NFL
Ricky Rothstein
August 21, 2017

Dolphins vs. Eagles Point Spread: NFL Preseason Week 3 Picks

NFL head coaches generally play their starters the most in Week 3 of the preseason, so Thursday night’s Miami Dolphins at Philadelphia Eagles matchup should somewhat replicate a regular-season game for at least the first half.

Miami Dolphins at Philadelphia Eagles

Point spread: Eagles -3.5

Over/under: 42

Date:Thursday, August 24, 2017 @ 19:00

Location:Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia

First Preseason Meeting In 27 Years

One key statistic to always pay attention to in the preseason is a head coach’s record. Some guys care about establishing a winning attitude from the get-go, while others don’t. Both Miami’s Adam Gase and Philadelphia’s Doug Pederson are in their second seasons. Gase is 3-3 in the preseason and Pederson 5-1. Both are offensive minds as well, being promoted from offensive coordinator positions at other stops. It’s the first time since 1990 that Miami and Philadelphia are playing a game that doesn’t count.

Point Spread and Betting Analysis

Expect some grouchiness on both sides Thursday night as the teams are practicing together this week and guys tend to get under each other’s skin when that happens. Miami visited the City of Brotherly Love in the 2015 regular season and won 20-19. Current Eagles starting QB Carson Wentz was still at North Dakota State then. Sam Bradford started and left with a shoulder injury. Miami’s Ryan Tannehill threw the go-ahead touchdown pass to Jarvis Landry early in the fourth quarter. Tannehill already has been lost for this season. The Dolphins are 1-5 ATS in the past six regular-season meetings. The Eagles are 6-2 ATS in their past eight at home.

Miami Dolphins

Miami plays its first road exhibition game after beating Atlanta 23-20 in Week 1 and then getting blown out last Thursday 31-7 by Baltimore. Jay Cutler, signed out of retirement when Tannehill went down, made his Dolphins debut vs. the Ravens. He was 3-for-6 for 24 yards in two series; Cutler and most of the healthy starters should play the first half here. Then probably not at all in Week 4.

This could be the Miami debut of ex-Bengals linebacker Rey Maualuga. He was signed Saturday after playing eight years in Cincinnati. The Dolphins needed help at middle linebacker after losing the second-round pick and likely starter Raekwon McMillan to a season-ending knee injury in the team’s first exhibition game.

Philadelphia Eagles

The Eagles play their exhibition home finale – they won’t host an opponent at Lincoln Financial Field again until Week 3 vs. the Giants when Philly could be 0-2 after tough trips to Washington and Kansas City to open the season. The Eagles lost their preseason opener handily in Green Bay and then beat visiting Buffalo 20-16 last week.

Alshon Jeffery, the former Bears Pro Bowl receiver added in free agency, made his Philadelphia debut vs. the Bills and caught two balls for 23 yards. Wentz completed 6 of 9 passes for 56 yards. Looking for an early NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year betting candidate? Eagles defensive end Derek Barnett, the No. 14 overall pick, has been dominant with three sacks and eight QB pressures. Projected backup QB Nick Foles should play Thursday. He returned to practice over the weekend after missing two weeks with elbow soreness.