NFL Week 8 Expert Betting Picks and Predictions

Each week throughout the NFL season, the staff here at FanDuel Research will bring you their three favorite bets on the board -- one side, one total, and one player prop. They'll share some insight into one of the picks to provide you with reasoning as to why they're on that bet.

All odds come from the NFL odds at FanDuel Sportsbook.

Note: Betting lines and numberFire's player projections may change after this article is published.

NFL Expert Betting Picks for Week 8

Jim Sannes, Digital Media Managing Editor

Side: Los Angeles Rams +6.5 (-115)

The Cowboys aren't as bad as they've played at times this year -- but this number undersells the Rams. They're currently 12th in my model (which blends 2023 data with a prior), not terribly far behind the Cowboys once you account for their defensive injuries. I do think Dallas will tick up now that their offensive line is healthy, but the Rams should be able to keep pace with their offense also at full health. I think this'll be a competitive game, so I'm happy to take the points with where things currently stand.

Total: Detroit Lions at Las Vegas Raiders Over 45.5 (-115)

Player Prop: D'Onta Foreman Under 48.5 Rushing Yards (-114)

Austin Swaim, Senior Editor

Side: Denver Broncos +7.5 (-120)

This is the loudest betting line of the week. Despite Brandon Staley's first-half oversight of Travis Kelce last week, this Chiefs offense still isn't right. Against Denver's leaky defense two weeks ago, K.C. posted just 0.05 Net Expected Points (NEP) per play, per numberFire's model. That would be just the 13th-best mark overall in the league this season. The Broncos are getting north of a touchdown when they routinely play low-scoring games at Empower Field; the under is 47-22-1 in Denver since the start of 2015. Eventually, Patrick Mahomes' 29-3 record against the AFC West will regress, and this chilly road game could be a surprising spot for it to happen.

Total: Houston Texans at Carolina Panthers Over 43.5 (-110)

Player Prop: Dameon Pierce Anytime TD (-110)

Austan Kas, Senior Editor

Side: Denver Broncos +7.5 (-120)

Total: Philadelphia Eagles at Washington Commanders Under 43.5 (-115)

Player Prop: DeVonta Smith Over 51.5 Receiving Yards (-114)

A.J. Brown has been dominating lately, but the underlying numbers for Devonta Smith still look pretty good. He's got a 100% route participation clip this year and has played 98% of the snaps. While Smith's 21.9% target share won't blow you away, his 29.0% air yards share is a quality mark. Smith is due for an outburst, and I think it comes this week versus a Washington defense that has allowed the sixth-most net yards per pass attempt.

Tom Vecchio, Editor

Side: Pittsburgh Steelers +2.5 (-106)

Total: Los Angeles Rams at Dallas Cowboys Under 45.5 (-118)

Player Prop: Breece Hall Over 69.5 Rushing Yards (-114)

The Giants' defense is horrible against the run this season having allowed the second-most (857) rushing yards to opposing running backs. Hall comes in controlling 56% of the Jets' rushing attempts, which should allow him to cruise over this prop.

Kenyatta Storin, Editor

Side: New York Jets -3.0 (-102)

Total: Houston Texans at Carolina Panthers Over 43.5 (-110)

This matchup projects as one of the fastest in terms of pace, and both teams rank outside the top 20 in schedule-adjusted defense, per numberFire. Bryce Young and this Panthers offense have struggled, but they've had a bye week to reset and have made a change at play-caller, which could provide a boost. If nothing else, we can be quite confident in Houston's side, as C.J. Stroud and friends actually come in as numberFire's sixth-best adjusted offense.

Player Prop: Tank Dell Over 46.5 Receiving Yards (-114)

Aidan Cotter, Writer

Side: Green Bay Packers +1.5 (-105)

Total: Houston Texans at Carolina Panthers Over 43.5 (-110)

Player Prop: Christian Kirk Over 55.5 Rec Yards (-114)

Christian Kirk has eclipsed this yardage mark in four of seven games thus far (and missed it by two yards in another). He's commanded a team-high 25.4% target share since Week 2, while the Jaguars have passed at the fifth-highest rate over expectation (3.5%) for the season. This week, he faces a Steelers secondary that has allowed the fourth-most yards per route run (2.01) and the third-highest target rate (23.3%) to opposing wide receivers. Expect another big game for Jacksonville's No. 1 pass catcher.

