NFL player prop bets for Week 17 and beyond

The NFL's Week 17 Sunday night game is a doozy. The Colts travel to Nashville in a win-or-stay-home for the playoffs matchup against the Titans. Tennessee has truly been an on-the-field box of chocolates in the sense we don't know which Titans squad we're going to get. Is it the one that shut out the Giants or the one that needed to rally to beat the Redskins?

Heading into this crucial Week 17 showdown against a division rival, starting quarterback Marcus Mariota is on the mend after sustaining a stinger that initially left the side of his body numb. His coach, Mike Vrabel, said all the right things this week as they expect Mariota to suit up against the Colts, but he'll definitely be at less than 100 percent, which means Derrick Henry could be busy. And in the Titans' backfield is where we'll start our Week 17 prop bet rundown.

Odds: Over 17.5 (-130) | Under 17.5 (-110)

He's averaged 20.3 carries per game over the past month. With Mariota banged up, Henry carrying the load again makes all the sense in the world with the Titans' playoff hopes hanging in the balance. I'm not overthinking this prop bet. Feed Henry.

The Bet: Over

Odds: Over 0.5 (+155) | Under 0.5 (-220)

Nine touchdown passes have been thrown by guys other than quarterbacks this season. The most notable of the bunch is New York's Odell Beckham Jr., who has tossed two touchdown strikes — just eight fewer than rookie quarterback Josh Rosen. Unfortunately, OBJ has been ruled out for Week 17 with a quad strain. If the Over 0.5 odds were closer to 2-to-1 (+200), I would be very interested as teams' offensive coordinators empty the playbook in the final week of the season. At just +155 (risk $155 to win $100), I'm sitting this out.

The Bet: Under

Odds: Sam Darnold (-115) | Ben Roethlisberger (-105)

Both head into the season finale with 15 interceptions. However, Darnold's came in just 12 games compared to Roethlisberger's 15 picks in 15 games. The Jets rookie trigger hasn't tossed one to the other team over the past two weeks, while Big Ben has thrown two over the past three games. Darnold faces a Patriots secondary that ranks third in interceptions with 18, while Roethlisberger — with a lot to play for — looks to torch a Bengals secondary that has only 11 interceptions on the season and that failed to pick him off earlier this season.

The Bet: Darnold

Odds: Ben Roethlisberger (-140) | Patrick Mahomes (EVEN)

Big Ben passed for 380 yards against an above-average Saints secondary last weekend. He torched Cincinnati for 369 yards earlier this season. With the Steelers needing to beat the Bengals and the Ravens to lose to Cleveland to make the playoffs, Roethlisberger is going to go to the air early and often to run the Bengals off the field. Mahomes has looked a little more human in recent weeks as the toll of his first full NFL regular season begins to show. Plus, he'll still win the touchdown title.

The Bet: Roethlisberger

Odds: Darius Leonard (-155) | Derwin James (+170) | Leighton Vander Esch (+500)

Leonard — a rookie linebacker out of South Carolina State — has made an immediate impact for the Colts with 155 tackles and seven sacks to date. An early-season favorite, James hasn't recorded a sack in over two months and didn't finish with as strong of a kick as Leonard.

The Bet: Leonard

Odds: Saquon Barkley (-130) | Baker Mayfield (-110)

The ebbs and flows of this ROY campaign have been a fascinating watch. While Barkley has produced at a high level for the majority of the season, Mayfield has redefined a franchise from punchline to playoff contender. He gets to touch the ball on every play, while Barkley has to wait his turn. With the Giants trailing in several games this season, he wasn't always the first option. Barkley is a stud, but Baker is the franchise.

The Bet: Baker

Odds: Aaron Donald (-1200) | Khalil Mack (+750)

If most defensive linemen are playing checkers, Donald is definitely playing chess. In terms of talent, he's head and shoulders above 99 percent of the league's defensive tackle fraternity. With 19.5 sacks through the first 15 games, Donald is three shy of Michael Strahan's single-season record. Oh, and Donald is only 27 years old. We may be looking at a DPOY dynasty in the making.

