NFL Preseason Week 2 Odds, Lines, Spreads, and Picks

• The lines have been posted for Week 2 of the NFL preseason
• The Las Vegas Raiders are surprising 7-point road favorites over the Los Angeles Rams
• All the odds can be found below along with some best bets for preseason Week 2

The second week of NFL preseason action gets underway on Thursday. Already, fans of teams that were Week 1 winners – as well as fans of teams that ended up suffering first-week setbacks – are reading too much into the results.

There are some interesting opening point spreads entering Week 2. Eight of the 16 games show the visiting team as the favorite. So much for the return of capacity crowds creating a home-field advantage.

NFL Preseason Week 2 Odds

Odds as of August 16th at DraftKings.

That the New York Jets are favored anywhere is a story in itself. That the Jets are favored over the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field is how you know that this is the NFL preseason.

In fact, the Jets as the 1.5-point chalk over the Packers in Green Bay might not even be the biggest shocker of Week 2. The ever-inconsistent Las Vegas Raiders are giving seven points to the hometown Los Angeles Rams as the Raiders return to one of the many cities they’ve previously called home.

This betting line is because Rams coach Sean McVay refuses to play his starters in preseason.

Haskins Looking Like a Steal

Sure, it’s preseason but what Dwayne Haskins has shown in two appearances with the Pittsburgh Steelers is indicating a couple of things. Firstly, maybe he actually was worth that 2019 first-round pick that Washington spent on him. Secondly, perhaps he’s learned his lesson about personal responsibility since Washington was so willing to give up on him as quickly as they did.

During a 24-16 win at Philadelphia over the Eagles, Haskins completed 16 of 22 passes for 161 yards and a touchdown. So far, he’s clearly winning the battle with Mason Rudolph for the backup job behind Ben Roethlisberger. Based on Rudolph’s preseason performance, his two claims to fame remain the same – that Myles Garrett tried to crown him with his own helmet and he’s Eugenie Bouchard’s main squeeze.

Looking. Looking. Rolling. TOUCHDOWN.@dh_simba7 | @litmanjohnson

Watch #PITvsPHI on NFL Game Pass: https://t.co/ZXSzM8uXYI pic.twitter.com/GMmLCFcZbC

— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) August 13, 2021

Jared Goff was impressive in his Lions debut. He was 7-of-9 for 56 yards. He even engineered an 18-play drive, an NFL first for Goff. That it ended without a TD was Goff’s welcome to life as a Lion moment.

In regular season play, Detroit most recently won at Pittsburgh two years prior to the Lions’ last NFL championship season. Detroit’s most recent NFL title was earned in 1957, so yeah, it’s been awhile.

Pick: Pittsburgh Steelers -6 (-125)

Super Bowl Rematch

How time flies. It’s closing in on five years since Nick Foles led the Eagles to their shocking Super Bowl triumph over Tom Brady and the New England Patriots.

Foles is on his second NFL team since the Eagles. Brady is a Super Bowl champion, albeit in Tampa Bay. In their stead, both the Eagles (Jalen Hurts) and Patriots (Mac Jones) are looking to young former Alabama QBs to lead them back to glory.

🃏🃏🃏 @MacJones_10

Welcome to the @NFL

Watch #NFLPreseason on @NFLNetwork#BuiltByBama #RollTide
pic.twitter.com/RLyf1KncX8

— Alabama Football (@AlabamaFTBL) August 13, 2021

Hurts is struggling in his sophomore training camp and those problems continued against the Steelers.  He posted a passer rating of 69.9, completing 3-of-7 for 54 yards.

Subbing in for starter Cam Newton, Jones finished 13-of-19 for 87 yards in his NFL debut and looked poised under center. He led the Patriots to a pair of field goals in two series.

Pick: New England Patriots -1.5 (-115)

Jets Are Soaring

Another absolute proof that it’s preseason – the unbeaten Jets are arriving in Green Bay. Zach Wilson, the Jets’ 2021 first-round pick, was solid in his first taste of NFL action. He fashioned drives of 10 and 11 plays during a 12-7 win over their Meadowlands rivals the New York Giants. He led them to a field goal during his two drives at the helm of the offense.

Wilson displayed poise in the pocket and made good decisions with the football. He was 6-for-9 for 63 yards and didn’t wow anyone. But he also didn’t make any boneheaded rookie mistakes. On the other hand, he achieved all of this against the second-string defense of a Giants team that went 6-10 last season.

.@ZachWilson makes his #NFLPreseason debut ✈️ #NYJvsNYG pic.twitter.com/41V5e8Bvom

— NFL (@NFL) August 14, 2021

Aaron Rodgers isn’t expected to see any preseason action, so it will be 2020 first-round pick Jordan Love who will likely get the start for Green Bay against the Jets. In his first-ever NFL drive last week against the Houston Texans, Love went 6-for-6 for 89 yards and a TD.

Love didn’t exactly conquer all – the Packers lost 26-7 – but he did post a passer rating of 110.4 for his half of work. However, his day was cut short when he was sacked by Jonathan Greenard late in the first half. Love fumbled and also injured his shoulder on the play, finishing his day. Packers head coach Matt LaFleur originally intended to give Love the first three quarters to show what he’s got.

An MRI of the shoulder proved negative. Love is expected to be good to go for this game.

Pick: Green Bay Packers +1.5 (-115)