Monday Night Football Odds Week 3: Eagles @ Buccaneers
At DraftKings Sportsbook Kentucky, the Philadelphia Eagles are laying less than a touchdown in an NFC clash against the Buccaneers.
Philadelphia won its first two games by five and six points, respectively. The Eagles covered the 3.5-point spread in a 25-20 Week 1 victory at New England. They followed that with a 34-28 home win over the Minnesota Vikings in the Week 2 Thursday Night Football game, pushing as a 6-point favorite.
Tampa Bay also has kicked off the 2023-24 season with a pair of victories. After upsetting the Vikings 20-17 as a 4.5-point road underdog in Week 1, the Bucs upended the Chicago Bears 27-17 as a 2.5-point home favorite.
Going back to last year, Tampa Bay is on a 5-2 run in regular-season home games but is just 2-4-1 ATS.
Philadelphia has won 12 of its last 13 regular-season road games that quarterback Jalen Hurts has started, including the last 10 in a row. The Eagles were favored in all 13 games but went just 6-7 ATS.
Tampa Bay has defeated Philadelphia four straight times (3-1 ATS). In the most recent meeting, the Bucs rolled 31-15 as a 7.5-point home favorite in a 2021-22 wild card playoff game.
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Monday Night Football Odds Week 3: Rams @ Bengals
Before the season started, the Bengals were a 7.5-point favorite at DraftKings Sportsbook Kentucky for this Monday Night Football battle against Los Angeles. However, that point spread has come down 5 full points.
The main reason: QB Joe Burrow aggravated a calf injury in his team's 27-24 home loss to Baltimore in Week 2. Burrow's status is uncertain for Monday's game, which is a rematch of Super Bowl 57 where the Rams eked out a 23-20 victory as a 4.5-point favorite.
The Bengals, who were throttled 24-3 at Cleveland in Week 1, are off to an 0-2 start for the second straight season. Last year, though, Cincinnati rallied to win 14 of its next 16 games before falling to the Kansas City Chiefs 23-20 in the AFC Championship Game.
Despite the results of their first two games, the Bengals are still on a 21-7-1 ATS run (playoffs included).
The Rams followed up a 30-13 upset win over Seattle in Week 1 with a 30-23 loss to San Francisco. However, L.A. kicked a field goal on the final play of the game to cover as a 7.5-point underdog. One bright spot for the Rams has been WR Puka Nacua, whose 25 receptions through two games are an NFL record for a rookie.
Los Angeles has now covered in seven of their last nine games. Including Super Bowl 57, the last five Bengals-Rams clashes have stayed under the total. The highest-scoring meeting was the Super Bowl (43 combined points).
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MNF Betting Odds: 2023 Schedule Breakdown
The 2023 Monday Night Football schedule not only offers a bevy of intriguing matchups but also several new wrinkles.
For instance, ESPN, ABC and ESPN+ will air doubleheaders in Weeks 2, 3, 14, and 18.
Also, the NFL has added flex scheduling to MNF for the first time in its 53-year history. Beginning in Week 12, ESPN and the NFL can rearrange the Monday Night Football schedule to ensure matchups between playoff contenders.
The first three Monday Night Football games of the 2022-23 season have been divisional battles.
In Week 1, the New York Jets scored a 22-16 overtime victory over the Buffalo Bills as a 2.5-point home underdog. The victory came at a steep price, though, as New York lost QB Aaron Rodgers to a season-ending Achilles injury on just his fourth play.
Week 2 featured the first of three Monday Night Football doubleheaders. The New Orleans Saints knocked off the Carolina Panthers 20-17, pushing as a 3-point road favorite. Then the Pittsburgh Steelers rallied for their 21st consecutive Monday Night Football home win, beating the Cleveland Browns 26-22 as a 2.5-point home underdog.
Favorites are 1-2 straight-up so far on Monday Night Football, but 0-2-1 ATS. Two of the three games have stayed under the posted total.
Best MNF Matchups Based On Betting Odds
These are my top 3 NFL betting options for Monday Night Football games this season:
Cowboys-Chargers
Fans of offense will want to tune into this Week 6 Monday night clash, as the Cowboys and Chargers possess enough firepower to short-circuit the scoreboard at SoFi Stadium. Both teams boast star quarterbacks—Dallas with Dak Prescott, Los Angeles with Justin Herbert—and both gunslingers have plenty of explosive weapons at their disposal.
Although the last two meetings between these squads were low scoring (28-6 in 2017; 20-17 in 2021), this matchup projects as a shootout. In fact, the Cowboys (40 points) and Chargers (34) combined for 74 points in Week 1.
