2019 NFL Week 3 Must-Bet Games

Written by on July 22, 2019

The last time Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs hosted Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens, the two teams and their respective young signal-callers laid it all on the line in a game that turned out to be a flat-out thriller. Will another epic affair break out when the two AFC Super Bowl hopefuls meet in Week 3 of the 2019 NFL regular season?

With the start of NFL preseason action just a few short weeks away, now is a great time to get an early jump on your 2019 betting selections, thanks to the complete offering of NFL regular season betting odds that have been recently released. Whether you like favorites, underdogs, home teams or road warriors, you’re going to get your fill of NFL betting predictions right now. With that said, let’s get down to business with my trio of 2019 NFL Week 3 regular season picks.

2019 NFL Week 3 Must-Bet Games

Baltimore Ravens at Kansas City Chiefs

  • When: Sunday, September 22, 2019 at 1:00 PM ET
  • Where: Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, MO
  • TV: CBS
  • NFL Week 3 Odds: Kansas City -7.5

I know the Kansas City Chiefs have a high-powered offense that led the league in scoring last season (35.3 ppg) and is centered around the inimitable talents of reigning MVP Patrick Mahomes, but Baltimore has a stupendous defense that finished second in points allowed (17.9 ppg) while helping the Ravens go 5-3 ATS on the road a year ago. Despite their penchant for putting points on the board early and often in 2018, Kansas City didn’t exactly light the place on fire when it came to covering the chalk at Arrowhead Stadium last season (4-4 ATS).

For this Week 3 matchup of AFC Championship contenders, I say, look no further than at the Week 14 meetings between these two conference rivals last season. With Kansas City playing at home, The Chiefs managed to scratch out a hard-fought 27-24 overtime win on Harrison Butler’s 35-yard field goal. To be direct, I’m expecting this Week 3 matchup to be a lot closer to another field goal finish than a nearly double-digit win it would take for the Chiefs to cover the chalk. Basically, I’ve got Kansas City winning, but the Ravens covering the chalk.

Pick: Baltimore +7.5

LA Rams at Cleveland Browns

  • When: Sunday, September 22, 2019 at 8:20 PM ET
  • Where: FirstEnergy Stadium, Cleveland, OH
  • TV: NBC
  • NFL Week 3 Odds: LA Rams -3

While I, like everyone else, love Cleveland’s offseason transactions, that brought them some pretty good talent, starting with Pro Bowl wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., I genuinely believe a lot of NFL ‘experts’ are jumping the gun when it comes to Cleveland being a possible Super contender in 2019. While I am expecting the Browns to challenge for their first winning record since they went 10-6 back in 2007, I’m certainly not expecting them to reach the same level of excellence we’ve seen out of Super Bowl runner-up Los Angeles the last couple of seasons.

Even on the road, this looks like a game the NFC champion Rams should and will, win. Remember, despite their stunning Super Bowl failure against New England, the Rams still have the core group of players from a team that went a stellar 13-3 in the regular season a year ago and an equally impressive 6-2 on the road. I know the Browns tried to address their defense this offseason after finishing 30th overall last season, but I don’t think it’s going to be improved enough to stop Jared Goff, Todd Gurley and the rest of the Rams’ high-powered offense in this Week 3 matchup. L.A. wins and narrowly covers, but it’s going to be a battle.

Pick: LA Rams -4

Miami Dolphins at Dallas Cowboys

  • When: Sunday, September 22, 2019 at 1:00 PM ET
  • Where: AT&T Stadium, Arlington, TX
  • TV: FOX
  • NFL Week 3 Odds: Dallas -9

While I’m excited about the completely new regime of GM Chris Grier and head coach Brian Flores taking over in South Beach, I’m definitely not expecting the AFC East playoff longshots to rise up and stun Dallas for the outright win in this Week 3 Inter-Conference clash. Having said that, I’m also not feeling a Cowboys double-digit win in this meeting either. Dallas might have won 10 games last season while reaching the divisional round of the playoffs, but the ‘Boys also only recorded one double-digit win along the way. Dating back to 2010, Dallas has gone 0-3 ATS in their last three home games as a favorite of 9 or 9.5 points and that glaring trend should tell you how difficult it’s going to be for the Boys to down the Dolphins by at least 10 points to cover the chalk.

Dallas also averaged exactly one point per game more than they allowed defensively last season and in reality, they just don’t have the kind of passing-based offensive scheme that points points on the board in a hurry like some other teams in today’s pass-happy times (Kansas City, LA Rams). Miami covered the chalk last season in their only road date as an underdog between 9-10 points by narrowly upsetting Indianapolis before falling 27-24. In addition to that, I’m expecting Flores to bring some of the no-nonsense ways he learned as a linebacker coach in New England to Miami’s formerly rudderless locker room under Adam Gase. In the end, I think the spread for this Week 3 matchup should be closer to a touchdown at most and I like the Fins to cover as road dogs!

Pick: Miami +9