The Bet: Donald

Odds: Over 2 (+125) | Under 2 (-165)

When Luck faced the Titans earlier this season in Indianapolis, he torched them for 297 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions. The forecast calls for wet conditions Sunday night in Nashville. This is why Luck hitting the under in this prop bet is considered the more likely outcome. The weather may force Indy to lean on running back Marlon Mack and the run game, but it doesn't take Luck's arm completely out of the equation. The O/U line of two touchdowns is perfect because I think he finishes with two passing scores. With that said, the Colts will go down relying on Luck's arm as opposed to a still work-in-progress rushing attack.

The Bet: Over

Odds: Over 1.5 (+110) | Under 1.5 (-150)

In a perfect world, Baker Mayfield would have led the Browns to the playoffs in this his rookie season. We don't live in a perfect world, and despite Cleveland's drastic improvements from winless team last season to watchable product this year, Mayfield remains a flawed, young quarterback — especially on the road. At Houston just a few weeks ago, he tossed three picks in arguably his worst game of the season. The Ravens possess a comparable defense in a hostile environment where Baltimore has everything to gain by smashing Baker and the Browns. Even when the two teams squared off in Cleveland earlier this season, Mayfield completed just 58 percent of his passes with one touchdown and an interception.

The Bet: Under

Odds: Yes (+500) | No (-900)

Ohio State has beaten Michigan in eight straight. Harbaugh is 0-4 against the Buckeyes. If Urban Meyer's coaching prowess possessed any sort of an advantage on Harbaugh and the Wolverines' chances of advancing to a Big Ten Championship Game and/or College Football Playoff, Meyer's absence is noteworthy as it pertains to these rumors. The 2019 college football season presents an opportunity for Harbaugh to, for once, write his own chapter, and that begins and ends with a win over the Buckeyes and shot at a national championship. The NFL can and will wait.

The Bet: No

Odds: Yes (+125) | No (-165)

In 16 years as head coach of the Cincinnati Bengals, Lewis is 131-121-3 in the regular season and 0-7 in the playoffs, which includes a five-game playoff losing streak from 2011-2015. It's time, right? His nine NFL lives became 16 and have finally dried up. Hue Jackson isn't the answer, but the question persists: Who will lead the Bengals next season?

The Bet: No

Odds: Over 289 | Under 289

The Rams' once shock-and-awesome offense has shown some cracks in the foundation over the past month. With Todd Gurley out due to a knee injury, Goff hasn't truly stepped up and proved he can lead the Rams offense without a big game from a starting running back. In his past four games, Goff has averaged 235 pass yards with only two touchdowns compared to six interceptions with three additional fumbles. Ahead of the playoffs, this isn't ideal production from a franchise quarterback.

The Bet: Under

Odds: Over 77.5 | Under 77.5

Are you on the Gus Bus yet? If not, you should be. Over the past six games, Edwards has averaged 96.3 yards per game. As a team, Baltimore is averaging 198.3 rush yards per game over the past three weeks. The rookie running back's success is directly tied to Lamar Jackson's emergence as a read-option quarterback. With Jackson forcing defenses to guess who will have the ball on run plays — himself or Edwards — the rookie out of Rutgers is finding plenty of green pasture in front of him.

The Bet: Over

Odds: Over 99.5 | Under 99.5

As has been the case the past month, Jones will play through rib and hip injuries as he looks to secure the 2018 NFL receiving title. The Falcons receiver has a 114-yard lead on Houston's DeAndre Hopkins and 121-yard lead on Tampa Bay receiver Mike Evans, whom Atlanta faces Week 17. With that cushion, Jones doesn't have to produce much to capture the crown, but Pro Football Focus projects Jones has the fifth-most favorable matchup against the cornerback lining up opposite of him.

The Bet: Over

Odds: AFC (+120) | NFC (-160)

After the Seahawks upset the Chiefs last weekend in Seattle, it's fair to say that every AFC Super Bowl contender has looked shaky the past few weeks. Kansas City joined the Chargers, Patriots and Texans as pretenders more than contenders when stacked up against their NFC counterparts. The Saints, Rams, Seahawks and Bears are in a much better position to raise the Lombardi Trophy come early February.

The Bet: NFC