As we cross the halfway point of the NFL regular season, everything hangs in the balance. The Green Bay Packers are fighting every week to stay alive in the ultra-competitive NFC North, while the Patriots are in a rock fight for the AFC playoffs. Now the two square off, pitting strong defenses against excellent quarterbacks. And the player prop market is popping.
New England is a 3.5-point home favorite on DraftKings Sportsbook. Green Bay is +145 to pull off the upset, with the total set at 44.5 points.
Let’s dive into the top player prop bets for Sunday’s clash between the Packers and the Patriots.
Packers vs. Patriots NFL Player Prop Bets
Josh Jacobs Under 46.5 Rushing Yards (-115)
Plain and simple, Green Bay’s running game has been awful this season. They’re dead last in the NFL in total rushing yards and yards per carry, as they were left woefully unprepared for Josh Jacobs’ absence. Now that he’s back from the Commissioner’s Exempt List, the Pack is expected to get back to business as usual on the ground. That has not been the case.
He has the talent to get it done in the stretch, but it won’t be this Sunday against the Pats. Led by Milton Williams, New England has one of the league’s best run defenses. They’ve allowed only 92.6 rushing yards per game this season — sixth-fewest in the league — along with a strong 3.8 yards per carry allowed. This won’t be a fun Sunday for Jacobs.
Drake Maye 240+ Passing Yards & 2+ Passing Touchdowns SGP (+202)
Though we are only eight games into the year, it feels like Drake Maye has played two different seasons. And this is nothing new. Last season, he was neck and neck with Matthew Stafford for the league MVP award and dominated the regular season. But things got bumpy in the playoffs, including an awful Super Bowl performance against the Seahawks. It left us wondering what level of quarterback Maye truly is.
The first few weeks of the season did not assuage fears. In Weeks 1-3, Maye completed 63.8% of his passes, averaging 195 yards per game, with a ghastly 1:6 TD-to-INT ratio. “The Schedule” certainly wasn’t beating the allegations. Since then, he’s flipped the script. In his last five games, Drake “Drake Maye” Maye is completing 68.8% of his passes for 279.6 yards per game with a 14:2 TD-to-INT ratio. Now that’s the MVP candidate we remember.
Green Bay poses quite a test. They’re allowing 6.2 yards per pass attempt — tied for the third-best mark in the league — along with a 10:10 TD-to-INT ratio. But it’s all about confidence here for Maye, who has performed in tough matchups this year and will do so again.
Kyle Williams Longest Reception 25+ Yards (+426)
Kyle Williams does not catch a lot of passes. But when he does, they go a long way.
For the Patriots, he’s been the Dos Equis Man of deep balls. He has only seven receptions this year, and here they are in ascending order of yardage: 8, 10, 12, 34, 34, 43, 49. That’s 27.1 yards per catch. The production has truly been all or nothing; he has one or zero receptions in seven of their eight games so far.
It’s entirely possible that Williams ends up without a catch on Sunday. But if he reels one in, it should be a long one, and the value here is too good to ignore.
