Your Guide to Watching the First Weekend of the NFL

We finally arrived!

The NFL season is back with the opening weekend just days away.

Since Mecole Hardman caught the final snap of the season to secure Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs’ third championship in five years, there have been a series of league-changing moves that have prepared us for what could be one of the most interesting college football seasons in a long time.

The offseason has seen a number of familiar faces move to new cities: Saquon Barkley to Philadelphia, Stefon Diggs to Houston, and Haason Reddick to New York (though even that situation hasn’t fully resolved itself yet…). It’s also seen a whole new draft class introduced, filled with all sorts of exciting young talent, like Caleb Williams, Marvin Harrison Jr., and Brock Bowers. Finally, we’ve also seen a number of esteemed head coaches replaced by a new wave of young coaches, signaling a changing of the guard.

All of these crazy moves have laid the groundwork for an incredibly exciting 23 weeks of football action. I can’t wait to see who will attempt to take the crown off the Chiefs!

Without further ado, let’s get into a quick overview of what I think will happen during this first weekend.

Best Game: Baltimore Ravens @ Kansas City Chiefs

Last season started off with a bang as the Detroit Lions won a nail-biting game against the eventual champions, the Kansas City Chiefs, and I expect this year to be no different. In what has become a staple matchup over the years between the league’s two best quarterbacks, I expect the first game of the season to be a blast.

Both teams have the potential to launch a full-power attack, but I believe that the outcome of this match will be decided primarily by consistent running play and the ability to use the few mistakes made by each team in attack in defense.

Ultimately, I believe the Chiefs will leave Arrowhead Stadium with a win, but I expect it to be a close game with the Chiefs attacking out of reach in the final quarter.

By the way, I think the Monday Night Football game between the San Francisco 49ers and the New York Jets will be very interesting and could turn out to be a surprise Super Bowl matchup (though it all depends on whether Aaron Rodgers can return to his 2021 MVP form).

Outstanding Rookie: Marvin Harrison Jr. vs. Buffalo Bills

This rookie class has a lot of potential generational talent, so there is a lot of excitement surrounding the performances we might see in their first year in the NFL. While there will undoubtedly be some growing pains for all of them, I believe Marvin Harrison Jr. (MHJ) has the best chance to come out of the gate with a bang.

I believe MHJ has the toolset to immediately catapult him into the upper echelon of NFL receivers. Despite the fact that he will be facing a Bills defense that played well last season, I think he will continue to improve and be a strong starter from day one.

While it’s entirely possible that the top rookie this weekend will be one of the top quarterbacks drafted in the first round, I think it could take a week or two for them to fully adjust and get into a rhythm like it did with C.J. Stroud last year.

Surprise of the Week: Tennessee Titans +4 @ Chicago Bears

While it may seem crazy that a team that received the first overall pick in the draft this year would enter Week 1 as favorites to win a game, the Chicago Bears have completely changed the direction of their team and appear to be in a much better position than they were 12 months ago.

That said, I believe they are ripe for an upset this week and that the Titans, led by second-year quarterback Will Levis, can walk into Soldier Field Stadium and take home a seemingly unlikely victory.

The Bears, despite notable improvements to their roster, could need a few weeks to establish a true identity. Coupled with their rookie QB Caleb Williams finding his footing on offense, that could cost them some close games.

Likewise, the Titans made some smart roster moves to improve their team: trading for LB Ernest Jones IV, CB L’Jarius Sneed, and signing WR Calvin Ridley. The Titans could be a sneaky good team in the strong AFC South.

Ultimately, this is valuable experience for a young, promising team, but I think expecting them to turn things around in Week 1 may be shortsighted and it may turn out that a much-improved Titans team can pull off a comeback.

Picks of the week:

I decided that this year might be the year I finally start tracking my picks for each week, so this is where I’ll be holding myself accountable for the undoubtedly awful game I’ll be presenting. Nevertheless, here are my predictions for this year’s list of games!

Overall score: 0-0

Ravens @ Chiefs (-3): Bosses

Packers @ Eagles (-2.5): Eagles

Panthers @ Saints (-4): Saints

Vikings (-1.5) @ Giants: Vikings

Patriots @ Bengals (-7.5): Bengals

Steelers @ Falcons (-3.5): Falcons

Texans (-2.5) @ Colts: Texans

Cardinals @ Bills (-6.5): Cardinals

Titans @ Bears (-4): Titans

Jaguars @ Dolphins (-3.5): Dolphins

Broncos @ Seahawks (-6): Broncos

Raiders @ Chargers (-3): Chargers

Cowboys @ Browns (-2.5): Brown

Commanders @ Buccaneers (-3): Pirates

Aries @ Leo (-3.5): Crosses

Jets @ 49ers (-4.5): 49ers

*All odds are from DraftKings as of 09/04/2024