The fairy dust has finally settled at SoFi from Beyonce’s Renaissance, which means it’s time for football to take center stage in Inglewood. And the most ideal way to get the party started for NFL Week 1 is to dig into some best bets for the matchup between the Chargers and the Dolphins.
Fans and bettors already know that these two squads share a handful of similarities. Both have at the helm young quarterbacks whose careers show lots of promise and both are also led by feisty coaches trying to make their marks on the league. LAC and Miami are also two teams projected to be forces in the AFC in 2023 — at least according to the odds. But the official road to these teams’ potentially dominating their divisions and their conference starts Sunday.
Let’s take a look at the Miami Dolphins vs. Los Angeles Chargers odds, analysis, and predictions.
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Dolphins vs. Chargers Spread, Moneyline, Total
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- Spread: Chargers , Dolphins
- Moneyline: Chargers , Dolphins
- Over/Under: total points
Dolphins vs. Chargers Betting News
The home-team Chargers come into this matchup as 3-point favorites. And in Super Bowl futures, these foes are evenly matched. Currently at FanDuel, the Chargers and Dolphins are tied with the 10th-best odds to win it all at the end of the season. And they’re also not too far apart on the AFC Conference oddsboard.
The Bolts have the shorter odds at +1000 to win the AFC while the Dolphins are swimming close by at +1200 in that market. In their respective divisions, Los Angeles has the second-best odds to win the AFC West at +210 while Miami’s odds to take the AFC East are third-best +290.
John Ewing at BetMGM notes that when it comes to Overs tickets for NFL Week 1, the Dolphins-Chargers matchup is the second-most bet. When it comes to season win totals, the line for both Miami and Los Angeles is 9.5.
Looking back at the 2022 season, the Dolphins went 9-8 against the spread (ATS) last year. And when they were on the road and were underdogs of 3 points or more, they went 3-2 against the spread. LAC, on the other hand, was 11-6-1 ATS last season. The Over/Under in Chargers games last year went 8-9-1.
The last time LAC and Miami faced off was in December 2022 in Los Angeles. The Chargers won 23-17 in a contest where they covered the 3-point spread and the Under hit.
Dolphins vs. Chargers Props
Anytime Touchdown Scorer (FanDuel)
Austin Ekeler: -160
Tyreek Hill: +105
Raheem Mostert: +105
Keenan Allen: +140
Mike Williams: +160
Jaylen Waddle: +165
Gerald Everett: +210
Chris Brooks: +240
Salvon Ahmed: +240
De’Von Achane: +240
Josh Palmer:+270
Durham Smythe: +330
Quentin Johnston: +360
Joshua Kelley: +380
Braxton Berrios: +460
Donald Parham: +600
Tyler Kroft: +650
Miami Defense: +700
LA Chargers Defense: +750
Passing Props (FanDuel)
Justin Herbert: O 290.5 (-114); U 290.5 (-114)
Tua Tagovailoa: O 252.5 (-114); U 252.5 (-114)
1st Half (DraftKings)
Miami Dolphins: +130 moneyline
Los Angeles Chargers: -155 moneyline
Team Total Points (DraftKings)
Los Angeles Chargers
Over 27.5 points: +105
Under 27.5 points: -125
Miami Dolphins
Over 23.5 points: -118
Under 23.5 points: -102
Dolphins vs. Chargers Analysis and Prediction
The Chargers come into this game on the heels of a 10-7 2022 regular season campaign that earned them a Wild Card date with the Jaguars. They ended up losing the 31-30 nail, biter but getting to the playoffs was an incredible step in the right direction for head coach Brandon Staley, quarterback Justin Herbert, and the rest of the squad. The Bolts haven’t reached the AFC Championship since 2007, but finishing 2022 winning four out five games made some bettors believe that this team could actually make the leap in 2023.
The Dolphins finished 2022 with a 9-8 straight-up (SU) record and a second-place finish in the AFC East. And even though they went on a losing skid at the end of the year dropping five of six regular season games, Miami still made the playoffs. Like their Week 1 opponent, the Dolphins fell in their lone postseason contest, losing to the Bills 34-31.
Miami has a fin up on L.A. because they’re expected to return 20 of 22 starters to their lineup. Another advantage that Miami might have in this matchup is that Los Angeles has new offensive and defensive coordinators. How will those new coordinators gel with their units in the first real game of the year?
The Chargers, though, are at home and they have a healthy Herbert as the signal-caller (presumably he’s at least healthier than Tua). Justin Herbert has been magical for LAC. He’s the very first NFL player to eclipse 4,000 passing yards in each of his first three seasons in the league.
And remember the Chargers’ passing offense ranked third in the NFL last season. While Kellen Moore is new to the Chargers’ OC position, this ain’t his first rodeo. As the Cowboys OC, Moore helped shape the Dallas offense into a top-five scoring unit in 2021 and in 2022.
So while it’s easy to call this a pick ’em, enough signs point to the Chargers winning and covering in their season opener on their home turf.
PICK: Chargers -3
PICK: Herbert Over 290.5 passing yards
How to Watch Dolphins vs. Chargers
- Date: Sunday, Sept. 10
- Time: 4:25 p.m. ET
- Location: SoFi Stadium — Inglewood, Ca
- Network: CBS
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