces a much steeper task than Jones this week.
The Panthers managed six sacks in week one against a torrid offensive line, made worse by a mid-game injury to stand-out left tackle Mekhi Becton.
With the hulking pass protector out for the foreseeable, Wilson looks incredibly vulnerable behind a shaky line and, unfortunately for him and the Jets, the New England pass rush that they face on Sunday is an upgrade on Carolina.
In all likelihood, Wilson will be running for his life all afternoon, and no rookie in his second professional game can be expected to run an offense under those circumstances.
As long as Mac Jones can maintain his consistency this week and keeps doing the simple things well, the Patriots should have the firepower to run out comfortable winners.
Denver Broncos @ Jacksonville Jaguars
- When: Sunday at 18:00 BST
- TV: Sky Sports NFL/Free to watch on Sky Bet
I’m going back to the well with the Broncos this week, after a mightily impressive week one performance.
Star defender Von Miller was making Peyton Manning comparisons on the side-line on Sunday and, although I won’t quite go that far, there’s no denying that Teddy Bridgewater looked every inch Denver’s franchise quarterback in his first start for the team.
Teddy carved up the Giants defense for 264 yards, while only throwing eight incomplete passes, and I anticipate much of the same this weekend.
The Jaguars were nothing short of terrible in week one.
Although there were some positives to be taken from the way Trevor Lawrence scored his three touchdowns, the first overall draft pick also threw three interceptions on debut. It’s not a massive worry in terms of the future of his career, but it doesn’t bode well for the immediate future of Jacksonville.
The real problem though, is the Jags’ defense. Along with 449 total yards, the AFC South outfit shipped 37 points last Sunday against a Texans team tipped for failure, continuing an incredibly worrying trend. It’s now been more than a year since Jacksonville last conceded fewer than 24 points in a regular-season contest.
With that in mind, I fancy the high-powered offense of Denver to rack up the score in this one, which should give us a great chance of smashing a low total-points line and securing a simple Broncos victory.
Minnesota Vikings @ Arizona Cardinals
- When: Sunday at 21:05 BST
- TV: Sky Sports NFL/Free to watch on Sky Bet
The Cardinals were one of the teams of week one and, much like last year, I think they’re going to roll ahead in the early stages of the campaign.
On the flip side, Minnesota were mediocre in their first outing of the season and the performance resulted in a disappointing overtime defeat to the underdog Cincinnati Bengals.
Purely looking at the money line, I would be all over Arizona in this one, considering the ease in which they scored points on the Titans last week and the downright violence of the defense – namely the five-sack monster, Chandler Jones.
However, the ability of the Arizona offense to score points provides opportunity for much greater value, and there may not be two safer bets in the NFL right now than quarterback Kyler Murray and his partner-in-crime, DeAndre Hopkins.
Murray – along with four passing touchdowns – scampered into the end zone in week one and remains a consistent threat whenever the Cardinals are camped inside their opponent’s 20-yard line. Although Minnesota’s defense has some star power with the likes of Danielle Hunter, it struggled against an average Bengals run-attack last week – conceding 149 yards and a touchdown - and that should be enough to tempt Murray into using his legs plenty on Sunday.
Against the pass, the Vikes weren’t much better. Rookie Ja’Marr Chase took them for 100 yards and a touchdown on his first NFL start, despite Joe Burrow throwing under pressure for most of the game.
Murray should have way more time in the pocket this week with a better offensive line ahead of him, and that opens the door for Hopkins to do what Hopkins does.
The All-Pro wide receiver scored two touchdowns against the Titans without breaking a sweat and he’ll fancy his chances all day long against old friend Patrick Peterson, a past-his-best cornerback who Hopkins knows all about after a season on the same practise field in 2020.
Kansas City Chiefs @ Baltimore Ravens
- When: Monday at 01:20 BST
- TV: Sky Sports NFL/Free to watch on Sky Bet
A huge game on paper, that consistently under-delivers in reality.
The reason? Andy Reid’s Kansas City Chiefs own the Ravens.
The reigning AFC champions have four straight wins over their Conference rivals dating back to 2015, and only one of those was close. Over this stretch, the Chiefs have won by an aggregate margin of 120-94, and I don’t anticipate Baltimore pegging that back any time soon.
Even prior to Monday Night Football, I would have been eager to tip the Chiefs in this one, after they played the greatest hits in a week one comeback victory over a strong Cleveland Browns outfit.
However, I’m simply blown away at the -2 handicap on offer, following Baltimore’s opening week loss to Las Vegas. Not only did the Ravens lose as favourites in overtime on Monday; they looked bad in the process.
With a plethora of injuries blighting their backfield, Baltimore struggled to run the ball with any consistency and when you take the run game away from the Ravens, it’s still up for debate whether Lamar Jackson has the ability (or the offensive weapons) to win games purely with his arm. His offensive line failed him in a big way, and with no immediate improvement likely, the performance has alarm bells ringing in Maryland.
Then there’s the defense, which conceded a massive 491 total yards and allowed Derek Carr to end week one as the NFL’s leading passer. With all due respect to the Raiders’ quarterback, he’s not in the same stratosphere as Patrick Mahomes and that fact alone will have the Chiefs’ offense salivating at the prospect of racking up the points on Sunday.
Odds correct at 1815 BST (17/09/21)
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