Week 1 of the 2023 NFL regular season certainly didn’t go as planned for all teams across the league and no roster has felt that more this week than the New York Jets.
The Aaron Rodgers experiment ended before it really even began when the superstar quarterback and prized off-season acquisition went down with a torn Achilles tendon in the final game of Week 1.
Quarterback struggles were at the root of the Jets’ problems in 2022, so with Zach Wilson back behind centre does that mean it’ll be right back to square one for Robert Saleh’s group? New York hits the road for an anticipated showdown with the Dallas Cowboys who are coming off an impressive dismantling of the New York Giants.
The Eagles and Vikings kicked off Week 2 action on Thursday night with a high-scoring game that featured a Minnesota backdoor cover and 62 total points.
Week 2 features only two inter-conference games and is capped off with a divisional matchup double-header on Monday night.
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SPREADS & TOTALS
– GB (+1.5) at ATL (-1.5) | O/U: 40.5 (1:00 p.m. ET)
– LV (+8.0) at BUF (-8.0) | O/U: 47.0 (1:00 p.m. ET)
– BAL (+3.5) at CIN (-3.5) | O/U: 46.5 (1:00 p.m. ET)
– SEA (+5.0) at DET (-5.0) | O/U: 47.5 (1:00 p.m. ET)
– LAC (-3.0) at TEN (+3.0) | O/U: 45.0 (1:00 p.m. ET)
– CHI (+2.5) at TB (-2.5) | O/U: 41.0 (1:00 p.m. ET)
– KC (-3.0) at JAX (+3.0) | O/U: 51.0 (1:00 p.m. ET)
– IND (+1.5) at HOU (-1.5) | O/U: 39.5 (1:00 p.m. ET)
– SF (-7.5) at LAR (+7.5) | O/U: 44.5 (4:05 p.m. ET)
– NYG (-4.0) at ARI (+4.0) | O/U: 40.0 (4:05 p.m. ET)
– NYJ (+9.5) at DAL (-9.5) | O/U: 38.5 (4:25 p.m. ET)
– WAS (+3.5) at DEN (-3.5) | O/U: 39.0 (4:25 p.m. ET)
– MIA (-3.0) at NE (+3.0) | O/U: 46.5 (8:20 p.m. ET)
– NO (-3.0) at CAR (+3.0) | O/U: 40.0 (7:15 p.m. ET *Monday)
– CLE (-2.5) at PIT (+2.5) | O/U: 39.0 (8:15 p.m. ET *Monday)
The idea of Wilson stepping in for an injured Rodgers and facing a Cowboys defensive unit that might be the best in the entire NFL has scared bookmakers into making the Jets the biggest underdogs of the week.
Jets at Cowboys also features the lowest total of the week. Dallas blanked the Giants 40-0 in a dominant outing and will look to wreak havoc on a Jets offensive line that must protect Wilson.
The highest total of the week is in arguably the game of the week. Chiefs at Jaguars is an excellent matchup with a total of 51.0 points. Kansas City beat Jacksonville 27-17 in Week 10 last season. Andy Reid’s team, who last played Thursday, has done well historically with a rest advantage.
Another interesting total to keep an eye on this week is in Seattle at Detroit. The total has dropped 3.5 points since the beginning of the week but the past two meetings between these teams have been easy overs. The Seahawks beat the Lions 48-45 last season and 51-29 two seasons ago. In fact, Seattle has beaten Detroit in five straight and in eight of nine overall dating back 20 years.
PROP WATCH: DYNAMIC DUO ON DOLPHINS
The chemistry between Tua Tagovailoa and Tyreek Hill was on display over and over and over in Miami’s Week 1 win over the L.A. Chargers during which both Dolphins stars posted videogame-esque stat lines. Tagovailoa threw for 466 yards, the second-highest total of his NFL career so far, and 215 of those yards went Hill’s way. The pair connected nine times in total, including a 35-yard third-quarter touchdown and a four-yard, game-winning score in the final two minutes of the fourth.
Miami visits New England for an All-AFC East Sunday nighter. New England’s defence gave the Eagles a tough test in Week 1 and oddsmakers are clearly keeping that in mind when setting Tagovailoa’s and Hill’s relatively modest totals this week (via Bet365)…
Tagovailoa total passing yards: Over 264.5 (-110) | Under 264.5 (-110)
Hill total receiving yards: Over 84.5 (-110) | Under 84.5 (-110)
Tagovailoa total interceptions: Over 0.5 (-120) | Under 0.5 (-110)
Hill total receptions: Over 5.5 (-155) | Under 5.5 (+125)
Although Tagovailoa’s total completions prop was not listed as of Friday evening, his longest completion prop was set at Over/Under 38.5 yards. Tagovailoa’s longest completion in Week 1 was a 47-yard strike to Hill whose anytime touchdown odds versus New England are +105.
