BEST BETS
COLTS 9-8 AT TEXANS 4-13
LINE: Indy by 7
CHEWABLE: The Colts aren’t getting the respect they deserve. Under Matt Ryan’s guidance, the offence could be the best in the league. They lost DC Matt Eberflus, but they’ve added cornerback Stephon Gilmore and pass rusher Yannick Ngakoue to what was already a very strong group. The Texans should be improved, but are currently not near the same category as their visitors … The Colts swept the home-and-away with Texans last year by a combined 63-3, including a 31-0 whitewash in Houston three weeks before Christmas. That extended Indy’s winning streak against Houston to four games. The Colts have also taken 11 of the past 15 and lead the all-time series 32-9
TAKING: INDIANAPOLIS -7
SCORE (O/U 45.5): Colts 30, Texans 10
BUCCANEERS 13-4 AT COWBOYS 12-5
LINE: Tampa by 2 1/2
CHEWABLE: If you’ll remember, the Bucs beat the Cowboys 31-29 on a last-second field goal last season in Week 1. That game was in Tampa. Tom Brady was only 44 back then and didn’t miss a day of training camp prep. How do the tables not get turned 12 months later? … In defence rankings by sportsnaut.com, the Bucs were No. 5 and Dallas was No. 11 … The Cowboys have won seven of the past nine meetings and lead the all-time series 15-5-0.
TAKING: DALLAS +2 1/2
SCORE (O/U 50 1/2): Cowboys 28, Bucs 24
BRONCOS 7-10 AT SEAHAWKS 7-10
LINE: Denver by 6 1/2
CHEWABLE: The Seahawks pass defence, ranked 31st last season, now has to deal with an ultra-inspired Russell Wilson in his return to Seattle. The Broncos have a solid lineup throughout while the Seahawks have a lot of question marks, starting with QB Geno Smith, who will receive a lot of pressure from Broncos top 10-ranked defence … The Monday Night Football debut of Joe Buck and Troy Aikman won’t be a nail biter as Broncos build on an all-time series they lead 35-21-0.
TAKING: DENVER -6 1/2
SCORE (O/U 44 1/2): Broncos 30, Seahawks 14
THE REST
RAVENS 8-9 AT JETS 4-13
LINE: Baltimore by 7
CHEWABLE: For a moment, you might want to consider going with a J.E.T.S. quarterbacked by Joe Flacco, who guided the Ravens to a Super Bowl victory in his almost 11 full seasons at their helm. Then you’re reminded that Lamar Jackson and his mom are trying to convince the Ravens he’s worth a zillion dollars, and that Baltimore has defeated the Jets the past nine times the teams have met … The Ravens are also 10-4 ATS in Week 1 under coach John Harbaugh.
TAKING: BALTIMORE -7
SCORE (O/U, 44 1/2): Ravens 28, Jets 20
SAINTS 9-8 AT FALCONS 7-10
LINE: New Orleans by 5 /12
CHEWABLE: This QB matchup features James Winston and Marcus Mariota, the top two picks of the 2015 draft. With one of the best defences in the league, the Saints will make life difficult on Mariota … Winston is coming back from ACL reconstruction and looked good in a pre-season showing. With Michael Thomas and rookie Chris Olave as targets, and with Alvin Kamara coming out of the backfield, he’ll have a wide-ranging arsenal … The Saints have won their previous four times in Atlanta by an average of seven points, but that was with Sean Payton as coach.
TAKING: ATLANTA +5 1/2
SCORE (O/U 42 1/2): Saints 20, Falcons 17
PATRIOTS10-7 AT DOLPHINS 9-8
LINE: Miami by 3 1/2
CHEWABLE: With off-season additions on offence like Tyreek Hill, Chase Edmonds and Raheem Mostert, the Fish are the better team, even if the defence does slip without fired head coach Brian Flores … The Patriots should be able to move the ball along the ground against a suspect run D … Battle of former Alabama QB in Tua Tagovailoa and Mac Jones, the bulked up second-year pivot who also has a new playmate in former Dolphins WR DeVante Parker … Miami swept New England last year … While Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel makes his NFL debut, Bill Belichick has had four months to prepare for the Dolphins. They were probably only his focus for three months and four weeks.
TAKING: NEW ENGLAND +3 1/2
SCORE (O/U 46): Patriots 27, Dolphins 24
BROWNS 8-9 AT PANTHERS 5-12
LINE: Carolina by 1 1/2
CHEWABLE: Jacoby Brissett will do in a pinch as a fill-in for Deshaun Watson, but Baker Mayfield’s mouth is watering in anticipation of showing his former team it made a mistake. If the Progressive Insurance pitchman can survive the pursuit of Myles Garrett, he’ll have a capable group of pass catchers along with Christian McCaffrey, who can be everything and more to the Panthers running game that Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt give the Browns … The Panthers lead the all-time series 4-2 and have won both meetings in Carolina.
TAKING: CAROLINA -1 1/2
SCORE (O/U 41 1/2): Panthers 17, Browns 14
STEELERS 9-7-1 AT BENGALS 10-7
LINE: Cincinnati by 6 1/2
CHEWABLE: For the first time these long-time rivals open the season against each other … Before losing the past three meetings, the Steelers had beaten the Bengals 11 times in a row. Pittsburgh leads the all-time series 67-38 … Joe Burrow had to deal with appendicitis in the off-season and could be a tad rusty … Bengals bolstered their O-line to give their money ticket more protection … Mitch Trubisky could have a short leash as Steelers starting QB as first-round pick Kenny Pickett was impressive in the pre-season … Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin is 14-6 as a division dog.
