One thing that we learned from the Sunday night meeting between Kansas City and Tampa Bay is that the Chiefs have fixed the offensive line woes that doomed them against the Buccaneers in Super Bowl LV. In that matchup, Tampa Bay sacked Patrick Mahomes three times, but he was on the run all night, as they pressured him on almost 33% of his snaps. On Sunday night, Mahomes was sacked three times again, but he only faced pressure on 22.5% of his dropbacks, or nine pressures in 40 dropbacks. That should help the Chiefs down the stretch as they look to get back to the top of the AFC. Let’s take a look at some solid NFL betting options from the Week 5 schedule. We have a meeting between two veteran quarterbacks who are trying to resurrece their careers with new teams, the latest adventure for Detroit’s video-game style offense, and an AFC North showdown, for your consideration.
NFL News: Must-Bet Games for Week 5
Thursday, October 6
Indianapolis Colts (+3.5) at Denver Broncos (O/U 44)
(8:15 pm ET, Prime Video)
Denver stumbled in Las Vegas this last week – and they also saw tailback Javonte Williams tear his ACL and LCL, ending his season. Russell Wilson did get the passing game going, particularly with balls down the field, and this week, the Broncos face a Colts team that has shown real problems in their secondary. Indianapolis will still have to play without defensive star Shaquille Leonard, who remains in the concussion protocol, and tailback Jonathan Taylor (ankle) will play, but he still won’t be at 100%. Matt Ryan has struggled mightily at quarterback so far this season, and the Colts have not played well on the road. Denver to win and cover.
Sunday, October 9
Detroit Lions (+3) at New England Patriots (46.5)
(1:00 pm ET, FOX)
Detroit’s offense is high-powered, but their defense is ridiculous when it comes to getting stops. The only reason even to think about taking Detroit here, though, is that the Patriots may be back down to third-string quarterback Bailey Zappe, if they don’t sign a free agent. Starter Mac Jones suffered a high ankle sprain in Week 3 and is not likely to play, and Brian Hoyer got knocked into the concussion protocol last week, setting the stage for Zappe, who almost led the Patriots to a victory at Lambeau Field before Aaron Rodgers took control and led the Packers to a comeback win. Detroit’s offense has been scoring at a more rapid clip than the Packers have, and I’m going to take the value with the New England quarterback situation in flux. Lions to cover.
Cincinnati Bengals (+3) at Baltimore Ravens (48.5)
(8:20 pm ET, NBC)
Baltimore blew a 21-point lead at home against the Miami Dolphins, seeing a 35-14 lead at the start of the fourth quarter turn into a shocking loss. The problems stem from cornerbacks that aren’t staying with wide receivers and the fact that the Ravens cannot generate a pass rush without pulling in cover people on a blitz. This past week, the Ravens led Buffalo, 20-3, but then they let the Bills up off the mat and lost, 23-20, on a last-second field goal. Joe Burrow has heated up the passing game in Cincinnati after a couple of difficult weeks to start the season, so he should be able to torch the Ravens. Bengals to cover.
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