Tagovailoa had 270 yards and one touchdown in a Week 1 win over the Patriots in 2022. Hill finished that game with eight catches for 94 yards.
WEEK 2 STORYLINES TO FOLLOW
How will the Jets perform without Rodgers facing a daunting Dallas D? It certainly doesn’t help that the Jets, less than one week after losing Rodgers for the year, are going up against a Micah Parsons-led defence that allowed only 63 net passing yards and scored two touchdowns themselves in a 40-0 win over the Giants. Stephon Gilmore had an interception, two forced incompletions and a 12.5 opposing passer rating in his Dallas debut. He’ll likely see plenty of Garrett Wilson, who had New York’s lone offensive touchdown in Week 1.
Few will be surprised if this ends up a low-scoring defensive battle. The Jets sacked Buffalo’s Josh Allen five times in Week 1 and the Cowboys got Giants’ Daniel Jones down in the backfield on seven occasions. Will it be another sack-fest?
Wilson will need to stay composed under pressure and rely on his running back duo of Breece Hall and Dalvin Cook to quell the oncoming pass rush. The second-overall pick of the Jets from the 2021 NFL Draft told reporters this week that being around and learning from a future Hall of Famer like Rodgers throughout training camp and pre-season will be helpful come Sunday.
“I feel like I’ve been trying to copy every little thing he’s doing, from his footwork to the coaching tips he has given us,” Wilson said. “He’s done an amazing job, more than we could ask for as quarterbacks.”
Not much was required of Dak Prescott last week against the Giants, plus there was some inclement weather to deal with that night, so the Cowboys starter finished with just 143 yards on 13 completions, zero touchdowns and zero turnovers. He’ll need to be dialled in facing a Jets secondary that has Sauce Gardner, D.J. Reed and Jordan Whitehead who alone intercepted Josh Allen thrice in his team’s dramatic overtime win over the Bills.
Which AFC contender will bounce back best after losing in Week 1? In a surprise twist of opening week, Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs, Josh Allen and the Bills, Joe Burrow and the Bengals, and Justin Herbert and the Chargers went a combined 0-4 and all now aim hope to avoid a dreaded 0-2 start.
The Chiefs will have both Travis Kelce and Chris Jones back in their lineup, Andy Reid confirmed Friday, which isn’t good news for a Jaguars team dealing with a banged-up offensive line. Jones and the team resolved a contract dispute that resulted in him missing the 21-20 loss to the Lions in the season opener.
Kelce, meanwhile, was out with a hyperextended knee and bone bruise and was clearly in a playful mood after getting the green light.
Herbert and the Chargers are going from facing a Dolphins team that scored a touchdown against them in each quarter to facing a Titans squad that settled for five field goals from Nick Folk in a 16-15 loss to New Orleans.
Allen and the Bills might have the most to prove this week after not being able to get past the Jets who were handicapped after Rodgers left the game. Allen threw three interceptions in a single game for just the third time in his career. Buffalo faces a Raiders team that finds itself surprisingly alone in first place in the AFC West, at least for the time being. Las Vegas beat Denver in Week 1 despite posting only 261 yards of total offence.
Burrow completed only 14-of-31 pass attempts for a career-low 82 yards and was left the game early in the fourth quarter as the Browns rolled over the Bengals 24-3. Another division rival, this time Lamar Jackson and Baltimore, is not the easiest bounce-back opponent. Cincinnati started last season 0-2 yet finished atop the AFC North so it’s still too early to panic.
Can Packers build off Love’s solid debut? Did Jordan Love talk his team’s Week 1 victory over the Bears into existence? Who’s to say he didn’t?
“I kept telling myself, ‘I’m going to play great, we’re all going to play great.’ That’s what I just kept telling myself over and over again,” Love told reporters this week when recapping Green Bay’s 38-20 win.
Love did play great in the opener, as did most of his teammates, but he’ll face a stiffer challenge in the 1-0 Falcons. Love threw for 245 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions on just 15 total completions.
The 2020 first-round selection of the Packers will have to be on the lookout for Falcons safety Jessie Bates III who had two interceptions and was named NFC Defensive Player of the Week for Week 1 in his first regular-season game with Atlanta after spending his first five seasons with Cincinnati.
Atlanta had success on the ground in their Week 1 win over Carolina and Green Bay’s front seven can expect a lot more of that with Tyler Allgeier and standout rookie Bijan Robinson, who combined for three touchdowns, splitting duties in the Falcons backfield.
(Betting lines and totals listed above via Covers as of Friday unless otherwise noted and subject to change)
