NFL Week 6 Lines and Betting Picks 2020
Editor’s Note: Find a Thursday update and live betting lines for every Week 6 game toward the bottom of this article.
NFL Week 6 betting lines are moving fast at online sports betting sites even though we still have two Week 6 games left, including one on Tuesday night.
Now that we’re more than a quarter of the way through the 2020 NFL season, NFL betting is becoming less of a guessing game — but the same is true on the other side of the counter. Oddsmakers are adjusting accordingly. Compare the current NFL Week 6 line for the Ravens at Eagles to the lookahead line for the same game earlier this offseason, for example. At the time, the Ravens opened as 2.5-point favorites in May. Fast forward to Week 6, and the Ravens are favored by more than a touchdown on the road.
Bettors and oddsmakers alike will still have to make some assumptions when it comes to the Cardinals vs. Cowboys spread, in light of Dak Prescott’s season-ending injury. How much you think Prescott is worth to the spread will likely determine whether you’ll be betting on Kyler Murray and the Cardinals -2.5 or backing veteran quarterback Andy Dalton and the Cowboys, who have started the season 2-3 but have yet to cover a spread under new head coach Mike McCarthy.
Storylines lines are plentiful but there’s no bigger Week 6 headline than Rodgers vs. Brady. We’ll have more on that in a bit. For now, take a look at all of the NFL Week 6 betting lines currently available from FanDuel Sportsbook.
Opening NFL Week 6 Betting Lines
These NFL Week 6 betting lines are from FanDuel Sportsbook and accurate as of 9 AM Monday, October 12, 2020. All NFL odds are subject to change.
- Baltimore Ravens at Philadelphia Eagles +7.5, O/U 47.5
- Chicago Bears at Carolina Panthers -4, O/U 43.5
- Cincinnati Bengals at Indianapolis Colts -9.5, O/U 46.5
- Cleveland Browns at Pittsburgh Steelers -4, O/U 50
- Detroit Lions at Jacksonville Jaguars +3, O/U 52.6
- Washington Football Team at New York Giants -4, O/U 44.5
- Green Bay Packers at Tampa Bay Buccaneers +1.5, O/U 52.5
- Los Angeles Rams at San Francisco 49ers +3, O/U 49.6
- Arizona Cardinals at Dallas Cowboys +2.5, O/U 54
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Early NFL Week 6 Lines and Betting Picks
The Eagles have only won one game, yet they’re still in contention to defend their NFC East crown. The Ravens, meanwhile, have only been tripped up by the Kansas City Chiefs, scorching everyone else as they try to keep up in a crowded AFC North division. There’s no reason to like the Eagles here, and as such, you can count on public bettors to be heavy on Lamar Jackson and the Ravens. We might get 8 or 8.5 on the Eagles later in the week. Considerin home-field isn’t exactly home field this season, I’m not as reluctant to lay that many points on the road. If you want to bet on Baltimore I suggest doing it right now. One thing I did notice in Week 5, the same week that Jackson showed up on the Ravens’ injury list, is that the Ravens were more hesitant than usual to include Jackson on run plays. Jackson had only two carries for three yards — five carries and 50 yards fewer than his second-worst rushing performance this season. In fact, Jackson hasn’t had fewer than 50 yards rushing since the first week of December in 2019, when he racked up “only” 40 yards on 11 attempts. Keep an eye on Jackson’s Week 6 rushing prop and be ready to bet the Under, especially if you believe the Ravens handle this game with ease as the Week 6 betting line suggests.
After a blistering start to the 2020 season, Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers are favored as they travel to Florida to take on Tom Brady and an injury-riddled receiving corps in Tampa Bay. At first glance, my reaction is to take Brady as a home dog, but Rodgers and second-year head coach Matt LaFleur taught me a lesson last Monday. The Packers are 4-0 against the spread this season. Fresh off a bye week, Rodgers should return his top pass-catcher, Davante Adams, after playing—and winning—without him against the Saints and Falcons. There’s reason to believe the Packers are for real. According to FiveThirtyEight’s Josh Hermsmeyer, Green Bay is the league’s most aggressive team. Under LaFleur, the Packers are going for it on fourth and short 85.7 percent of the time, while mixing in pre-snap motion on half of their plays, and calling play-action nearly a third of the time. The least aggressive? The Jets, Texans and Bucs are all bottom three. My money is on Rodgers and LaFleur. Packers -1.
