NFL Week 8 Prop Bets

The NFL never ceases to amaze. The road underdogs shined last week, with the biggest upset being the New England Patriots defeating the Buffalo Bills. What will the theme be this Sunday? We’re banking on the rise of some teams and players in the NFL’s two West divisions. Let’s analyze the three best player/team prop bets for the Week 8 of the 2023 NFL season.

This is for all the fantasy football managers out there: Sunday night is Austin Ekeler’s bounce-back night. The Los Angeles Chargers running back has struggled since his return from injury a couple weeks ago. Ekeler has rushed for just 72 yards combined on just 2.6 yards-per-carry the last two games. That’s not the usual form of one of fantasy’s best players. We believe it’s only a matter of time before Ekeler has a boom week. Why not now?

Ekeler’s over/under for rushing yards this week is 52.5 at PrizePicks. We really like the over on this bet.

The Chargers host the Chicago Bears this week. The Bears come in with the league’s fifth-ranked rushing defense in yards allowed per game. That’s really good, so it shouldn’t help Ekeler’s chances right? Wrong. 

Chicago has faced two Pro Bowl running backs this season. That was Aaron Jones in Week 1 and Josh Jacobs last week. Jones got hurt during his game but had 41 yards on nine carries before leaving. Jacobs has been stuck in the mud all year. We’re not buying the Bears having an elite run defense. Expect Ekeler to feast on Sunday night.

Another fantasy darling the last few seasons that underperformed last week was Cooper Kupp. The former All-Pro had a whopping 29 yards against the Steelers last week. This came after two-straight games with at least seven catches and 100 yards.

Kupp’s over/under for the Los Angeles Rams’ road battle against the Dallas Cowboys is 88.5 receiving yards at Underdog Fantasy. Last week was a one-off performance for Kupp. Everyone is entitled to one clunker. Kupp should easily bounce back this week.

The Cowboys have one of the overall best defenses in the NFL, but they’re only in the middle-of-the-pack in passing yards allowed per game. The secondary would be a lot scarier if Trevon Diggs had not torn his ACL in a practice before week 3. 

No. 1 receivers have also done okay against Dallas. Keenan Allen had 85 yards two weeks ago. Garrett Wilson had 83 yards in week 2. Kupp is better than both of those guys. He averages more yards than any receiver per contest over the last three seasons. Kupp had a bad day and he left fantasy managers disappointed. Don’t worry, however, because he’ll be back to the usual Kupp on Sunday.

The theme of the first two picks: bounce-back candidates. Now, we go back to the most reliable team in football, the Kansas City Chiefs. Never doubt Kansas City. The Chiefs are inevitable. Andy Reid is still calling plays. Travis Kelce is a monster. Patrick Mahomes is Patrick Mahomes. He can do it all.

The Chiefs’ next opponent is a road matchup with the “mighty” Denver Broncos. Kansas City’s team over/under is 27.5 points with -102 odds at DraftKings Sportsbook. This has to be a joke. Even odds to bet the over? Yes please.

The Broncos defense is atrocious. Denver gives up the most points per game and yards per game in the NFL. To its credit, the Broncos defense played relatively well against the Chiefs a few weeks ago. Kansas City only scored 19 points. Mahomes had one touchdown and an interception. That game was a Thursday-night affair, which can produce some lower-scoring games. We’re not expecting a repeat effort from Denver.

Since 2018, the Chiefs have gone 11-0 against the Broncos. K.C. has averaged 27.7 points-per-game in those contests. In four of the five road games, the Chiefs have gone over 27.5 points. In other words, K.C. actually plays more up to its ability on the road rather than at home when facing Denver. Don’t overthink this: It’s Mahomes against a bad defense. He just torched a bad defense in the Chargers last week. The MVP should do so again this time around.

Before you go, check out our Best Bets for Week 8 of the 2023 NFL season.