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XFL Week 1 Best Bets

VegasInsider Staff
VegasInsider Staff Sports Betting Expert
4 minute read
The 2020 XFL season kicks off this weekend, offering plenty of betting opportunities for football fans.  I'm so excited for the first week of action and I'll be providing my "Best Bets" throughout the regular season and playoffs for VegasInsider.com. If you're looking to place bets, check out the BetMGM bonuses and Unibet bonuses we can share. 

Odds to Win 2020 XFL Championship

per Las Vegas Westgate SuperBook

Dallas Renegades 5/2
New York Guardians 5/1
Houston Roughnecks 5/1
Tampa Bay Vipers 5/1
D.C. Defenders 6/1
Los Angeles Wildcats 8/1
St. Louis Battlehawks 10/1
Seattle Dragons 16/1

The three favorites to take home the first ever XFL championship will be the Dallas Renegades at 5/2 odds (Bet $100 to win $250), while a trio of teams are right behind them at 5/1 odds. The long shots on the board are St. Louis and Seattle at 10/1 and 16/1 respectively. 

XFL Week 1 Best Bets

Games for Saturday Feb. 8

Seattle at DC (ABC, 2:00 p.m. ET)

In the first bet that I like in Week 1, we are gonna look at the Seattle Dragons at the DC Defenders. Now in this game the line opened up at DC -6.5 and the line moved rather quickly to -7.5. DC off the key number of under a touch down always a red flag to me as we see around 50/50 as far as bets go in this one.

I lean to DC in their opening game at Audi Field this year. I really love oddly enough the Defenders defense, who clearly have the edge on that side of the ball and we all know how defenses click before offensive units.

Look for the strong secondary for DC to come up with some turnovers and their running game to lead the way as former Eagles running back Donnel Pumphrey is set to go off.

Best Bet - DC -7.5

Los Angeles at Houston (FOX, 5:00 p.m. ET)

In the second game for Saturday we look to Houston, Texas for the game between the Los Angeles Wild Cats and the Houston Roughnecks. I lean to the Wild Cats on the road here I like their quarterback Jalen McClendon as he can really spread the ball around the field and remember the Wild Cats came in with much better odds to win it all and the Roughnecks are graded as the second worst team in the XFL.

It does not matter if Houston goes with former Michigan State QB Connor Cook or Phillip Walker, a former 3rd stringer for the Indianapolis Colts (NFL). I don’t like the way the QB position is being handled and I will go with the dog on Saturday. 

Best Bet - LA Wildcats +5.5

Games for Sunday Feb. 9

Tampa Bay at New York (FOX, 2:00 p.m. ET)

First game here on Sunday from Met-Life Stadium and here is my two dog play out of the four games on opening weekend. This line opened with Tampa being a five point favorite but at the time I am writing this line currently sits at +2.5. While I'll be trying to wait a bit to see if this line gets to the key number of 3, I really think this Guardians team will perform well at home and any points are a gift from the gambling gods.

This was one of the two highest rated teams projected in the XFL and to get them at home plus points gives us some nice value. QB Matt McGloin has looked good in practice and I believe he can exploit Tampa Bay deep. Take the Guardians here as my XFL play of the week plus the points.

Best Bet - New York +2.5

St. Louis at Dallas (ESPN, 5:00 p.m. ET)

And the final game of the opening weekend is between the St. Louis Battlehawks and the Dallas Renegades. My pick to win the XFL season is Dallas, who happens to be the top choice of the oddsmakers as well. 

I think the league would love this game to be close on Sunday but I just do not see it happening. Dallas has the best quarterback in the XFL in former Steelers backup and college standout Landry Jones. 

Look for legendary Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops to have this Renegades team ready to eat nails and take it to the much weaker St. Louis team. Lay the -8.5 here with Dallas as I see them winning this game by at least 15 points here as my final bet and 2nd highest graded play for the XFL opening weekend.

Best Bet - Dallas -8.5

Odds Subject to Change

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.

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