The calendar will turn from October to November in NFL Week 9, after which we will have officially played half of the regular season.
Four teams — the Cleveland Browns, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers — are on byes this week, but there are still 12 games on Sunday in addition to primetime action Thursday and Monday.
I’ll specifically target that Sunday slate for my NFL Week 9 best bets.
NFL Week 9 Best Bets
All NFL odds used for these NFL Week 9 predictions are current as of Wednesday, Oct. 29, and courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.
Buffalo Bills +2.5 (-115) vs Kansas City Chiefs
To lead off my NFL Week 9 against the spread bets, I’m backing the Buffalo Bills as short home underdogs against the Kansas City Chiefs.
We’ve seen these two teams do battle several times this decade. Since 2020, the Bills are 4-1 against the Chiefs in the regular season, but Kansas City has won all four postseason meetings.
Patrick Mahomes got the better of Josh Allen once again in January’s AFC Championship Game, ensuring the Chiefs reached a third consecutive Super Bowl.
However, these revenge spots always seem to go Buffalo’s way, and I could see the Bills winning outright on Sunday.
Pittsburgh Steelers +3 (-105) vs Indianapolis Colts
Next up, I’m backing the Pittsburgh Steelers as home underdogs against the Indianapolis Colts.
The 7-1 Colts are the darlings of the league right now, but I’m still not buying into Daniel Jones and Co. as a threat to the AFC’s elite. Indianapolis has played a pretty easy schedule, and this spot feels like the right time to sell high on the AFC South leaders.
Meanwhile, this game also provides the opportunity to buy low on a Steelers team that shouldn’t grade out as six points worse than the Colts on a neutral field.
Backing Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin as a home underdog has been a profitable venture historically, making the Steelers one of my favorite Week 9 NFL picks.
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San Francisco 49ers -2.5 (-120) @ New York Giants
To wrap up my best bets for NFL Week 9, I’ll back the San Francisco 49ers as short favorites against the New York Giants.
While I’ve been impressed with Jaxon Dart so far this season, the Giants’ rookie quarterback is running short on weapons. Fellow standout rookie Cam Skattebo suffered a season-ending injury in last week’s loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, joining top wideout Malik Nabers on the sidelines.
This week, New York will take on a 49ers defense that has injury issues of its own, so I could see those units playing out a relative stalemate.
However, San Francisco could be getting reinforcements on offense this week, with quarterback Brock Purdy and wide receiver Ricky Pearsall questionable for Sunday’s trip to MetLife Stadium.
Even if they don’t suit up, Christian McCaffrey and George Kittle will be the two best offensive players on the field, giving the 49ers the edge.
Back the visitors to win by at least a field goal on the road.
