The Week 2 Sunday night showdown between the Kansas City Chiefs and Baltimore Ravens was supposed to be a possible postseason preview. But with the Ravens ravaged by injuries and playing on a short week following a Monday night overtime loss in Las Vegas, bookmakers don’t like the home team’s chances.
The NFL betting odds have the Ravens installed as 3.5-point home underdogs, taking on a Chiefs team that handed them a 34-20 beat down inside M&T Bank Stadium last September.
Check out our free NFL picks and predictions for Chiefs at Ravens on Sunday Night Football.
Chiefs vs Ravens odds
Odds via the Covers Line, an average comprised of odds from multiple sportsbooks.
The lookahead line for this Week 2 game was set at a pick'em back in the spring but when injuries depleted the Ravens’ vaunted rushing attack, this line swung to KC -2.5. Following Baltimore’s loss to the Raiders on Monday, Kansas City ticked up to -4 and buyback on the home side moved the spread to -3.5. Use the live odds widget above to track any future line movements right up until kickoff and be sure to check out the full NFL odds before placing your bets.
Chiefs vs Ravens picks
Picks made on 9/15/2021 at 1:41 p.m. ET.
Click on each pick to jump to the full analysis.
If you're signing up for a new sportsbook for NFL Week 2, here are two of the best welcome bonuses available:
USA: Risk-free bet up to $5,000 plus get a free NFL jersey at Caesars. Claim Now
Canada: 100% matched free bet up to $400 at BetVictor. Claim Now
Chiefs vs Ravens game info
• Location: M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore, MD
• Date: Sunday, September 19, 2021
• Time: 8:20 p.m. ET
• TV: NBC
Chiefs at Ravens betting preview
Weather
Be sure to monitor the gametime conditions with our NFL weather info.
Key injuries
Chiefs: Deandre Baker CB (Out), Willie Gay LB (Out), Austin Blythe OL (Out), Laurent Duvernay-Tardif G (Out), Daurice Fountain WR (Out).
Ravens: Derek Wolfe DE (Out), Jimmy Smith CB (Out), J.K. Dobbins RB (Out), Gus Edwards RB (Out), Miles Boykin WR (Out), Rashod Bateman WR (Out), Tyre Phillips G (Out), Marcus Peters CB (Out), Daelin Hayes LB (Out), Ronnie Stanley T (Out), Broderick Washington DT (Out).
Find our latest NFL injury reports.
Betting trend to know
Kansas City is 4-1 ATS in its last five head-to-head matchups with Baltimore. Find more NFL betting trends for Chiefs vs. Ravens.
Chiefs vs Ravens predictions
Kansas City -3.5 (-110)
Neither the Chiefs nor the Ravens played a solid 60 minutes of football in Week 1. But when the chips were down, Kansas City came through for bettors while Baltimore folded like The Flash on laundry day.
The Ravens made some lethal mistakes in that opening loss to the Raiders — mistakes that you just can’t make against the Chiefs this Sunday.
First, turnovers killed Baltimore’s offense, with Lamar Jackson coughing up two fumbles while trying to put the team on his back. You can’t give Patrick Mahomes extra touches with the football and expect to win. Just ask Cleveland, which had two turnovers and a botched punt in its collapse at Kansas City last Sunday.
Another error that proved costly for the Ravens versus Vegas was an inability to pick up first downs. Baltimore finished the day 3 for 12 on third downs with only 20 total first downs for the game — ranked 20th in Week 1.
The team barely won the possession battle, owning the ball for 30:32 in regulation but this is an offense that hoarded TOP the past two seasons (ranked No. 3 in 2020 and No. 1 in 2019). The best defense against the Chiefs’ scoring attack is a methodical offense that moves the chains and milks the clock, leaving Mahomes on the sideline. With the rushing attack missing so many weapons, the Ravens may not have much left in the tank to ground and pound.
Lastly, the Ravens gave up too many home-run plays. Las Vegas struck for seven passing plays of 20 or more yards, including a game-winning 31-yard touchdown strike in overtime. Baltimore’s secondary seemed lost on some possessions and is desperately missing Marcus Peters (out) and Jimmy Smith, who is listed as questionable for Week 2.
It doesn’t take a rocket surgeon to figure out that slowing down Kansas City means keeping the play in front of you. The Chiefs had just four passes of 20 or more yards in Week 1, but one of those was a remarkable 75-yard TD toss in the fourth quarter that flipped the momentum of the game. Last year, Mahomes & Co. posted 69 passes of 20-plus — second-most in the NFL.
Taking on the Chiefs is an uphill climb when everything is going right, but Baltimore not only has an injury report that looks like movies credits for a Marvel flick (the post-credit scene is Baltimore bettors crumpling up tickets on the Monday nighter), it faces this foe on a short week coming off a cross-country hike to the desert.
Kansas City has come out swinging in previous matchups with a Lamar-led Ravens squad, outscoring Baltimore by an average of more than 13 points per first half in their last three meetings. Another fast start could have the ragged Ravens packing it in.
Under 55.5 (-110)
The total for this Week 2 war is sitting at a high 55.5 points — the same number for their Week 3 matchup last season when Kansas City won 34-20, just staying Under the total.
Kansas City’s defense didn’t look great in the opening 30 minutes versus the Browns last weekend but snapped out of it just in time for a key stop before the halftime break. The Chiefs parlayed that momentum into the second half, giving up only seven points and flipping Cleveland from the No. 1 first-half offense in Week 1 to the 21st in the final two quarters. Kansas City is hoping to have starting DE Frank Clark back for Week 2, as well as ball-hawking safety Tyrann Mathieu.
Baltimore’s offensive line had big problems versus the Raiders. Las Vegas was able to collapse the pocket quickly, leaving Lamar to hurry his throws or make something from the broken plays, leading to those two fumbles. Against KC last fall, Jackson was sacked four times for 27 yards lost and the Ravens went 1 for 4 inside the Red Zone.
Travis Kelce Over 88.5 receiving yards (-115)
Kansas City TE Travis Kelce caught some flack this week for not knowing the Ravens were next up on the schedule after appearing on the ESPN Monday Night Football simulcast.
Honestly though: Kelce doesn’t have to prepare much for this Week 2 opponent if he follows the blueprint from last year.
In that Week 3 meeting, Kelce caught six balls on seven targets for 87 yards and posted 89 yards on seven receptions versus Baltimore back in September 2019.
Kelce, who had 76 yards on six grabs versus the Browns in Week 1, faces a Ravens stop unit that just allowed 105 yards and a touchdown to Las Vegas TE Darren Waller last Monday.
Where can I bet on the NFL?
You can bet on NFL odds at every online and casino sportsbook, including NFL moneylines, spreads, Over/Under totals, and a ton of NFL prop odds. Head over to our best football betting sites for the top spots to bet on NFL odds in your area.
