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With Week 2 of the NFL season upon us, it's once again time to make sure survivor pool players avoid any pitfalls that may arise in their efforts to advance. The schedule looks promising with six games with a line of -5.5 or higher, but looks can be deceiving. Last year we saw an 8-point underdog pull off the upset in Week 1, when the New England Patriots went on the road to defeat the Cincinnati Bengals. This week, the longest odds are the Browns as 12-point underdogs at Baltimore, in what's the biggest NFL spread of the 2025 NFL season. Division games are always tricky, so does that mean you should avoid Baltimore, Dallas (-5.5) versus the Giants, Detroit (-6.5) against the Bears, Buffalo (-6.5) versus the Jets, Miami (-2.5) against the Patriots or the Chargers (-3.5) versus the Raiders as you make your Week 2 NFL survivor pool predictions?

Putting together a winning NFL survivor pool strategy is all about deciding when to successfully use a team and when to save another. You also need to avoid an embarrassing Week 2 exit using a sound strategy. The only way to do that is by turning to a proven expert. Before finalizing any Week 2 NFL survivor picks, you need to see which team proven expert R.J. White is backing.

White has been SportsLine's No. 1 NFL against-the-spread expert over the last eight years, going 718-623-37 against the spread to put him up more than 32 units on those picks at SportsLine since 2017. He has also delivered a 55% hit rate on his Vegas contest picks over the last 10 seasons and has two finishes in the money, including finishing 18th out of 2,748 entries back in 2017. He knows the NFL at a level that few do, making him the perfect expert to give NFL survivor pool strategy tips. 

Now, White has turned his attention to the latest Week 2 NFL odds and locked in his Week 2 survivor pool pick. You can only see who White is backing this week at SportsLine. You can also bet the NFL at DraftKings, where new users can also target the DraftKings promo code, which offers $200 in bonus bets instantly plus over $200 off NFL Sunday Ticket:

Top Week 2 NFL survivor pool predictions 

White has studied his 2025 NFL Week 2 options, and advises there are some ways he has mapped out to put together a smart strategy. One of those ways, however, does not include taking the Minnesota Vikings in their game against the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday Night Football. Although the Vikings are 3.5-point favorites, they are coming off a short week and a game in which they were dominated for the first three quarters. Although the Falcons are coming off a heartbreaking 23-20 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, it came down to the final minute.

Also, picking Minnesota this early in the season may come back to haunt survivor pool players later on in the season. A better option may come in Week 5 against the Cleveland Browns. White sees a much better option to take in Week 2. See which team to pick instead here. You can bet every NFL game at bet365, where new users can check out the latest bet365 bonus code to get $300 in bonus bets after placing a $5 bet:

How to make Week 2 NFL survivor pool picks 

White says he is liking his current strategy. "I love how the board sets up if we can get through this week alive," he said. And he's found a team to jump on in Week 2. The time to pick this team is now, and you can only see the play over at SportsLine.

Which team is a must-back in your Week 2 NFL survivor pool? Visit SportsLine now to see which team carries you to victory in Week 2, all from SportsLine's top NFL expert all time.