NFL Week 2: Purdy and Kittle Injuries Impact 49ers Betting

• Gambling News
• 09 September 2025

The San Francisco 49ers' announcement that star tight end George Kittle will be placed on injured reserve due to a hamstring injury is the first of several news items that may affect NFL betting as Week 2 approaches.

Kittle Goes on Injured Reserve

Kittle sustained the injury during the victory over Seattle on Sunday.  He will miss the following four games: the home game against New Orleans on Sunday, followed by games against Arizona, Jacksonville, and the Los Angeles Rams.

Brock Purdy, the quarterback, may miss the New Orleans game due to a shoulder and toe injury.

Additionally, Deebo Samuel has been traded to Washington and is no longer there.  Is the 49ers' window for competition closed?

“The 49ers-Saints line has moved from 6.5 to 4.5 due to injury concerns surrounding Brock Purdy, and it could shift again as game time approaches,” said Joey Feazel, Head of Football at Caesars Sportsbook, when contacted by Casino.org. 

Unbalanced Moneyline Selections

Even though it's early in the week, take a look at some of the ESPN BET early betting activity on Sunday's games to see where the money is going.  In any case, it appears to bettors that the gap between the NFL's rich and the poor is growing.

Ravens, 96.3% of wagers against the Browns, Bills, 96% of wagers against the Jets, Rams, 96% of wagers against the Titans, Cardinals, 94.7% of wagers against the Panthers, Cowboys, 93.9% of wagers against the Giants, and 49ers, 95.3% of wagers against the Saints, are the most lopsided moneyline picks. 

The Ravens are 94.8% against the Browns, the Steelers are 94.5% against the Seahawks, the Cowboys are 93.6% against the Giants, the Bengals are 90.5% against the Jaguars, and the Bills are 95.3% against the Jets and the 49ers are 95.2% against the Saints.

Prominent Line Movements

Packers -2.5 to -3.5 against Commanders, Patriots +2.5 to +1.5 against Dolphins, Jaguars +5.5 to +3.5 against Bengals, Cowboys -3 to -6 against Giants, and Rams -5.5 to -6 against Titans are some of the lines that moved the most today at BetMGM.

On the Kittle and Purdy news, the aforementioned Saints went from +7 to +4.5 against the 49ers.

Another high-level narrative is that the Miami Dolphins, who were thrashed 33-8 by the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, are far worse than anyone thought they would be and that the Sunshine State may have a lengthy season.

Peers are speculating that quarterback Tua Tagovailoa panics and bails out quickly when the initial option isn't available, as evidenced by the Colts' Xavien Howard's remarks.

“The Dolphins-Patriots line is also drawing attention after Miami’s disappointing Week 1 performance, opening at -2.5 and moving to -1.5,” Feazel added.