Tag: 2020 NFL

NFL Week 1 Bets: 5 best ATS bets to make

Analyzing the early sports betting odds and lines for Week 1 of the 2020 NFL season, picking the 5 best bets against the spread.

With the recent release of the 2020 NFL schedule, BetMGM posted lines for Week 1. Here are five of the best bets – vs. the spread – to make for Week 1 of the 2020 NFL season.

Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Odds last updated Sunday, May 10 at 1:50 a.m. ET.

Best bet 1: Miami Dolphins (+6.5) at New England Patriots

Sunday, Sept. 13 (1 p.m. ET)

The Dolphins went out in the offseason and spent a bunch of money in free agency and also added talent in the draft. They still have a productive veteran starting quarterback in Ryan Fitzpatrick, while the Pats have lost many key players; most importantly, QB Tom Brady. The Dolphins aren’t as bad as they were a year ago and the Pats are not going to be as good.

Best bet 2: Arizona Cardinals (+8.5) at San Francisco 49ers

Sunday, Sept. 13 (4:25 p.m. ET)

The 49ers lost a key offensive weapon in WR Emmanuel Sanders and traded away DL DeForest Buckner. Even in their 13-3 season a year ago, they failed to cover the spread in both games vs. the Cardinals. Arizona added WR DeAndre Hopkins and upgraded its 31st-ranked defense from 2019.

Place your Week 1 NFL bets at BetMGM, or play in their online casino. Bet now!

Best bet 3: New Orleans Saints (-4.5) vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Sunday, Sept. 13 (4:25 p.m. ET)

The Bucs might have Brady at QB, but with a shortened offseason and a new offense that traditionally takes a few games for quarterbacks to adjust to, expect New Orleans to come out on fire. The Saints added another big weapon in the passing game in WR Sanders, while they still have QB Drew Brees, RB Alvin Kamara and WR Michael Thomas.

Best bet 4: Tennessee Titans (+2.5) at Denver Broncos

Monday, Sept. 14 (10:10 p.m. ET)

The Broncos added young receivers in the draft but the Titans were one of the hottest teams in the NFL after Ryan Tannehill took over at quarterback. Tannehill returns as does RB Derrick Henry. Tennessee will beat Denver, especially with Drew Lock at QB for the Broncos.

Best bet 5: Pittsburgh Steelers (-3.5) at New York Giants

Monday, Sept. 14 (7:15 p.m. ET)

The Steelers get QB Ben Roethlisberger back. The Giants still have questions around their defense. New York QB Daniel Jones has more protection, but the lack of an offseason with a new head coach will show in Week 1.

Want action on NFL futures betting? Sign up and place your legal sports wagers online at BetMGM. For more sports betting tips, visit SportsbookWire.com.

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Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services.  Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

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NFL Week 1 Bets: 4 best total bets to make

Looking at the early betting lines for Week 1 of the 2020 NFL season and pick four total bets to make.

The 2020 NFL schedule is out, laying out all 16 games for each of the 32 teams. The Week 1 slate is filled with intriguing matchups, ones that also offer some promising wagers on the Over/Under. Here are four of the best total bets to make for Week 1 of the 2020 NFL season.

Also see – Week 1 NFL betting lines up at BetMGM: Chiefs, 49ers among biggest favorites

Dallas Cowboys at Los Angeles Rams: O/U 50.5

Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Odds last updated Friday, May 8 at 5 p.m. ET.

Cowboys-Rams is one of the best games of the opening weekend, pitting two of the best offenses against each other in primetime on Sunday night. It’s also the first regular-season game ever at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, so anticipation will be even higher for this matchup.

At least one of these teams has scored 30 or more points in their last eight meetings, so offense is almost never hard to come by. Add in the fact the Rams will be trotting out a new defense under first-year coordinator Brandon Staley, and the fact Dallas’ secondary could start two rookies, and this has the makings of a shootout.

Take the OVER 50.5 (-110) in this game.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at New Orleans Saints: O/U 49.5

The Saints and Bucs played in Week 1 two years ago and lit up the scoreboard, scoring 88 total points. That probably won’t happen again, but never doubt the abilities of QBs Tom Brady and Drew Brees – especially in a dome.

The Over is a perfect 3-0 in the Saints’ last three Week 1 game, and New Orleans has scored the second-most points in season openers in that span. This should be a high-scoring affair between two future Hall of Fame quarterbacks and two offensive-minded coaches.

Bet the OVER 49.5 (-110) and expect to see a lot of points on the board.

Place your Week 1 NFL bets at BetMGM, or play in their online casino. Bet now!

Houston Texans at Kansas City Chiefs: O/U 55.5

The highest point total of Week 1 belongs to the Texans and Chiefs at 55.5, which shouldn’t be a surprise. The Chiefs can easily put up 35 points on a Houston defense not exactly flush with talent, and QB Deshaun Watson can score in a hurry for the Texans.

It’s a lot of points to cover, but the Chiefs have scored more Week 1 points than any team in the NFL since 2017 and the Over is 3-0 in such games. Houston is 10th on that list.

