Steve Maltepes, known as “The Philly Godfather,” will impart his gambling wisdom on the Eagles and where the smart money is going on various pro football games each weekend this season. Maltepes is one of the nation’s hottest sports betting experts who appears weekly on national radio and has his own website, www.thephillygodfather.com.
Philadelphia Eagles (3-0) at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-0) at 1:00 p.m. Sunday
The Line: Eagles minus-3.5/Total: 44.5
What is the line telling you:
The Philadelphia Eagles have been installed as 3.5-point road favorites as they travel to Tampa Bay this week. The Buccaneers have had the Eagles’ number recently, going 4-1 against Jalen Hurts since 2021, including two playoff wins. The last team to beat Philadelphia with Hurts on the field for the entire game was Tampa in Week 4 of last season. Since then, the Eagles are 19-0 in games Hurts has played from start to finish, with their only loss coming against Washington when he was knocked out in the first quarter.
The combined total for this matchup opened at 45.5 and briefly ticked up to 46.5 before sharp resistance drove the number down two points to its current price of 44.5. That type of swing usually signals influential money coming in on the under, despite the public tendency to lean over in primetime games. The move suggests that oddsmakers may have initially shaded the line a little high, or that respected bettors expect both defenses to have an edge in this spot.
Bottom line:
The first thing that caught our eye when handicapping this game was the extremely low health score of the Buccaneers. The Eagles have a plus+12 health score advantage even with key Eagles contributors like LB Nolan Smith, CB Jakorian Bennett, and RT Lane Johnson are dealing with injuries. Additionally, LB Zack Baun, LB Jihaad Campbell, and CB Adoree’ Jackson were all sidelined during Wednesday’s practice. We like the Eagles here, so buy the hook on the road and get the price down to that key number of minus-3. In my opinion, Philadelphia has faced and beaten stronger competition to start the 2025 season, while the Buccaneers have squeaked out all three of their wins against a Falcons team projected to win only seven games, a Jets team with a season win total set at 6.5 by Vegas, and a Texans squad that has started 0-3.
Prop bets for the game:
Bucky Irving +115 Anytime Touchdown
Saquan Barkley -140 Anytime Touchdown
Additional Bets
Bears +1.5 (vs. the Raiders)
(Betting lines are subject to change.)
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