Week 2 NFL betting: Seahawks, Jets draw heavy action as road favorites

See what NFL bettors are wagering on ahead of Week 2

The Seattle Seahawks had a difficult time putting away rookie quarterback Bo Nix and the visiting Denver Broncos in their season opener.

Then, on Monday night, the New York Jets just plain struggled from start to finish in a blowout loss in San Francisco that put a lid on Week 1.

Neither result seemed to phase those who got an early jump on the NFL Week 2 betting market. Because so far in point spread wagering for Week 2, Seattle and New York have attracted the most action at two different sportsbooks, even though both squads are consensus 3.5-point road favorites.

Here’s a look at the five most popular point spread and totals wagers at both sportsbooks — along with noteworthy betting splits data — heading into the second week of the NFL season.

Seahawks’ flight East not deterring bettors

Geno Smith and Seattle are favored in New England by more than a field goal. And bettors are backing Smith.

Now those are two sentences you probably thought you’d never see strung together. Such is the state of the NFL in the post-Patriots-dynasty era.

Despite their so-so effort against Denver — and despite having to travel across the country for an early Sunday game against an opponent coming off the biggest upset of Week 1 — the Seahawks are laying more than a field goal at New England at the majority of sportsbooks.

One of those books is the SuperBook in Las Vegas, which had taken more wagers on Seattle -3.5 points at New England than any other Week 2 contest as of Tuesday night. The Seahawks are coming off a 26-20 home win against the Broncos, while the Patriots opened the season as a 7.5-point road underdogs against the Bengals and returned home with a 16-10 victory.

The latter result was stunning not only because the Patriots were the biggest underdog in Week 1, but because they went into the season with the NFL’s lowest win-total projection (4.5 victories).

New England, which is coming off an ugly 4-13 campaign, has not won consecutive games since a three-game winning streak in the back half of the 2022 season. However, the Patriots have covered the spread five straight times as an underdog since December.

Meanwhile, Seattle went 4-0 as a road favorite last season. However, the last two wins — 20-17 at Tennessee and 21-20 at Arizona — were razor thin, with the Seahawks laying 3 points in each.

Here are the other Week 2 point spread bets that SuperBook bettors hammered early in the week:

• Jaguars (0-1 straight-up and against the spread) -3 (-120) vs. Browns (0-1 SU and ATS)
• Chiefs (1-0 SU and ATS) -6 vs. Bengals (0-1 SU and ATS)
• Colts (0-1 SU, 1-0 ATS) -3 at Packers (0-1 SU and ATS)
• Dolphins (1-0 SU and ATS) +2 vs. Bills (1-0 SU and ATS) on Thursday Night Football

Bettors banking on Rodgers, Jets to bounce back

For the first time in nearly two years, Aaron Rodgers made it through an NFL game, as he and the Jets took on the defending NFC champion 49ers on Monday night.

Unfortunately for New York fans, Rodgers didn’t look anything like his vintage self — while the Jets looked like the same-old Jets, losing 32-19 as 3.5-point underdogs. However, New York had a better opening week than the Tennessee Titans, who went to Chicago, didn’t allow an offensive touchdown, limited the Bears to just 148 yards of offense and still lost 24-17 as 4-point underdogs. 

Tennessee was done in by two turnovers (including an interception returned for a game-winning touchdown) and a blocked punt (also returned for a touchdown).

That explains why the Titans are 3.5-point home underdogs to Rodgers and the Jets on Sunday — and why bettors are siding with the road chalk at DraftKings, where New York -3.5 had drawn the most wagering action as of Tuesday afternoon.

Tennessee comes into this one in a 4-8-1 ATS slump (3-6-1 ATS as an underdog). Then again, the Jets have failed to cover in nine of 11 games dating to Week 9 of last season, going 1-5 ATS on the road and 0-2 ATS as a favorite (although all that was without Rodgers).

DraftKings Sportsbook’s other most-bet Week 2 games as of early in the week:

• Lions (1-0 SU, 0-1 ATS) -7 vs. Buccaneers (1-0 SU and ATS)
• Browns (0-1 SU and ATS) +3 at Jaguars (0-1 SU and ATS) 
• Bears (1-0 SU and ATS) +6.5 at Texans (1-0 SU, 0-1 ATS)
• Ravens (0-1 SU and ATS) -9.5 vs. Raiders (0-1 SU and ATS) 

Interestingly, there’s a difference of opinion at DraftKings and the SuperBook on the Browns-Jaguars clash. Bettors at the former like Cleveland +3, while Jacksonville -3 is the preferred side at the latter.

