NFL Parlay Picks for Week 1: Getting Value from Opening Slate's Top Favorites
Parlaying favorites looks like a smart approach to a tough Week 1 slate. Here are our top NFL parlay picks of Week 1.
Betting on NFL point spreads and totals is tough at the best of times, but especially in Week 1 when we don’t know much about new-look teams. Instead, you might want to consider parlaying several probable outcomes into one ticket and taking a shot at a plus-money return.
Here are three NFL Week 1 parlay picks that made my ticket, based on the odds at DraftKings Sportsbook.
Week 1 NFL Parlay Picks
NFL Parlay Predictions
Chiefs ML (-240)
The Kansas City Chiefs might be the most popular bet in Week 1, sending the point spread soaring as high as 6.5 after opening below a field goal. The Arizona Cardinals' potential to earn a backdoor cover with a late score will keep me off laying nearly a full touchdown with Kansas City, but I’m quite comfortable simply asking the Chiefs to pull out a victory against a Cardinals squad that is projected to come back to earth a bit this season.
Everyone’s aware of Andy Reid’s track record of success following a bye, but the Chiefs’ coach has been just as lethal in season openers. Kansas City won its last seven Week 1 games — the longest active streak in the NFL and the sixth-longest in league history — and Reid is 14-4 in his last 18 season openers going back to his days with the Philadelphia Eagles.
Patrick Mahomes and the KC offense shouldn’t have much issue moving the ball against a Cardinals defense that is already banged up, with pass rushers J.J. Watt and Markus Golden missing practice this week due to various ailments. The Cards are also shorthanded in the secondary and will be without top receiver DeAndre Hopkins for the first six games of the season due to suspension.
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Colts ML (-320)
The Indianapolis Colts' Week 1 track record is the polar opposite of the Chiefs, as the Colts have lost eight straight season openers despite being an above-.500 team during that stretch. Unlike KC’s opening-week success, which can be attributed to Reid having extra time to prepare, this Indianapolis run of futility in Week 1 doesn’t make a whole lot of sense, which is why I’m not afraid to step in front of the trend on Sunday.
In fact, the Colts’ Week 1 ineptitude could be a reason why we’re getting Indy at shorter odds, and bettors might also be remembering Indianapolis’ horrible season-ending loss to Jacksonville that kept the team out of last year’s playoffs. However, Indy has made a huge upgrade since then with the acquisition of veteran quarterback Matt Ryan to replace the turnover-prone Carson Wentz. The Colts also had no trouble with Houston a year ago, dispatching the Texans by a combined score of 62-3 in their two meetings.
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Vikings alternate spread +7.5 (-285)
The Minnesota Vikings’ Week 1 battle with the NFC North rival Green Bay Packers is priced close to a coin toss, with the Packers a slight 1-point road favorite at the time of writing. But if there’s anything I feel confident about in this game, it’s the Vikings’ potential to keep things close.
That’s what Minnesota consistently did last year, when eight of its nine losses came by a single possession. The lone exception was a 37-10 rout at the hands of these very Packers, but that came at Lambeau Field in Week 17 after the Vikings’ playoff hopes had been dashed with a tough loss at home to the Los Angeles Rams the week prior. Speaking of last year, Green Bay had trouble winning by a margin on the road, going 5-4 as the visitor with just three wins by more than a TD.
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NFL parlay picks from 9/9/2022 at 10:37 a.m. ET.
