It was a little scrappy at times, but we have successfully navigated the first week of the NFL season, and how good is it to have American Football back in our lives! Week 2 gets underway this Friday morning as the Carolina Panthers host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in a big NFC South clash.
We have our preview and betting tips for the key games of the week below.
NFL Week 2 Betting Tips
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Carolina Panthers (Friday 10.20am AEST)
Two NFC South rivals who both suffered defeats in Week 1 will face off at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte on Thursday night football. The Panthers were admireable in Week 1 as they went down by just three points to the Los Angeles Rams at home. Star running back Christian McCaffrey was dominant in the win, racking up over 200 all purpose yards and two touchdowns.
There were some positive wraps on the Buccaneers in the pre-season but they were handled comfortably at home on Monday morning, going down by 14 points to Jimmy Garoppolo and the San Francisco 49ers. Jameis Winston might be under the pump already after an awful start to the season which saw him throw for just 194 yards including 3 interceptions.
The home team won both games in the division last season as Carolina claimed a 14 point win back in November before Tampa Bay squared the ledger with a 7 point win in December. Carolina start as strong $1.32 favourites here but we prefer the total point line, which sits at just 50.5. Tampa Bay plays a high tempo and the last time these teams met in Carolina, they put up 70 points.
Total points OVER 50.5
$1.94
New Orleans Saints at Los Angeles Rams (Monday 6.25am AEST)
It’s possible that we could be seeing one of the best matchups of the year in Week 2 this season as the Saints travel to LA to take on the Rams on Monday morning. The two sides played off in two epic clashes last season, the first of which saw the Saints win by 10 points as the teams piled on 80 combined. The second matchup came in the NFC Championship game, where the Rams were successful by just three points in an absolute thriller.
They will go toe to toe in what could be an early NFC Championship preview this week, and both sides will be coming off great wins in Week 1. The Rams had a shaky start on the road in Carolina, going scoreless in the first quarter but managed to find some offence after that, eventually capturing a 3 point win over the Panther. Running back Malcolm Brown was fantastic with two touchdowns.
The Saints won what could end up being the game of the season on Tuesday morning as kicker Will Lutz bombed a 58 yard field goal with zeros on the clock to snatch victory. The Saints offence was hot in the second half as they put up 27 points to win the game in the dying moments.Hard to believe the total here is just ___ after both teams put up 30 in Week 1 and combined for 80 in the regular season last year.
Total points OVER 53.5
$1.95
Cleveland Browns at New York Jets (Tuesday 10.15am AEST)
The Cleveland Browns bubble was at capacity in the lead up to Week 1 and it burst in extravagant fashion as they were dominated by the Tennessee Titans to the tune of 30 points. Their defence allowed 43 points, the second highest score of Week 1 and they’ll be on the road this weekend against a fired up New York Jets.
The Jets allowed 14 points in the final quarter of their Week 1 game against the Buffalo Bills to go down by just one point at home. Star running back Le’Veon Bell made his debut for the Jets and racked up almost 100 all-purpose yards and a touchdown and should continue to improve as he regains match fitness.
Jets start as home underdogs here, which we love considering how the Browns defence looked in Week 1. The Jets defence was great against the Bills and should be able to hold up at home. Back New York with a 2.5 headstart here.
