Betting Recap – Week 7

VegasInsider Staff Sports Betting Expert

8 minute read

The largest underdogs to win straight up
Saints (+4.5, ML +190) at Bears, 36-25
Cardinals (+3.5, ML +165) at Giants, 27-21
Ravens (+3, ML +135) at Seahawks, 30-16

The largest favorite to cover
Patriots (-9.5) at Jets, 33-0
Packers (-6) vs. Raiders, 42-24
Jaguars (-4.5) at Bengals, 27-17
Chiefs (-3) at Broncos, 30-6
Cowboys (-3) vs. Eagles, 37-10
Rams (-3) at Falcons, 37-10

A Little East Coast Swing

-- The Arizona Cardinals (+3.5, ML +165) kick the road and took care of the New York Giants by a 27-21 score, as rookie QB Kyler Murray outdueled fellow first-year QB Daniel Jones in the raindrops left over from the remnants of Tropical Storm Nestor. The Cardinals have now won and covered three in a row, and they're 3-3-1 SU and 5-2 ATS overall. The 'under' cashed for the second time in three trips to the Eastern Time Zone for the Cards, too. They make on final trip in Week 10 to the Eastern Time Zone, and that's after the clocks change, too, when they meet the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The San Francisco 49ers (-10) also headed east and were stuck in the muck and mire at FedEx Field in Landover, Md. against the Washington Redskins. In fact, this game was played on a natural grass surface, as opposed to the field turf at MetLife Stadium, so it was even more sloppy and muddy. The game featured no touchdowns on either side, and just three field goals by the 49ers, serving as yet another reminder to always double-check the weather before finalizing those wagers each week. The 49ers have been to the Eastern Time Zone three times in the first seven weeks, hitting the 'under' twice. They return one more time to the Eastern Time Zone in Week 13 when they battle the Baltimore Ravens.

Another west coast team visiting the Eastern Time Zone was the Los Angeles Rams against the Atlanta Falcons. Under the dome, the Rams and Falcons needn't worry about weather-related issues, but this game hit the 'under'. It was actually no fault of the Rams, as they racked up 37 points, but the Falcons lost QB Matt Ryan (ankle) to an injury in the second half, and they managed just 10 points to go well 'under' (54.5) the total. Like the other two NFC West teams above, the Rams have hit the 'under' twice in three trips East, with one more trip to meet the Pittsburgh Steelers on Week 10 after a bye.

Huge Shock

-- If you were holding a Los Angeles Chargers (+2) ticket you're probably still shaking your head. The Bolts worked it all the way down to the 1-yard line of the Tennessee Titans inside the final minute. A long play to RB Austin Ekeler was ruled down at the 1 after instant replay. Then, RB Melvin Gordon ran it in, only to be ruled down short of the goal by replay. He got another crack at it and fumbled short of the line, as the Titans held on for the 23-20 victory. At least the total wasn't also in play, too.

Total Recall

-- The highest total on the board was the Rams-Falcons (54.5) game, which went well under. The other four games on the board with totals of 48 or higher also went under, including the Cardinals-Giants (50) battle, the Kansas City Chiefs-Denver Broncos (49.5) game with a total of just 36 points, and the Baltimore Ravens-Seattle Seahawks (48.5) contest which had a total of 46 points.  

The gift of the day was in the Jacksonville Jaguars-Cincinnati Bengals (44), as the Bengals were overmatched all day, but they kept fighting to the end for 'over' bettors. QB Andy Dalton scored a late rushing touchdown with :23 remaining, cutting the lead to 27-17, putting the total over by just a half-point at some shops, and an unfortunate push at others. In fact, if Scott Van Pelt includes NFL in bad beats this week on his ESPN segment, this game HAS to be on there. In fact, there were just 27 total points on the board until Jacksonville had a pick-six with 4:18 to go.

-- On the flip side, the lowest total on the board was the New Orleans Saints-Chicago Bears (37) game. This game was supposed to be a snoozefest, but the Saints nearly took care of the over themselves. For the most part this game was out of hand, although the Bears actually successfully covered an onside kick late, and nearly had a second one, making things interesting at the end. When the dust clear, there was a total of 61 points on the board, the third-highest total of points in any game on the schedule.

-- The 'under' was a perfect 3-0 in the three primetime games of Week 7, with the Monday Night Football contest between the New England Patriots-New York Jets (43.5) cashing under thanks to no help from the Jets in the 33-0 loss. The 'over' is just 5-17 (22.7%) during the 2019 primetime schedule, a stark change from previous seasons when the games under the lights were high-scoring affairs. The 'under' is a perfect 8-0 for Sunday Night Football this season, and 3-1 in the past four MNF outings.

Officially, the 'over' finished 26-25 (51.0%) in 51 games under the lights.

In 2017, the 'over' finished 25-23-1 (52.1%) in 49 primetime games.

In 2016, the 'over' in night games went (52.9%) through 51 games.

In 2015, the 'over' finished 20-28-1 (41.7%) in 49 primetime games. 

In 2014, the 'over' went 33-17 (66.0%) in primetime games, and the 'over' was 28-22 (56.0%) in 2013.

Injury Report

-- Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes (kneecap) dislocated his kneecap and he is expected to miss at least a couple of weeks after exiting Thursday's game in Denver on a quarterback sneak. Enter QB Matt Moore for head coach Andy Reid, who has had success with backup quarterbacks before.

-- As mentioned, Matt Ryan (ankle) left Sunday's game and he is set to have an MRI on Monday to determine the severity.

-- Lions RB Kerryon Johnson (knee) exited early and he will have further testing to determine his availability for Week 8.

-- Vikings WR Adam Thielen (hamstring) left Sunday's game in Detroit due to a hamstring issue, and he will have a precautionary MRI. He feels optimistic he'll be ready for Thursday's game against the Redskins.

Looking Ahead

-- Vikings QB Kirk Cousins will face his former team, the Redskins, on Thursday night in a home battle at U.S. Bank Stadium. The Redskins are 2-5 ATS in their past seven appearances on a Thursday, while the Vikings are 4-1 ATS in their past five appearances on Thursday.

-- The Seahawks travel east to meet the Falcons, and they might be facing QB Matt Schaub if Ryan isn't ready to go. Unlike those teams mentioned above, Seattle has hit the 'over' twice in their two trips into the Eastern Time Zone already this season. Seattle has alternated non-covers and covers in their first seven games, going 3-4 ATS so far.

-- The winless Bengals and Rams will square off at Wembley Stadium in London in the third International Series game of the season. The favorite/undedog is 1-1 SU/ATS so far through the first two games in London, but the 'over' has cashed in each of the two England games. The last time the Bengals were in England they tied the Redskins 27-27 at Wembley Stadium on Oct. 30, 2016. The Rams lost at Twickenham Stadium in that same season a week earlier by a 17-10 count to the Giants. They're 1-2 SU/ATS in their three previous U.K. battles.

-- The Bills hit their first 'over' of the season in a win over the Dolphins in Week 7. The Bills and 49ers have the most 'under' results at 5-1. Buffalo hosts Philadelphia in Orchard Park on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. ET. Meanwhile, the Niners host the Panthers coming off a bye.

Where to place a bet this NFL Season?

• Use our exclusive BetMGM Bonus Code VIBONUS1500 to unlock BetMGM’s welcome offer for new sportsbook users!
• Compare the latest NFL Odds from the best sportsbooks before placing a bet on this week's games.
• Check out the North Carolina Sportsbooks just before they launch legal online sports betting.

VegasInsider Staff

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