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On the final day of the month, writing this column feels somewhat bittersweet.

On the one hand, the FanDuel Best Bets that I’ve featured in this article have gone a combined 13-1 in October.

Not bad.

On the other hand, it would have been really cool to try to complete a perfect month this morning.

At the same time, tonight’s showdown between the Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns represents the final stop for Week 8 in the NFL, and I’m looking for the sweep with my FanDuel Best Bets for this week. 

Rachaad White went over 16.5 rushing yards on Thursday Night Football.

The Dallas Cowboys covered as a 10-point favourite in a 49-29 win over the Chicago Bears on Sunday.

For tonight’s game, I’ve circled a specific player prop that I’ve had my eye on throughout the weekend. 

Here’s the Morning Coffee for Monday October 31st, 2022.

A FanDuel Best Bet For Monday Night Football

The Cleveland Browns have followed up a 2-1 start with four straight losses to fall to 2-5 on the season.

In order to avoid falling even further out of playoff contention, the Browns will need to figure out a way to upset the rival Bengals on Monday Night Football.

FanDuel has made Cincinnati a 3.5-point road favourite for tonight’s game. 

That number is particularly interesting when you consider that Joe Burrow has never won a start versus Cleveland, and will be without his No. 1 receiver for tonight’s game.

It really is a testament to how bad the Browns have looked in recent weeks.

While Cleveland hasn’t provided us with much reason to believe they can turn things around, the one constant positive for them all year has been the play of star running back Nick Chubb.

Chubb has six games with 100+ scrimmage yards this season.

He leads the league with 740 rushing yards and eight rushing touchdowns.

In order to have a shot against the Bengals tonight, the Browns will need to lean that much more on Chubb.

His rushing yards prop is set at 81.5 at FanDuel.

I think he goes over that mark in tonight’s game.

First of all, Chubb has gone over that mark in six of his first seven games of the season, finishing with 100+ rushing yards in four different contests.

Second, we continue to hear rumors of a potential Kareem Hunt trade ahead of Tuesday’s deadline, and if he isn’t dealt before tonight’s game then the team could still limit his touches or choose not to play him at all. 

Chubb averaged 97.5 rushing yards in two games against Cincinnati last season. 

Just a couple of weeks ago, the Cincinnati defence was gashed for 99 yards on 5.2 yards per carry by New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara.

As the weather gets colder in Cleveland, it’s going to become more and more difficult for opposing defences to slow down Chubb.

I think the Browns lean heavily on their star running back once again in tonight’s game.

I’ll take Chubb over 81.5 rushing yards as my final FanDuel Best Bet for the month of October.

World Series Game 3 Goes Tonight In Philadelphia

After splitting the first two games at Minute Maid Park, the World Series shifts to Citizens Bank Park where the Philadelphia Phillies will host the Houston Astros in Game 3 tonight.

The Phillies have yet to lose a game in their home stadium this postseason.

After five straight wins in Philadelphia, Bryce Harper and company will look to take a series lead once again with Noah Syndergaard set to get the nod opposite Lance McCullers Jr. for Houston.

Despite the Phillies’ success at home, FanDuel has made the Astros a -134 money line favourite for tonight’s game.

Houston is -170 to win it all – a slightly better price than when they opened the series at -180.

On the flip side, Philadelphia is +114 to win tonight and +145 to win the series.

As highlighted in previous columns, I bet the Astros to win it all entering the ALCS and I’m content to ride it out with Houston.

The Phillies have shown some serious fight throughout the postseason, but I’m not rushing to bet either side in tonight’s game, especially with some uncertainty surrounding both starting pitchers.

Maple Leafs Slide Reaches Four In A Row

With the exception of William Nylander shots on goal props out of the gates, I’ve done my best to keep a distance from betting on the Toronto Maple Leafs this season.

The team’s best players know what is expected of them this season, but they haven’t shown much fight of late, and they hit rock bottom with a 5-4 overtime loss to the Anaheim Ducks on Sunday.

Leading 4-2 in the third period, Toronto blew a two-goal lead and Trevor Zegras ended it for Anaheim in the extra frame.

The Maple Leafs have been outscored a combined 15-9 over the course of four straight losses.

Now they’ll return home and get a couple of days off before hosting the Philadelphia Flyers on Wednesday.

While it’s still early, it really wouldn’t be very surprising if we saw a significant change in Toronto in the near future. 

At the same time, the Maple Leafs will play five of their next six games on home ice, so it could be the perfect opportunity for them to bounce back and string together a few wins to begin the month of November.

Either way, we should be in for a very interesting couple of weeks in Toronto.