What underdog has fetched the most outright moneyline wagers? The SuperBook reports its bettors are riding high with the Broncos +135 at home against Pittsburgh.

Points expected in Kansas City, Dallas

Although Browns-Jaguars is the only matchup that overlaps at DraftKings and the SuperBook when it comes to the point spread, the same two contests rank among the five most-bet Week 2 totals at each sportsbook.

Only in this instance, the betting public is in agreement.

Bengals-Chiefs Over 47.5 points ranks as the second most-bet total at the SuperBook and sits fourth at DraftKings.

Meanwhile, Saints-Cowboys Over is third at DraftKings and fifth at the SuperBook. However, the total is 45.5 at DraftKings and 46 at the SuperBook.

Other popular Over/Under wagers for Week 2 include:

• Buccaneers-Lions Over 51.5 (No. 1 at DraftKings)
• Falcons-Eagles Under 47 (No. 1 at SuperBook)
• Jets-Titans Under 40.5 (No. 2 at DraftKings)
• Rams-Cardinals Over 49 (No. 3 at SuperBook)
• Giants-Commanders Over 44 (No. 4 at SuperBook)
• Seahawks-Patriots Under 38 (No. 5 at DraftKings)

Here are a couple of noteworthy tidbits about the Tampa Bay-Detroit total: It’s the highest Over/Under in Week 2 by 2.5 points. The teams met twice last year, and while the Lions won both contests, the scoreboard results were drastically different (20-6 in the regular season in Tampa; 31-23 in the NFC Divisional Round in Detroit).

That latter shootout aside, the Under is 11-2 since the start of last season in NFL games when the total is 50 points or higher. That includes the Lions’ 26-20 overtime win over the Rams in Week 1 falling short of the 53.5-point closing total.

Also, since the beginning of the 2023 season, the highest NFL total of the week is 15-6 to the Under.

Ready for action

Of the 16 games on DraftKings’ Week 2 NFL betting board, more than half were seeing lopsided point spread action as of Tuesday night in terms of ticket count and/or handle.

The games with the greatest one-way point spread action include:

• Chargers -6.5 (at Panthers): 90% tickets; 89% money
• Eagles -6.5 (vs. Falcons) 88% tickets; 91% money
• Commanders -1.5 (vs. Giants): 86% tickets; 84% money
• Ravens -9.5 (vs. Raiders): 85% tickets; 94% money
• 49ers -6 (at Vikings): 83% tickets
• Cowboys -6.5 (vs. Saints): 86% money
• Seahawks -3.5 (at Patriots): 84% money
• Texans -6.5 (vs. Bears): 82% money
• Colts -3 (at Packers): 82% money

As of Tuesday night, only a pair of Week 2 contests featured split point spread action at DraftKings, with one side seeing a greater percentage of tickets and the other a greater portion of the cash. Those games are:

• Buccaneers (+7) at Lions (-7): Tampa Bay 59% tickets; Detroit 64% money
• Rams (+1.5) at Cardinals (-1.5): Los Angeles 70% tickets; Arizona 63% money

As for lopsided wagering on totals at DraftKings in Week 2, only a few games qualify at the moment:

• Saints-Cowboys Over 45.5: 83% tickets; 82% money
• Buccaneers-Lions Over 51.5: 93% money
• Jets-Titans Under 40.5: 95% money

Conversely, seven Week 2 games are seeing two-way action on totals at DraftKings:

• Bills-Dolphins (49 points): Over 65% bets; Under 55 % cash
• Raiders-Ravens (41.5 points): Over 67% bets; Under 71% cash
• Colts-Packers (40.5 points): Over 62% bets; Under 57% cash
• Browns-Jaguars (41.5 points): Over 53% bets; Under 67% cash
• 49ers-Vikings (45 points): Over 71% bets; Under 71% cash
• Giants-Commanders (44 points): Under 63% bets; Over 71% cash
• Bears-Texans (45.5 points): Over 56% bets; Under 65% cash

Finally, the SuperBook reports that three games had significant point spread shifts from the opening numbers released Sunday night:

• Chargers from -4.5 to -6.5 (at Panthers)
• Commanders -3 to -1.5 (vs. Giants)
• Cardinals +2.5 to -1.5 (vs. Rams)