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Morning Coffee: Jets-Cowboys Week 2 spread on the move
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Welcome to Week 2 of the 2023 NFL regular season.
The Week 1 film is under review, the fantasy football league waiver wire claims have been processed, and we’ve already seen some notable movement at FanDuel when it comes to the spreads for this weekend’s games.
In case you missed Tuesday’s column, we addressed the impact that Aaron Rodgers’ season-ending injury had on the NFL futures market.
The Green Bay Packers, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Denver Broncos are among the long list of teams that have shorter odds to win the Super Bowl than the New York Jets at FanDuel this morning.
Meanwhile, the spread for New York’s next game has moved significantly over the past 24 hours, which raises the question: How many points would you need to back the Zach Wilson-led Jets against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday?
This is the Morning Coffee for Wednesday Sept. 13, 2023.
Jets-Cowboys Week 2 spread on the move
The Cowboys were a three-point favourite for this week’s game against the Jets on the lookahead line at FanDuel.
Following the Rodgers injury, FanDuel reopened with Dallas at -7.5. That number has climbed all the way to Cowboys -9.5 over the past 24 hours.
How many points would it take for you to back the Jets in Dallas with Wilson at quarterback?
The Cowboys are tied with the Detroit Lions for the best record against the spread in the NFL over the past three seasons.
Dallas is the first team in the last 24 years to open its season with a shutout of 40-plus points on the road.
The Cowboys registered seven sacks, two interceptions, one fumble recovery, and held the New York Giants to 171 total yards in a 40-0 win.
NFL Defensive Player of the Year favourite Micah Parsons, who recorded a sack and a tackle for a loss in the win over the Giants, will be ready to set the tone for Dallas again in its home opener.
Meanwhile, the total for Sunday’s game is down from 41.5 to 39.5 over the past 24 hours.
I placed my first bet for Week 2 at FanDuel on Tuesday morning. While the price of that wager has already moved, I still it’s a good bet to publish here this morning as my first recommended play for Week 2.
A FanDuel Best Bet for Week 2
If you didn’t watch Sunday’s game between the Cowboys and Giants, go back and watch the tape. Dallas absolutely dominated New York from the outset.
The Cowboys didn’t concede a single point as they registered the largest shutout victory in franchise history.
Dallas registered pressure on 55 per cent of Daniel Jones’ drop backs. Eleven different Cowboys registered a quarterback pressure.
While it’s a week-to-week league, everything that I have seen from Dallas indicates they have a motivated team that is locked in and determined to prove they belong in the conversation among the league’s elite.
Meanwhile, the Cowboys remain the second choice to win the NFC East at FanDuel behind the defending NFC champion Philadelphia Eagles.
The Eagles opened their season with a 25-20 win on the road against the New England Patriots in Week 1.
As is the case with Dallas, Philadelphia is 1-0 heading into what should be an emotional home opener.
Last year, the Eagles thoroughly dominated the Minnesota Vikings with a 24-7 win in Week 2. The Eagles forced three interceptions by Kirk Cousins and outgained the Vikings by a nearly two-to-one margin in total yards.
The Vikings were just embarrassed in their home opener by Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. I don’t see them bouncing back against the defending NFC champions on the road.
The top two choices to win the NFC East are both substantial favourites for their Week 2 contests at FanDuel.
A two-team parlay with Philadelphia and Dallas to win outright was -150 on Tuesday morning. You can still parlay them both at -2.5 on the alt spread at around -140 odds at FanDuel this morning.
I’ll recommend a play on both teams to win their home openers outright and lock in an Eagles/Cowboys money line parlay as my first play for Week 2 of the NFL season.