The NFL season got underway Thursday night with the Super Bowl champions, the Kansas City Chiefs,hosting the Detroit Lions. You may notice with football season here, sports betting advertising is everywhere making way for gamblers across the country to get their bets in. We’ll give some betting options for Week 1 and a few player props that have our attention this opening week in the NFL.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ Minnesota Vikings (-6)
Life without Tom Brady begins Sunday as Baker Mayfield takes the reign at QB for the Bucs. Meanwhile, the Vikings are coming off a 13 win season with many of those victories being within a touchdown or less.
I see more of the same from the Vikings offense in this game. Justin Jefferson will likely face double teams from the Buccaneers defensive backs, and it’s likely to cause them more issues for Minnesota. Trying to limit last season’s offensive player of the year will only open up one on one matchups for other Vikings playmakers.
That could benefit rookie WR Jordan Addison, who’s received high praise from Vikings coaches. Addison is projected 38.5 receiving yards. 40+ yards receiving should be no problem for him as he makes his NFL debut.
The Bucs return their skill players that include Mike Evans & Chris Godwin, but outside of those two, their offensive power is limited. Kentwood’s own, Trey Palmer, is listed as the Bucs #3 WR and the absence of Leonard Fournette will likely limit Tampa Bay’s offensive prowess.
The Bucs can possibly keep this close in the 1 st half, but I think the Vikings at home are just a solid team to beat especially when fully healthy. Look for some scoring in this one as the over (45.5) is in play. Vikings add a few scores late and defeat Tampa Bay 31-20.
Las Vegas Raiders @ Denver Broncos (-3.5)
Sean Payton will look a little different Sunday as he’ll be dressed in blue and orange as Denver’s head coach. The Broncos had one of the more disappointing seasons last year under head coach Nathaniel Hackett. The offense struggled and QB Russell Wilson looked broken.
All that changes now as Payton has an opportunity to make Wilson look more like the Seattle QB than the one we saw last season. Wilson’s projected passing total sits at (221.5) yards and it’ll be interesting to see how much Payton leans into his passing attack early in the season or keeps it on the ground with RB Javonte Williams.
On the other end, Derek Carr is in New Orleans now, and in steps in Jimmy Garoppolo coming off a foot injury that ended his season. Jimmy G looked good last year in San Francisco recording a 7-3 record as a starter in 2022. He’ll rejoin his former Patriots offensive coordinator and now Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels.
One thing is certain, no matter who the QB is in Las Vegas, it was the defense that kept them out of the win column. I don’t think that defense has improved much this off-season and there may be an adjustment period offensively for the Raiders, so I think Denver should have no issues sustaining a lead in this one. I’d rather the spread drop down to (-3), but it’s more likely to move
to (-4). Payton starts his tenure with the Broncos with a win 27-17.
Buffalo Bills (-2.5) @ New York Jets
Our first Monday night game of the season is a New York affair as the Buffalo Bills travel to face this year’s HBO Hard Knocks participant the New York Jets. Aaron Rodgers will try to do what no Jets QB has done since 2010 and that’s get them back into the playoffs.
Meanwhile, the Bills have been in the playoffs four straight post-seasons, but have yet to get over the hump and win an AFC Championship. Josh Allen has been pretty quiet this off-season outside of a few television commercials. He’s my pick to win MVP, so I’m expecting him to put up big numbers.
Going back to this game, I think we have two QBs here that will lead their teams to the playoffs, but one isn’t making his first start with a new team. We’ve seen in the past where veterans QBs have started out slow with new teams, especially when it comes to chemistry with his skill position players.
Rodgers will have his former Green Bay Packers OC Nathaniel Hackett with him in New York, so the terminology should be familiar. That being said, can the Jets offense keep up with the Bills? The Jets have a solid defense and should keep this game close. The Bills just have too many weapons, and I think Buffalo should come out with a close win here. Josh Allen leads
them to a late score and the cover 28-24.
Tennessee Titans @ New Orleans Saints (-3)
The Saints have a new QB under center, Derek Carr, and they get a key playmaker back in Michael Thomas to start Week 1. We’ve seen Derek Carr have his most successful seasons with
the Raiders when the defense is middle of the pack or better.
Well now he gets arguably a top-5 defense under head coach Dennis Allen and the hype around the Saints is still pretty mild. Most of that comes from the fact that there in a weak division, but talent-wise the roster looks to win double digit games.
Former LSU cornerback Kristen Fulton will likely draw Chris Olave, but could see some one-on- one’s with Michael Thomas as well. Fulton dealt with some injuries throughout his short NFL career and we’ve seen him get beat downfield by elite WRs.
I think this an opportunity for Olave to show he’s even better in year two with the Saints. His receiving yard total vs Tennessee is (66.5) yards. That’s the highest total for all WRs in this game, which include Thomas and Titans WR DeAndre Hopkins. I think Olave shines, which is why I like him to score in the game. Olave Anytime Touchdown (+185)
