NFL Tips: Week 1 Sunday Predictions & Best Bets

The opening week of the NFL season calls for us to favour continuity and to a certain extent underdogs. In week 1 we tend to think we know more than we do about these teams but this week more than ever there is a higher degree of randomness around the results.

At the end of the season, you can look back at week 1 results every year and wonder ‘How the hell did that team beat that team?’. It’s the nature of the opening week of NFL action and with that said here are your NFL tips for week 1 as American football returns to our TV screens.

Week 1 Sunday Games Schedule

Early Slate – 6 pm Games

Falcons v Steelers – Sky Sports Action

Saints v Panthers

Giants v Vikings

Bengals v Patriots

Colts v Texans

Bills v Cardinals

Bears v Titans

Dolphins v Jaguars

Late Slate – 9.05 & 9.25 pm Games

Browns v Cowboys - Sky Sports Action

Seahawks v Broncos

Chargers v Raiders

Buccaneers v Commanders

Sunday Night Football – 1.20 am Game

Lions v Rams - Sky Sports NFL

NFL Sunday Week 1 Tips

Falcons v Steelers Preview

The Falcons' new head coach Raheem Morris has a 21-38 record as a Head Coach in the NFL. Now you can point to the fact that 3 of his seasons as Head Coach came back in 2009-2011 and that it is unfair to judge him too harshly based on his struggles then. However, he was most recently an interim head coach for the Falcons in 2020 and in that situation, he took over and led the team to a 4-7 record.

Has Morris learned a thing or two in that time? Possibly. Is he highly spoken of in league circles and considered a top defensive mind? Yes. With that said, his poor record as a head coach in the league has to be given heavy consideration here.

Sticking with the Falcons and novelties, Kirk Cousins will step in at QB for Atlanta in his first game since suffering a season-ending Achilles injury last season. It’s also his first game with the franchise after moving on from Minnesota which means he lacks familiarity with the Falcons’ admittedly talented group of receiving options.

On the other hand, you have the Steelers with Mike Tomlin at the helm. Tomlin is widely regarded as one of the top coaches in the NFL thanks to his ability to get the most out of his rosters including when his teams are seemingly short-handed in terms of talent.

At QB, Russell Wilson will get the start ahead of Justin Fields who was acquired from Chicago this offseason. Wilson will be bidding to revive his career in Pittsburgh after a difficult couple of years with the Broncos.

There are question marks surrounding both teams here but the Steelers with a strong defence against an offence with a new 36-year-old QB coming off an Achilles injury, a better head coach and an improved offence have to be the pick here when getting 3.5 points.

Falcons v Steelers Prediction

Falcons 17 Steelers 20

Tip: Steelers +3.5 @ 5/6

Saints v Panthers Preview

This is another game where we will see a rookie head coach debut. This time it is the away team as the Dave Canales era begins in Carolina. The Superdome in New Orleans is a tough place to go for your first game at the helm in what is sure to be a rowdy atmosphere against divisional foes.

The Panthers heavily invested in their offensive line in the offseason to protect 2023 #1 overall pick Bryce Young. The QB disappointed last season and the pressure is on this season to fulfil the expectations that the Panthers and indeed the entire league had for him coming out of college. Former Steeler WR Diontae Johnson will also be playing his first game for Carolina and should be a welcome addition to their receiving corps.

On paper, the Saints have a strong defence which should make life very difficult for Bryce Young and company. Their offence, however, isn’t exactly the most exciting with Derek Carr at this stage in his career typifying league-average QB (or worse). The Saints' #1 WR Chris Olave could be in for a tough day against Carolina’s strong cornerback group. If this is the case then we could see RB Alvin Kamara busy catching balls out of the backfield.

Overall, I wouldn’t be expecting a lot of points in this one. The Saints should have enough to come out on top.

Saints v Panthers Prediction

Saints 17 Panthers 13

Tip: Under 41.5 Points @ 10/11

Giants v Vikings Preview

This is a game between two teams that project to be among the worst in the NFL this season. The Vikings don’t appear to be in any rush to win after letting veteran QB Kirk Cousins walk out the door and replacing him with Sam Darnold. Rookie QB JJ McCarthy looked promising in preseason before suffering a season-ending injury and with his injury it feels like the life has been sucked out of this franchise heading into this regular season.

The Giants also feel like a team with no real sense of direction. This is the last chance for starting QB Daniel Jones (for real this time). There are some positives for New York however heading into this one. Rookie first-round pick Malik Nabers has been the talk of the town around the Big Apple so we can expect to see plenty of targets for him in this one against what doesn’t look like a great Vikings secondary. The Giants also have a strong record against the handicap as home underdogs under Brian Daboll, going 9-3 in those situations.