Zack Bussiere, Writer

Side: Houston Texans -3.5 (-102)

Total: New Orleans Saints at Indianapolis Colts Over 43.5 (-110)

Player Prop: DeVonta Smith Over 51.5 Receiving Yards (-114)

It's been the A.J. Brown show in the Eagles' passing game so far this season, but DeVonta Smith remains heavily involved -- the production just hasn't matched the opportunity -- yet. So far this season, Smith has a 99% route participation, 22.0% target share, and 13.2 average depth of target. In Week 8 he will face a Commanders pass defense that ranks 28th in numberFire's schedule-adjusted metrics. Washington surrendered 311 passing yards when these teams met back in Week 4 and has allowed at least 250 passing yards in each game since. This is an excellent spot for Philadelphia's entire passing game and a get-right spot for Smith.

Gabriel Santiago, Writer

Side: Philadelphia Eagles -7.0 (-112)

Total: New York Jets at New York Giants Over 36.5 (-115)

The Giants' defense has been quite porous in 2023. They are surrendering 24.9 PPG (23rd in NFL), so perhaps the Jets can continue building momentum against Big Blue. Over the past three games, Gang Green has propelled their scoring clip to 23.7 PPG over that stretch. Being a regional rivalry game, I expect these sides to push each other. Since 36.5 is the second-lowest total on the Week 8 board, I am going over.

Player Prop: A.J. Brown Anytime TD Scorer (+110)

Annie Nader, Writer

Side: Philadelphia Eagles -7.0 (-112)

Total: Houston Texans at Carolina Panthers Over 43.5 (-110)

Player Prop: Breece Hall Over 69.5 Rushing Yards (-114)

Breece Hall has reached the end zone in his last two games and is an up-and-coming fantasy darling at the running back spot. I think he’s primed for a huge game on the ground against the Giants, who are allowing 137.2 rush yards per game (27th) and letting up 122.43 of those yards to running backs (30th). Last week, the Giants gave up only 61 yards to the Commanders' backs, but in each game prior, they let up a minimum of 110 yards to this position. Given that Dalvin Cook has taken quite the back seat with carries (he ran the ball nine times to Hall’s 34 over the last two games), Hall should own the monopoly on carries against a team that is easily exploited on the ground.

Nick Vazquez, Writer

Side: Atlanta Falcons -2.5 (-122)

Total: New Orleans Saints at Indianapolis Colts Over 43.5 (-110)

Player Prop: Travis Kelce Over 80.5 Receiving Yards (-114)

Healthy and fully back after a few injuries slowed him down to start the year, Kelce has easily exceeded this total in the past two games. That includes two weeks ago against the same Denver Broncos, who are 32nd in numberFire's pass defense metric and 28th in adjusted fantasy points per target to tight ends. Kelce has seen 27% of the targets when he's been active this season and should be able to torch this Broncos defense this week.

Riley Thomas, Writer

Side: Atlanta Falcons -2.5 (-122)

Total: Jacksonville Jaguars at Pittsburgh Steelers Under 40.5 (-105)

Player Prop: DeVonta Smith Over 51.5 Receiving Yards (-114)

A.J. Brown has been the star of the show in Philadelphia, totaling over 125 receiving yards in five consecutive games. DeVonta Smith, who has not eclipsed 50 yards since Week 4, has been overshadowed during Brown’s blistering hot streak. Smith had a target margin share of only 16.7% last week compared to Brown’s 50.0%. However, it’s not like Smith is never getting targets in this offense. He still has a 22.0% target margin share on the season. The Eagles face the Commanders, who have numberFire’s fifth-worst adjusted pass defense. I like Smith to get back on track, going over his receiving yard total.

Scott Edwards, Writer

Side: Cincinnati Bengals +4.5 (-105)

Total: Detroit Lions at Las Vegas Raiders over 45.5 (-115)

Player Prop: A.J. Brown Over 89.5 Receiving Yards (-114)

A.J. Brown has been a machine offensively since Week 3, and I don't see that stopping here. The Eagles wideout has recorded over 125 yards for four straight games, including a 175-yard performance against the Commanders in Week 4. With a 32.6% target market share and 49.1% air yards market share, he's an undeniable play to do it again against the poor Washington defense.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.