NFL Predictions Week 8: Top Underdog Picks, Vegas Odds and Score Predictions

Entering Week 8, bettors who enjoy rolling with underdogs must know how to do it well.

This idea applies every week, but especially in Week 8 with six teams on bye, including crafty possible underdogs such as the Los Angeles Rams, San Francisco 49ers and Miami Dolphins.

As one can see from the midweek lines, no game comes with a major spread, which means even Las Vegas has taken a reserved approach to the slate with so many teams sitting out.

Bettors don't need to avoid the week by any means, but finding the right underdogs to back will take more work than usual. Let's take a look.

NFL Week 8 Odds

Matchup	Spread	O/U	Predicted Winner
Jacksonville at Tennessee (TNF)	TEN -3.5	44.5	TEN 23-20
Washington at Cincinnati	CIN -2.5	47	WAS 28-27
N.Y. Jets at Cleveland	NYJ -2.5	n/a	NYJ 28-10
Seattle at New Orleans	SEA -3	47.5	NO 24-23
Arizona at Carolina	E	48	ARI 27-21
New England at Buffalo	NE -4.5	47	NE 34-20
Oakland at Tampa Bay	TB -1	49.5	TB 24-17
Kansas City at Indianapolis	KC -2.5	50	KC 36-30
Detroit at Houston	HOU -2.5	45	HOU 24-21
San Diego at Denver	DEN -6	45	DEN 28-20
Green Bay at Atlanta	ATL -2.5	53	GB 35-30
Philadelphia at Dallas	DAL -5	43.5	DAL 28-20
Minnesota at Chicago (MNF)	MIN -4	40.5	MIN 34-20

Odds courtesy of Odds Shark.

Washington at Cincinnati (-2.5)

The meeting between the Washington Redskins and Cincinnati Bengals is rather funny. 

Both teams lost to the Dallas Cowboys and Pittsburgh Steelers. Both blew away the Cleveland Browns. Both have to make the trip across the pond in Week 8 to play in London.

Chances are that this line only grows in favor of the Bengals, though. They racked up more than 550 yards of offense while beating Cleveland in Week 7, and they remain in the thick of things in the AFC North despite a sluggish start.

It's interesting to point out, however, that the Bengals are 3-4 and the Redskins are 4-3. The Bengals aren't their usual selves on defense anymore. Opposing passers have hit them up for 14 touchdowns, and opposing backs average 4.6 yards per carry.

That's a big problem against a potent Washington rushing attack:

NAME	ATT	YDS	AVG	TD
Matt Jones	99	460	4.6	3
Chris Thompson	38	193	5.1	1
Robert Kelley	17	103	6.1	0

Knowing they don't want to deal with A.J. Green (50 catches, 775 yards, three scores) on a regular basis, the Redskins will employ this rushing attack early and often on the road to keep the Cincinnati defense on the field.

Speaking of the road, Washington has won two games away from home, while Cincinnati has won one. It would be easier to roll with the favorites here if the Bengals had started the season hotter, but instead they've shown a weaker-than-usual defense even after the return of Vontaze Burfict.

Prediction: Redskins 28-27

Seattle (-3) at New Orleans

The New Orleans Saints could easily fit into the mentioned group of underdogs. 

They have a 2-4 record, but a Drew Brees-led offense is never out of any game. New Orleans has beaten the San Diego Chargers and Carolina Panthers, and only one of its four losses has been by more than seven points.

In past years, it would be easy to look at this matchup, roll with the Seattle Seahawks by almost any margin and call it a day. But bettors don't have to look far to see why Las Vegas likes the Seahawks only by three points.

Where to start? The Seahawks tied the Arizona Cardinals in Week 7. They lost to the Rams in Week 2. The four wins on the season haven't come against impressive competition other than the Atlanta Falcons, and that was a two-point victory. Russell Wilson doesn't look like his usual self with only five touchdowns to one interception and basically no contributions on the ground.

Wilson's play has been odd most of the year:

All of this makes it easier to roll with the home team. The New Orleans defense has still been its miserable self but has surprised at times, such as holding the New York Giants to 16 points.

If Brees can get out to a quick, clock-control offense and his defense can make a few plays against a struggling quarterback, this will be the upset special of the week. Roll with the Saints in their dome. 

Prediction: Saints 24-23

Green Bay at Atlanta (-2.5)

The Green Bay Packers and Falcons seem well on their way to a shootout.

Aaron Rodgers and the Packers exploited a miserable Chicago Bears team in Week 7 to get the offense back on track. The highlight was wideout Davante Adams' 13 catches for 132 yards and two scores.

Overall, it was nice to see Rodgers return to form with three touchdowns, even if he didn't utilize Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb. Given it was a Thursday encounter, he's had extra time to prepare for the Falcons.

Those Falcons have excelled when it comes to moving the ball. That's mostly thanks to Julio Jones, who has 830 yards and four scores already. Green Bay coach Mike McCarthy has spent most of the week praising Jones, per the team's official Twitter:

Offensive numbers are nice until they don't turn into wins. Atlanta has been all over the place this year, having lost two in a row. It beat a great team in the Denver Broncos and lost to a questionable Tampa Bay Buccaneers squad.

Inconsistency can kill a team. So can bad defense, which is what the Falcons happen to sport through the air. The unit ranks 31st in the league against the pass, allowing an average of 294.3 yards per game. The defense is also 27th in opponent scoring, permitting 28.4 points per game.

Green Bay doesn't have such problems, with the defense allowing all of 71.8 rushing yards per game, tops in the league. An average of 20.5 points allowed looks good on paper, too, and ranks 11th.

On the road or not, look for the Packers to force the Falcons into a one-dimensional attack through the air. Rodgers can win this shootout, especially if his performance last week is a sign of a breakthrough for the offense.

Prediction: Packers 35-30

Stats courtesy of NFL.com. All advanced metrics courtesy of Pro Football Focus. 

Follow Chris Roling (@Chris_Roling) on Twitter.