Ross Williams has four best bets for this weekend's NFL action – check out his Sunday night preview here.
NFL betting tips: Week 9
1pt Kareem Hunt (Chiefs) anytime touchdown at 11/10 (General)
2pts Seattle Seahawks (-3) to beat the Washington Commanders at 10/11 (General)
2pts Sam Darnold (Seahawks) 250+ passing yards at evens (General)
1pt Jaxon Smith-Njigba (Seahawks) 100+ receiving yards & to score a TD at 9/4 (Sky Bet RequestABet)
Buffalo Bills @ Kansas City Chiefs
- Sunday, 2125 GMT
Plenty of points are expected in the Chiefs’ clash with the Buffalo Bills, so getting better than even money for a first-string running back to score feels like a gift.
Kareem Hunt’s anytime touchdown price is 11/10 at the time of writing and that’s just too good to pass up.
The 30-year-old scored last time out against the Commanders, taking his rushing TD tally to four for the year. Hunt’s stats overall this season certainly don’t jump off the page. In fact, he hasn’t yet picked up over 50 rushing yards in a game this season.
However, if you dig a little deeper than the top-line numbers, the case for a touchdown is clear as day.
Hunt leads the Chiefs in carries (8) within the 10-yard line and he is the only Chiefs back to carry the ball inside the five-yard line.
He’s taken six such carries and turned them into four touchdowns. He also caught a two-yard pass last week to record his first receiving score of the season.
The Chiefs have no problem getting the ball down the field and even against a fellow AFC giant in the Bills, offensive opportunities in the redzone are practically a given for Kansas City.
In a game where the bookmakers are predicting 52 points, Hunt should certainly pick up at least a couple of scorable opportunities and his form-line is as strong as its been all season. Let’s take the plus-money and run!
Washington Commanders @ Seattle Seahawks
- Monday, 0120 GMT
We’re watching a pretty crazy league this year, with teams surpassing expectations all over the United States, and that has allowed the Seattle Seahawks to fly under the radar a tad.
The Pacific Northwesterners have a sneaky 5-2 record coming off their bye week and they have the chance to propel themselves into a larger conversation this week as they headline Sunday Night Football.
Opposing Seattle are the Washington Commanders, in the midst of a punishing three-game slide. A brutal one-point defeat to the Bears was a gut-punch three weeks ago, and they followed it up with blowout defeats on the road in Dallas and Kansas City.
They’re back home on Sunday night but, regardless, I love this match-up for the Seahawks.
Sam Darnold’s mid-career resurgence is becoming a truly great NFL story. In his first six years as a pro, the former first-round pick never completed a full season as a starter and just two years ago, he was in the quarterback wilderness. Darnold threw just 46 passes in the entire 2023 season as a back-up for the San Francisco 49ers.
Fast forward 24 months and he’s one of the most respected QBs in the league, boasting a higher passer rating (109.2) than Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen and 33 other signal-callers.
The remarkable season he had with the Vikings last year has turned the trajectory of his career on its head and he’s already silenced the doubters who suggested the move to Seattle would be his undoing.
Darnold is clearly the key for the Seahawks and as I mentioned, he matches up really nicely against the Commanders.
The Washington defence has really struggled so far this season and their numbers against the pass are alarming. They’ve allowed the seventh-most passing yards per game this season (244) and perhaps most notably, they allow an average of 8.3 yards per attempt. That’s the highest mark in the entire league.
Clearly, the Commanders are susceptible to the deeper pass, so the last thing they want to see on their schedule is the quarterback with the highest average yards per attempt in the NFL.
You guessed it, that’s Sam Darnold.
Seattle have found some real success in the deep passing game so far in 2025 and they are perfectly placed to commit to it yet again. Darnold is even-money to accumulate 250+ passing yards for the third time in four weeks and that looks a solid option against a leaky Washington defence.
A good match-up for Darnold also means a good match-up for his #1 receiving option, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, and he looks well-positioned to continue an incredibly impressive streak. The former Ohio State Buckeye is in the form of his life, racking up 100+ yards and a touchdown in each of his last three games.
All told, he has 819 yards for the season, at least 99 yards clear of every other receiver in the NFL. Ja’Marr Chase, for context, is the man in second spot and he’s played a game more than JSN.
Over the Commanders’ last two games, opposing #1 receivers (Rashee Rice and Ceedee Lamb) have averaged 101.5 yards and a touchdown against them. In other words, the maths just works for Smith-Njigba to continue his fantastic run.
Look for Darnold and his favourite target to have plenty of success on Sunday night, on the way to a third-straight victory and handicap cover.
Posted at 1118 GMT on 02/11/25
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