Week 3 of the NFL preseason represents our greatest opportunity to get a look at the actual starters with several big names set to lace them up for their first exhibition action. This is the game that teams use as their dress rehearsal for the regular season. With that in mind, here are the five best games of the week to look out for, and their NFL Week 3 preseason odds for sports betting players:
Carolina Panthers @ New England Patriots
Thursday August 22nd, 2019 – 7:30 PM ET
Panthers’ quarterback Cam Newton will remain sidelined in Week 3 as he continues to work his way back from shoulder surgery. That means it will be Kyle Allen and rookie Will Grier getting the majority of the snaps under center. Carolina was held to 132 yards in the first half of last week’s 27-14 loss to the Buffalo Bills. It won’t get any easier for them on Thursday in New England. The Patriots have cruised to back-to-back preseason wins over the Detroit Lions and Tennessee Titans without their franchise quarterback. NFL betting players should get their first glimpse of Tom Brady, who should play at least one series this week, which will be his first game action since the Super Bowl.
NFL Week 3 Preseason odds: Patriots -3.5
Houston Texans @ Dallas Cowboys
Saturday August 24th, 2019 – 7:00 PM ET
Deshaun Watson was certainly locked in when he completed 5-of-7 pass attempts including a touchdown pass in last week’s 30-23 win over the Lions. Now the starters should get even more of a leash versus in their next contest against their state rivals.
Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett has one of the worst preseason records among active coaches at 13-22. The Cowboys have dropped four of their last five exhibition games.
NFL Week 3 Preseason odds: Pick ’em
Chicago Bears @ Indianapolis Colts
Saturday August 24th, 2019 – 7:00 PM ET
While Andrew Luck warmed up before last week’s 21-18 loss to the Cleveland Browns, he isn’t expected to play again this weekend. Backup Jacoby Brissett went 8-of-10 for 100 yards and a touchdown versus Cleveland last week It will be interesting to see how he performs against the league’s top-ranked defense from a year ago.
Chicago will field the majority of its starters, which will provide the Colts’ starters with the exposure they need to see where their program is at this point in the year. However, Matt Nagy is just 2-5 in preseason games in his two years as head coach – including losses in the Bears’ first two preseason games this year.
NFL Week 3 Preseason odds: Colts -4
San Francisco 49ers @ Kansas City Chiefs
Saturday August 24th, 2019 – 8:00 PM ET
San Francisco will be on a short week in this spot after clashing with the Denver Broncos on Monday night in Week 2 of the preseason. Franchise quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo has worked his way back from a devastating knee injury and should see a decent workload against Kansas City. Remember, he got injured against the Chiefs in Week 3 last season.
NFL Week 3 Preseason odds: No Line
Pittsburgh Steelers @ Tennessee Titans
Sunday August 25th, 2019 – 8:00 PM ET
Monday’s matchup against the Steelers will give us another look at both Tennessee quarterbacks as Ryan Tannehill is pushing Marcus Mariota for the starting job. Mariota is the starter, but if he struggles in the regular season, calls for Tannehill to move up the chart will become more vocal.
Meanwhile, the Steelers don’t have much to prove with a number of veterans back in starting roles. However, head coach Mike Tomlin is 30-22 in preseason games and has won eight of his last 10.
NFL Week 3 Preseason odds: Titans -3