Eagles-Chiefs
NFL fans and bettors will be treated to a delicious pre-Thanksgiving appetizer on Nov. 20: A rematch of last year’s Super Bowl between the Eagles and Chiefs.
When DraftKings released odds for every NFL regular season game in mid-May, Philadelphia was favored in all but three of its 17 contests. One of the exceptions was this showdown in Kansas City.
Worth noting: The Eagles have failed to cover the spread in their last four games as an underdog. However, the Chiefs are just 2-7-1 ATS in their last 10 games as a home favorite last season (including two playoff games).
🔥 MORE: Latest Super Bowl Odds
Ravens-49ers
Another Super Bowl rematch caps a Christmas Day triple-header, with the 49ers welcoming Baltimore to the Bay Area. The two franchises met in Super Bowl XLVII in February 2013, with the Ravens holding on for a 34-31 victory. Baltimore is 5-1 against the Niners this century, including 3-0 in San Francisco.
The 49ers, who opened as a favorite in all but one game this season, went 9-1 ATS as a home favorite last year (playoffs included). Baltimore went 3-1-2 ATS as an underdog in 2022-23.
Worst MNF Matchups Based On Betting Odds
Seahawks-Giants
Both Seattle and New York were surprise playoff entrants last season. That said, the teams finished a combined 18-15-1, so it’s difficult to get overly excited about this Monday Night Football clash on Oct. 2.
New York did finish with the NFL’s season-best point spread record last year at 13-4 ATS — including 8-0 ATS in games decided by six points or less.
Bears-Vikings
There's no love lost between these NFC North rivals, which usually makes for must-see-TV when they meet under the prime-time spotlight. This season appears to be the exception, though.
Chicago and Minnesota have each lost their first two games. And given how both teams have looked so far, this post-Thanksgiving Weekend contest seems destined to be clash of sub-.500 teams.
Titans-Dolphins
The last time these AFC foes butted heads in Week 17 two seasons ago, Tennessee cruised to a 34-3 home victory. Oddsmakers envision a similar mismatch when the Titans travel to Miami on Dec. 11 — this time with the Dolphins delivering the beatdown.
Miami was favored by 7-plus points twice last season, going 1-1 ATS. Tennessee is 5-5-1 ATS as an underdog of 7 points or more since the start of the 2017 season.
🔥 MORE: Colts vs Titans Odds
2023 Monday Night Football Schedule
Other marquee Monday Night Football matchups that are likely to generate tremendous NFL betting interest include: Browns vs. Steelers (Week 2), Cowboys vs. Chargers (Week 6), 49ers vs. Vikings (Week 7), and Chiefs vs. Patriots (Week 15).
Here’s the entire 2023 Monday Night Football schedule (*-denotes games that can be flexed)
🔥 More: TNF Odds
How To Bet On Monday Night Football Odds
Looking to place wagers on Monday Night Football games this season? There are multiple ways to do so at retail and online sportsbooks from coast to coast.
More: Bet MNF Odds with BetMGM Sportsbook in Kentucky
Monday Night Football Live Betting
There was a time not so long ago when all NFL bets had to be placed prior to kickoff. Now, thanks to live betting, you can fire off wagers from the moment a game begins until the final whistle.
After each play, oddsmakers adjust live-betting point spreads, moneylines and totals, as well as the corresponding odds.
As the numbers continuously move, bettors can wager on everything from total combined points scored by both teams in a given quarter to whether the team leading (or trailing) will win the game by a certain range of points.
More: Live Bet MNF with FanDuel Sportsbook in Kentucky
Bet the MNF Moneyline
Betting the moneyline in a Monday Night Football game makes sense if you believe the team that’s favored will win the game but you aren’t confident it will cover the point spread. It also makes sense if you believe the underdog has a good chance to pull off an upset.
Keep in mind that the bigger the point spread is, the greater the moneyline odds (and vice versa). That means you have to wager a lot to win a little when betting a big favorite on the moneyline (or wager a little to win a lot when betting an underdog on the moneyline).
Conversely, when the point spread is short — for instance, -2/+2 — the moneyline odds are short, too.
More: Bet the MNF Moneyline with bet365 Sportsbook in Kentucky
Bet the MNF Spread
Most bettors who wager on Monday Night Football games tend to gravitate toward the point spread.
Established by oddsmakers, the point spread is a number that reflects the perceived talent discrepancy between the two teams.
For example, in the Week 6 Monday Night Football game last season, the Los Angeles Chargers were favored by 5.5 points over the Denver Broncos. The Chargers prevailed 19-16, but bettors who took Denver on the point spread won their wager because the Broncos lost by fewer than 5.5 points. Those who made point spread bets on the Chargers lost because Los Angeles didn’t win by enough points.
