49ers open as 6.5-point favorites vs. Panthers on Sunday

Kyle Shanahan and the 49ers are on the heels of a dominant Monday night victory over the divisional-rival Rams. The Carolina Panthers are coming off of another loss, this time at home to the Arizona Cardinals.

The 49ers are favored by 6.5 points in this matchup versus the Panthers. The total on the game is set at 39 on DraftKings SportsBook. Vegas is implying the 49ers win with a score around 23-17.

Like most, I thought the line would be bigger heading into Sunday, mainly because of the huge mismatch between the pedestrian Panthers’ offense and the dominant 49ers’ defense. But there is cross-country travel, and the 49ers are coming off a short week at play here.

I’d imagine as the week goes, the line starts to swing more towards the 49ers. 6.5 points is a pretty good number for most Vegas sportsbooks. They like to use this to tease bettors (usually 2.5, 3, 6.5, and 7 are all key numbers in betting the NFL).

Will the 49ers cover again and make it two straight wins against the spread?