Green Bay Packers at Kansas City Chiefs Betting Preview/Player Prop

The Kansas City Chiefs host the Green Bay Packers on Sunday afternoon in what could be a potential Super Bowl preview. This game was circled on the calendar in the preseason, but it won't have the same hype for a number of reasons.

Green Bay comes into this game with a record of 7-1, and the Packers have been on a remarkable run. The Packers have now won seven straight games and just knocked off the 7-0 Cardinals in Arizona last week.

Kansas City has gone just 4-4 so far this season, and things have actually been much worse than that at times. The Chiefs did pick up a Week 8 win over the New York Giants, and they will now be looking to win a second straight. 

The Green Bay Packers are one-point road favorites against the Kansas City Chiefs Sunday afternoon in Week 9.

Packers Playing Without Rodgers

The Green Bay Packers come into this game without their starting quarterback as Aaron Rodgers has tested positive for COVID-19. Rodgers is having another terrific season, and his absence is going to hurt a team that is averaging 24.0 points per game.

Running backs Aaron Jones and A.J. Dillon have been running the ball well this season, and Green Bay will be forced to run on Sunday. The Packers are averaging just 108 rushing yards per game, but they have to establish their attack on the ground.

The Packers' defense was questioned in the preseason, but that group has been terrific throughout the 2021 season. Green Bay is allowing less than 21 points per game, but that unit will be in for a test against the Chiefs.

Chiefs Need Some Defense

Kansas City has been terrible on the defensive side of the ball this season, and that is the biggest reason that they are just 4-4 on the year. The Chiefs are catching a break by not facing Rodgers on Sunday, but this unit is still allowing nearly 28 points per game.

Quarterback Patrick Mahomes has also been having a down year as he has already thrown ten interceptions on the year. Mahomes continues to throw for over 300 yards per game, but he has to limit his mistakes against a solid defense.

Kansas City is going to try to win this game by simply outscoring the Packers, but the defense should be able to make plays against a backup quarterback.

Chiefs Keep Momentum Going

The Chiefs are not used to being near the bottom of the AFC West standings, but there is still plenty of time to make a run. Beating the Giants in Week 8 started to turn things around, but beating Green Bay on Sunday can spur this team on a big run.

It's going to be hard for the Packers to score this weekend without Aaron Rodgers leading the way. Green Bay still has a talented roster, but things are going to be difficult without the star quarterback. 

Kansas City still has some things that they need to figure out, but the Chiefs will be good enough to win on Sunday. Bet the Chiefs' moneyline as they defeat the Packers for their second straight victory.

Player Prop

Aaron Jones (-156) Over 3.5 Total Receptions

The Green Bay offense has been thrown into turmoil with the sudden absence because of Aaron Rodgers testing positive for Covid-19. Now the reins will be turned over to backup Jordan Love.

Whether it will turn into a Love Affair with the Packer fans has probably as much to do with the players around Love as the QB himself. The good news is that he’s getting back Allen Lazard, Davante Adams and David Bakhtiari back on offense.

But it should also mean increased usage for the safe check-down option of Aaron Jones. He’s already proved one of the most versatile RBs in the league with Rodgers at the helm. He’s caught 49 and 47 passes in each of the last two seasons in addition to rushing for over 1,000 yards.

And he was already well on his way to topping those reception marks with 33 catches for 237 yards in the first 8 games. That included a season-high 7 catches and 11 targets in the last game against Arizona.

With much of the playbook likely to be scaled back for Love, we’ll look for one holdover to continue and take Jones (-156) to go over 3.5 total receptions against the Chiefs.

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