Bet the OVER 55.5 (-110).

Chicago Bears at Detroit Lions: O/U 44.5

It’s not yet clear who will be the Bears’ starting quarterback, but neither Mitchell Trubisky nor Nick Foles is a great option. Either way, their offense shouldn’t be all that explosive. Detroit still has QB Matthew Stafford and WR Kenny Golladay, but the Bears defense is fearsome.

I’m taking the UNDER 44.5 (-110), even with a lower point projection. There’s just too much uncertainty with the Bears on offense and Detroit’s offense could have some trouble against Khalil Mack and Co.

Want action on the Week 1 NFL betting lines? Sign up and place your legal sports wagers online at BetMGM. For more sports betting tips, visit SportsbookWire.com.

Follow SportsbookWire on Twitter and Facebook. Please gamble responsibly.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services.  Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

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NFL playoffs officially expanded to 7 teams each conference

The NFL owners approved a playoff expansion. What all does that exactly mean? Here are the answers.

A lot of changes were made to the 2020 NFL season whenever the CBA was agreed on by the players, including an extra regular season game. The changes don’t automatically kick in, though.

With the annual league meetings cancelled by the ongoing pandemic, the NFL owners met on a conference call Tuesday, and approved a playoff expansion plan that will come into effect this upcoming season.

The expanded format was proposed to the players in the new CBA, and therefore agreed upon whenever the players voted in the agreement by a slim margin.

More teams will make the NFL playoffs than ever before. Each conference will now have seven teams make the postseason, one more than previous seasons since the 2002 realignment. The extra playoff spot is counted as the third wild-card spot, meaning the team can come from any division within the conference.

Only the No. 1 seed in each conference will receive a bye week during the first week of the playoffs now, while the format previously awarded a bye week to the top two teams per conference. This should make success in the regular season that much more important, as being the top seed in your conference now grants a unique advantage.

The added team creates one extra game on both sides of the bracket, and these games will be played as part two triple-headers in January of 2021.

For a league that has had the same playoff format for 30 years now, these changes feel substantial. If nothing else, this means two more games a season and a glimmer of championship hope for two extra franchises a year.

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Jalen Hurts says he’s not surprised by Calvin Ridley’s success

Prior to transferring to Oklahoma, quarterback Jalen Hurts spent two years at Alabama as Falcons wide receiver Calvin Ridley’s teammate and roommate.

Prior to transferring to Oklahoma, quarterback Jalen Hurts spent two years at Alabama as Falcons wide receiver Calvin Ridley’s teammate and roommate.

While doing interviews at the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis, Hurts, who is projected to be a middle-round pick in April’s draft, was asked by reporter Kelsey Conway about his favorite memories of Ridley.

Hurts spoke glowingly of his former teammate, saying he’s not at all surprised by Ridley’s success in Atlanta. Watch the video below, as tweeted out by Conway:

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Tex Schramm pulled a Stringer Bell and now we have the 2020 Scouting Combine

Everything you need to know about the 2020 Scouting Combine. Plus a Wire reference.

Some of the final pieces of the pattern are about to be woven into the narrative of the 2020 NFL draft class. On Monday, the poking, prodding and non-stop onslaught of folk acting way-too-familiar will get started as the early parts of the NFL Scouting Combine commence. Save for a few “work ethics and competitive spirits” winding their way up river to a Day 3 draft-pick status, most everyone with a realistic shot of being selected is in Indianapolis for the week, or they’re on their way.

The combine has been around for almost 40 years;  with data entry specialists probably plugging heights, weights and 40 times into Commodore 64s.

Dallas” Tex Schramm engineered the original Stringer-Bell-New-Day-Co-op and convinced the competition committee to “go in together so they could get the best discount on New York Package.” The consortium gathered the Lesko, Quadra and individual scouting departments around conference room table thanks to the market they all shared.

163 prospects took part in the inaugural combine in 1982.

Now each year the NFL invites every eligible draft participant deemed worthy by the scouting committees and this year the spectacle has been moved to primetime during the last half of the week.

The number of invitees has reached 337, and all can peep the full list here.

The on-field workouts will run Thursday through Sunday, as clusters of positions go a five-day stir fry.

Here’s a look at the full schedule of arrivals and activities, courtesy of Draft Network’s Jordan Reid, which started Sunday with the quarterbacks, tight ends and wide receivers descending on Naptown.

Prior to putting the prospects through the  physical ringer, team representatives and doctors take the players through psychological warfare, though things are supposed to have calmed down compared to some of the weirdo tactics previously employed.

— Interviews (each team is allowed 60 interviews in 15-minute intervals)
— Physical measurements
— Injury evaluation
— Drug screen
— The Cybex test
— The Wonderlic Test

The on-field work will be televised on NFL Network live starting at 4:00 p.m. ET on Thursday and airing at the same time, through 11:00 p.m. ET for three days. Wanting to hit the bricks and get out of town, Sunday’s session is from 2:00 p.m. through 7:00 p.m.

The sessions will also be livestreamed online; through the NFL apps.

