Week 8 NFL Picks: Prop Bets Advice, Vegas Odds, Spreads and Predictions

The Denver Broncos are walking into the lion's den as they go to Arrowhead Stadium to play the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 8.

Second-year quarterback Patrick Mahomes is writing one of the most memorable stories of the year, as he has orchestrated one of the most dominant offensive teams in the league in his first year as a starter.

The Broncos are coming off a 45-10 road victory over the Arizona Cardinals, but it's hard to get excited. Arizona is one of the worst teams in the league, and when the Cardinals fell behind, there was little they could do to compete.

Case Keenum is an above-average NFL quarterback. He proved that last year with the Minnesota Vikings in helping lead them to the NFC title game. While he is not a superstar, he should be able to function against the 32nd-ranked defense in the NFL.

If the Chiefs look at the Broncos and believe it is the start of an easy three-game streak that also includes the Cleveland Browns in Week 9 and the Arizona Cardinals in Week 10, Denver may have a chance to make life difficult for the home team.

If that is going to happen, the team needs to pressure Mahomes for 60 minutes. While the second-year quarterback is getting most of the credit, he has three outstanding weapons in wideout Tyreek Hill, running back Kareem Hunt and tight end Travis Kelce.

There is no way to stop all three of them unless linebacker Von Miller and the Denver defense can pressure them from start to finish.

Nobody is giving the Broncos a chance, and they are 10-point underdogs, according to OddsShark. 

The Broncos are not a strong team, but they are competitive. They stay within 10 points and cover the spread.

Week 8 NFL Odds

Miami at Houston (-7.5) | O/U 44.5

Philadelphia (-3) at Jacksonville | O/U 42

Cleveland at Pittsburgh (-8) | O/U 50

Denver at Kansas City (-10)  | O/U 53.5

N.Y. Jets at Chicago (-7.5) | O/U 45

Seattle at Detroit (-3) | O/U 49.5

Tampa Bay at Cincinnati (-4.5) | O/U 54

Washington at N.Y. Giants (-1) | O/U 42.5

Indianapolis (-3) at Oakland | O/U 49.5

Green Bay at L.A. Rams (-9.5) | O/U 56.5

San Francisco at Arizona (E) | O/U 42.5

New Orleans at Minnesota (-1) | O/U 52

New England (-14) at Buffalo | O/U 44.5

Baltimore (-2) at Carolina | O/U 43.5

All point spreads courtesy of OddsShark.

Green Bay at Los Angeles Rams

The Rams are undefeated and not expected to lose a game soon.

However, that's not how life works in the NFL. A team that is rolling in the first half of the season does not necessarily roll through 16 games and into the NFL playoffs.

On paper, there is no way the Rams should lose to the 3-2-1 Green Bay Packers. The team from Wisconsin has lost games to the Washington Redskins and the Detroit Lions in addition to registering a tie in an early-season game with the Minnesota Vikings when the defending NFC North champions were not playing well.

So, if the Packers come into this road game with three blemishes on their record, how are they going to compete with the Rams?

It starts with health. The Packers are close to having their full offensive complement back, and that means wide receivers Randall Cobb (hamstring) and Geronimo Allison (hamstring) will have an excellent chance of rejoining Davante Adams in the starting lineup.

The Packers rank fourth in yards gained and eighth in fewest yards allowed, so they are solid in both areas.

The Rams are playing with the confidence of a team that is unbeaten. When asked prior to the Week 7 game against the San Francisco 49ers by the Fox broadcast crew what he feared about the Niners, superstar running back Todd Gurley responded, "nothing." 

However, it is unlikely they will remain unbeaten all season, and Aaron Rodgers may be the quarterback to beat them. The Rams are 9.5-point favorites, but the Packers will go into the Los Angeles Coliseum and stay close if they don't come up with the upset.

New England Patriots at Buffalo Bills

In Week 7 the Bills were on the wrong end of a 37-5 blowout against the Indianapolis Colts.

While the Colts have a strong-armed quarterback in Andrew Luck, they don't play much defense and are not a complete team.

Now the Bills must face a much better team in the Patriots, who have found their stride after a slow start.

However, the Patriots are 14-point road favorites, and that's just too big a spread at this point. If the Patriots play an error-free game and get off to a quick lead, they could roll past the 14-point spread.

However, the Bills have pride, and they will look at this Sunday night game as a chance for redemption. Quarterback Derek Anderson doesn't offer much, and he clearly does not compare with Tom Brady, but the Bills will leave it all on the field and do enough to stay within the spread.

Prop bet

Let's take a look at the Week 8 game between the Cleveland Browns and the Pittsburgh Steelers.

These two teams played in Week 1, and the result was a surprising 21-21 tie. Both teams had numerous opportunities to win the game, but neither could make a decisive field goal in overtime.

In this week's game at Pittsburgh, Oddschecker offers football handicappers a chance to wager on the shortest touchdown in the game. 

Bettors have the option of taking the over 1.5 yards or under 1.5 yards on that option. The under is offered at odds of 4-5, while the over is offered at 11-10. 

The Steelers have big-play performers in quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, wideout Antonio Brown and tight end Jesse James. We don't see the Steelers getting stopped at the 1-yard line often in their march to the end zone, and if the Browns get there, rookie quarterback Baker Mayfield is likely to throw medium-range TD passes.

Take the over 1.5 for the shortest touchdown and collect the money.