NFL Picks Week 2: Early Odds to Exploit for Best Over/Under Box Score Bets

Week 1 of the NFL season was, as is often the case, a wild ride. We saw some stunning upsets, some flat performances by supposed contenders and more than a few dramatic finishes.

We also saw some strong individual performances that may have helped a few fans hit on some box-score bets. Wagering on player production, point totals and other box-score bets is often a great way to offset the uncertainty of the early NFL season.

We're likely to see some upsets during the first few weeks, but great players and good units tend to perform as expected.

Here, we'll dive into a few enticing box-score over/unders to consider for Week 2, based on factors like recent production, projected roles and individual matchups.

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.

A week ago, we liked the over for James Cook's receiving yards against the Arizona Cardinals. The Buffalo Bills running back easily passed the over (17.5 yards) finishing with 32 yards on three receptions.

This week, Cook's over/under has been raised to 18.5 yards, but we still like the over at -115 (bet $115 to win $100). While the Miami Dolphins should represent a tougher matchup, Cook has been a significant piece of Buffalo's passing puzzle since last season.

In 2023, the 24-year-old averaged 2.6 receptions and 26.2 receiving yards per game.

Miami's defense did a decent job of limiting the Jacksonville Jaguars offense in Week 1, but it still allowed running back Travis Etienne to log 15 yards on two catches. We should expect Cook to see more receptions than Etienne did, as quarterback Josh Allen continues to work out the kinks with his rebuilt receiving corps.

While Allen builds chemistry with wideouts like Keon Coleman and Mack Hollins, he's likely to lean on familiar targets like Dawson Knox, Khalil Shakir and Cook. That may be especially true on a short week.

While Cook fell just a bit shy of this yardage total (16 yards) the last time he faced the Dolphins, he should hit the over in this round.

The under in total points (-110) is also an enticing play for Thursday night. This is a very high line for a Week 2 divisional game—especially one on a short week—even if there's enough offensive talent in this game to hit the mark.

The Dolphins had a tough time finding an early rhythm against the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 1 but eventually found enough chunk plays to reach 20 points. They might not have an easier time against an opponent that knows them well.

The Bills allowed 28 points to the Cardinals but only surrendered 270 yards. Miscues made it more of a struggle than it probably should have been for Buffalo. Its defense is not going to be flat-out bad this season.

Miami, meanwhile, showed a solid defense in its opener as well. The Jags have plenty of offensive playmakers but couldn't muster a score after halftime.

Neither of these teams has hit its stride yet, and Thursday night games are often sloppy. Expect this AFC East showdown to more closely mirror the 21-14 contest we saw in Week 18 last year than the 48-20 beatdown Buffalo put on the Dolphins in Week 4.

The Baltimore Ravens lost a heartbreaker to the Kansas City Chiefs in their opener. Tight end Isaiah Likely was ruled just out of bounds on a catch that otherwise would have been a touchdown and made the score 27-26 with no time remaining and a point-after try to go.

Baltimore has had extra time to regroup and will look to bury their Week 1 letdown at home against the Las Vegas Raiders this week. Fans should expect to see a motivated Ravens team roll over the Raiders, who stumbled in their Week 1 game against the rival Los Angeles Chargers.

The Chargers rushed for 176 yards against Las Vegas and, while they only scored two touchdowns, they put the game away in the second half.

The Ravens are -166 to score over 2.5 team touchdowns against the Raiders, and they should. The play of Baltimore's offensive line in Week 1 is concerning entering a matchup with Maxx Crosby and Christian Wilkins, but Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry should give Baltimore plenty of potency on the ground.

While the Raiders defense has potential, it's hard to believe that Las Vegas will be as prepared for the Ravens as the Chiefs were. Expect Baltimore to control the temp at home and to possibly run up the score just to erase the bad taste of Week 1.

While the Bills and Dolphins may not deliver on their high over/under, the Detroit Lions and Tampa Bay Buccaneers just might.

The Lions played more of a defensive game against the Los Angeles Rams in their opener, though they eventually put the game away by leaning on the run. They should have an easier time moving the ball through the air against the visiting Buccaneer.s

Tampa's defense was mostly just OK against the Washington Commanders and rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels in Week 1. While Daniels only had 184 passing yards, he did complete 17 of 24 attempts. If Jared Goff, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Sam LaPorta and Co. hook up at that kind of clip, they should put a lot more yards and points on the stat sheet.

While the Bucs surrendered 20 points to the Commanders, they racked up 37 points of their own. The additions of Graham Barton, Bucky Irving and Jalen McMillan to an offense that already boasted Mike Evans, Chris Godwin and Baker Mayfield has given Tampa an offense with elite potential.

The Lions defense appears quite a bit better than it was a year ago, but this game could easily replicate the 31-23 scoring frenzy these two teams had in last year's divisional round. At -132, the over feels like a strong play.

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