Best anytime touchdown bets for Eagles vs. Giants in Week 7

Will Saquon Barkley find the endzone in his first game against his former team?

Saquon Barkley returns to the Meadowlands this week for the first time since leaving the New York Giants to sign as a free agent with the Philadelphia Eagles. Could Barkley be a good bet to score a touchdown when these two NFC East division rivals square off at 1:00 p.m. Sunday? 

This article will answer that question and offer some other good anytime touchdown prop bets in this game. The betting odds provided for each bet discussed below were the most favorable odds from across the online sports betting industry at the time of writing. As always, betting odds are subject to change, so it’s worth checking the current odds at the best online sportsbooks before placing any bets. 

Saquon Barkley (-160, DraftKings)

Normally there is not a ton of value in betting on anytime touchdowns when the odds are as low as Barkley’s odds this week. Even for a player like Barkley who has already scored five touchdowns this season, finding the endzone can still be a bit fluky. Even with his five touchdowns, (tied for fifth-most in the league), Barkley has only scored in two of his five games.

That said, in this situation, it makes sense to make an exception to that general rule. At the end of the day, even at -160 odds, a winning bet is still a winning bet, and Barkley feels like an absolute lock to reach paydirt in this game. It may not be the wisest betting strategy to buy into the “revenge game” narrative. Players and coaches will always downplay the impact that kind of narrative will have on a game. But it absolutely has an impact.

Back in 2022, in A.J. Brown’s first game against the Titans, after they traded him to the Eagles, he went off for two touchdowns and 119 yards on eight catches. After the game, he admitted the game was more meaningful for him. He even celebrated one of his touchdowns by playfully spanking the goalpost, then hugging it, and later explained the message behind that was, “Today I’m gonna have to give you this whooping, but I still love you.” Eagles cornerback Darius Slay was less subtle about Brown’s mindset going into that game.

That is just one example (and there are plenty of others) that illustrates players really do care about having big games against their former teams. Their coaches and teammates know it too and will do what they can to help put them in positions to succeed in those situations. So even if Barkley has downplayed any extra significance that this game will have for him, expect to hear him change that tune after the game.

Beyond those narrative reasons to like Barkley’s chances of finding the endzone, there are also legitimate football reasons. The Giants are below average against the run by most statistical measures, including the second-most yards per carry allowed (5.2). They are also bottom eight in terms of receptions and receiving yards allowed to running backs. The Giants are also leading the league in sacks (4.3 per game) despite being middle of the pack in terms of pressure and blitz rates, which could force the Eagles to run the ball more and use more checkdowns to Barkley to slow down the pass rush.

All of those football factors should create some scoring opportunities for Barkley. But make no mistake – the main reason for betting on this is simply the belief that the Eagles will make a point of getting Barkley into the endzone this week. For the same reasons, betting on Barkley to score the first Eagles touchdown is also appealing, although those odds were not available at the time of writing. That bet would be preferable to an overall first TD scorer bet (+400, DraftKings) mainly because the Eagles have been getting off to slow starts. They are the only team in the league that has failed to score any points in the first quarter this season.

Jalen Hurts (+140, Caesars)

It’s not often that you can get anytime touchdown odds for Jalen Hurts at better than even money, but this week Hurts is priced that way at every major sportsbook, with the best odds being at Caesars. Even with the retirement of center Jason Kelce and the addition of Barkley, the Eagles are still using their (in)famous “tush push” play this season, and the play is still practically unstoppable. If the Eagles get down to the 1- or 2-yard line, it’s almost guaranteed that Hurts will punch it in.

Another factor here is that the Giants have an excellent red zone defense. They have allowed touchdowns on just five of their opponents’ 12 red zone trips this season. That 41.7% conversation rate is the sixth-best for any defense this season. Some may view that as a reason to hesitate to bet that Hurts will get an opportunity to run the “tush push” on the goalline. On the contrary, a stingy red zone defense means that the Eagles may struggle to punch it in through conventional means, and it’s, therefore, more likely that they could find themselves in short-yardage goal-to-go situations where Hurts thrives.

Hurts also has a decent chance to find the endzone on longer runs as well, as the Giants have allowed the third-most rushing yards to opposing quarterbacks this season at 33.3 per game. Quarterbacks are also gaining 6.9 yards per carry against them, which is the fifth-highest rate in the league. As noted above, Hurts could be under a lot of pressure in this game from the Giants’ pass rush, which would create more situations where he escapes the pocket and takes off running. 

That combination of factors creates multiple realistic scenarios for Hurts to score a touchdown in this game. 

Malik Nabers (+110, FanDuel)

Assuming he clears concussion protocol before this game, Malik Nabers is the best anytime touchdown bet on the Giants. Before his injury, he was leading the entire NFL in targets, averaging 13 per game. That represents a ridiculous 38.2% target share, which was also the highest in the league by a significant margin. Six of his targets came inside the red zone, which he converted for three touchdowns. 

There is no reason to expect Nabers’ role will be any different if he returns, even after Darius Slayton played well in his absence for the last two games. Nabers’ talent is special, and he should have a favorable matchup in this game. The Eagles’ top cornerback Darius Slay injured his knee against Cleveland last week and is questionable for this game. If he plays, he will be less than 100%, and if he misses the game then Nabers will be matched up primarily with fellow rookie Quinyon Mitchell. 

Mitchell has played very well for a rookie cornerback, but he is still a rookie, and first-year cornerbacks tend to take longer to adjust to the NFL than wide receivers do. Nabers will have the edge in that matchup, and with the number of targets expected to go his way, he has a very good chance of reaching paydirt.

Nabers may have the shortest odds of any Giants player, but it’s hard to make an argument for betting on any other Giants right now. The backfield situation is murky given the uncertain injury status of starting running back Devin Singletary and the excellent performance of rookie Tyrone Tracy Jr. in his absence. What will the split of carries and red zone opportunities look like for those players when Singletary returns? If he misses another game, then Tracy Jr. (+140, DraftKings) would be a better option, but it’s best to avoid that situation. 

Another good candidate on the Giants is Wan’Dale Robinson (+235, DraftKings), who was leading the team in red zone targets even before Nabers’ injury, and has two touchdowns so far this season.