NFL Predictions Week 1: Odds, Picks and Projections for Opening Schedule

Of the 16 games taking place during the opening week of the NFL season, there are six in which a team is favored by three or fewer points. That means this slate of games should provide an exciting start to a new football campaign.

The Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears play in Thursday night's season opener, followed by 13 games on Sunday and a pair of matchups on Monday night.

Here's a look at the betting lines for this weekend's NFL games, along with a pick for each and a closer look at the three matchups with the smallest lines.

Week 1 Odds and Picks

Picks are in bold and made against the spread.

Thursday, Sept. 5

Green Bay at Chicago (-3)

Sunday, Sept. 8

Atlanta Falcons at Minnesota Vikings (-3.5)

Baltimore Ravens (-6.5) at Miami Dolphins

Buffalo Bills at New York Jets (-3)

Kansas City Chiefs (-4) at Jacksonville Jaguars

Los Angeles Rams (-3) at Carolina Panthers

Tennessee Titans at Cleveland Browns (-5.5)

Washington Redskins at Philadelphia Eagles (-9.5)

Cincinnati Bengals at Seattle Seahawks (-9.5)

Indianapolis Colts at Los Angeles Chargers (-6.5)

Detroit Lions (-2.5) at Arizona Cardinals

New York Giants at Dallas Cowboys (-7)

San Francisco 49ers at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Even)

Pittsburgh Steelers at New England Patriots (-5.5)

Monday, Sept. 9

Houston Texans at New Orleans Saints (-7)

Denver Broncos at Oakland Raiders (-1)

Odds obtained from Caesars.

Three Closest Matchups

San Francisco at Tampa Bay (Even)

Tony Gutierrez/Associated Press

The only matchup with an even line during the NFL's opening weekend features two teams coming off challenging 2018 seasons. The Buccaneers went 5-11 and finished last in the NFC South, while the 49ers were third in the NFC West at 4-12. But both of these teams have reasons to believe that 2019 will be better.

Tampa Bay has a new head coach in Bruce Arians, who returned to coaching after leading the Arizona Cardinals from 2013 to 2017. The Bucs also have talented players on both sides of the ball, including quarterback Jameis Winston, wide receiver Mike Evans, defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh and rookie linebacker Devin White.

San Francisco will hope to have a healthy Jimmy Garoppolo leading its offense all season after the quarterback played only three games last year. The 49ers also have a strong defense that includes rookie defensive end Nick Bosa, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2019 draft.

Although this should be a close game, expect the Buccaneers to use their home-field advantage and the excitement of a new era under Arians to pull out a victory.

Denver at Oakland (-1)

Jack Dempsey/Associated Press

The final game of the Week 1 schedule is the second Monday night contest between the Broncos and Raiders in an AFC West rivalry matchup.

Oakland may be a one-point favorite, but there has been some uncertainty surrounding the team during the preseason, much of which was caused by wide receiver Antonio Brown. Unhappy he couldn't continue using his preferred NFL helmet, Brown appeared to threaten retirement last month. However, that saga appears to be over as Brown will try to improve a Raiders offense that ranked 23rd in the NFL in total yards last season.

The Broncos had a lot of turnover with veteran quarterback Joe Flacco taking over as the leader of the offense and defensive-minded Vic Fangio taking over as head coach. Both are moves that should help Denver this season, especially as Flacco mentors second-round draft pick Drew Lock to potentially become the next franchise quarterback.

Although the Raiders are the favorite, bet on the Broncos with one point to go on the road and open the year with a win.

Detroit (-2.5) at Arizona

David Zalubowski/Associated Press

The Cardinals may have had the worst record in the NFL last season at 3-13, but 2019 marks the start of a new era.

No. 1 overall draft pick Kyler Murray will lead Arizona's offense this year, as the rookie quarterback begins his NFL career with a home contest against Detroit. Murray, who won the Heisman Trophy at Oklahoma last season, will immediately take the reins of the Cardinals as the Week 1 starter.

Arizona also made a bit of a surprising coaching hire when it brought in Kliff Kingsbury to be its new head coach.

Kingsbury and Murray will completely change the look of the Cardinals offense, and though they enter their opener as 2.5-point underdogs, they're going to use the excitement of this fresh beginning to pull out a victory over a Lions team that went 6-10 last season.