NFL Thursday Night Football TD Scorers Picks: Panthers vs. Packers
We’ve had six consecutive profitable weeks on our NFL Thursday Night Football TD scorers picks after cashing in on D’Andre Swift’s first touchdown scorer odds (+600) in Week 7.
This week’s Panthers-Packers tilt features a Carolina team that just allowed 43 points to Tampa Bay, while Green Bay boasts one of the league’s most lethal wide receiver duos. Will either of them be in my first touchdown or anytime touchdown predictions?
Here are the best touchdown scorer picks for Week 8’s Thursday Night Football contest between the Panthers and Packers.
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NFL Thursday Night Football TD Scorers Picks: Panthers vs. Packers
(Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook)
Christian Watson First Touchdown Scorer (+850)
Green Bay leads the NFL with over 80% of its offensive yardage coming via the pass. So while the Carolina defense is coming off a game where it allowed the second-most rushing yards of any team this season, it’s wise to start stockpiling your touchdown scorer portfolios for this game with Packers pass-catchers.
Green Bay averages more than four explosive pass plays per game, the league’s highest rate. That is why I’m higher on Christian Watson as the game’s first touchdown scorer rather than going with a safer running back play, not to mention how often Jordan Love has looked his way.
Watson ranks in the top 24 among wide receivers in target share (21.3%) and his team’s air yards share (31.4%), and in the top 10 in yards per route run.
Love averaged 7.8 yards per attempt and threw two touchdowns the last time he faced Panthers defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero. All but three of Green Bay’s touchdowns have come via the pass.
Tetairoa McMillan Anytime Touchdown Scorer (+180)
Fellow Panthers wide receiver Jalen Coker was nicked up with a shoulder injury last week. That has me looking to Tetairoa McMillan as Carolina’s top pass-catching option.
Carolina has scored 23.25 more points than its implied totals, the third-highest in the league. A lot of that is due to quarterback Bryce Young’s improvement in several key areas. Over seven weeks, Young is on pace for a single-season high in air yards per attempt (seventh). He is also in the top 12 in explosive pass rate and first down/touchdown per dropback rate.
McMillan looks to take advantage of a Packers secondary that ranks in the bottom five in points allowed to perimeter receivers, where he lines up more than three-quarters of the time. He received only six targets last week, but Green Bay’s 5% touchdown rate to perimeter receivers (22nd) makes McMillan a great anytime touchdown buy-low option in Week 8.
Mike Spector is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from Mike, check out his archive and follow him @MikeSpector01.