Phil Agius
Show Bio
Good morning, Pickswise Nation. The Bills looked exactly like Super Bowl favorites should as the NFL returned last night and we have another action-packed Friday of sports ahead with a big baseball slate, college football games and U.S. Open tennis action. Let’s get straight to making your next bet better!
About Last Night
Super Bowl favorites beat Super Bowl champions
Our first NFL pick of the season, Bills -2.5, was never in trouble as Buffalo rolled to a 31-10 win over the LA Rams. First TD scorer Gabe Davis was an anytime TD scorer pick of Ricky Dimon at +155 odds. The Bills’ impressive performance saw FanDuel Sportsbook shift their Super Bowl odds from +600 to +500 and Keith Schmelter has taken a look at the latest NFL odds.
Strong day on the diamond
There were only 7 MLB games on Thursday, but the Pickswise team made the most of it with a 5-2 ML/RL record. The Twins beat the Yankees 4-3 while the White Sox crushed the Athletics 14-2 and the Nationals overcame the Cardinals 11-6.
Latest sports news
EPL games and other UK sports postponed
The UK sports schedule this weekend has been affected by events being postponed as a mark of respect following the death of Queen Elizabeth II on Thursday. The weekend’s EPL slate will not be played, and there will be no play today at the DP World Tour golf’s BMW Championship. A moment of silence was held before the Bill-Rams game and other events around the world.
Today’s Slate
Busy night of baseball
We have a full 15-game MLB slate today, with Apple TV+ showing Guardians vs Twins at 8:10 pm ET and Braves vs Mariners at 9:40 pm ET. Read today’s MLB predictions.
College football Week 2 begins
The vast majority of the college football Week 2 action is tomorrow but there are games tonight including Louisville vs UCF on ESPN2 at 7:30 pm ET and Boise State vs New Mexico on CBSSN at 9:00 pm ET. Read today’s NCAAF predictions.
U.S. Open tennis action
It’s men’s semifinals day at the U.S. Open, so look out for our tennis picks for Khachanov vs Ruud and Alcaraz vs Tiafoe.
Best Bet of the Day
MLB: Toronto Blue Jays -1.5 over Texas Rangers
8:05 pm ET
The Blue Jays are looking to carry the momentum of their 6-1 road trip down to Texas. The Jays’ pitching has been leading their hitting of late and their bullpen has been much better since the trade deadline. When they get a lead they usually lock it down. Texas is well out of playoff contention and struggling, with just 1 win since August 26. Ross Stripling has been a more critical part of the Jays’ success than expected this season, which has been his best in the Majors. Meanwhile, Dane Dunning has shown a little progress for Texas this season but his ceiling is limited. This is a game the Jays could control from start to finish. Take them on the run line. Read our full Blue Jays vs Rangers predictions.
Must-watch
Don’t forget to check out our daily show Let’s Bet It! on our YouTube channel atyoutube.com/c/Pickswise at 10:00 am ET.
You won’t want to miss today’s show as hosts Lauren Jbara and Jared Smith will be joined by Ben Solak, NFL staff writer for The Ringer, to discuss the Week 1 slate. The team will also react to last night’s opening game and looks at today’s MLB games and this week’s college football slate before revealing their Plays of the Day!
You can also access the show at any time through Spotify and Apple Podcasts (search for Let’s Bet It Presented By Pickswise).
Must-read
Get up to speed with today’s baseball by reading our Friday MLB mega parlay and YRFI/NRFI best bets, plus same game parlays for Guardians vs Twins and Braves vs Mariners.
As for college football, you can check out our CFB Week 2 Best Bets, Saturday NCAAF mega parlay and our teaser picks and parlays.
Our NFL season preview package is available — visit our NFL tab to access it all — and don’t forget to download our awesome Pickswise NFL Preview 2022, presented by Superbook Sports — you can read more about all the great NFL analysis inside it here. Don’t miss Jared Smith’s NFL Week 1 picks or our NFL prop bets from Bobby “Prop Holliday” Stanley.
The PLL lacrosse semifinals are this weekend too, and you can read our PLL semifinal best bets and lacrosse prop bets.
Read all of our great sports analysis as it arrives throughout the day on the Analysis tab.
Stat of the Day
The Dodgers have won 10 of their 13 games against the Padres this season.
Quote of the Day
“We weren’t ready to go. I take a lot of pride in that, and that’s on me. I’ve got to do better.”
Rams head coach Sean McVay took responsibility for his team’s bad start to their defense of the Lombardi Trophy.
Pickswise is the home of free sports picks, news, and best bets. Check out our expert NBA picks, NHL picks, MLB picks and Soccer picks for the latest game picks.
