NFL Week 2: Best Bets for Sunday

Week 2 is here and we are ready to win some bets! Last week got us off to a tough start with the unpredicatblity of Week 1. Our Best Bets went 3-4 but Jamie’s Pick of the Week did win! Week 2 started off hot with Zach Ertz cashing for us in the Thursday night game. Right now, we have hit 3 best bets in a row and are looking to keep it going. I have outlined the 4 Best Bets for today, included the background, posted Jamie’s Pick for the week, and included a No Sweat Parlay that I placed on FanDuel. Let’s make some money!

First things first, the Best Bets:

Best Bets

Jerry Jeudy Receiving Yards over 58.5
D.K Metcalf Receiving Yards over 66.5
James Conner Rush Yards over 68.5
Michael Penix Jr. Pass Yards over 225.5

Best Bet Background- Jerry Jeudy Receiving Yards over 58.5

The Browns are taking on their AFC North rival Ravens today. There has already been plenty of bad blood between the two franchises. That goes back to the Browns leaving Cleveland and becoming the Baltimore Ravens. More recently, Jerry Jeudy stated this week that there was no concern in facing the Ravens secondary. Now that could add fuel to the fire and the Ravens will be focusing on shutting Jeudy down. However, the Ravens have struggled against the pass. This is a trend that goes back to last season. They were allowing 244 yards per game in the air, which was second to last in the NFL. Last week, they let up 389 yards to the Bills. Jeudy played the Ravens twice and recorded efforts of 79 yards and 63 yards. That was with a revolving door at quarterback. With Joe Flacco in a quarterback, Jeudy will be heavily targeted and still has the ability to break a big play. Last week, Flacco targeted Jeudy 8 times for 5 receptions and 66 yards. I believe that we will see a similar game today from Jeudy and that this 58-yard mark is too low.

Best Bet Background – D.K Metcalf Receiving Yards over 66.5

D.K Metcalf is facing his former team for the first time since being traded to the Steelers. He has already publicly downplayed the significance of playing against them this week. I don’t buy it. There is some part of Metcalf that wants to prove that it was a mistake to let him walk out of the building. He has already developed chemistry with quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who also plays with a chip on his shoulders. Last week, they connected for 4 catches and 83 yards. This week, they face a much more favorable matchup in the Seattle pass defense. The Seahawks allowed 265 yards last week to the 49ers, who were missing a majority of their receivers. Metcalf has a career 65 yards per game average, which is right on the bubble for today’s line. However, add in the motivation of playing his old team and the fact that the Seattle defense plays bend-don’t-break, will be a favorable matchup for D.K.

Best Bet Background – James Conner Rush Yards over 68.5

The Cardinals are taking on the Carolina Panthers today. This will probably be the least talked about 4 PM game today with the Chiefs and Eagles (see Jamie’s Pick of the Week) playing. The Panthers have one of the worst run defenses in the league. Last year, they were ranked last and allowed 179.8 yards per game. Last week, they allowed 200 yards to the Jaguars. This week, they face a physical running back in James Conner. Conner got off to a slow start last week by only running for 39 yards. However, while Jonathan Gannon has led the team, Conner has averaged 73 yards per game. The game script is going to favor the Cardinals as the Panthers look like they are back to their losing ways. While playing with the lead, the Cards should be able to close out the game by leaning on Conner and this run game.

Best Bet Background – Michael Penix Jr. Pass Yards over 225.5

Michael Penix Jr. went full air raid last week in his start against the Bucs. He threw the ball 42 times for 298 yards and 1 TD. Those games against the Bucs are typically shootouts, so it made sense that the offensive numbers were inflated on each side. This week, the Falcons face a much stingier defense when they face the Vikings in primetime. One “weakness” of this Vikings defense is the amount of pass yards that they allow. Last year, they allowed 242 yards per game, which was the 5th most in the league. Last week, they allowed 198 yards to the Bears. Penix and the Falcons’ offense are a step up from the Bears currently. They are built to pass the ball with weapons like Drake London, Darnell Mooney, Ray-Ray McCloud, and Kyle Pitts. Running back Bijan Robinson is also going to pose a problem for this Vikings defense in the pass game. I believe that this will be a tight game and the Falcons will ultimately rely on the arm of Penix to stay in the game.

Jamie’s Pick of The Week

Jamie is flying high after his winning pick last week. It was a thriller of a game but the Jamie curse seemed to be put into reverse as his Bills were able to pull off a miraculous comeback to beat the Ravens 41-40. This week, he is picking the winner of the Super Bowl rematch between the Chiefs and Eagles.