NFL betting roundup: Packers, Colts have notable futures movement, early Week 2 shifts

Week 1 of the NFL season started off with a bang, as it was filled with thrilling finishes and impressive efforts. So what stood out in Week 1 in the eyes of the top sportsbooks? Let's share which teams have been drawing strong betting action heading into Week 2, as well as notable Week 1 betting storylines.

Bettors jump on Colts

Sportsbooks took early money on the Daniel Jones-led Colts for their Week 2 showdown against visiting Denver.

Jones threw for 197 yards in the first half and accounted for three touchdowns without a turnover in Indy's 33-8 thrashing of visiting Miami. He finished with a 115.9 passer rating.

"Sunday night we took bets on the Colts and moved them from +3 to +2.5," John Murray, vice president of race and sports at the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook, told CBS Sports. "But I'm not even sure if it's a play on the Colts or a play against the Broncos. Denver really struggled [Sunday] at home [in a 20-12 win over Tennessee]. Lucky to escape."

The Broncos' defense was as good as advertised, allowing 2.4 yards per play, but Bo Nix committed three of his team's four turnovers as Denver failed to cover the 8.5-point spread.

Johnny Avello, DraftKings' director of sportsbook operations, also expects Colts' money as bettors potentially buy into a Shane Steichen-inspired career revival for the QB known as Danny Dimes. "Daniel Jones didn't have too many of those games when we needed them, and I say that as a Giants fan," he quipped.

Caesars Sportsbook dropped the Colts from 125-1 to 80-1 to win the Super Bowl.

Lambeau love

Sportsbooks also expect a steady flow of Packers money. They were -3 for Thursday Night Football vs. Washington on the lookahead, then most books reopened Green Bay -3.5 following the Pack's 27-13 win over NFC North rival Detroit.

"Green Bay's performance will likely be the biggest mover given their impressive win over the Lions," Craig Mucklow, vice president of trading at Caesars Sportsbook, told CBS Sports.

Mucklow said one of the biggest bets Caesars took last week was on a $165,000 wager Packers -1 against the Lions, a wire-to-wire winner. Caesars dropped Green Bay from 14-1 to 9-1 to win the Super Bowl.

Bettors win Round 1

The betting public loves favorites. So with favorites going 11-2 straight-up Sunday, the public thrived.

"The 2025 season picked up right where 2024 left off, with favorites continuing their strong run," Mucklow said. Last year, favorites went 195-77 outright, their best record since 2005.

Unders going 11-2 limited the public's profits, however, as the public also loves betting Overs.

"This helped shift the outcome from what could have been a tremendous start for customers to an above-average opening Sunday," Mucklow said.

Underdog Buffalo's stunning comeback win on Sunday Night Football, 41-40 over Baltimore, proved huge for most books after favorites dominated Sunday afternoon. "We can get a lot of it back with a Buffalo win," Murray said during the game.

Consensus flops

The five most popular picks in Circa Million -- Giants +6, Falcons +2, Lions +2.5, Seahawks +2.5, Broncos -8.5 -- all lost as the dog-heavy cards succumbed to a 9-4 ATS Sunday for favorites. In the Westgate Las Vegas SuperContest, the consensus went 0-4 (Giants, Falcons, Steelers, Seahawks) with Bears +1.5 pending.

The $1,000 entry Circa Million drew 5,685 entries (prize pool: $6 million), just short of last year's record of 5,871. The SuperContest attracted 751 entries at $1,500 apiece, creating a $1,126,500 prize pool.

Survive, advance

Survivor players avoided Week 1 carnage. When Cincinnati, a 7.5-point home favorite, lost 16-10 to New England on the first Sunday of the 2024 season, it wiped out more than 34 percent of Circa Survivor. This time, there was no such mayhem. The Pats' home loss to Las Vegas had the biggest impact, knocking out 269 of the original 18,718 entries.

Shockingly -- or maybe not so shockingly because it happens every year -- a slew of people who paid $1,000 to enter Circa Survivor neglected to submit their picks by the Saturday deadline. Twenty-four people were eliminated that way.

That was actually an improvement over Week 1 last year, when 45 people "donated" their $1,000 entry fees by failing to submit picks.