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The Daily Sweat: It's possible Washington doesn't have a worse QB than the Giants

After Ryan Fitzpatrick was injured, the line for Thursday's game moved a bit.

Washington was a 4-point favorite for a time at BetMGM, then it moved to 3.5 and briefly to 3. It's back to 3.5, but a key question needs to be asked.

The line likely moved due to Washington's quarterback injury, but is that justified? Is Taylor Heinicke that much worse than Daniel Jones of the New York Giants? Is he worse at all?

Jones showed very little in Week 1, and that's a continuation from last season. The Giants were stuck on 7 points against the Denver Broncos until a meaningless touchdown at the end. The Broncos have a very good defense, but Washington's defense might be even better. It's not like this is the week that Jones and the Giants offense can look forward to getting right.

Heinicke is mostly an unknown and there should be some skepticism. But we've seen him get extended playing time twice for Washington and he looked good each time. He threw for 306 yards in a competitive playoff loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and last week in relief of Fitzpatrick, Heinicke completed 11-of-15 passes for 122 yards and a touchdown. We don't know what Heinicke will do now that he has the starting job for a while, but there are reasons for optimism. He can keep WFT's offense moving.

I don't have any more faith in the Giants' offense than I do WFT's offense, and I do think Washington's defense is the best unit that will be in this game. That's enough for me to confidently take Washington in a pretty big NFC East game. One of these teams will be 0-2, which is not where you want to be to start the season.

Taylor Heinicke gets his first start of the season on Thursday night. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
Taylor Heinicke gets his first start of the season on Thursday night. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)

Here's the first look at the Thursday sports betting slate:

What about any TNF props?

I'll take the over on Antonio Gibson's receiving yards, which is 17.5. It seems Washington wants to incorporate him more in the passing game (and they should). I'll also take the over on Sterling Shepard's 55.5 receiving yards, because the Giants don't have much else.

And to continue a theme, give me the under on 229.5 passing yards for Daniel Jones. Washington's defense will make life tough on him.

Any other football on Thursday?

If the NFL isn't your thing, Ohio and Louisiana square off on ESPN. Louisiana is a 21-point favorite at BetMGM so it might not be the most competitive game. But it's more football.

What about baseball?

The nine-game MLB slate gives us a good NFL appetizer. Six games are in the afternoon. There aren't many great games, but it's something. The best game might be the Padres at Giants, especially since the Padres showed a bit of life by winning on Wednesday.

What's the best bet?

We'll stick with Washington -3.5 here. The Giants could really struggle on offense against that WFT defense.