2020 NFL week 5 picks against the spread for every game
Last week, it was COVID-19 stealing all of the headlines as star players missed games and the schedule had to be adjusted for postponements. This week and every week going forward it is something that will have to be considered. This is true for both fantasy football and betting in the National Football League. We will be updating our NFL week 5 picks against the spread (ATS) for every game on a daily basis. We will add information as it comes in and posting new information every day leading up to kickoff.
Check back daily for the latest information.
Buccaneers @ Bears (TNF)
Point spread: Bucs -5.5
Point total: 45
Moneyline: Bucs -250, Bears +205
Finally, the NFL serves up a good game for the Thursday night prime-time affair. The surprisingly 3-1 Chicago Bears play host to Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. With a game of this magnitude kicking off the week, it is bound to attract some serious bets. With that in mind, we put out our big betting preview to break down this game. Read it here.
Panthers @ Falcons
Point spread: Falcons -2.5
Point total: 53.5
Moneyline: Panthers +112, Falcons -136
What happened to the Atlanta Falcons? A team with such high hopes is now looking at an almost impossible climb back into the NFL playoff picture. Now they have to prepare on a short week and host the Carolina Panthers. To make matters worse for the Falcons they may be without Julio Jones.
From NFL Now: The #Falcons got in at 5 am and WR Julio Jones hasn’t had his tests yet. But a reaggravation of the hamstring injury on a short week… it all doesn’t look great for him playing this week. pic.twitter.com/H3qKMahFgI
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) October 6, 2020
The Carolina Panthers are slowly becoming one of the surprise teams of the season. The play on offense is a credit to this coaching staff who is putting Teddy Bridgewater in a comfortable position. He had his best game as a Panther in the win against Arizona and has a connection with Robby Anderson. The defense is youthful and fast ranking among the top ten in the league in passing defense. They constantly harass the quarterback and if they can hold Kyler Murray to a pedestrian effort, Matt Ryan is in big trouble.
The Falcons defense is awful and they are porous against the pass. Atlanta is 7-24 ATS in their last 31 games after allowing more than 250 yards passing in their previous game
The Falcons opened as (-3.5) but that number has dropped as the sharp money is on the Panthers.
Carolina Panthers +2.5 [BET NOW at BetOnline and claim a $1,000 sign up bonus]
Broncos @ Patriots
Point spread: Patriots -8
Point total: TBD
Moneyline: TBD
Sure it wasn’t pretty, but the Broncos finally got a win last week when they beat the New York Jets. They beat up a very bad team, but the defense deserves some rave reviews for the way that they played. Bradley Chubb had five tackles and five QB hits and chalked up 2.5 sacks. Josey Jewell chimed in with 10 tackles and two sacks and the Broncos defense proved that they can get after the opposing quarterback.
Brett Rypien won his first career start and had moments of greatness along with problems in his first start. After the Broncos win and cover, first-time starting QB’s are now 10-1 ATS in the last 11 games. Rypien has an admirable connection with Jerry Jeudy and he will most likely be the starter until Drew Lock returns. The biggest benefit of the good game by Rypien was the rushing attack. Melvin Gordon ran for over 100 yards and two touchdowns. This week they get a step up in competition when they play the New England Patriots.
UPDATE
Now, this is yet another game that is in danger of being canceled. The Patriots were already without quarterback Cam Newton after the quarterback tested positive, but now the Patriots will be without another All-pro.
According to @rapsheet, the odds of Cam Newton being cleared in time to play in Sunday’s game against the Denver Broncos are not looking good. https://t.co/tIgXwwKpXx
— Pats Pulpit (@patspulpit) October 7, 2020
Stephon Gilmore is the only #Patriots player to test positive from Tuesday’s round of testing, per source. The reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year now joins Cam Newton on the Reserve/COVID-19 list. https://t.co/MWOpsyjhsk
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) October 7, 2020
The Patriots closed all facilities and have canceled practice. This is not a good sign for the upcoming game against the Broncos. This positive test is also concerning for the Kansas City Chiefs who played the Patriots last week. If this game plays we will be back with the NFL odds and the Broncos vs Patriots, pick against the spread.
