5 NFL best bets: Ravens will deal Bills 1st loss in ‘must-win’

Professional sports bettor Jeff Whitelaw and three-time Westgate SuperContest top-15 finisher “Dr. Alan” Dumond expect Buffalo to suffer its first loss Sunday at Baltimore.

The Ravens are 2½-point favorites over the Bills on “Sunday Night Football” after defeating Dallas on the road for their first win.

“The Bills have some defensive injuries, and they’re coming off a short week off a big Monday night win,” said Whitelaw, a Buffalo, New York, native. “Baltimore is basically in a must-win situation, being at 1-2.

“This is a step up for Buffalo. It’s going up against a much better defensive team with a very good offensive line. I like Baltimore a lot.”

Dumond, tied for second in the $5,000-entry SuperContest Gold contest with a 10-4-1 ATS record, noted that the Bills’ first three opponents (Cardinals, Dolphins, Jaguars) are a combined 2-7.

“The Bills are fat and happy at 3-0. They’re coming off of three straight wins where they scored 30 points or more. … They’re due to come down,” Dumond said. “A loss by the Bills here simply will not hurt them as much as it would the Ravens.

“The Ravens should be the more desperate team, as they don’t want to fall into a 1-3 hole, and I expect them to get the job done.”

Here are four more plays from handicappers who hit their best bets here last week (home team in CAPS):

Broncos (+7½) over JETS

Pro sports bettor Cris Zeniuk likes Denver to cover at New York after the Broncos upset Tampa Bay for their first victory.

“The model likes Denver here. They are spending added time traveling while the Jets are on extra rest. There is a factor for this, and the Jets seem to be mighty confident off their victory over the Patriots,” said Zeniuk (@lasvegascris). “Denver has quietly done some things well through three games. (Rookie quarterback Bo) Nix is becoming more acclimated and is mobile. Hopefully, he’s gained a stepping stone of confidence to keep them in position to win the game.

“The Jets are not a high-paced team. (Quarterback Aaron) Rodgers runs that clock, so fewer possessions is to our benefit getting over a touchdown.”

CHARGERS (+7) over Chiefs

Doug Fitz likes the Chargers as 7-point home underdogs to the Chiefs after the line dropped from 8 on Wednesday.

“Kansas City had some help from the referees last week. (Chargers quarterback) Justin Herbert is listed as questionable, so he’ll probably play,” said Fitz (Systemplays.com). “Home underdogs heading into their bye week when facing a divisional opponent are 53-21-1 ATS since 2013.”

Commanders (+3½) over CARDINALS

VSiN handicapper Dave Tuley likes Washington, which upset Cincinnati 38-33 on Monday as a 7½-point underdog.

“Jayden Daniels had his coming-out party on ‘Monday Night Football,’ so we’ve lost a little line value here, as the Cardinals were -6 on the advance line at the SuperBook last week and a lot of people are jumping on the bandwagon,” said Tuley (@ViewFromVegas). “But you can’t tell me anything the Cardinals have done warrants them being more than a field goal favorite here, and don’t say it’s because of Arizona’s home-field advantage, as it’s negligible.”

Tuley noted that home teams are 20-26-1 ATS this season.

BEARS (-3) over Rams

Westgate SuperBook vice president Jay Kornegay likes Chicago as a short home favorite.

“The Bears are catching the Rams at a perfect time,” he said. “The Rams are really banged up and coming off a very emotional, hard-fought effort versus the rival 49ers. Also, the Bears defense is underrated.”

Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com. Follow @tdewey33 on X.