NFL Week 3 Sunday Best Picks
NFL Week 3 Sunday Picks
Week 3 of the 2025 NFL regular season started with the undefeated Bills taking care of business at home against the winless Dolphins on Thursday Night Football. Now it’s time to look ahead toward a jam-packed Sunday slate. The lineup includes Rams vs. Eagles, Bengals vs. Vikings, Broncos vs. Chargers and Cardinals vs. 49ers, in addition to Sunday Night Football between the Chiefs and Giants. Here are our best bets for Sunday’s NFL Week 3 schedule.
NFL Week 3 Predictions
Pick #1: Jacksonville Jaguars -1.5 over Houston Texans (-110) Click Here to Bet
Pick #2: Cincinnati Bengals +3 over Minnesota Vikings (-105) Click Here to Bet
Pick #3: Atlanta Falcons vs. Carolina Panthers Over 43.5 (-105) Click Here to Bet
PICK #1: Jaguars -1.5 over Texans (-110)
This is a great opportunity for Jacksonville (1-1) to put Houston (0-2) in a massive hole in the AFC South through three weeks of the 2025 campaign. The Jaguars have played relatively well so far, and probably should be 2-0, but squandered a fourth-quarter lead against the Bengals this past weekend. They lead the entire NFL in rushing at 169.5 yards per game.
Houston, on the other hand, is without question a team in turmoil. Not only is head coach DeMeco Ryans’ squad winless, but it also has to go on the road while playing on short rest after losing at home to Tampa Bay on Monday Night Football in Week 2. The Texans’ offensive line is even worse than it was last year now that Laremy Tunsil is in Washington, so CJ Stroud is not being protected and backup running back Nick Chubb – who is filling in for the injured Joe Mixon – has not found many holes to run through. It would be no surprise if the visitors fall to 0-3.
PICK #2: Bengals +3 over Vikings (-105)
This is a battle between backup quarterbacks, but at the same time, it’s an intriguing matchup featuring two teams with playoff aspirations. Cincinnati (2-0) turns to Jake Browning with Joe Burrow sidelined for three months by toe surgery. Meanwhile, Minnesota (1-1) is going with Carson Wentz now that J.J. McCarthy will likely miss multiple weeks due to a sprained ankle.
Advantage: Browning and the Bengals. The 29-year-old played in nine games while Burrow was injured in 2023, throwing for 1,936 yards with 12 touchdowns and 7 interceptions. Browning also led the Bengals to a 31-27 comeback victory over the Jaguars last weekend. On the other side, Wentz will become the first QB in NFL history to start for six different teams in six straight seasons. Yeah, that basically means that no one wants him to stick around! Minnesota looked awful at home last week against Atlanta; things don’t figure to improve much with Wentz on the field instead of McCarthy.
PICK #3: Falcons vs. Panthers Over 43.5 (-105)
These two NFC South rivals played in a couple of absolute shootouts in 2024. The Falcons rolled 38-20 in Carolina before the Panthers prevailed 44-38 in overtime to close out the season in Atlanta. This one may not completely light up the scoreboard in the exact same fashion, but it also doesn’t require a whole lot to exceed a modest 43.5 number. Quarterbacks Michael Penix Jr. of the Falcons and Bryce Young of the Panthers should be more than capable of surpassing it. Penix torched Carolina for 312 yards and two touchdowns in the 2024 finale. Young is coming off a 328-yard, three-touchdown performance against Arizona this past weekend.
Aside from some minor red-zone issues, Atlanta’s offense looked good last Sunday night against Minnesota. Bijan Robinson rushed for 143 yards and added 25 more on 3 catches. He now faces a Panthers defense that was dead last with room to spare in the entire NFL last year, giving up 179.8 yards per contest. Meanwhile, Young will go up against a Falcons defense that is missing cornerback A.J. Terrell because of a hamstring injury. All signs point to plenty of points in this matchup.
