Weekend best bets: Experts look to stay hot after 7-1 week ATS
Wins have been sparse this season for the Browns and Dolphins, who will square off Sunday in Cleveland in a clash of 1-5 teams.
Professional sports bettors Cris Zeniuk and Jeff Whitelaw also expect points to be sparse, in large part because of a weather forecast calling for wind gusts up to 50 mph and a 94 percent chance of rain.
They made the under their best bet of the weekend. Zeniuk turned in his play at under 40, and Whitelaw bet it under 39 before the consensus total dipped Thursday to 37½. Zeniuk said the under is playable to 37.
“It’s going to be raining with double-digit winds in Cleveland on Sunday, and the under win rate with these elements in play is over 75 percent over 52 games,” said Zeniuk (@lasvegascris). “The Browns have scored 17 or fewer in 11 straight games, and totals in general are 60 percent to the under over 20 years.
“Miami limps in with its anemic offense to complement continuity with this trend.”
Whitelaw also wagered on the Browns -2½.
“I like them a lot,” he said. “Miami doesn’t have a great passing game now that (receiver Tyreek) Hill is out. The team’s in disarray, and Cleveland’s front, coupled with Miami’s soft offensive line, will put Miami in very bad situations.
“I think Miami doesn’t score much in this game at all. I went with the under mainly because of the wind and Cleveland’s defense, and Cleveland doesn’t score, either.”
From the lowest total on the board to the highest, pro sports bettor Chuck Edel’s best bet is on the Cowboys-Commanders over 54½.
“Two of the top offenses in football will be stronger this week with (Dallas receiver) CeeDee Lamb and (Washington wideout) Terry McLaurin most likely playing,” said Edel, 6-1 against the spread on his best bets in the Review-Journal. “The Cowboys have the worst defense and best offense in yards per game in the NFL.”
Here are five more weekend best bets (home team in CAPS):
Panthers (-1) over JETS
Whitelaw also bet on Carolina, which is 0-3 on the road and 3-0 at home, over the NFL’s only winless team in New York. Jets wideout Garrett Wilson is doubtful with a knee injury.
“Carolina is a much better football team and going in the right direction, and the Jets are just an abysmal football team right now,” he said.
Giants (+7) over BRONCOS
“This is another great scheduling spot,” said pro bettor Randy McKay (@RR39). “The Giants won a ‘Thursday Night Football’ game over the Eagles, while Denver grinded out a win in London.
“New York also has gained some momentum with (rookie quarterback) Jaxson Dart and (running back) Cam Skattebo in a game that should be low scoring.”
LIONS (-5½) over Buccaneers, Monday
Westgate SuperBook vice president of marketing Jay Kornegay and two-time top-five SuperContest finisher “Dr. Alan” Dumond made the Lions their best bet on “Monday Night Football.”
“After being pushed around in Kansas City, their dissatisfaction was evident. The Bucs have won despite all their injuries, but it catches up with them here,” said Kornegay, who went 5-0 ATS last week in the RJ NFL Challenge. “The Lions also have a Week 8 bye. Expect full effort from the Lions.”
Dumond, who has hit both of his RJ best bets and is 10-2 ATS in Marc Lawrence’s Playbook Wise Guys contest, said this showdown sets up as a classic bounce-back game for the Lions against injury-riddled Tampa Bay as Detroit heads into its bye week.
“As good as quarterback Baker Mayfield has played, the Bucs are dealing with major injuries to all of their top wide receivers, and this will hurt them as they to try to keep up with the high-scoring Lions,” he said.
UConn (+2) over BOSTON COLLEGE
CBS Sportsline handicapper Bruce Marshall is backing UConn in a matchup of programs headed in opposite directions.
“Jim Mora’s UConn is quietly on course for its third bowl invite in four seasons,” said Marshall, 5-2 on his RJ best bets. “That doesn’t appear to be the case at troubled Boston College, where body language on the field reflects the recent downturn amid blowout losses the past two weeks by a combined 89-17 to Pitt and Clemson.”
Utah (-3) over BYU
“This clearly is one of the better versions of Utah we’ve seen in a long time,” SuperBook oddsmaker Ed Salmons said. “BYU has been fortunate with who they’ve played so far. It’s a really good spot for Utah.”
Last week: 7-1
Season: 29-24-1
Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com. Follow @tdewey33 on X.