The Giants to win at home is the pick here.

Giants v Vikings Prediction

Giants 23 Vikings 16

Tip: Giants to win @ Evens

Bengals v Patriots Preview

The Bengals have been notorious slow starters in recent seasons despite plenty of postseason success including a Super Bowl appearance and 2 AFC Championship Game appearances. Here they find themselves as the overwhelming favourites against a Patriots team that is in transition to put it gently.

The Pats have massive question marks on the offensive line heading into this season.

Veteran Jacoby Brissett will be the team’s starter for this game. We can expect New England to try and rely on their run game going into this one and they could have success on that front given that this Bengals defence was one of the worst in the league against the run last year.

On paper, the Bengals deserve to be massive favourites here with the talent gap between the teams being blindingly obvious. However, I don’t like laying so many points in week 1 when teams are still working out who they are and that’s especially true when we talk about a Bengals team that has struggled out of the gate with Zac Taylor as Head Coach.

Bengals v Patriots Prediction

Bengals 22 Patriots 19

Tip: Patriots +8.5 @ 10/11

Colts v Texans Preview

The Texans have been the offseason darlings after an unexpected 2023 season which saw rookie QB CJ Stroud make his mark and ended in an unexpected run to the Divisional Round before being beaten by the Ravens.

The Colts on the other hand have had a very low-key type of offseason. There are still a lot of unknowns around their 2023 1st round pick at QB Anthony Richardson. The young signal-caller had his rookie season cut prematurely last year after sustaining a shoulder injury in week 5. Richardson did however star against Houston last season when he rushed for 2 TDs before leaving the game early due to a concussion.

The Texans have an offence to envy with the likes of WR Stefon Diggs, RB Joe Mixon and WR Nico Collins all great options for QB CJ Stroud. The Colts’ pass rush, however, had success last season against Houston and I could see that being the case again here.

Colts v Texans Prediction

Colts 27 Texans 24

Tip: Colts +2.5 @ 21/20

Bills v Cardinals Preview

The Cardinals make the trip east to Buffalo to take on the Bills in one of the bigger spreads of week 1.

For Arizona, they will be hoping that highly touted rookie WR Marvin Harrison Jr. can make an instant impact on the field. The Ohio State product was rated as one of the greatest prospects ever at the position and slots in straight away as the team’s no.1 pass catcher. TE Trey McBride is another pass catcher for the Cardinals with a lot of buzz around him and is expected to be a standout again in this offence.

This is a new look offence for the Bills with the departure of both of their top receiving options from previous seasons in Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis.

I expect that the Bills will have some struggles on offence here as they try to replace the production of Diggs and Davis but should be able to do just enough to get over the line thanks to some off-script plays from star QB Josh Allen.

Bills v Cardinals Prediction

Bills 21 Cardinals 20

Tip: Cardinals +6.5 @ 10/11

Chargers v Raiders Preview

It’s hard to get too excited about the Raiders coming into this season with journeyman Gardner Minshew stepping in as the team’s new starting quarterback. There is a sense of this team being in limbo right now.

The Chargers on the other hand are the opposite. The Los Angeles-based franchise secured the signature of highly sought-after Head Coach Jim Harbaugh who is coming off a National Championship-winning season at Michigan and also boasts a winning track record in the NFL at 49-22-1. LA also has one of the best QBs in the league in the form of Justin Herbert who has struggled to convert his obvious talent into team success, in large part due to the mismanagement of the team by previous head coaches.

I expect the Harbaugh era to get off to a strong start here against an uninspiring Raiders outfit.

Chargers v Raiders Prediction

Chargers 28 Raiders 17

Tip: Chargers -3.5 @ 21/20

Browns v Cowboys Preview

The Cowboys start their season with a trip to Cleveland to take on the Browns. After a promising regular season, the Cowboys were embarrassed by the Packers in a home playoff loss to end their Super Bowl hopes.

The Browns also exited the playoffs in the wildcard round but their loss to Houston was more understandable given that they were without starting QB Deshaun Watson.

Aside from CeeDee Lamb, the Cowboys’ offence looks devoid of talent. On top of that, they will be starting two rookies on the offensive line on the road against a stout Cleveland defence which includes reigning Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett. The Cowboys' defence also looks like it is going to be one of the better units in the league this year so points could be at a premium this Sunday.

Browns v Cowboys Prediction

Browns 17 Cowboys 13

Tip: Under 40.5 Points @ 20/21

*Prices are subject to fluctuation.

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