More: Bet the MNF Spread with Caesars Sportsbook in Kentucky
MNF Props
Don’t have a strong opinion on the point spread, moneyline or total for a Monday Night Football game, but still want to get some action down? Consider dabbling in the Monday Night Football props market.
Sportbooks offer a bevy of prop bet options tied to player, team and game outcomes. For instance, you can wager on a quarterback to go Over or Under his projected passing yardage totals; a team to go Over or Under its projected total points scored; or whether there will be points scored in the final two minutes of a game.
As with traditional Monday Night Football wagers, it’s important to first research matchups and tendencies before deciding which prop bets to make.
More: Bet MNF Props with ESPN BET Sportsbook in Kentucky (formerly Barstool Sportsbook)
MNF Parlays
You can build Monday Night Football parlay bets in a variety of ways, the most common being combining the point spread or moneyline with the total (or Over/Under).
Sportsbooks allow customers to create Monday Night Football parlays linked to the outcomes of the first half, second half or full game. Some operators also permit parlaying player, team and game prop bets.
Just remember: Winning a parlay requires winning each side of two or more wagers. And while the potential payout rises with each “leg” that you add to your parlay, so does the degree of difficulty that you’ll hit it.
More: Bet MNF Parlays with DraftKings Sportsbook in Kentucky
Historical MNF Betting Trends
Home teams have dominated on the scoreboard in Monday Night Football in the last five seasons, going 53-34 (not including two neutral-site games). At the betting window, however, visitors have turned a profit at 45-39-3 ATS (53.6%).
Similarly, favorites have won 67.4% of all Monday Night Football games since the start of the 2018 season (60-29). However, underdogs are 47-39-3 ATS (54.7%).
Also, heavy favorites — teams laying 6 points or more — are on a 26-9 straight-up roll on Monday Night Football since 2018. However, they’ve gone just 14-20-1 ATS.
MNF Betting Tips
Homefield advantage is a big deal in the NFL, and that’s especially true on Monday Night Football.
In fact, not including two neutral-site contests, home teams have won 53 of 86 Monday Night Football games since the start of the 2018 season. That equates to a 61.6% win rate.
However, the host hasn’t exactly been paying dividends at the betting window on Monday nights. Since 2018, Monday Night Football visitors have covered the point spread 53.6% of the time (45-39-3 ATS).
This is just one of several intriguing—and somewhat surprising—Monday Night Football betting trends.
No. 1: Think twice before betting favorites on the point spread
Not only have home teams struggled to cover the point spread on Monday Night Football in recent years, but so too have favorites.
In the past five seasons, favorites have won 67.4% of all Monday Night Football games (60-29). However, underdogs are 47-39-3 ATS (54.7%).
If you wagered $110 on every Monday Night Football favorite since 2018, you would be down $1,270 — even though those favorites prevailed on the scoreboard more than two-thirds of the time.
No. 2: Be particularly wary about backing big favorites
There have been 35 teams favored by 6+ points on Monday Night Football since the start of the 2018 season. Those favorites have gone 26-9 straight-up (a sizzling 74.3%). Their record against the point spread, though? Just 14-20-1.
What about short favorites on Monday Night Football (teams giving 3 points or fewer)? They have lost more games (15) than they've won (14), while going 11-16-2 ATS.
No. 3: Don’t go “Over”-board on totals bets
Oddsmakers know that bettors love to wager on Monday Night Football games to be high scoring. They often take advantage of that reality by posting inflated Over/Under totals.
That partly explains why the Under has hit in 56.3% of all Monday Night Football games since 2018 (38 Overs, 49 Unders, two pushes). If you blindly bet $110 on the Under in the last 89 Monday night contests, you’d be up $720.
MNF Most Memorable Games in NFL History
Since its debut in 1970, Monday Night Football has delivered more than a few memorable games. Here are three all-timers that brought viewers (and bettors) to the edge of their seats.
Jets @ Dolphins (Week 8, 2000)
New York took the field as a 3-point home favorite over its AFC East rival on Oct. 23, 2000. However, by the time the fourth quarter rolled around, the Dolphins were holding a 30-7 lead.
The Jets then proceeded to score 30 points — including 23 unanswered — to send the game to overtime.
Place-kicker John Hall capped the comeback less than three minutes into OT, drilling a 40-yard field goal to give New York a 40-37 victory in what would come to be known as the “Monday Night Miracle.”
