The long wait is finally over, as preseason games are set to take place this week. NFL fans have been waiting for this for so long now. Luckily, football is back in our lives, and in this article, we have NFL picks for Week 1 of preseason action. There are some truly juicy picks on the schedule, and it, of course, includes a clash between the Giants and Patriots in Foxborough.
Leading up to this one, look for the NY Giants to take down the Patriots. While New England might be the better team, the expectation is that the Patriots won’t be spending a lot of time in this preseason opener with their star players out on the field. The same can’t be said for New York, as new head coach Brian Daboll has said he’s planning to use all of his healthy players.
This includes quarterback Daniel Jones, who is in dire need of a strong performance. Throughout training camp, Jones has been quite inconsistent, and NY fans are already calling for Tyrod Taylor to take over as the starter. Not only that, but rumors surrounding a potential trade for San Francisco 49ers veteran signal-caller Jimmy Garoppolo also continue to grow.
| Preseason odds |  |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Giants to win | -130 | -130 | -130 | -130 |
| Patriots to win | +130 | +130 | +130 | +130 |
| 49ers to win | -140 | -140 | -140 | -140 |
| Steelers to win | -165 | -165 | -165 | -165 |
Jones can silence all of that talk with a strong showing against New England. Not only that, but wideout Kenny Golladay, Kadarius Toney and others need to have a strong showing too. Darius Slayton is playing for his future with the team as well. All in all, there’s just way more pressure on the G-Men to come out on top. New England has nothing to worry about.
Per the Las Vegas sportsbooks, the Giants currently hold -130 NFL odds to take down New England. As for the Patriots, they’ve been set with +130 odds. If this were a regular season showdown, then we wouldn’t hesitate in going with the Pats to record a win. Since it’s the preseason though, we’re going with the NY Giants as our pick to come out on top. Agree? Check out our top NFL betting sites to place a wager.
In another fun matchup, the 49ers should beat the Packers when they meet up this weekend. For Green Bay, it has already been announced that future Hall of Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers won’t be playing in this one. That’s not a surprise at all, as Rodgers is no stranger to skipping out on preseason action. For those of you wondering why he’s not playing, the answer is easy.
Straight up, the last thing the Packers can afford is for Rodgers to suit up in a meaningless preseason game and then injure himself. Imagine if he were to play in an August showdown, suffer a serious injury and then be out for the rest of the campaign. It’d be a nightmare. With Rodgers looking sharp in camp and being one of the best QBs in the game, he’ll save his stuff for the regular season.
Because of this, backup quarterback Jordan Love will be getting the start for Green Bay and the former first-round pick will hope to impress in this one. Love has struggled in his short amount of time on the field in place of Rodgers and the 49ers defense will look to give him fits in this one. As for the 49ers, new starting QB Trey Lance, also a former first-rounder, has plenty of buzz around him.
With San Francisco officially moving on from Garoppolo and rocking with Lance for the future, the second-year QB will look to dazzle from the start this season. He can also make quite a statement with a strong showing against the Packers this week. We think Love will get that job done, as we’re going with the 49ers to come away with a close win in this one.
Last but not least, the Steelers will beat the lowly Seahawks. When it comes to Seattle, this team enters the new season with virtually no excitement. After trading away star quarterback Russell Wilson to the Denver Broncos, all signs are pointing to Drew Lock taking over as the starter. Fans can’t believe this news and they’re not looking forward to it.
While the Steelers no longer have Ben Roethlisberger running the show, there’s plenty of excitement surrounding first-round pick Kenny Pickett. The former first-rounder is also going to be jacked up to put on a show against Seattle. From our chair, the Steelers should be able to get things done with ease against Seattle. Preseason or not, all signs are pointing to it being a long campaign for the Seahawks.
That’s rough for the fanbase, as Pete Carroll is entering the final years of his coaching career. Despite that, 2022 really feels like it’s going to be a wash for the team. That won’t be the case for the Steelers, as they’ll start off the preseason with a nice win over Seattle. Book it.