UPDATE AGAIN
Broncos-Patriots game is being moved to next Sunday, sources tell ESPN.
Broncos were supposed to play Miami; that won’t happen. That game is being rescheduled.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) October 11, 2020
This game is postponed.
Cardinals @ Jets
Point spread: Cardinals -7.5
Point total: 46.5
Moneyline: Cardinals -360, Jets +280
The New York Jets have low expectations this year. The Arizona Cardinals, on the other hand, are a team with high expectations that should compete for the division. The Cardinals have fallen short of expectations.
The Jets are exactly who we thought they were. They laid an egg on Thursday night and were embarrassed against Denver. They did score early and hold a lead at one point in a game for the first time on the young NFL season. But that didn’t last long.
The offensive line was a mess and Sam Darnold was on the run all night long. Darnold was hit 10 times and sacked six times. Darnold left briefly to get examined by doctors, but he is lucky he wasn’t killed with the way that the line played. He has yet to be cleared for the game.
On defense, the Jets were reckless. They had multiple drive-extending penalties that allowed the Broncos to put up points. The defense was so blatant with personal fouls, Broncos head coach Vic Fangio hurried his team off the field after the game and refused postgame handshakes.
Although cornerback Pierre Desir had a pick-six, the Broncos were able to abuse him all night. Although the Jets lost again, the reports suggest that the Jets will not fire head coach Adam Gase.
SOURCES: The #Jets will NOT be making a change at head coach tonight or tomorrow morning.
No plans to make change with Adam Gase moving forward.
Story: https://t.co/1vM6ULVJmS
— Connor Hughes (@Connor_J_Hughes) October 2, 2020
Here is the good news; the Jets may get the back two key offensive players in Le’Veon Bell and Denzel Mims for this game. With extra rest, the Jets will have to figure something out if they are going to compete with the Arizona Cardinals.
Are the Cardinals Crumbling?
The Cardinals have now lost back-to-back games and will look to get back on the winning track when they head to the Big Apple to play the Jets. The biggest problem so far for the Cardinals is their lackluster offensive output. The NFL bettors are cashing in on the bad offense as the UNDER is cashing on for Cardinals games.
The Arizona Cardinals are the NFL’s only team that hasn’t cashed an OVER through four weeks.
Cardinals are 4-0 to the under, though games have stayed under by only 3.2 points on average.
— Ben Fawkes (@BFawkes22) October 6, 2020
Running back Kenyan Drake has had a difficult time gaining yards. Last week against the Panthers he managed 13 yards on 35 carries. He is averaging career lows in yards per carry (3.8) and yards after catch (1.3). The offensive is slow and the defensive is not helping. In the Panthers game, the secondary was hurting without Budda Baker and Chris Banjo. They allowed a season-high 276 yards and the Panthers had 17 of its 30 first downs via the pass. Both sides of the football need to get well against this Jets squad.
The Cardinals are 1-3-1 ATS in their last 5 games following a straight-up loss and 1-5 ATS in their last 6 games as a favorite. For as bad as the Jets have been they are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games as a home underdog. The Cardinals cannot cover more than a TD against any team this year, including the Jets.
New York Jets +7.5 [Bet NOW and join MyBookie for free and double your deposit!]
Eagles @ Steelers
Point spread: Steelers -7
Point total: 47.5
Moneyline: Eagles +230, Steelers -286
The Pittsburgh Steelers are looking forward to a return to the football field after an unscheduled bye week. Their next opponent is off their most impressive win of the season as the Philadelphia Eagles upset the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday night football.
The Eagles rallied late to score 14 points in about 10 seconds in the victory. Carson Wentz looked respectable through the air and running the football. Wentz has run for a first down 10 times over the past two games. However, it is very clear that this team needs to get healthy. They have injuries to key personnel and are still lacking in the wide receiver department. The team is attempting to get Jalen Hurts in on plays to make the offense more dynamic but up to this point, it has been unsuccessful.