Are the Panthers better without running back Christian McCaffrey? Probably not, but their playcalling sure as hell is. Mike Davis continues to fill in just fine for McCaffrey, who is still likely at least a couple of weeks away from returning While Davis is racking up plenty of production, OC Joe Brady is no longer forcing check-downs to his running backs as much as the Panthers offense previously did, thus making quarterback Teddy Bridgewater and the Panthers’ offense less predictable.
Alex Smith was called to action against the Rams after Jalen Ramsey knocked Kyle Allen out of the game. In his first taste of an NFL game in over a year, Smith completed 9-of-17 passes for only 37 yards. The Giants had the best offensive performance of the season, but it came against arguably the league’s worst defense. Regardless of who starts at quarterback for the Washington Football Team in Week 6, I’m not sure the Giants should be laying four points to anyone. I’m including Washington +4 in my Week 6 betting picks.
NFL Week 6 Betting Update (Thursday)
Giants Line Move
I was right. The Giants shouldn’t be laying four points to anyone. This line has fallen to Giants -2.5. I loved Washington at +4, but now that the line has crossed the key number of three, I can’t advise betting on Washington. Check back next Monday for similar early betting opportunities ahead of Week 7.
Ravens Stay Steady at -7.5
Two weeks ago the Ravens were NFL betting darlings, but now not so much. In fact, before losing to the Chiefs the Ravens were Super Bowl favorites, yet they’re only favored against the Philadelphia Eagles a half-point more than the Steelers were last week. If you were laying seven points with the Steelers, why not lay 7.5 with the Ravens? Baltimore is still the second-best team in the NFL according to oddsmakers if you look at updated futures odds. I bet on Ravens -7.5 when this line opened, and my opinion hasn’t changed. Also a reminder to keep an eye on the Under for Lamar Jackson’s rushing props (see above).
Rodgers vs. Brady
Rodgers remains a slight favorite against Brady, and I remain encouraged by the Packers’ aggressive play-calling in 2020. Iff you listened to the Pat McAfee show on Tuesday, you know Rodgers is ecstatic to get Davante Adams back on the field. Packers -1 if you haven’t already bet on it.
Monday Night Football Betting Preview
We’ll have more in-depth Monday Night Football betting coverage this weekend, but I’ve already bet on both the Kansas City Chiefs -3.5 and Arizona Cardinals -1.5. Last week I asked if Mahomes and the Chiefs were the next great sports betting dynasty. A few days later they decided to lose to the Oakland Raiders. So what? With Mahomes under center the Chiefs are still a whopping 27-13-1 against the spread. I expect them to get back on track Monday night against the Buffalo Bills. The Chiefs already proved they could slow down a dual-threat quarterback on the road when they dominated the Baltimore Ravens in Week 4. Josh Allen has been great — playing well enough to enter the MVP conversation — but I don’t see him keeping up with Mahomes. Chiefs -3.5
The Cardinals and Cowboys is another interesting matchup that includes a dual-threat quarterback. In his second season in the NFL, Kyler Murray has proven he’s a threat with both his legs and arm. Can you imagine what he’s about to do against the defenseless defense in Dallas? Andy Dalton might be the best backup quarterback in the league, so it’s not unconceivable that the Cowboys keep up. However, my money is on the Cardinals, now Arizona -1.5. The Cowboys still haven’t covered a spread this season.
NFL Week 6 Lines and Betting Movement
| Week 6 Game | Lookahead Line | Week 6 Line (Mon.) | Picks & Notes | Line Update (Thu.) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ravens at Eagles | Ravens -7.5 | Ravens -7.5 | Under Jackson Rush Props | -7.5 |
| Bears at Panthers | Panthers -2.5 | Panthers -4 | N/A | Panthers -1.5 |
| Browns at Steelers | Steelers -4 | Steelers -4 | PIT -4 | Steelers -3 |
| Lions at Jaguars | Jaguars +1.5 | Jaguars +3 | N/A | Jaguars +3.5 |
| Football Team at Giants | Giants -2.5 | NYG -4 | WAS +4 | Giants -2.5 |
| Packers at Bucs | Bucs -2.5 | Bucs +1.5 | GB -1.5 | Bucs +1 |
| Rams at 49ers | 49ers – 3 | 49ers +3 | 49ers +3 | 49ers +3 |
| Cardinals at Cowboys | Cowboys -3.5 | Cowboys +2.5 | AZ -2.5 | AZ -1.5 |
| Chiefs at Bills | Chiefs -3.5 | Chiefs -3.5 | KC -3.5 | KC -3.5 |
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