After a little hiatus, 5 Bets is back and I am hoping to capitalize on some of the success I had before the summer.
We are going to lean heavy on football this week. There are two college games I really like and two NFL games I am partial to. For the final bet we are going to go with the F1 race in Japan.
5 Bets to Make this Week
Houston Texans +9.5 to cover against Jacksonville Jaguars
Las Vegas Raiders -2.5 over Pittsburgh Steelers
UNLV Rebels -2.5 over UTEP Miners
Oregon Ducks -20.5 over Colorado Buffaloes
Max Verstappen -350 to win Japanese Grand Prix
For the six months prior to my little break, I was at about 48% correct in my picks. I will keep track and update weekly and hopefully can improve on my previous record.
Houston Keeps Steady Against Jacksonville
The Houston Texans have been a pain in the neck for the Jacksonville Jaguars over the years. That is especially true from a betting angle. The Texans are 9-1 SU and 7-3 ATS versus Jacksonville since 2018.
The Texans are supposed to be bad. They lost their previous two games by 11 and 16 points.
But the Jaguars were supposed to threaten for the AFC South title. They beat up on the Indianapolis Colts but came back the next week and played poorly against the Kansas City Chiefs at home. Houston held Trevor Lawrence without a touchdown last season.
I don’t think the Texans are going to win, but getting 9.5 points is worth taking a flier on Houston.
Best Bet: Houston +9.5 to cover against Jacksonville (-110 at BetRivers)
Watch: Sunday, 1 p.m., FOX or fuboTV
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Raiders Get by Tired Steelers at Home
I am always leery about teams that have to play on short rest. I am doubly skeptical when they have to travel across the country to do it.
The Pittsburgh Steelers played on Monday and now have to travel to Nevada to take on the Las Vegas Raiders.
The Steelers did look pretty good against the Cleveland Browns, but fatigue is definitely a factor here. This is also the Raiders home opener so they have a little more adrenaline going into Sunday.
This will be a tight game, but one the Raiders win by a field goal.
Best Bet: Raiders -2.5 over Steelers (-120 at Caesars)
Watch: Sunday, 5:20 p.m. ET, NBC or fuboTV
UNLV Rides Momentum
I witnessed last week’s game between the UNLV Rebels and the Vanderbilt Commodores in person. Just when you thought the Rebels were going to act like last year’s team and find a way to lose a game they should win, they actually pulled out a victory.
Now they take that confidence of beating an SEC team and go to Texas to take on a UTEP Miners team that is reeling. This is considered a must-win game for UTEP. Those always seem to never materialize.
Best Bet: UNLV -2.5 over UTEP (-110 at Caesars)
Watch: Saturday, 6 p.m. ET, ESPN+ or fuboTV
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Welcome to Reality Colorado
I like a good Cinderella story as much as the next guy, but the fairy tale ends for the Colorado Buffaloes on Saturday. They are traveling to the Great Northwest to take on the Oregon Ducks.
This game won’t be pretty. Colorado’s defense has been suspect all year. They allowed 42 points in one game and 35 in another. Now they face the No. 10 Ducks who have been steamrolling teams. They hung 81 points in their opener and 55 last week.
As much as I respect what Deion Sanders is doing at CU this is going to be a big reality check for him.
Best Bet: Oregon -20.5 over Colorado (-115 at BetMGM)
Watch: Saturday, 12:30 p.m. ET, ABC or fuboTV
Verstappen back to Winning Ways
The dominance shown by Max Verstappen has been mind numbing. He has won 10 of the last 11 races. So, it came as a shock when he finished fifth last week at the Singapore Grand Prix.
This week Formula 1 is in Japan and this is where Verstappen rights the Red Bull car. The odds for him are set at a ridiculous -350, with the next driver, teammate Sergio Perez at +1100.
Verstappen should be in the winner’s circle once again and this could be the start of a new streak.
Best Bet: Max Verstappen to win Japanese Grand Prix (-350 at BetMGM)
Watch: Sunday, 10 p.m. ET, ESPN 2
