It’s The Wife Hates Sports and SportsChump bringing you our top picks against the spread for both the NFL and College Football. Last week was a strong start. The second week tends to be tricky, as you are not trying to overreact on how some teams performed in week one. It’s a family birthday weekend here, so I apologize for the lack of humor, pop culture, and random fun. This time, it’s some quick talk and some quick picks. We are ready to roll with our Week 2 Football Picks and Top Bets.

The Contest

No, not that contest, Seinfeld fans.

This is a season long contest with potential prizes going out to our winners, so if you want to join in on the fun, drop a comment here at The Wife Hates Sports… or over at the land of the SportsChump.  We take our top five games of the week against the spread. If you beat us and go undefeated, that leads to fun prizes and heaps of praise on our websites.

With that said, here are our TOP FIVE Best Bets for the week, including my Week 2 Football Picks and Top Bets. The list is ranked in order of confidence, from 50 “dollars” down to $10.

Week 2 Football Picks and Top Bets – Quick Picks Edition

KP’s Picks: The Wife Hates Sports

$50: Los Angeles Rams (-5.5) at Tennessee Titans

Again, is it overreacting or not. Traveling cross country tends to be a challenge for the team doing the traveling. Still, the Rams held what many expect to be a strong Texans team to 9 points last week. Matthew Stafford appears to be locking in with Davante Adams, and that could be dangerous for opposing defenses. Can rookie Cam Ward and the rebuilding Titans hang around? My gut says no. Rams cover on the road.

$40: Clemson Tigers (-2.5) at Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

This should be a fun one. Georgia Tech is a good team. I strongly believe they will hang around and be in contention this season. But the key difference maker in this game is hobbled and did not play last week. That’s Georgia Tech QB Haynes King. How healthy is he and will his mobility be impacted in any way? With that risk and the line being what it is, I love the Tigers here. Clemson covers on the road.

$30: New York Giants at Dallas Cowboys (-4.5)

The Giants looked absolutely terrible last week, but that’s not even the key reason for this late add to my top picks. It’s the recent history of these two franchises. You would think divisional rivalry would equal close matchups and occasional upsets. But Dallas has won eight straight in the series, all by five points or more. Four of those wins were by double digits. If you go further back, Dallas has actually won 15 of 16 in the series. That’s domination. Let’s go with the trend. Cowboys cover at home.

$20: Chicago Bears at Detroit Lions (-6.5)

Again, where will our brains take us from an overreaction standpoint after week one? The Bears had its Monday night game fully in control, only to let J.J McCarthy and the Vikings storm back in the fourth quarter. The Lions, meanwhile, were absolutely manhandled by the Packers. Watching this Green Bay team again on Thursday, they look good – real good. Caleb Williams (60% completion, 86.6 rating) wasn’t bad in the opener, but I simply don’t believe in him. Playing on short rest, I expect Williams and the Bears to run into an angry Lions team. Watch out for those kneecaps, Chicago. Lions cover at home.

$10: South Florida Bulls (+17.5) at Miami Hurricanes

Carson Beck has been outstanding this season (76.4% completion, 4 TD, 0 INT, 172.5 rating). Sure, it’s only a few games, but what a boost for the Hurricanes. Enter a Bulls team that is trending upward, ranked, and knocked off the Florida Gators last week (sorry, Chump). I see South Florida as a battle tested team early in the season. The defensive stats don’t signal a Carson Beck shutdown, but with this line and two ranked teams, it feels like a good bet to me. Give me the Bulls and the points on the road.

On the Outside Looking In (Others I Considered):

  • USC Trojans (-20.5) at Purdue Boilermakers – Late swap for Giants-Cowboys
  • Florida Gators at LSU Tigers (-7) – If it were 6 1/2 points, I might feel differently
  • Los Angeles Chargers (-3) at Las Vegas Raiders – This division can surprise you

 

Week 2 Football Picks: SportsChump

$50 on New York Giants at Dallas Cowboys (-3)

I’m going back to the basics.  The Dallas Cowboys surprised me last week.  Despite their tumultuous offseason, trading away their best player and such, Dallas surprised everyone and showed up against the Eagles.  The Eagles might not have given it their all, they didn’t need to, but the Cowboys now have a 1-2 punch at the wide receiver position, a solid quarterback to get them the ball and, whereas we once thought no run game, a solid first option in Javonte Williams.  Dallas only lost that game by four points and had opportunities to win. 

The Giants, on the other hand, had difficulty putting together all their pieces against the Commanders.  There are already rumblings about whether it’s time to pull the plug on Russell Wilson and give Jaxson Dart a shot… and it is only Week Two.  This line opened at three and quickly jumped to five.  It wouldn’t surprise me to see it inch even to closer to a touchdown by kick off.  We only have one week worth of game film, but from what I can deduce, the Cowboys might not be as bad as we anticipated and the Giants might be, well, the same old Giants.  I’ll take Dallas minus the field goal.