TAKING: PITTSBURGH +6 1/2
SCORE (O/U 44 1/2): Bengals 27, Steelers 21
49ERS 10-7 AT BEARS 6-11
LINE: San Francisco by 7
CHEWABLE: Two teams at opposite ends of the spectrum, the Niners are Super Bowl contenders and the Bears are not making the playoffs. Still, this is Trey Lance’s first game as a No. 1 QB in the NFL and he’s playing in a storied venue against a team that should be better defensively under new coach Matt Eberflus. If the Bears, with a porous O-line last season, can give Justin Fields any time against a strong San Fran pass rush, the home team has a shot at covering. Under is the bet in what should be a defensive battle. Before the Bears wear down, that is … The Niners won 33-22 in Chicago last year and lead the all-time series 35-32-1.
TAKING: SAN FRANCISCO -7
SCORE (O/U, 40 1/2): 49ers 20, Bears 10
EAGLES 9-8 AT LIONS 3-13-1
LINE: Philadelphia by 4
CHEWABLE: Philly QB Jalen Hurts has reportedly improved his accuracy since last season, and he has a new prime target to test it with in A.J. Brown. The Eagles should compete for the NFC East title, but the Lions have also bolstered their offence and, under coach Dan Campbell, will be ready for this one … Despite winning just three games last season, the Lions were 11-6 ATS … The Eagles won 44-6 in Detroit last season and lead the all-time series 17-16-2.
TAKING: DETROIT +4
SCORE (O/U 48.5): Lions 24, Eagles 23
JAGUARS 3-14 AT COMMANDERS 7-10
LINE: Washington by 2 1/2
CHEWABLE: A reunion for Carson Wentz and Doug Pederson, who were a championship-calibre partnership in Philly and both make their new teams better now. With Pederson as coach and improved personnel on offence, Trevor Lawrence is poised for a breakout year … Washington has won six of the seven-game, all-time series, with two coming in overtime. The last meeting was Dec. 2018 in Jacksonville and was won 16-13 by Washington. The Jags’ only victory in the series was 20 years ago … The Jags will keep this one close, especially with Chase Young on the PUP list for the first four games of the season.
TAKING: JAGUARS +2 1/2
SCORE (O/U 43 1/2): Jaguars 27, Commanders 24
CHIEFS 12-5 AT CARDINALS 11-6
LINE: Kansas City by 6
CHEWABLE: Seems there’s little faith here in a Cardinals team that won its first seven games last season and may have been the NFL’s best team as late as November. The Chiefs opened at -3 in May, and that had moved to -4 last week … Chiefs were 10-10 ATS last season, including playoff. Cards were 10-8 ATS … The Chiefs have won four of the past five meetings and own a 9-3-1 series lead … As good as Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce are, the loss of Tyreek Hill is massive for K.C. If DeAndre Hopkins wasn’t suspended, I’d take the Cards straight up.
TAKING: ARIZONA +6
SCORE (O/U 53 1/2): Chiefs 30, Cards 28
RAIDERS 10-7 AT CHARGERS 9-8
LINE: Los Angeles by 3 1/2
CHEWABLE: Best Sunday game this week, in my opinion. As high-powered as their offence is and as bulked up as they are on defence, The Chargers lost 35-32 in OT to the Raiders when the teams met in the regular-season finale, and Raiders came within a touchdown of the Bengals in a wild-card loss … The Chargers did win 28-14 when the Raiders visited in October, but there has been an even split of the past eight games the teams have played in L.A. … Especially with the Chargers missing newly acquired/injured corner J.C. Jackson, Derek Carr and Davante Adams will help the Raiders keep pace with Justin Herbert/Keenan Allen/Mike Williams.
TAKING: LAS VEGAS +3 1/2
SCORE (O/U 52 1/2): Chargers 33, Raiders 30
PACKERS 13-4 AT VIKINGS 8-9
LINE: Green Bay by 1 1/2
CHEWABLE: Hey, I know how good Aaron Rodgers is, and the Pack has one of the best defences in the league. But the difference between the two teams’ receiving corps is laughable and the Vikings, who also have a good D, own the edge in the running game … Didn’t Green Bay lose its season opener to New Orleans last season by 35 points? Thought so … The Packers are 2-4 in their past six trips to Minnesota.
TAKING: VIKINGS +1 1/2
SCORE (O/U 47): Vikings 24, Packers 20
GIANTS 4-13 AT TITANS 12-5
LINE: Tennessee by 5 1/2
CHEWABLE: The Titans passing game took a huge hit with the trading of A.J. Brown on draft day, and their pass rush took a big jolt with the loss of Harold Landry to a torn ACL in camp. Derrick Henry has faced the Giants once in his career, and in that game he rushed for 170 yards and two touchdowns. The G-Men have promise under new coach Brian Daboll and, in prove-it mode, Saquon Barkley is determined to re-establish himself as one the game’s best backs … Titans have won six of the past seven in an all-time series that is deadlocked 6-6-0.
TAKING: NEW YORK +5 1/2
SCORE: (O/U 43 1/2): Titans 21, Giants 18
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