NFL 2024 Week 1 Preview: Lines and Totals Released

The NHL season has come to a close, leaving MLB, the WNBA and the CFL as really the only games in town. For many sports bettors, that signals a switch to the upcoming football season. The sportsbooks have you covered, with points spreads and totals out for the opening week and beyond. It’s time for the NFL 2024 Week 1 preview.

The 2024 NFL season starts with a good one, as Baltimore visits Kansas City. The NFL betting lines look a little bit on the low side here, with Kansas City less than a field goal. The Chiefs are the defending Super Bowl champions and will want to make a good showing.

The Ravens had a better regular season record than Kansas City, but the Chiefs played better when it mattered most. The offenses gets all the attention, but both teams can play defense. These were the only two teams in the AFC to allow fewer than 300 points last year. Take the under 47 in this one.

The Packers and the Eagles meet in Brazil in a game televised by Peacock. Philadelphia stumbled a bit down the stretch last year and what looked to be a promising season ended with a thud.

Jordan Love did well for the Packers despite facing a lot of scrutiny. This is one of the better NFL Week 1 matchups, but a little hard to predict a winner. The over 48.5 offers a bit of value in this game.

The first game on Sunday’s schedule isn’t a bad one, as Jacksonville travels south to face the Miami Dolphins. The Jags are still likely feeling the effects of last year’s late collapse, while Miami has something to prove itself. The Dolphins were tough at home last season, going 7-2.

The line is pretty reasonable in this one and the Dolphins could be one of the popular NFL Week 1 favorites in this game. There isn’t a lot of value in this game in either the side or the total.

The NFL 2024 Week 1 preview shows that both teams are going to have new quarterbacks for the upcoming season. Russell Wilson looks to have the inside track for Pittsburgh, but Justin Fields will get a chance to win the job. Kirk Cousins will be behind center for Atlanta.

The Steelers had a decent NFL season last year. Pittsburgh was 10-7 despite less-than-stellar quarterback play. The Falcons were 7-10, but bigger things are expected this year. Cousins is an improvement for Atlanta.

• This is a tough game to play, although the Steelers have potential in a teaser and moving the line to Pittsburgh +8.

Two disappointing teams meet at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., as the Vikings visit the Giants. Minnesota will have a new look on offense.

Sam Darnold is listed as the team’s starter with J.J. McCarthy sitting No. 2 on the depth chart. That could change before this game is played. Daniel Jones is listed as the starter for the Giants, which could also change. The NFL Week 1 odds have this one as even and the Vikings could be the right side here.

The Carolina Panthers look to rebound from its NFL-worst 2-15 record in 2023.

• The Saints were 9-8, which makes the NFL Week 1 point spreads look a little bit low in this game.

Carolina was bad on both sides of the ball. The Saints could score some points and the defense wasn’t that bad. New Orleans will likely be a popular play opening week.

The Bengals have the largest of the NFL Week 1 spreads, as they’re nearly double-digits over New England. It’s unclear if Drake Maye will start over Jacoby Brissett at the start of the season.

You have to expect Maye to be the starter at some point during the season. Joe Burrow missed quite a bit of time last season and the Bengals are obviously a much better team when he’s in there. Cincinnati is another team the public will likely be backing in the opening week.

This game will be get a fair amount of hype due it being the regular season for Caleb Williams.

• The Bears are going to be a better football team than last year, but it’s still not easy trusting them as 4.5-point favorites.

The Titans are doing a bit of revamping, saying good-bye to several veterans.

Will Levis played like a rookie at times, but also made some plays. It’s hard to get a read on his upside, which is why the Titans made him the starter last season. It’s easier to take the Titans in your NFL Week 1 picks with spread than it is to lay points here.

The Buffalo Bills are favored by a touchdown over Kyler Murray and the Cardinals. Arizona was a different team once Murray returned to the line-up and he has Marvin Harrison Jr. to throw to. Murray is high on Harrison, who is fitting in well with his new team.

The Bills don’t have the shiny new toys like the Cardinals, but they don’t need them. Buffalo is solid on both sides of the ball and will be in the NFL playoff bracket once again this season. Expect to see a lot of bettors using the Bills in teasers in this game.

The NFL 2024 Week 1 preview gives us a pretty decent game in Indianapolis between the Texans and the Colts. C.J. Stroud had a huge season for the Texans, who were able to win the AFC South thanks to some help from Jacksonville.

The Colts made a run at the playoffs, but came up a bit shy. Indianapolis hopes the return of Anthony Richardson can take the offense up another notch. The Colts don’t look bad in teasers in this game.

The Los Angeles Chargers had a disastrous season that saw them finish 5-12. Justin Herbert missed some time and not much went right for the Bolts. Las Vegas didn’t play that bad, but the Raiders were 6-3 at home and 2-6 on the road.

The Chargers were bad at home or away and the NFL scores from last year show the team ending the 2023 season on a five-game losing streak. It’s tough to lay points with the Chargers right now.

There’s no longer the Russell Wilson factor in this game, as the Broncos let Wilson leave. The Broncos have Jarrett Stidham listed as No. 1 on the QB depth chart followed by Bo Nix. Denver made some positive strides last year, while the Seahawks slipped a little bit.

There isn’t much in the way of betting value in this one. It’s one of the NFL games where the lines for Week 1 NFL seem pretty much where they should be. This game may not get a lot of betting attention, since the sportsbooks appear to have put out a solid number.

The Commanders didn’t waste any time putting Jayden Daniels at No. 1 on the depth chart ahead of veteran Marcus Mariota. Washington is counting on big things from Daniels and he has the tools to accomplish that.

Baker Mayfield had a big season with Tampa Bay and threw for more than 4,000 and 28 touchdowns last season. He was rewarded with a $100 million contract, which isn’t bad for somebody some people thought was about to be out of the league. For an NFL Week 1 betting play, the over looks to offer a little value here.

Another pretty decent game for an NFL Week 1 preview, as Dallas visits Cleveland. The Cowboys were the highest-scoring team in the NFL last season.

The Browns were one of the better defenses in the league, so something will have to give. These were two of the top home teams in the NFL last season, as Dallas was 8-0 and the Browns were 8-1. That makes it awfully hard to pass on the Browns in this one.

There could be plenty of points scored in the opening week Sunday night game, as it features the highest total when you look at the odds for NFL Week 1.

Los Angeles scored some points last year, but their defense allowed almost as many. The Lions were the third highest-scoring team in the NFC behind Dallas the 49ers. The total is still pretty lofty and any value will be found in the under 51.

For the second year in a row, fans are looking forward to Aaron Rodgers behind center for the New York Jets. After Rodgers was injured in the opening quarter of last season, the Jets still played decent. The offense was pretty dismal, but the defense stepped up and kept the team in games.

If Rodgers can take some pressure off the defense, this NFL team will be better. The 49ers are solid on both sides of the ball and will be a popular teaser play this week. This is one of the tougher NFL week one odds, but the 49ers are probably the side to be on.

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