NFL NEWS

NFL WEEK 1 LINES: SEAHAWKS, RAMS LISTED AS FAVORITES FOR 2026 OPENERS

The Seattle Seahawks opened as minor favorites for their season-opening Super Bowl LX rematch against the New England Patriots upon the release of the full schedule for the 2026 NFL season Thursday evening.

The Seahawks, who beat the Patriots 29-13 to win their second championship on Feb. 8, open the season against New England on Wednesday, Sept. 9, in Seattle as 3.5- to 4.5-point favorites.

That kicks off a hectic opening week that will see the Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers face off in Melbourne, Australia, the Giants and Cowboys square off on “Sunday Night Football” and more.

Here is a full list of odds for Week 1 of the 2026 season (all money lines from DraftKings):

Wednesday, Sept. 9

New England Patriots at Seattle Seahawks
8:20 p.m. ET on NBC, Lumen Field, Seattle
Odds: Seahawks -3.5 (DraftKings); -4.5 (FanDuel)
Money line: Seahawks -192; Patriots +160
Total: 44.5 points (DraftKings); 45.5 points (FanDuel)

Thursday, Sept. 10

San Francisco 49ers vs. Los Angeles Rams
8:35 p.m. ET on Netflix, Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne, Australia
Odds: Rams -2.5 (DraftKings and FanDuel)
Money line: Rams -155; Seahawks +130
Total: 48.5 points (DraftKings); 49.5 (FanDuel)

Sunday, Sept. 13

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Cincinnati Bengals
1 p.m. ET on Fox, Paycor Stadium, Cincinnati
Odds: Bengals -3.5 (DraftKings and FanDuel)
Money line: Bengals -198; Buccaneers +164
Total: 50.5 points (DraftKings); 51.5 points (FanDuel)

Cleveland Browns at Jacksonville Jaguars
1 p.m. ET on CBS, EverBank Stadium, Jacksonville
Odds: Jaguars -7 (DraftKings); -7.5 (FanDuel)
Money line: Jaguars -285; Browns +230
Total: 39.5 points (FanDuel); 40.5 points (DraftKings)

Baltimore Ravens at Indianapolis Colts
1 p.m. ET on CBS, Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis
Odds: Ravens -3.5 (DraftKings and FanDuel)
Money line: Ravens -185; Colts +154
Total: 49.5 points (DraftKings and FanDuel)

New Orleans Saints at Detroit Lions
1 p.m. ET on Fox, Ford Field, Detroit
Odds: Lions -7 (DraftKings and FanDuel)
Money line: Lions -325; Saints +260
Total: 48.5 points (DraftKings and FanDuel)

Atlanta Falcons at Pittsburgh Steelers
1 p.m. ET on Fox, Acrisure Stadium, Pittsburgh
Odds: Steelers -2.5 (FanDuel); -3 (DraftKings)
Money line: Steelers -175; Falcons +145
Total: 41.5 points (FanDuel); 42.5 points (DraftKings)

New York Jets at Tennessee Titans
1 p.m. ET on CBS, Nissan Stadium, Nashville
Odds: Titans -2.5 (FanDuel); -3 (DraftKings)
Money line: Titans -170; Jets +142
Total: 38.5 points (FanDuel); 39.5 points (DraftKings)

Buffalo Bills at Houston Texans
1 p.m. ET on CBS, NRG Stadium, Houston
Odds: Bills -1.5 (DraftKings and FanDuel)
Money line: Bills -112; Texans -108
Total: 44.5 points (FanDuel); 45.5 points (DraftKings)

Chicago Bears at Carolina Panthers
1 p.m. ET on Fox, Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte
Odds: Bears -2.5 (DraftKings and FanDuel)
Money line: Bears -135; Panthers +114
Total: 44.5 points (DraftKings); 45.5 points (FanDuel)

Green Bay Packers at Minnesota Vikings
4:25 p.m. ET on CBS, U.S. Bank Stadium, Minneapolis
Odds: Packers -1.5 (DraftKings and FanDuel)
Money line: Packers -125; Vikings +105
Total: 44.5 points (DraftKings); 46.5 points (FanDuel)

