The NFL has two teams favored by at least 20 points in the same week for only the second time in league history.
Four days before the Sunday slate of Week 3 games, the New England Patriots and Dallas Cowboys are more than three-touchdown favorites by most sportsbooks. The only other time there has been two favorites of at least 20 points in the same week was Week 5 of the 1987 season, according to Cool Media research.
Neither team covered the spread that week, and teams favored by 20-plus points are just 2-9 against the spread in NFL history — including the Patriots shutting out the Miami Dolphins 43-0 last week.
The Dolphins are on the tail end of another one of the massive spreads this week, listed as 21.5-point underdogs to the Dallas Cowboys by PointsBet and DraftKings. Miami, which now has three first-round picks in the 2020 draft following this week’s trade of defensive back Minkah Fitzpatrick, has lost its first two games by a combined 92 points but has decided to stick with quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick.
Fresh off their beatdown of the Dolphins, the Patriots are again the week’s biggest favorite. New England is a 22.5-point favorite by both books, having won its first two games by a combined 73 points and facing a battered 0-2 New York Jets team turning to first-time starting quarterback Luke Falk.
While the Jets are already on their third starting quarterback in as many weeks, the Pittsburgh Steelers and New Orleans Saints are also turning to backups.
The Steelers are 6.5-point underdogs with rookie Mason Rudolph preparing to start at the San Francisco 49ers. The Saints have yet to name whether Teddy Bridgewater or Taysom Hill will start in place of Drew Brees in Seattle, where New Orleans is a four-point underdog.
