‘MNF’ betting: Sharp money, 6-figure bet on Jets-Bills game
The Bills have won three straight AFC East titles and are the +110 favorites to make it four in a row this season. The Jets have won the division only four times in franchise history but are the +285 second choice to claim the crown behind their new quarterback, four-time NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers.
The rivals will square off on “Monday Night Football” at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
The line opened at pick’em in May at the Westgate SuperBook, but Buffalo is now a 2½-point favorite at the Westgate, Circa Sports and South Point. The total is down to 44½ after sitting at 45½ on Sunday. The Bills are -135 on the money line, and the Jets are +110.
“We definitely need the Jets for a really decent-sized decision,” SuperBook vice president of risk Ed Salmons said. “All the public money is on Buffalo.”
The Bills are 2-point favorites at several other books, including Caesars, Boyd Gaming and Station Casinos, which reported some sharp money Monday on the Jets plus the points.
“The worst case is the Bills. The best case is if the game can fall the Bills winning by one or two,” Red Rock Resort sportsbook director Chuck Esposito said.
A Caesars Sportsbook bettor placed a $100,000 wager to win $122,000 on New York on the money line (+122).
Buffalo has won five of the last six meetings with New York, though the Jets covered both meetings last season, winning 20-17 at home and losing 20-12 on the road.
“There’s been so much hype with the Jets, and the way the Dolphins looked yesterday, the AFC East is really, really good,” Esposito said. “I’m kind of anxious to see how the Jets play in this one. The Bills have been a tiny bit of underachievers the last couple years, the fact that they haven’t got to the Super Bowl with Josh Allen and off-field issues with Stefon Diggs.”
Buffalo is a 10-point home favorite over the Raiders in Week 2, while New York is a 3½-point underdog at Dallas.
Four of the last five meetings went under the total.
Pro sports bettor Jeff Whitelaw wagered on Buffalo earlier this summer when the Week 1 lines were first posted.
“A lot of us bet numbers early in the year. I just thought the Bills should be 3 (point favorites),” he said. “The Bills have done very well playing the Jets. I just think the Bills are way ahead.
“Rodgers is in a new system. I think eventually he’ll be fine but this is still not, in my opinion, the Aaron Rodgers from three or four years ago.”
Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com. Follow @tdewey33 on X.
