XFL Week 2 Lines and Betting Picks

Article Image

Online sports betting sites have released their Week 2 XFL lines for Saturday and Sunday. Here’s a look at all four matchups along with our favorite XFL betting picks.

Read More

XFL Week 2 Betting Picks

Updated 2020 XFL Championship Betting Odds

All odds are courtesty of FanDuel Sportsbook and accurate as of February 13th, 2020.

XFL Week 2 Betting Picks for Saturday

New York Guardians at DC Defenders -7, O/U 47.5

2 p.m. ET on ABC

At +350, the DC Defenders are the new betting favorites to win the 2020 XFL Championship, but is the market overreacting? Per PFF, the Defenders were third in both offensive team and defensive team grades in Week 1.

The hype surrounding the Defenders and quarterback Cardale Jones has shown in both the XFL futures market and XFL Week 2 betting lines. Fresh off a 23-3 win over the Tampa bay Vipers (who had the highest win total before the season began), the New York Guardians visit the nation’s capital as 7-point underdogs to kick off Week 2.

In Week 1, the Under hit in three of four games. Albeit, the point totals were between 50-42 compared to the 44-48 range we see this week. The total in this game has begun to dip down, but you can still find 47.5 at FanDuel Sportsbook.

Worth noting is that the Defenders offensive line allowed the Seattle Dragons to get into the backfield at an alarming rate. Cardale Jones did a great job of escaping that pressure, but it’s something to keep our eyes on going forward.

The Defenders’ Week 1 win against arguably the worst team in the XFL wasn’t decisive by any means. In fact, they trailed at half time, with their only first-half touchdown coming as a result of a blocked punt. They took the lead with two offensive touchdowns in the second half but weren’t covering the spread until the DC defense returned in an interception for a touchdown with four minutes remaining.

All of that to say, laying 7 points is too much. I think the Defenders pull out the W, but I’m backing the Guardians and quarterback Matt McGloin to cover the spread. I’ll also bet the Under. The Defenders weren’t the only ones benefiting from defensive touchdowns. Between the Guardians and Defenders, three of their six touchdowns came from D/ST.

XFL Betting Picks: Guardians +7; Under 47.5

Tampa Bay Vipers at Seattle Dragons 3, 44

5 p.m. ET on Fox

Pressure is already mounting as the Vipers and Dragons battle to see what team will start the season 0-2. With only a 10-game regular season, 0-2 is a tough place to be.

Unsurprisingly, this is the lowest XFL Week 2 point total after the Dragons and Vipers combined for merely 22 points. The Dragons accounted for 19 of those.

Both teams suffered from lackluster quarterback play. Aaron Murray (Vipers) and Brandon Silvers (Dragons) threw two interceptions each. However, the Vipers will likely be without Murray against the Dragons, leaving Quenton Flowers and former Oklahoma State quarterback Taylor Cornelius to pick up the slack.

Flowers, who is listed as both a RB and QB on the depth chart, played snaps at quarterback last week. He only threw two passes (one completion for 37 yards), but added 34 rushing yards with his legs. Cornelius had accuracy issues at Oklahoma State — does anyone remember him [badly] missing a two-yard pass to upset Oklahoma in Norman?

Murray did not look good last week, but it leaves me wondering how bad these other two must have been in training camp for Murray to get the nod.

I’ve seen a lot of people predicting the Vipers to bounce back against what is thought to be the worst team in the league. However, I’m skeptical. Rather than taking a side, I’m just betting that bad quarterback play on both ends will result in another Under.

XFL Betting Picks: Under 44

Read More

XFL Week 2 Betting Picks for Sunday

Dallas Renegades at Los Angeles Wildcats +3.5, O/U 48

3 p.m. ET on ABC

The Wildcats have already lost one of their best defensive players and fired their defensive coordinator. The Renegades, on the other hand, return starting quarterback Landry Jones.

Not only were the Renegades without their starting quarterback last week, but the Wildcats were forced to reach into their depth chart with Josh Johnson out as well. Unlike Jones, who is trending towards starting in Week 2, Johnson’s status is a bit more questionable. To make matters worse, Charles Kanoff (Johnson’s backup) sat out of practice Wednesday with head and shoulders injuries. Third on the depth chart is Jalan McClendon. McClendon had some opportunities against Houston, but only managed to complete one of four passes. McClendon also threw a pick during his brief time on the field

*Update: Josh Johnson trending towards playing, but a final decision hasn’t been made yet.

Despite Jones’ absence, Dallas started the season by passing the ball 42 times. Unfortunately, Nelson only averaged 5 yards per attempt.

Remember, it was the Renegades who were favored to win the XFL Championship a week ago. Dallas’ offense clearly struggled with Philip Nelson behind center, so I’m expecting Jones to be a major upgrade for Hal Mumme’s Air Raid offense if he’s active.

I want to wait for more information before betting, but I currently lean Renegades -3.5 and Under 48.

XFL Betting Picks: Renegades -3.5; Under 48

St. Louis BattleHawks at Houston Roughnecks -8, O/U 49

6 p.m. ET on Fox

Houston looks to have by far the most polished offense of the season last week. June Jones’ run-and-shoot scheme posted 37 points on the board with four touchdowns coming through the air via Phillip Walker.

Houston was the most impressive team, but it was the St. Louis BattleHawks who were on the right side of the biggest upset (against the spread) in Week 2.

Of course, the BattleHawks’ victory was less impressive considering the circumstances in Dallas.

Still, there are reasons for optimism, even against the new XFL Championship favorites. For one, St. Louis finished with the second-best defensive grade. And despite the low-scoring affair, the BattleHawks were given the highest offensive team grade. Quarterback Jordan Ta’amu’s passing grade was only behind Cardale Jones, while Walker’s was fifth despite posting four touchdowns.

Not only is it early in the season, but this is a brand new league. Considering how little we truly know about these teams, and especially their defenses, I’m happy to take 8 points with a team that graded out well in Week 1. And if you haven’t put the pieces together by now, I’m betting the Under until proven wrong.

XFL Betting Picks: BattleHawks +8; Under 49

Image Credit: USA Today Sports Images

About the Author

schmitto
Matt Schmitto (schmitto)

Matt Schmitto is an Organic Strategy Lead for Better Collective. He was introduced to daily fantasy sports in 2012 and soon became a member at RotoGrinders. Seven years later, Schmitto joined RotoGrinders Network full time as a staff writer shortly after the Supreme Court overturned PASPA. He has since covered important stories in the sports betting and fantasy sports industries for sites like SportsHandle and USBets and has had roles as a sports betting editor and commercial content manager. He continues to play DFS and loves placing Futures bets at sportsbooks. His favorite DFS sites are DraftKings, Underdog Fantasy, and PrizePicks. Follow Schmitto on Twitter – @Matt_Schmitto