Weekend best bets: Why are Eagles underdogs to 49ers this weekend?
The Eagles own the NFL’s best record at 10-1 and are 5-0 at home, where they whipped the 49ers 31-7 in last season’s NFC title game.
So why is Philadelphia a consensus 2½-point home underdog to the 49ers — who saw quarterback Brock Purdy get injured last meeting — in Sunday’s rematch?
Sharp bettors backed the 49ers at the Westgate SuperBook when the line opened at pick’em after the Eagles escaped with a 37-34 overtime win over the Bills on Sunday. Philadelphia trailed 17-7 at halftime for the second straight week.
“It’s more of a play against the Eagles,” SuperBook vice president of risk Ed Salmons said. “They keep winning when they get down 10 points every game. At some point, that will end.”
Philadelphia, +3 at Circa Sports, is in the fourth game of a brutal five-game stretch in which it held off the Cowboys 28-23 before rallying to beat the Chiefs 21-17 and the Bills. The Eagles will be at Dallas next week.
“The Eagles keep winning somehow. Despite their best record in the league, I can see why they’re underdogs to the 49ers,” SuperBook vice president Jay Kornegay said. “The power ranking for the Niners is through the roof. They’re the most complete team in the league.”
Kornegay said the SuperBook also took sharp money on the 49ers-Eagles over 46½ (now 47½), Jaguars-Bengals under 40½ (now 38), Falcons-Jets under 35 (now 33½) and the Patriots +6 (now +5½).
In college football, the SuperBook took sharp bets on UNLV +3 (now +2½) and Louisville +3 (now +2½).
The sharp plays and best bets in this column are 59-38-2 ATS this season (60.8 percent).
TEXANS (-3½) over Broncos
Kornegay leads the Review-Journal NFL Challenge with a 38-18-4 record (67.9 percent).
The Denver native’s best bet this week is the Texans -3½ over the Broncos.
“The Broncos are my team ,but they’ve had a lot of fortunate things happen to enjoy this five-game winning streak,” he said. “This is going to be a tough spot for them because the Texans are probably a little underrated.
“Everybody’s talking about (quarterback) C.J. Stroud, but the offensive line, receivers and (running back) Devin Singletary are a big part of their success.”
TEXANS-Broncos Over 47½
SixthSenseSports.com handicapper Scott Kellen is in second place in the RJ Challenge at 34-23-3.
His best bet is on the Texans-Broncos over 47½.
“I played this at 45 on Sunday. It has been bet up to 47½ but I still show some value to the over,” said Kellen (@SixthSenseNFL). “We have two bottom-10 pass defenses facing each other. Houston has the most explosive pass plays in the NFL this year.
“Both defenses rank in the bottom 10 in the league in sack percentage.”
STEELERS-Cardinals Under 41
GambLou.com handicapper Lou Finocchiaro is 4-1 ATS in his picks in this column. His best bet is on the Steelers-Cardinals under 41.
“It won’t be overly cold but there will be rain and some wind when the Cardinals travel east for an early kickoff,” said Finocchiaro (@GambLou). “The Steelers defense, ranked seventh in DVOA, may feast on (quarterback) Kyler Murray, who leads an offense that is ranked 30th in DVOA and has had little time to jell.
“The Steelers will use their run game to control the clock in this one.”
Oregon (-9½) over Washington
Texas-based handicapper Paul Stone likes one-loss Oregon to cover as a 9½-point favorite over undefeated Washington in Friday’s Pac-12 title game at Allegiant Stadium.
The Huskies won the first meeting 36-33 in Seattle. The winner of the rematch likely earns a spot in college football’s four-team playoff.
“Since losing to Washington, Oregon has won its past six games by an average of 26 points and none have really been competitive,” said Stone (@PaulStoneSports). “Meanwhile, Washington has struggled for the most part and is not the same football team it was in September and the first part of October.”
Oklahoma State (+16) over Texas
PickDawgz.com handicapper Dana Lane won the RJ College Challenge with a 37-26-2 ATS mark. His best bet is Oklahoma State (+16) over Texas in the Big 12 title game.
“There was so much emotion last week when the Longhorns took down Texas Tech (57-7),” said Lane (@DanaLaneSports). “It’s going to be hard to duplicate that for a day game against the Cowboys, who looked like they were preparing for this game rather than focusing on BYU (in a 40-34 overtime win).”
Alabama (+5½) over Georgia
VegasInsider.com handicapper Chip Chirimbes took second in the RJ College Challenge for the second straight year, going a combined 73-56-1 ATS. He likes Alabama to cover against Georgia in the SEC championship.
“They’ve come a long way since losing to Texas,” he said. “Karma has them here.”
Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com. Follow @tdewey33 on X.