Best Bets NFL Week 5: Parlays & Teasers

Best Bets NFL Week 5: Parlays & Teasers

It’s been a weird week in the NFL, so naturally, it’s going to be a weird week for Best Bets. This week we’ve got a standard bet against the spread, a team total, a parlay, and a teaser. Good luck to all!

LAR (-7.5) @ WAS

ODDS: EVEN

The Washington Football team is in a bit of turmoil after benching their young quarterback, Dwayne Haskins, in favor of Kyle Allen after the team lost three in a row. Allen will make his first start this weekend against a 3-1 Rams team that has looked strong to start the season. The Rams are 3-1 this year, and 7-3 against the spread in their past 10 road games. The Washington Football Team, on the other hand, has lost their last three games by at least 14 points. The problems in Washington go much deeper than Dwayne Haskins. Rams win this one with ease.

JAX Team Total OVER (23.5)

ODDS: -110

I don’t often make side bets, like team or player totals, but this one was just too appealing. The Texans will be in desperation mode after their 0-4 start and head coach Bill O’Brien’s firing after six years with the organization, so I do expect a strong performance from them offensively. Defensively though, they’ve been a liability and the Jaguars match up very well.

The Jaguars have scored 25 or more points in three of their four games, and that trend should continue against this Texans defense. Gardner Minshew ranks sixth in the NFL in completion percentage, while the Texans defense ranks 26th in completion percentage allowed to opposing quarterbacks. On the ground, the Jaguars rank seventh in the NFL in yards per rushing attempt, lead by undrafted rookie standout James Robinson, while the Texans defense ranks 25th in yards per rushing attempt allowed. This should be a high scoring affair, and I expect the Jaguars to easily clear 23.5 points.

Parlay: KC-DAL-LAR-PIT

ODDS: +135

I’ll keep this one short and sweet. The Raiders win against the Saints a few weeks ago was a fluke, and we’ve seen since that there’s nothing special brewing in Las Vegas. In two matchups last year, the Chiefs won by a combined score of 68-19. The Chiefs are simply the better team, and win this one by multiple scores.

Say what you will about the Cowboys defense (as I did on this week’s podcast), but they’re playing a pitiful 0-4 Giants team this week. The Giants have scored just three offensive touchdowns all season, while the Cowboys have scored 16 offensive touchdowns and are averaging over 33 points per game. Need I say more?

The Steelers are 3-0 coming off an unexpected bye week to take on a 1-2-1 Philadelphia Eagles team that is severely underperforming. The Eagles are coming off their first win of the season against Nick Mullens and a banged up 49ers team, but the Steelers will be a much tougher test. Pittsburgh will get after the Eagles’ injured offensive line and be in Carson Wentz’s face all game, and Wentz will once again be without his top receivers as Alshon Jeffrey & DeSean Jackson are both inactive this week. The Eagles are 1-3 ATS this season, and simply don’t have enough healthy players on offense to compete with a rested and hungry Steelers team.

TEASER (6 POINTS): HOU/JAX O(49), CAR/ATL O(48), MIA/SF U(57)

ODDS: +150

I already covered the Texans and Jaguars game, and why I think there will be a lot of points. The Jaguars match up well, and the Texans are desperate, both of which should lead to a high-scoring game.

The Panthers & Falcons are both teams with strong offenses and porous defenses, which has led to the OVER being 5-2-1 in their eight combined games. I see no reason to believe these two teams won’t find themselves in another shootout, so 48 should be a very comfortable number here.

I love the UNDER in the 49ers & Dolphins game, and have bet it as a straight U(51) as well as in this teaser. The 49ers will control the clock and feast on the ground as their eighth-ranked rushing attack takes on the Dolphins 22nd-ranked run defense. The UNDER has hit in three of the four Dolhpins games so far this season, and I don’t expect this one to be any different.

2020 BEST BETS RECORD

7-6 +1.9 UNITS