It's never too early to look ahead in betting on the NFL, especially with how odds are so readily available.
Week 2 spreads and totals have been posted at most books for weeks — maybe longer. We have some juicy matchups to look forward to, as well as two Monday Night Football games.
Two of our betting analysts are already on their favorite picks for Week 2. Check out Chris Raybon and Kody Malstrom's best bets below.
NFL Odds & Picks
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Chris Raybon: Arguably the best offensive player for each team got banged up in Week 1: Mac Jones suffered a back injury and Najee Harris, a foot injury.
Even if both players were 100% entering Week 2, this line should be closer to 41. The Patriots averaged just 5.0 yards per play and 6.0 yards per pass, while the Steelers averaged 4.4 yards per play and 4.9 yards per pass.
While T.J. Watt (torn pectoral muscle) is obviously a big loss for the Steelers defense, it shouldn’t matter as much in this spot given the opponent. The Patriots tend to play conservatively on the road, but their defensive game plans keep the score low.
According to our Action Labs data, Patriots road unders are 33-16 (67.3%) since 2016, falling short of the total by an average of 4.04 points per game over that span.
FanDuel Quickslip: Under 41.5
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Brandon Anderson: I had to double and triple check this line to make sure it was accurate when I saw it.
The New England Patriots are road favorites? The 2022 Patriots? In this economy?!
The Patriots were absolutely miserable in Week 1. They went down 17–0 at the half and looked totally lifeless, and it could've been worse if Tua Tagovailoa was able to hit his guys in stride a few times.
And if the Pats were bad against Miami, what will they do in Pittsburgh? The Steelers defense just beat the defending AFC champion Bengals.
Now, admittedly, Pittsburgh's offense wasn't particularly great either. The Steelers were outgained by 165 yards and Cincinnati had 19 more first downs. Pittsburgh also needed a pair of missed gimme kicks to steal an overtime win. But Pittsburgh's defense was good, and if it was good against Joe Burrow and Ja'Marr Chase, what will it do to New England?
Somehow, we open with another rah rah Mike Tomlin underdog spot to start the week. Tomlin won as a touchdown dog on Sunday, bringing him to 46–23–2 against the spread (ATS) lifetime as an underdog, covering two of every three. That includes a pristine 14–3–2 ATS at home, covering by 6.5 points per game where he'll be this week.
With a line this close to even, I'll just grab the moneyline at plus juice. Tomlin has a winning record as a dog anyway, and he's 13–6 as a home 'dog with a whopping 63% return on investment.
But you better grab it now. I'm not sure Tomlin will even be an underdog by Sunday, which would mean a chance to just play both sides at plus money and lock in a profit.
Mac Jones also seemed to hurt his back late in Miami. Our Sean Koerner has the drop from Jones to backup QB Brian Hoyer as a 3.5-point swing, and even if Jones plays, he could be a statue for that Steelers pass rush.
Worst-case scenario, this should be a pretty easy position to pivot out of if things don't go our way as the injury report unfolds.
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Kody Malstrom: What a breath of fresh air. While the Vikings retained their offensive core weapons going into this season, they looked every bit of a shiny new car that was ready to rip from the start. Out with the old and in with the new under coach Kevin O'Connell, who had the Packers defense reeling from the start.
The Vikings defense still has room for improvement, especially in the secondary, but they did manage to generate a pass rush with sacking Aaron Rodgers four times and causing two turnovers. Should they do the same to Jalen Hurts by limiting his explosiveness, the Vikings will sit in good position to control the game again.
While Minnesota checked all the boxes for what I was looking for in it to be taken seriously as a top-tier team, the Eagles disappointed. While the Lions offense is no pushover in their own right, Philadelphia was bullied into giving up 35 points to an inferior unit.
The Eagles may have the talent, but the defense has a way to go if they want to live up to their Super Bowl hype. Conceding 144 yards at a 9.6 yards-per-carry average to Swift isn't going to bode well when Dalvin Cook comes into town and that doesn't even account for what the duo of Justin Jefferson and Adam Thielen are capable of doing as well.
I'm taking the Vikings on the early moneyline and may consider adding a piece on the over in what could be a shootout.