On field, there are seven basic drills every player has the opportunity to do, and then their are a series of position-specific drills which have several new additions in 2020.

Seven basic drills

40-yard dash
Bench press
Vertical jump
Broad jump
Three-cone drill
20-yard shuttle
60-yard shuttle

Position drills

The links in the heading if you want to dive into what each of these routines involves.

Quarterbacks

End zone fade routes added to routes thrown, timed smoke/now route drill

Running backs

Duce Staley drill; Inside routes with change of direction added to routes run

ELIMINATED: Pitch and cone drill, find the ball drill

Receivers

End zone fade route

ELIMINATED: Toe tap drill

Tight ends

End zone fade route

ELIMINATED: Toe tap drill

Offensive line

New mirror drill, new screen drill

Miscellaneous: Pull drills will include engaging a one-man sled instead of a bag. Inclusion of “rabbit” is eliminated in pass rush drops and pass pro mirror drill, with a coach’s hand motion changing direction of lateral slide in latter drill.

Defensive line

Run and club drill, run the hoop drill

ELIMINATED: Stack and shed drill

Linebackers

Shuffle, sprint, change of direction drill; short zone breaks drill

ELIMINATED: Pass drop

Defensive backs

Line drill, Teryl Austin drill, box drill, gauntlet drill

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Ranking Chargers’ top needs entering this offseason

Chargers Wire’s Gavino Borquez ranks the Los Angeles Chargers’ top needs entering this offseason.

The Chargers enter this offseason with the most salary cap space that they’ve had since general manager Tom Telesco took over in 2013. Los Angeles also possesses all seven picks in the 2020 NFL draft.

With that, they must use both outlets accordingly to fulfill the roster needs to ensure that they’re in the most optimal position as they look to bounce back from a 5-11 season.

Here are the five most pressing needs for the Bolts heading into this offseason:

5. Nose tackle

Brandon Mebane was signed to a two-year deal last offseason, but he will be turning 35 years old. Damion Square and Sylvester Williams proved themselves in that role, but both players will be free agents. Even if one of them is re-signed the Chargers could benefit from adding another clog in the middle of the defensive line since the run defense has still yet to be efficient.

4. Wide receiver

Keenan Allen and Mike Williams are both coming off productive seasons, surpassing 1,000 receiving yards. However, there is no one behind the two that can be called upon. Travis Benjamin didn’t do much before getting hurt, Dontrelle Inman was starting to surge before landing on the injured reserve, and the other guys at the position didn’t produce. The Chargers should look to add a fast wideout who can stretch the field.

3. Cornerback

The Chargers have been fortunate to have a player like Casey Hayward, who has shut down the league’s best wideouts. Hayward is signed through the 2021 season But the other options opposite of him are questionable moving forward. Michael Davis was up and down this past season and Brandon Facyson was promising, but he didn’t have that much of a sample size in the starting role.

2. Offensive line

Injuries was the narrative for the offensive line this past season. It all started with Russell Okung, as he missed all of training camp and nearly half the regular season after suffering a pulmonary embolism. When he returned, he dealt with various lower body injuries. Center Mike Pouncey sustained a severe neck injury that ended his season. Guard Forrest Lamp had a season-ending knee injury. Right tackle Sam Tevi was banged up throughout the year. Guard Dan Feeney has been up and down. Michael Schofield is a pending free agent. Trent Scott struggled, and Trey Pipkins showed promise, but there are still plenty of things he needs to work on in order to be relied on as a starter. The Chargers need to make some upgrades to the tackle and guard position to improve the pass protection that was underwhelming this past season.

1. Quarterback

At the moment, no one knows who the starting quarterback is going to be for the Chargers in 2020. Philip Rivers is a pending free agent and if he returns for Year 17 remains to be seen. Even if Rivers does return, the team doesn’t have a succession plan. They have Tyrod Taylor, but he isn’t a long-term option and he only has one more year remaining on his contract. Assuming Rivers is signed to a one-year deal, Los Angeles should look to take a quarterback in the first-round. The rookie would be able to sit and learn from Rivers. But if the team feels like he is no longer in their plans, that would mean that Taylor would serve as the bridge. Nonetheless, it’s been 16 years since the Chargers have taken a quarterback in Round 1, and this would be the perfect year to take one early on no matter who’s going to start.

NFL sets projected salary cap for 2020, giving Chargers extra spending money

The Chargers are projected to have between $55.6 and $60 million in available cap space next year.

The Los Angeles Chargers, as well as the other 31 teams in the league, will have some extra spending money thanks to an increase in the expected salary cap for next season.

According the NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport, the league has informed every team that the salary cap is projected to be between $196.8 million and $201.2 million.

That’s an increase from the current cap of $188.2 million, which means it will rise by $8-13 million next year.

The Chargers were expected to have a little over $58 million in cap space before the increase and with the news from the NFL, Los Angeles could start the offseason with about $55.6 million-$60 million in available cap space, per Over The Cap.

The Bolts will have quite a bit more spending money than previous years, but they also have a handful of notable soon-to-be unrestricted free agents they will decide on, as well as extending players like defensive end Joey Bosa.

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