The Philadelphia Eagles provided one of the many online football betting surprises over opening weekend. The opening week of the NFL featured many first-time starting quarterbacks: Carson Wentz, Trevor Siemian, Dak Prescott, and Jimmy Garoppolo. Out of those four Carson Wentz – who is also a rookie – put up by far the best performance in his debut.
Wentz was selected as the 2nd overall pick in the 2016 draft and was met with a wave of praise from Eagles fans, whom were eager to put the Sam Bradford days behind them. Philadelphia eventually traded Bradford to the Vikings and began to prepare for the Doug Pederson era. Pederson was brought in to replace Chip Kelly, who did a phenomenal job of tearing up the Eagles’ roster in the few years he was at the helm. There were a lot of questions surrounding this team, most of which revolved around the new coaching staff and the rookie quarterback who would be leading the offense. However, the Eagles were quick to ease fans concerns in their 2016 opener, and their performance makes Philadelphia seem like the new online football betting favorite in the NFC East.
The Eagles faced the Cleveland Browns in the first game of the season and made quick work of the dog pound 29-10. The Browns may not be the most elite team in the NFL, but they still provided an opportunity for Pederson’s Eagles to showcase their improvements. The Eagles finished the day with 403 yards of total offense while their defense was able to hold the Browns to 288. RG3 left the game early due to a shoulder injury, and after his departure Cleveland had no chance of coming back into the game. Wentz’ performance was the most surprising, he finished the day going 22/37 for 278 yards, 2 touchdowns, and no turnovers. Those were some of the best numbers we saw in the opening week and it’s even more surprising to see them from a rookie. Wentz’ premiere instilled hope for a turnaround season in Philadelphia’s fans, and it certainly raised some eyes around the online football betting community. The rookie will get another chance to prove himself this Monday night when the Eagles take on the Bears, a team who didn’t enter the 2016 season on a high note.
2015 was the first season Chicago spent with John Fox as head coach, but it certainly didn’t end the way fans would’ve hoped. The Bears finished the season with a lousy 6-10 record that ranked them last in the NFC North. In fact, the only highlight of the Bears season last year was when they upset the Packers on Thanksgiving. The Bears would’ve liked 2016 to be a turnaround, but their performance in the opener didn’t give credibility to that sentiment. Chicago finished the day with 258 yards while their opponent, the Houston Texans, was able to gain 344. Veteran Jay Cutler was outmatched by Brock Osweiler – whom was brought in during the offseason thanks to a hefty contract. The Bears didn’t face an easy team in their opener, and now they’ll have to line up against the Eagles for MNF. Let’s check the odds across the best football betting sites to see how the Bears will fare against Philadelphia.
Week 2 – Monday September 19th
Eagles +3 (EVEN) 42 ½ (-105) +150
Bears -3 (-120) 42 ½ (-115) -170
Even though the Bears seemed lousy in Week 1 the odds are still painting them as the favorites. Cutler had a pitiful performance against the Texans going 16/29 for 216 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. The Bears’ quarterback finished with a 76.2 passer rating which is leagues behind Wentz’ Week 1 101.0 rating. If those two put up similar stats on Monday, then there’s little doubt the Eagles won’t pull off a college football betting upset.
