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It wasn’t hard to see where betting on the NFL preseason took a dramatic shift from last year:
The scoreboards have lit up a lot more so far in 2022.
Of 16 games in Week 1 of the preseason, 13 went over the total. That’s in addition to the Hall of Fame Game on Aug. 4, which also went over, making preseason games 14-3 to the over thus far.
Contrast that to last year, when unders started 20-3 in the preseason and drove totals down for the rest of the preseason.
The opposite has happened this year, with Week 2 totals much higher on average than in Week 1: Opening lines at Caesars Sportsbook showed 13 of the 16 games with opening totals of 40 or higher — none were that high last week. The high water mark as of Wednesday is the Steelers-Jaguars game Saturday, which has a total of 43.
The lowest opening total on the Week 2 slate was 37½ between the Texans and Rams — higher than the highest opening total of Week 1, which was 36½.
Is that an overreaction? That’s for the bettor to decide.
As for Week 1 spread bets: While six underdogs won outright, most of them were very small spreads. Overall, favorites went 9-7 against the spread, including a 4-2 ATS mark for favorites of a field goal or more.
This week, 10 games have spreads of three points or more, including the Seahawks, who are 3.5-point favorites over the Bears on Thursday night. The biggest favorite is the Baltimore Ravens, who play Sunday night at Arizona with a 21-game preseason winning streak on the line. Baltimore is 6-point road chalk.
Below is the full list of the NFL preseason Week 2 point spreads from Caesars Sportsbook, including money lines and over/unders.
NFL preseason Week 2 lines
THURSDAY, AUG. 18
Chicago Bears at Seattle Seahawks, 7 p.m. (ESPN)
Line: Seahawks -3½; Money line: Seahawks -175/Bears +150; O/U: 39
FRIDAY, AUG. 19
Carolina Panthers at New England Patriots, 6 p.m. (NFL Network)
Line: Panthers -1½; Money line: Panthers -125/Panthers +105; O/U: 40
New Orleans Saints at Green Bay Packers, 7 p.m.
Line: Packers -3; Money line: Packers -150/Saints +130; O/U: 39½
Houston Texans at Los Angeles Rams, 9 p.m. (NFL Network)
Line: Texans -3; Money line: Texans -170/Rams +145; O/U: 38½
SATURDAY, AUG. 20
Denver Broncos at Buffalo Bills, noon (NFL Network)
Line: Bills -5; Money line: Bills -210/Broncos +175; O/U: 41½
Detroit Lions at Indianapolis Colts, noon
Line: Lions -1½; Money line: Lions -120/Colts +100; O/U: 41½
Washington Commanders at Kansas City Chiefs, 3 p.m. (NFL Network)
Line: Chiefs -4; Money line: Chiefs -190/Commanders +160; O/U: 42½
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Tennessee Titans, 6 p.m. (NFL Network)
Line: Titans -2½; Money line: Titans -145/Bucs +125; O/U: 38
Las Vegas Raiders at Miami Dolphins, 6 p.m.
Line: Raiders -2; Money line: Raiders -130/Dolphins +110; O/U: 41½
San Francisco 49ers at Minnesota Vikings, 6 p.m.
Line: Vikings -5½; Money line: Vikings -220/49ers +180; O/U: 39½
Pittsburgh Steelers at Jacksonville Jaguars, 6 p.m.
Line: Jaguars -3½; Money line: Jaguars -175/Steelers +150; O/U: 43
Dallas Cowboys at Los Angeles Chargers, 9 p.m. (NFL Network)
Line: Chargers -3; Money line: Chargers -160/Cowboys +140; O/U: 37½
SUNDAY, AUG. 21
Philadelphia Eagles at Cleveland Browns, noon (NFL Network)
Line: Eagles -2; Money line: Eagles -130/Browns +110; O/U: 37
Cincinnati Bengals at New York Giants, 6 p.m. (NFL Network)
Line: Giants -5½; Money line: Giants -250/Bengals +205; O/U: 39
Baltimore Ravens at Arizona Cardinals, 7 p.m. (Fox)
Line: Ravens -6; Money line: Ravens -260/Cardinals +210; O/U: 38½
MONDAY, AUG. 22
Atlanta Falcons at New York Jets, 7 p.m. (ESPN)
Line: Falcons -2; Money line: Falcons -135/Jets +115; O/U: 39½