For a second straight week the Indianapolis Colts will face an undefeated opponent when they return home on Sunday to battle the 7-0 Denver Broncos as 2.5-point betting underdogs at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
The Colts are coming off a date with the Carolina Panthers in which they overcame a 17-point fourth-quarter deficit to force overtime before falling 29-26.
The Panthers improved to 7-0 with the win, while Indianapolis’ straight-up record drops to a middling 3-5, leaving them deadlocked with the Houston Texans atop the AFC South ahead of Sunday’s Broncos vs. Colts betting matchup at Lucas Oil Stadium.
Indy must now contend with a red-hot Broncos squad that remained perfect with a decisive 29-10 victory over the Green Bay Packers, picking up the win as 2.5-point home underdogs to improve their record against the spread to 5-1-1.
The Broncos defense restricted Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers to just 77 passing yards, while holding an opponent to 12 or fewer points for a third time this season, strengthening their league lead in multiple team defense categories.
That is bad news for the Colts and their quarterback Andrew Luck, who has thrown 12 interceptions against just 13 touchdowns, averaging a mere 271.5 passing yards per game while leading Indianapolis to just one SU win.
The Packers must also battle an undefeated opponent for a second straight week when they host Carolina in a matchup pegged as a toss-up at the sportsbooks.
Green Bay has won 13 straight at Lambeau Field while going 9-3-1 ATS, and has been betting chalk in each of those contests, winning by a double-digit margin on seven occasions.
The Panthers are an impressive 12-1 SU in their last 13 games, 8-4-1 ATS; a run that has lifted them to 9/1 on the odds to win Super Bowl 50.
However, the trends favor the Packers, who are 6-2 SU and 5-3 ATS in their last eight overall against Carolina, and 3-1 SU and ATS in their last four at home according to the OddsShark NFL Database.
The NFL’s other two remaining undefeated teams are also in action this weekend.
The 7-0 New England Patriots will be gunning for an 11th straight SU win when they play host to the resurgent Washington Redskins, while the 7-0 Cincinnati Bengals entertain the rival Cleveland Browns on Thursday Night Football as big 10-point chalk.
In other NFL Week 9 betting action, the New York Giants look to maintain sole possession of first place in the NFC East when they visit the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as slim 1-point chalk, while the Dallas Cowboys host the Philadelphia Eagles as 2.5-point underdogs.