Week 1 NFL Picks: Predictions and Advice for Season-Opening Vegas Odds

After the long and trying wait of the NFL offseason, opening night is finally upon us. The 2019 season is set to kick off with the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers on Thursday, and many other exciting games await in Week 1.

There should be plenty of action to whet your appetite, but for those looking for a little on the side, there's plenty of that too. Whether you're a fan of playing the odds or prefer to bet the over/under, Week 1 brings several intriguing options.

Here we will examine the latest lines and over/unders from Caesars. We will also examine some of the more enticing options of Week 1.

Week 1 Lines, Over/Unders and Predictions

Thursday, September 5

Green Bay Packers (+3, o/u 46.5) at Chicago Bears: Chicago 24-22

Sunday, September 8

Los Angeles Rams (-2.5, o/u 50) at Carolina Panthers: Los Angeles 29-24

Washington Redskins (+10, o/u 45) at Philadelphia Eagles: Philadelphia 33-24

Buffalo Bills (+3, o/u 41) at New York Jets: Buffalo 24-22

Atlanta Falcons (+4, o/u 47.5 at Minnesota Vikings: Minnesota 27-25

Baltimore Ravens (-6.5, o/u 38) at Miami Dolphins: Baltimore 27-17

Kansas City Chiefs (-3.5, o/u 52) at Jacksonville Jaguars: Kansas City 28-24

Tennessee Titans (+5, o/u 45.5) at Cleveland Browns: Cleveland 28-25

Indianapolis Colts (+6.5, o/u 44.5) at Los Angeles Chargers: Chargers 30-24

Cincinnati Bengals (+9.5, o/u 44) at Seattle Seahawks: Seattle 30-17

San Francisco 49ers (even, o/u 50.5) at Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Tampa Bay 27-24

New York Giants (+7.5, o/u 45.5) at Dallas Cowboys: Dallas 26-20

Detroit Lions (-2.5, o/u 46.5) at Arizona Cardinals: Detroit 22-19

Pittsburgh Steelers (+5.5, o/u 50) at New England Patriots: Pittsburgh 30-28

Monday, September 9

Houston Texans (+7, o/u 52.5) at New Orleans Saints: New Orleans 30-21

Denver Broncos (even, o/u 43) at Oakland Raiders: Oakland 22-20

Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears UNDER 46.5

The season's opening matchup could go either way. On paper, the Bears are the better team, but Aaron Rodgers has a knack for pulling out wins against Chicago. If you have the option, betting the over/under could be the safer play.

In this game, the under is safer side to pick. This shouldn't be a scorefest. Rodgers and the Packers are operating a new offense under first-year head coach Matt LaFleur, and Rodgers has yet to take the game field this year.

The Bears defense, let's not forget, allowed an average of just 17.7 points per game last season.

On the flip side, the Packers should have a vastly improved defense in 2019. They significantly upgraded their pass rush by adding Za'Darius Smith, Preston Smith and rookie Rashan Gary. Mitchell Trubisky and the Bears offense may be more efficient in Year 2 of the Matt Nagy era, but this game is going to be a battle.

Expect this one to be a defensive struggle that falls just shy of 47 total points.

Seattle Seahawks (-9.5) vs. the Cincinnati Bengals

Stephen Brashear/Associated Press

This is a huge spread for a Week 1 game. However, it may not be quite enough. The Seattle Seahawks were legitimate contenders even before adding pass-rusher Jadeveon Clowney to the lineup. They are playing at home, and they are playing against a Cincinnati Bengals squad looking to find its way.

The Bengals should be better this season than a lot of people expect. New head coach Zac Taylor has a bright offensive mind, quarterback Andy Dalton has a lot to prove and weapons like Joe Mixon, Tyler Boyd and Tyler Eifert are still on the roster.

However, this is simply not a good matchup for Cincinnati. The Bengals won't have deep threat A.J. Green, and their offensive line is questionable at best—rookie first-round pick Jonah Williams is on injured reserve.

The Seahawks have enough defensive talent up front to contain Mixon while pressuring Dalton every time he drops back to throw. With Seattle grinding away the game on the ground, Cincinnati isn't going to have that many scoring opportunities anyway.

Indianapolis Colts (+6.5) at the Los Angeles Chargers

Gary Landers/Associated Press

No Andrew Luck means no hope for the Indianapolis Colts this season, right? Not so fast. This is still a talented team with all the key pieces from last year except for Luck. In fact, the Colts have a better supporting cast on paper after adding weapons like Devin Funchess and Parris Campbell in the offseason.

The Colts can go as far as quarterback Jacoby Brissett takes them—and they believe in Brissett.

"This is the best team I've ever been a part of," wideout T.Y. Hilton said, per The Athletic's Stephen Holder. "We take nothing away from [Luck]. But this team is good."

The Los Angeles Chargers are good too, perhaps even title contenders. However, they are also missing standout safety Derwin James (foot) and star running back Melvin Gordon.

The Chargers will probably still win their home opener, but expecting them to win by a touchdown against a talented and hungry Indianapolis squad is asking a lot.