NFL Sunday Night Football Betting
Two NFC contenders aren’t where they want to be entering Week 8 of the NFL season, but they can take a step toward getting there with a win on Sunday Night Football. The Dallas Cowboys are perfect on the road winning all three games and will attempt to end a three-game losing streak to the San Francisco 49ers when the teams collide at Levi’s Stadium. The Cowboys needed a bye after falling hard to Detroit, 47-9, in Week 6. And the Niners could use one dropping to 3-4 with last week’s loss to Kansas City in a Super Bowl rematch. The Niners also added to their list of injuries with Brandon Aiyuk done for the year with an ACL tear.
Both teams won 12 games and a division title last year, but have struggled to find their way in 2024. The Niners were blessed on the injury front a season ago, but they are paying for it now. The loss of Aiyuk just adds to their list of prominent players that won’t be in uniform on Sunday night. Dallas allows the second most points in the NFL but they’ve been far superior on the road giving up an average of just over 16 points while going 3-0. The Niners have lost two in a row at home yet hit the board as a 4.5-point favorite.
NFL Week 8 Sunday Night Football Betting Odds
Dallas Cowboys +4.5
San Francisco 49ers -4.5
Total: 47
Money Line: Cowboys +180, 49ers -215
This is a good news bad news scenario for the Cowboys. They’ve won all three road games this season thanks to a stingy defense that didn’t allow more than 17 points in any of those games. Unfortunately they get a San Francisco team that’s had their number in recent years. In both 2021 and 2022 the Boys ended their season with a playoff loss to the Niners and have dropped three straight overall with the most recent loss 42-10 in the Bay Area last season.
If the Cowboys want to be in the conversation as a Super Bowl contender you’d think there would be some emotion in this game. They had a week to stew over the 38-point thrashing to another contender Detroit and need a win for their sanity. You can complain about Dallas’ defense and you wouldn’t be wrong, but at least the group has performed well in road games. The Boys have been atrocious offensively with Dak Prescott taking most of the heat. Some of the criticism is unwarranted, but being the leader of the offense the blame always falls on the QB.
Prescott isn’t having a bad season completing 63.4 percent of his passes for 1,602 yards and eight touchdowns. Dallas has the 10th ranked passing attack in the NFL. However, Dak has thrown six picks and the lack of running game has left him on an island at times. The Cowboys have the worst ground game in the NFL averaging only 77.2 yards with a league-low two rushing TDs. Overall the defense has been troubling giving up 356.5 yards and 28 points per game. Carolina is the only team allowing more points than Dallas. In three road games, though, the Cowboys yielded an average of just 253 yards and 16.3 points.
Already without Christian McCaffrey, the Niners were dealt another blow on Sunday when Aiyuk suffered what appears to be a season-ending knee injury. The team also finished the loss to KC without Deebo Samuel and Jauan Jennings was scratched. Without his top three receivers Brock Purdy had a difficult game throwing three interceptions nearly matching his season total coming into the game. Purdy has thrown for 1,841 yards, the third-most in the NFL, but he’s been picked off seven times and sacked 13 times.
The emergence of Jordan Mason has partly negated the loss of CMC. The NFL’s second leading rusher has gone for 667 yards, but he’s been limited due to nagging injuries averaging just 73.3 yards and 12.3 carries the last three games. SF dominated the last meeting with Purdy throwing four TD passes and Mason rushing for 69 yards and a score in the 42-10 win. Prescott had one of his worst outings with 153 passing yards and three interceptions.
Sunday Night Football Betting Schedule
In Week 2, the Houston Texans will host the Chicago Bears in a matchup of two of the emerging quarterback stars of the NFL. Last year, CJ Stroud, who was taken 2nd overall in the 2023 NFL Draft, led the Houston Texans to the AFC South Championship and a playoff win over the Cleveland Browns. Stroud shot down the adage about rookie NFL QBs not being able to deliver. Instead, Stroud threw for 4108 yards and a 23/5 TD/INT ratio. DeMeco Ryans had a spectacular debut as Houston’s coach, but now Ryans and Stroud face higher expectations, and the scrutiny of proving their success was not a fluke.
Of course, the Bears took Caleb Williams first overall in the 2024 NFL Draft. Williams does not have the supporting cast that Stroud had last year. Williams also arrives with what many believe to be a quirky personality that may not be best for leading an NFL locker room. The Bears gave up on Justin Fields, who they took in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft, after just three seasons on a team with little support. Chicago remains a team that generates a lot of ambiguity and little in the way of optimism from gamblers.
One of the best Sunday night matchups in the early going is a Week 4 affair between the visiting Buffalo Bills and the Baltimore Ravens. Both teams won their respective divisions last year. The QB matchup of Josh Allen of the Bills and Lamar Jackson of the Ravens is one of the best possible. The Ravens and Bills could easily meet in the 2024 NFL Playoffs.
Week 8 is certain to bring ratings and scrutiny when the San Francisco 49ers host the Dallas Cowboys. Dallas head coach Mike McCarthy and QB Dak Prescott are under intense pressure to deliver a Super Bowl berth after flopping in the playoffs. Owner Jerry Jones, age 81, is eager to gain one last Lombardi Trophy but, as always, has a team that is never quite complete. The Dallas track record of falling short since the 1994 departure of head coach Jimmy Johnson offers no comfort or reason to believe that anything will ultimately change with America’s team.
Meanwhile, the San Francisco 49ers are the defending NFC champions and are coming off their second heartbreaking loss in five years to the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl. San Francisco is certainly the team to beat in the NFC West. General manager John Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan have proven to be a highly effective leadership tandem.
Access live betting lines and NFL Betting Lines from your mobile device at BookMaker Sportsbook! You can wager on sporting events as they unfold on television with BookMaker’s live betting platform.