The Best Week 2 NFL Underdog Picks 

The Dallas Cowboys were an excellent underdog to bet on to start the 2024 NFL betting season for Week 1. I can’t say the same for the Carolina Panthers.

When betting on NFL underdogs, though, just know you’re always assuming some risk. And if you can’t stomach the volatility of this type of wagering, have no fear, our week 2 NFL predictions should give you some safer options.

I love to throw caution to the wind, of course. Let’s ignore the pitfalls of risk and see which Week 2 NFL underdog picks stand out the most at online bookmakers.

NFL Week 2 Underdog Picks

The best sports betting sites have odds up now, but the following are my favorite upset picks:

You’re getting some excellent NFL odds for underdogs going into week 2. Are all of the above week two NFL upset picks safe? No, and you don’t have to take the full dive with the moneyline, either.

It’s also okay to just pick your spots and bet on these games individually, but I’ll show you in a bit how tempting it is to just string these NFL underdog picks into a parlay.

You can hop on my week two NFL underdog picks now, or read on for some reasoning behind each bet.

Buffalo Bills (+110) vs. Miami Dolphins (-130)

If you want to take advantage of the Buffalo Bills, you’ll want to act fast. They’re in the first game of week two, as they prepare to face off with the AFC East rival Miami Dolphins on Thursday Night Football.

This South Beach battle could easily go either way, as division rivalry matchups often do. But the reality is you’re getting arguably the best team inside this division at an underdog price. This, a week after Josh Allen put the Bills on his back, eradicating an early hole to beat the Arizona Cardinals, 34-28.

Buffalo will hope not to be asleep at the wheel in the first half of this one, while traveling down south on a short week obviously isn’t an enviable position. That said, the Bills know the Dolphins as well as anyone, and they’ve honestly dominated this series lately.

Buffalo has won four straight games in this series, and the Bills have the defense to be able to slow down Miami’s explosive offense. Miami also got exposed slightly after barely getting by the Jacksonville Jaguars in week one, too.

Usually, I’d favor the home team on a short week, but Buffalo is arguably the better team and they’ve handled Miami quite well. Expect the streak to continue and get the Bills at an underdog price while you still can.

New England Patriots (+155) vs. Seattle Seahawks (-180)

Next up are the New England Patriots, who admittedly were not supposed to be good this year, but shocked the world with a 16-10 week one upset over the Cincinnati Bengals.

Perhaps that had more to do with Cincy’s own limitations due to some bodies that weren’t on the field, but give credit where it’s due. The Pats played elite defense and perfectly executed a ball control offense.

It led to a career day for running back Rhamondre Stevenson, who toted the rock 25 times for 120 rushing yards and a touchdown. The message couldn’t be any clearer; the Pats don’t care how it looks, they’re going to find your weakness and impose their well on the line.

That won’t work every single week, but the Seattle Seahawks were a bottom-5 defense in terms of rushing yards allowed to running backs a year ago. They looked improved in week one, but they won’t be facing a rookie quarterback this time around.

Not only that, but Seahawks stud running back Kenneth Walker II may be on the shelf. He left last week’s game banged up, and if he can’t go, Seattle may end up being a bit one-dimensional.

That could be bad news for a Patriots defense that made Joe Burrow and an explosive Bengals offense look remarkably human.

Chicago Bears (+7)  vs. Houston Texans (-7)

One of my favorite week two NFL underdog picks is easily the Chicago Bears to go into Houston on Sunday Night Football and upset the Texans.

Chicago looked bad on offense in week one, but Caleb Williams and co. had a tough matchup with an underrated Tennessee Titans defense. In fact, it’s precisely the fact that they won their week one matchup with such a pathetic showing that gives me so much hope in this one.

Williams won’t be that passive and inefficient for a second week in a row. I highly doubt he allows for a weak display like that again, while a date with the Houston Texans – a defense that allowed Anthony Richardson to pop off for a 60-year touchdown pass – doesn’t strike fear into the heart.

Chicago’s offense has some questions to answer, but a big-time game under the bright lights may be the best spot for them to do that. More importantly, though, is that they have the defense to give CJ Stroud and co. major issues on the other side of the ball.

I like Chicago to win at their alluring +255 moneyline, but if you want to play it safe I understand. Their +7 spread looks rather inviting.

Cincinnati Bengals (+5.5) vs. Kansas City Chiefs (-5.5)

My last week two NFL upset pick has the Cincinnati Bengals at least hanging tight against the Kansas City Chiefs. There could be a lot of reasons to sour on the Bengals, as they just lost to the Patriots and they still may be without number two wide receiver Tee Higgins.

Oh, and they have to go into Arrowhead Stadium and beat Patrick Mahomes to avoid a dreaded 0-2 start. You know, the same 0-2 start that only a fraction of NFL teams bounce back from to make the playoffs?

It doesn’t look great, but with so much on the line, I do feel good about Cincy’s chances of at least giving KC a tight game. Kansas City didn’t exactly blow the Baltimore Ravens away in the NFL Kickoff game, and we know the Bengals can perform a lot better than what they put on tape in their season opener.

In addition, for whatever reason, the Bengals have been the kryptonite for Mahomes for much of his career. Kansas City has found a way to edge the Bengals out in two straight, but they’re just 2-3 against Cincinnati over their last five meetings.

And in the Bengals’ defense, they either won or covered this spread in four of those games. I expect something similar to happen in week two, as the Bengals quite literally don’t have much of a choice but to bring their A game in this one.

Week 2 NFL Underdog Parlay

• Buffalo Bills +110
• New England Patriots +165
• Chicago Bears +7 (-120)
• Cincinnati Bengals +5.5 (-105)

As I said, you can take advantage of some poorly priced NFL underdogs without flat out betting on them to win each game. This exact parlay at Bovada is a mix of two straight up underdog picks and two picks against the spread.

That comes out to a solid +1817 price, and if you put $100 on the line and this parlay hits, you’re bringing home a whopping $1,816.75.

Want to go all the way? Bet on the ML for each of these games (+5793) and turn a $100 wager into $5,793 if it delivers.

You’re assuming more risk, but the payout is pretty sweet. As always, you can also mix and match your own picks, shrink the parlay, or just bet them individually.

Best NFL Underdog Picks For Week 2

The important thing to remember with betting on NFL underdogs is that it isn’t always about the moneyline, and parlaying the upset picks isn’t always safe.

Heck, it’s the NFL, so literally none of this is safe. However, that actually plays into the incentive to bet on NFL underdogs; nobody knows what will happen.

Just look at week one, where the Patriots, Cowboys, and Steelers were a few underdogs to flat out win their games. The Arizona Cardinals were another that at least beat the spread.

You can use my week two NFL underdog picks, mix and match, or use my insight to place your own bets. Whatever you do, just make sure you get the best price possible and make an informed decision.