2023 NFL odds: Chiefs will bounce back, other best preseason Week 2 bets

Geoff Schwartz

FOX Sports Betting Analyst

Week 2 of the NFL preseason is upon us, which means it’s time for some bets.

And after a winning Week 1, I’m back to see if we can cash in on some more preseason wagers.

For those of you itching to bet on college football, I also included a bonus wager for fun.

Let’s dive into the action.

Chiefs at Cardinals (Saturday, 8 p.m. ET)

The common refrain when discussing the performance of a preseason contest is always, “It’s just the preseason. Wait until the regular season.”

While I don’t deny that’s a big-picture way to view preseason results, the micro way is seeing a team like the Chiefs get pushed around by the Saints in the first preseason game and expecting the Super Bowl champions to fight back this weekend in their second preseason game. For players and coaches, “It’s just the preseason” isn’t a mantra when you’re in the middle of training camp.

The Chiefs played a majority of their starters against the Saints and scored zero points in two offensive drives while allowing 14 points in their two defensive drives. Their defense allowed those 14 points while getting dominated by the Saints offensive line. There were large rushing lanes and plenty of space for the quarterbacks to throw. The Chiefs will bring it against the Cardinals because Andy Reid has been crushing these guys in camp this week.

The Chiefs will play Patrick Mahomes as well, so I like them to cover the first half of this game.

PICK: Chiefs cover first half (-6)

Cowboys at Seahawks (Saturday, 10 p.m. ET, NFL Network)

It might be boring to repeat the same preseason system, but I’m taking a Pete Carroll team in the preseason.

Seattle won and covered in its first preseason game, running Carroll’s preseason record against the spread to 37-23. The Seahawks will play their starters against the Cowboys, something they did not do against the Vikings in Week 1. That gives me even more of a reason to take them. The Cowboys did not cover last week against the Jaguars, a trend that continues for their head coach Mike McCarthy, who is 47% against the spread in the preseason.

I will make this point until I’m blue in the face about defensive coaches caring more about winning preseason games than offensive ones. I’m betting on the trend to continue.

PICK: Seahawks (-7) to win by more than 7 points

Ravens at Commanders (Monday, 8 p.m. ET, ESPN)

The Ravens have won a remarkable 24 straight preseason games while covering 20 of those 24 games. However, they have failed to cover two straight preseason games, and their margin of victory continues to drop after a 1-point victory over the Eagles last weekend. That’s the fifth time the Ravens have won by a single point in the last five preseasons. I’m taking the Commanders to cover this game because they need it more and the Ravens are continuing to build a new offense. Ron Rivera is battling for his job this season and new offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy will want his offense to play well in the preseason.

I like the Commanders to cover the three points.

PICK: Commanders (+3) to lose by fewer than 3 points (or win outright)

Bonus College Football Wager

Florida at Utah (Aug. 31, 8 p.m. ET, ESPN)

Utah’s starting quarterback Cam Rising is unlikely to play in this game, as he’s recovering from an ACL injury he suffered in the Rose Bowl on January 1. Rising is still limited in action and hasn’t participated in any live reps in practice. He needs to get back to practice in the next couple of days in order to play against Florida on Aug. 31.

To make it worse for Utah, its preferred backup quarterback Brandon Rose injured himself in a weekend scrimmage and is presumed out for the season. So Utah will play a third-string quarterback against Florida in their opener.

I’m firing on Florida +7 because the number is good right now. This will close under a touchdown after people realize Rising is not playing. This isn’t an endorsement for Florida, as their newly announced starting quarterback Graham Mertz doesn’t inspire anyone to wager on it, but more a wager on a Utah team that has routinely started slow in nonconference play in the last few seasons and will be without its top two quarterbacks.

PICK: Florida (+7) to lose by fewer than 7 points (or win outright)

Geoff Schwartz is an NFL analyst for FOX Sports. He played eight seasons in the NFL for five different teams. He started at right tackle for the University of Oregon for three seasons and was a second-team All-Pac-12 selection his senior year. Follow him on Twitter @GeoffSchwartz.