NFL Odds Week 8: Betting Tips after Friday's Injury Reports and Practice News
The 2023 NFL season has been defined by two things thus far, parity and a remarkable amount of injuries.
We've seen huge upsets almost weekly, and we've also seen some of the league's biggest stars go down. The two have often gone hand-in-hand. Last Monday night, for example, the San Francisco 49ers had to play without star receiver Deebo Samuel, and they lost a 22-17 contest against the Minnesota Vikings.
Injuries are likely to make an impact once again in Week 8.
How might injuries and player availability impact this week's games? Let's examine the latest odds, injury buzz and practice information.
Check the latest lines at DraftKings.
Trust the Chiefs -7 at the Broncos
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Picking the Kansas City Chiefs to beat the Denver Broncos is an easy decision. The Broncos haven't won a game in this series since the 2015 season. However, a touchdown line favoring the road team in a divisional matchup can be dicey.
However, the Chiefs have the talent to come through here. Kansas City has been fantastic defensively, and its offense is finally starting to find a groove.
Patrick Mahomes threw for four touchdown passes in last week's win over the Los Angeles Chargers. Denver quarterback Russell Wilson has thrown just four touchdowns in his last three games.
Kansas City is also expected to welcome the return of wideout Justin Watson, who injured his elbow against Denver two weeks ago. Watson has been one of Mahomes' few reliable wide receivers this season and has topped 50 receiving yards in three of six games.
The Chiefs won the first meeting of the season by 11 points. They should win by a touchdown in Round 2.
Take the Ravens -9.5 at the Cardinals
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The Baltimore Ravens are heavy favorites against the Arizona Cardinals despite being on the road. There's also a chance that Baltimore will have to face former Pro Bowl quarterback Kyler Murray—who suffered a torn ACL last season but who was removed from the injury report this week.
"We'll see," Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon told reporters of a potential Murray start.
On the injury report, though, Murray is listed as doubtful.
Whether it's Murray or Joshua Dobbs for Arizona, though, expect the Ravens to win big. Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore passing offense are rounding into form, and the Ravens defense has been a terror for opposing quarterbacks.
Arizona, meanwhile, has been pretty bad on both sides of the ball since upsetting the Dallas Cowboys in Week 3. The Cardinals have lost four in a row and have lost each of them by double digits.
Expect the Ravens to earn their second consecutive double-digit win on Sunday.
Take the Jets and Giants over 35.5 Points
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The New York Jets are beginning to find an offensive rhythm with quarterback Zach Wilson. While the third-year pro has been far from perfect, he's led the Jets to two straight victories and has helped produce at least 20 points in three straight games.
The New York Giants, meanwhile, are set to start Tyrod Taylor in place of quarterback Daniel Jones (neck) for the third straight week. For the Giants, that should be viewed as a positive.
While Taylor has gone just 1-1 as the starter and has only helped deliver 23 points over the past two weeks, he's been more effective than Jones in the passing game. Taylor has thrown for 571 yards, two touchdowns, no interceptions and a 95.4 passer rating this season.
The Giants' inability to score consistently is a concern here, but the Jets aren't equipped with the lockdown defense that had in 2022. So far, the Jets are allowing an average of just under 20 points per game.
The Giants, meanwhile are allowing just under 25 points per game, though they've been better over the last two weeks. We may not see a track meet in New Jersey on Sunday, but the line is simply too low to target the under.
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Trust the Lions -8 Versus the Raiders
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The good news for the Las Vegas Raiders is that starting quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo appears on track to return on Monday night. Jimmy G has been dealing with a back injury and missed Week 7, but according to NFL Media's Ian Rapoport, Garoppolo is heading in the right direction.
"There is some optimism that he should be able to play on Monday night," Rapoport said on NFL Network.
The bad news is that Las Vegas will be visiting a Detroit Lions team eager to rebound after a Week 7 blowout loss. The Lions fell 38-6 to the Ravens, and they'll look to wipe the bitter taste from their collective mouths quickly.
Even with Garoppolo in the lineup, the Raiders offense has struggled this season. Their defense has been vulnerable to the run, which makes this a horrible road matchup against a balanced Detroit squad.
Expect the Lions to win by double digits on Monday night.
*Injury information via NFL.com unless otherwise noted.
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