Maulers vs Breakers Prediction, Odds & Best Bet for USFL Week 1 (Pittsburgh, New Orleans Struggle to Find End Zone)

Maulers vs Breakers Week 9 Game Info

2023 USFL Regular Season Game
Pittsburgh Maulers (0-0) vs. New Orleans Breakers (0-0)
Date: Sunday, Apr. 16, 2023
Time: 6:30 p.m. ET
Venue: Protective Stadium — Birmingham, Alabama
Coverage: FS1

The 2023 USFL season kicks off this weekend, including a pair of exciting matchups on Sunday, April 16. The second showdown of the day features the Pittsburgh Maulers taking on the New Orleans Breakers at Protective Stadium in Birmingham, AL.

Each team had a different experience during the 2022 campaign. On one hand, the Maulers finished at the bottom of the USFL with an abysmal 1-9 record. On the other, the Breakers qualified for the postseason with a 6-4 record but were ultimately eliminated in the opening round by the eventual champions, the Birmingham Stallions.

Can the Maulers prove they're better than they showed last season? Or will the Breakers be the team to begin the new schedule 1-0?

Maulers vs Breakers Odds & Spread

All USFL betting lines, odds and prop bets are from FanDuel Sportsbook.
Moneyline: PIT (+155) | NO: (-180)
Spread: PIT: +4.5 (-110) | NO: -4.5 (-110)
Total: 37.5 —Over: (-110) | Under: (-110)

The Breakers enter this contest as clear home favorites on the moneyline and spread on FanDuel Sportsbook's odds. This 6:30 p.m. ET matchup also features an over/under of 37.5 with both sides sitting at -110 odds.

Maulers vs Breakers Prediction & Pick

The Breakers are ready to pick up from where they left off last year, but that's going to take some time. After all, this is John DeFilippo's first-ever head coaching gig after spending 23 years bouncing around the NFL and NCAA in various assistant/coordinator roles.

Meanwhile, the Maulers also have a new head coach in the form of Ray Horton. The 63-year-old has about 25 years of NFL experience under his belt as an assistant/defensive coordinator, but hasn't had a football gig since he was the then-Washington Redskins defensive backs coach in 2019.

Four years out of the game is a lot and Horton has a tall test in front of him, especially after the Maulers averaged a USFL-worst 14.7 PPG in 2022. The Breakers weren't nearly that bad and even though they have a new coach, they at least have somewhat of an identity.

Final Score Prediction: Breakers: 18 | Maulers: 16

Maulers vs Breakers Best Bet

As for the best bet, I'm going with the under on the 37.5-point total. The Maulers and Breakers owned two of the USFL's three worst offenses last season, only averaging a combined 34.3 PPG. I don't see either team seriously improving on those numbers just yet, especially with two new head coaches behind the bench in Week 1.

Bet: Under 37.5 Total Points (-110)

Devon Platana is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Devon Platana also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username PepeSilvia0. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.