Colts @ Buccaneers (Week 5, 2003)
In 2003, during the first Monday in October, the Buccaneers hosted the Indianapolis Colts, with all eyes on the Colts Super Bowl odds after a 4-0 start to the season. The reigning Super Bowl champions, the Buccaneers, showcased their prowess by surging ahead with leads of 21-0, 28-7, and 35-14.
However, it was at this juncture that Peyton Manning donned his metaphorical Superman cape, orchestrating a remarkable comeback. In the final 3½ minutes of regulation time, Manning led the Colts to three consecutive touchdowns, forcing the game into overtime.
In the ensuing extra period, Indy received the ball first, sealing the victory with a field goal, stunning the NFL world with a 38-35 win as 4.5-point underdogs, significantly boosting the Colts playoff chances.
Chiefs @ Rams (Week 11, 2018)
Oddsmakers expected a ton of points on Nov. 19, 2018, when rookie quarterback Patrick Mahomes led the Kansas City Chiefs into Los Angeles for a Monday night battle with the high-flying Rams.
In fact, the posted total of 63.5 was (and remains) the largest in NFL history. Yet it took less than three quarters for the two teams to blow past that number.
When the shootout finally ended, the Rams walked away with a 54-51 victory — the third highest-scoring game in NFL history.
How To Watch Monday Night Football in 2023
ESPN enters its 18th season as the home of Monday Night Football, with games also being broadcast on sister networks ABC, ESPN2 and ESPN Deportes. Additionally, the network will carry 10 games on its streaming service, ESPN+.
Longtime broadcast partners Joe Buck and Hall of Famer Troy Aikman enter their second season as the voices of Monday Night Football.
Also, the “Manning Cast” featuring brothers Peyton and Eli Manning returns to ESPN2 for 10 games.
Final Word on 2023 MNF Odds
This year’s Monday Night Football slate is loaded with marquee matchups, fascinating storylines and — most importantly to many — quality betting opportunities.
Each week, sportsbooks across the country will offer a dizzying array of Monday Night Football odds. The wagering menu will include point spreads, moneylines, totals, props, parlays, live wagering and more.
In other words, there will be plenty of options for Monday Night Football bettors to cap a profitable week with one more winning wager — or recoup some losses.
Monday Night Football Odds FAQs
The Eagles (-4.5) and Bengals (-2.5) are favored to win on Monday night in Week 3. This is the second of three MNF doubleheaders in the 2022 season. While the home team is generally favored on Monday Night Football, the visitor has been laying points in the four of the first five MNF contests to start this season.
Monday Night Football bets can be placed at sportsbooks across the country in states and jurisdictions that have legalized and regulated sports betting. All major sportsbooks will take Monday Night Football wagers on the point spread, moneyline, and total, as well as props and parlays. Most sportsbooks also offer live (or in-game) betting.
The highest-scoring Monday Night Football game happened in 2018. The Los Angeles Rams defeated the Kansas City Chiefs 54-51 on Nov. 19. The 105 combined points topped the previous record of 95 set in 1983, when the Green Bay Packers defeated Washington 48-47.
Over the past five seasons, the home team has won nearly 61.6% of all Monday Night Football games (not including two contests played at neutral sites). During this span, home teams are 53-34. However, road teams have been more successful covering the point spread, going 45-39-3 ATS.
The Seattle Seahawks own the best winning percentage in Monday Night Football history. Seattle is 29-12 (70.7%). Among teams that have played at least 50 games, the San Francisco 49ers have the top record at 52-29 (64.2%). San Francisco's 52 Monday Night Football victories are topped only by the Pittsburgh Steelers (56).
Two bitter AFC West rivals — the Denver Broncos and Las Vegas (formerly Oakland) Raiders — have clashed 20 times on Monday Night Football. The next most-frequent matchup in the 53-year history of Monday Night Football is Dallas vs. Washington. The NFC East rivals have squared off 17 times.
ESPN has been the exclusive home for Monday Night Football since 2006. This year, the network also will air multiple games on ABC, as well as its streaming service, ESPN+. ESPN Deportes will broadcast all Spanish-language Monday Night Football games, and 10 contests will be simulcast on ESPN2 with hosts (and brothers) Peyton & Eli Manning.
The first Monday Night Football game of the 2023 season was played September 11 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The New York Jets prevailed 22-16 in overtime despite being a 2.5-point home underdog. The biggest headline from the game was Aaron Rodgers suffering a season-ending Achilles injury.
Author
Matt Jacob is a Las Vegas-based writer, editor and project manager who has been involved in the sports betting industry for nearly 20 years. His sports betting work has appeared in a variety of print publications and online platforms, including the Philadelphia Inquirer, The New York Post, Forbes.com, Props.com and VegasSeven magazine.