The Steelers organization is not thrilled with the unexpected bye week. Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was off to a red-hot start with 777 yards and seven touchdowns with just one interception.
Ben Roethlisberger said the Steelers “got the short end of the stick,” regarding the disruption to their schedule and their shortened three-day bye week. He also added he’s just starting to get ramped back up and the postponed game against Tennessee halted progress.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) October 7, 2020
This halt in momentum is a real concern for this team and they have mentioned it several times leading up to the game against the Eagles.
“I guess I am going to just start over from scratch and hope this week I didn’t take too many steps backward,” Roethlisberger said.
While the Steelers sat idle all of the other AFC North teams secured a victory, which makes winning this game a top priority. The Steelers have the deeper team and they have the talent, but the NFL odds for this game sit right at a touchdown at preferred online betting sites.
Bye Week Trends
Pittsburgh has a coach to prepare this team after a break and they are 19-12 following a break. They have a good record, but it is interesting to note that they are just 2-3 against NFC opponents after a bye week. Offensively they only average 21.54 points a game after a bye week, which is not a lot when you consider they are laying seven points as a favorite. The Steelers are 4-9-1 ATS as a favorite and 2-5 ATS in the last 7 games as a home favorite.
The Eagles carry momentum into this game and they have some sweet trends backing a play on the birds in this game. The Eagles are 6-2 ATS in their last 8 games as a road underdog and 8-3 ATS in their last 11 games following a win against the spread. The Steelers will need the first half to shake off the rust and this will allow the Eagles to keep this game close.
Philadelphia Eagles +7.5 [BET NOW at Bovada and get $250 to bet on sports]
Rams @ Washington Football Team
Point spread: Rams -9
Point total: 45.5
Moneyline: Rams -435, Washington +330
The Rams look to get back on track after a shaky game against the New York Giants. The Washington Football team has already made some major changes for this game that hopefully will help this franchise win again. Washington head coach Ron Rivera made a change at the quarterback position benching Dwayne Haskins in favor of Kyle Allen.
Haskins cannot read defenses right now. He needs to see more. Good move by the Washington Football Team. https://t.co/wuhWqyYCPU
— Michael Robinson (@RealMikeRob) October 7, 2020
Although the change faced some scrutiny, it was needed since Washington ranks 30th in the NFL in scoring and yards per play. Allen is familiar with the system that Rivera has in place at Washington, playing under Rivera for two years in Carolina. Allen can have success against a Tams team that ranks in the top 8 of the passing yards allowed for this season.
The Rams beat the Giants, but they did not look stellar on offense. The win shows that the defense can still carry this team if needed. They will travel to the East Coast for the third time this season for another early kickoff. The poor performance and the travel play a factor in the movement of the point spread. The Rams opened as (-9.5) favorites but after the change at quarterback, the line has fallen to Rams (-7.5).
Allen may be an improvement on offense, but he is a turnover machine. Allen threw 16 interceptions and fumbled the ball 13 times in 12 starts last season. The Rams have success laying points and on the road.
Rams are road warriors
LA is 9-3 ATS in their last 12 road games, including 5-2 ATS in their last 7 games as a road favorite. The Rams are also 12-5-1 ATS in their last 18 games as a favorite. The Rams love playing on the East coast as they are 5-0 since 2017 and they have put up at least 30 points in all of those games. In those games, they’ve outscored opponents 185-89 and only one of those games was within 10 points.
Washington is 2-8 ATS in the last 10 games at home and they are going to be blown out against the Rams.
LA Rams -7.5 [BET NOW at BetOnline and get the best NFL Odds on this game]
Raiders @ Chiefs
Point spread: Chiefs -12
Point total: 56.5
Moneyline: Raiders +480, Chiefs -670
The Kansas City Chiefs looked “normal” against a tough Patriots defense. But his is the Raiders and they own the Raiders. Patrick Mahomes has 12 TDs (11 pass, 1 rush) & a 113.6 rating in 4 career games vs. the Raiders. The Raiders are 7-15-1 ATS in their last 23 road games. This isn’t going to be close.
Chiefs -12
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