$40 on Cleveland Browns at Baltimore Ravens (-11)

We might not see another game this year as entertaining as Ravens-Bills.  Just as we’d finished crowning the Ravens and fawning all over Derrick Henry, Baltimore relinquished a fifteen-point, fourth quarter lead to the Bills.  The talk of the game went from Derrick Henry’s dominance to how he coughed up the football keying the comeback.  This week, the Ravens have their home opener against the Browns who gave the Bengals a battle in Week One.  I’m honestly surprised this point spread isn’t closer to two touchdowns.  I’m not sure if oddsmakers saw the Baltimore collapse and counted it against them.  I’m not sure if they think Cleveland behind Joe Flacco will be able to keep things close.  But I’m pretty sure Flacco is not Josh Allen. 

Baltimore is a team that chews up chunks of yardage on a whim.  Even though the Browns’ D kept Burrow and Company in check, Baltimore is an altogether different animal.  I see a blowout in this one.  Cleveland can’t run the ball which means that Baltimore can sit back and wait for Flacco to make a mistake.  If the Ravens exact even a modicum of revenge against the Browns for dropping that Bills game, this has all the potential to get ugly.  I’m taking Baltimore minus 11 as they officially begin their quest for redemption.  (Side note: I also love Flacco over 0.5 interceptions at -185)

$30 on Georgia Bulldogs at Tennessee Volunteers (+8)

One of these days, I’ll learn to bet with trends and not against them.  Today is not one of those days.  The University of Georgia has beaten the Tennessee Volunteers eight straight times.  And these games haven’t been competitive.  The closest outcome came a few seasons ago when the Vols only lost by 14.  Other than that, they’ve all been blowouts.  To be fair, UGA has gone on a beefy run over that stretch, including back-to-back national championships.  Those Bulldogs are gone and I’m not sure their 2025 team packs the punch they did in years past.  Meanwhile, Tennessee is off to a torrid start.  While it’s tough to judge the results of these teams’ first two games, Tennessee has absolutely mauled its opening patsies while Georgia looked a little rusty. 

Maybe they didn’t want to open the entire playbook, saving a few goodies for Knoxville but after eight straight seasons, I can’t imagine the 100,000 fans filling into Neyland Stadium won’t be ready for revenge.   I’ve been to Neyland Stadium.  It smells like whiskey and French fries.  These are a few of my favorite things.  In what should be a riveting, early season, SEC battle, I’ll take the Vols, at home plus the points.  This line inexplicably opened at 8 and was immediately bet down to 3 ½ so I hope you jumped on it early.  I’ll happily take the Vols plus the eight, perhaps even call for the upset as the Tennessee faithful tear down the goalposts as they did against Alabama and throw them in the Tennessee River yet again.

$20 on Buffalo Bills (-6) at New York Jets

Alright, I’ll bite.  We all saw the Bills game and their comeback, just insane.  This week, they head to Jersey to play the Jets.  We also saw what the Jets did last week.  They allowed Aaron Rodgers to score 34 points.  If an aging Aaron Rodgers is somehow able to score at will against this Jets defense, just imagine what the current league MVP will do.  The Bills are legit Super Bowl contenders and newsflash: the Jets are not.  You don’t need any more explanation from me why the Bills will cover this six on the road.  They’re just the better team.

$10 on Colorado Buffaloes at Houston Cougars (-4)

I’ve made a lot of money betting on Deion Sanders and Colorado.  I’ve also lost a lot of money betting on Deion Sanders and Colorado.  I don’t know if the honeymoon is officially over in Boulder.  It might never be if Sanders continues to recruit top tier talent.  But this just seems like a tweener year for Coach Prime.  His sons are gone, as is Travis Hunter and they don’t appear to carry the swag they had in years past.  They dropped their opener to Georgia Tech and just made a change at quarterback.  Meanwhile, the Houston Cougars have a pretty good defense, allowing only one touchdown in eight quarters.  Their offense is no slouch either.  This might be the right time for Houston to jump on the Buffaloes before they reload.  I’ll take Houston, at home, on Friday night minus four.

 

Last Week’s Recap

  • $50: Tampa Bay Buccaneers (-1) at Atlanta Falcons – CORRECT
  • $40: Arizona Cardinals (-6.5) at New Orleans Saints – CORRECT
  • $30: Pittsburgh Steelers (-2.5) at New York Jets – INCORRECT
  • $20: Illinois Fighting Illini (-2.5) at Duke Blue Devils – CORRECT
  • $10: Carolina Panthers (+3.5) at Jacksonville Jaguars – INCORRECT

Season Stats for Kevin Paul and The Wife Hates Sports (Top Five Only)

  • NFL: 2-2 ($50)
  • CFB: 1-0 ($20)
  • Overall: 3-2 ($70)

Week-by-Week for Kevin Paul and The Wife Hates Sports (Top Five Only)

  • Week 01: NFL: 2-2 ($50) | CFB 1-0 ($20) | Week: 3-2 ($70) | Overall: 3-2 ($70)

Chime in with your top picks for the week.  Thank you for visiting The Wife Hates Sports!

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