Jordan Brenner and Peter Keating, hosts of Underdogs, discussed the NFL’s undefeated teams over two weeks and whether it’s time to start considering the Minnesota Vikings and New Orleans as the class of the NFC.
Injuries have plagued the first two weeks of the NFL, and teams some fans may have written off have impressed so far. As we shift gears into Week 3, nine undefeated NFL teams remain. They include the Vikings, Saints, Buccaneers, Seahawks, Chargers and Steelers. When Jordan finished reading the list of teams, he only had one thing to say to Peter.
“What the hell?”
Peter did add that that some of the best bets in football come from holding your nose and breath simultaneously and selecting the teams that most are out on. Further, Peter expressed that it is still early and that your best candidates will be the world’s worst teams, given the bounce-back impact. At this point, it is difficult to tell which teams are awful and which have just hit a wall and are having bad weeks. Jordan brings up a key betting stat heading into Week 3 – winless underdogs are 40-21 against the spread in Week 3 over the past 10 seasons.
Out of that bunch of winless teams, the guys like the New York Giants this week. The Giants lost disappointingly last week to the Washington Commanders, becoming the second team to lose a game having scored three touchdowns while allowing none. The Giants enter their matchup against Cleveland as 6.5-point underdogs at DraftKings Sportsbook. Jordan asked Peter if he could see the Giants defense scoring a touchdown, losing 19-14, given the total point total is 38. Peter responded sharply that he doesn’t need the Giants’ defense to score, given Daniel Jones leads the league in air yards per attempt. Further, he believes the Giants will bounce back against the Browns.
The conversation then shifted to undefeated teams. Peter was high on the Saints and Vikings as breakout teams. He expressed that the numbers coming out from Vegas on the Vikings before the start of the season would give you every reason to think that they would regress, especially since that they lost Kirk Cousins at quarterback. Peter shared that with Sam Darnold, we expected the Vikings to be average. However, they are playing above expectations. The Vikings made vital moves in free agency, bringing in former Packers running back Aaron Jones as well as pass rushers and signing the right pieces, which has made a difference for them thus far. The Vikings enter their matchup against the Houston Texans as 2-point underdogs at DraftKings Sportsbook.
The most shocking team to Jordan has been the New Orleans Saints, who have put up 91 points thus far and have outscored teams by 62 points through two games. The Saints more or less have the same pieces from last year, including Alvin Kamara, Rashid Shaheed and Derek Carr; however, they have turned into an offensive juggernaut. Peter commended the Saints for figuring out what pieces to let go, such as Jameis Winston and Michael Thomas, while keeping players like Willie Gay Jr. The Saints are a 3-point favorite against the Eagles this Sunday over at DraftKings Sportsbook.
Watch or listen to the whole episode of Underdogs below and make sure to keep an eye on the Underdogs podcast feeds on Apple and Spotify as well as the Le Batard and Friends YouTube page for future episodes!
SHOW BREAKDOWN
Is It Time to Take the Saints and Vikings Seriously?
VIDEO:
Be sure to check out more episodes of Underdogs on the Le Batard and Friends YouTube page and subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts! You can also follow Peter on X at @PeterKeatingNJ and Jordan at @JordanBrenner.
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