Miami Dolphins at Las Vegas Raiders
4:25 p.m. ET on Fox, Allegiant Stadium, Las Vegas
Odds: Raiders -3 (DraftKings and FanDuel)
Money line: Raiders -180; Dolphins +150
Total: 40.5 points (FanDuel); 41.5 points (DraftKings)

Washington Commanders at Philadelphia Eagles
4:25 p.m. ET on Fox, Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia
Odds: Eagles -4.5 (FanDuel); -5.5 (DraftKings)
Money line: Eagles -238; Commanders +195
Total: 46.5 points (DraftKings); 47.5 points (FanDuel)

Arizona Cardinals at Los Angeles Chargers
4:25 p.m. ET on CBS, SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, Calif.
Odds: Chargers -9.5 (FanDuel); -11.5 (DraftKings)
Money line: Chargers -625; Cardinals +455
Total: 45.5 points (DraftKings); 46.5 points (FanDuel)

Dallas Cowboys at New York Giants
8:20 p.m. ET on NBC, MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, N.J.
Odds: Cowboys -2.5 (DraftKings and FanDuel)
Money line: Cowboys -130; Giants +110
Total: 48.5 points (DraftKings and FanDuel)

Monday, Sept. 14

Denver Broncos at Kansas City Chiefs
8:15 p.m. ET on ESPN, Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City
Odds: Chiefs -2.5 (DraftKings and FanDuel)
Money line: Chiefs -155; Broncos +130
Total: 42.5 points (DraftKings); 43.5 points (FanDuel)

=====

SUPER BOWL REMATCH AND 10 OTHER GAMES TO WATCH IN 2026

Not only do the Los Angeles Rams have a reasonable shot at becoming the first team to win the Super Bowl on its homefield twice, the NFC West runner-up is by far the easiest team to find on the NFL’s 2026 broadcast schedule.

Seven times the Rams are positioned for a primetime slot — tying a league record — barring a slip from contender status that would prompt networks to invoke the “flex” option and reassign Sean McVay’s team to an afternoon kickoff.

We appreciate McVay’s offensive machine as much as the next NFL fan, but let’s survey the broader landscape for the 10 games we are circling on the 2026 schedule.

1. Green Bay Packers at Chicago Bears, Friday, Dec. 25
Are the Packers still gutted by two heartbreaking losses to the Bears? They’ll never admit it. The drama on the field and sidelines restored one of the game’s best rivalries. Chicago’s schedule strength adds a degree of difficulty the Bears didn’t face rising from the bottom of the NFC North to a division title in Ben Johnson’s first season. The Packers had owned this series in recent years and want to pull the pendulum northward.

2. Philadelphia Eagles at Dallas Cowboys, Thursday, Nov. 26
Thanksgiving Day amplifies whatever the state of the Dallas Cowboys happens to be, and this one should be extra spicy. It hasn’t happened since 2014 and will be the third Turkey Day meeting between the teams. Cowboys fans are crossing their fingers the results will be better than the last time (33-10 loss in ‘14) and 1989, when the Eagles used two Randall Cunningham-to-Cris Carter TDs and Philly’s defense ransacked Troy Aikman at Texas Stadium, 27-0. Philadelphia hosts the first meeting of the 2026 season with Dallas on “Monday Night Football” in October.

3. Buffalo Bills at New England Patriots, Sunday, Dec. 6
Josh Allen ran the AFC East for nearly a decade and Drake Maye was more than the new kid on the block in 2025. He played like an MVP candidate — even winning in Buffalo — and the Patriots went 5-1 in the division. The only loss was a 35-31 barnburner at Gillette Stadium won by the Bills on Dec. 14. It was New England’s only loss between Sept. 28 and the Super Bowl.

4. Los Angeles Rams at Seattle Seahawks, Friday, Dec. 25
Fine, we can talk Rams, too.

Merry Christmas to those who celebrate, the NFL wrapped up a matchup between teams who combined for 26 regular-season wins and took the division duel down to the wire last season. Lumen Field won’t be a present for the Rams, but Matthew Stafford and Sean McVay have usually done just fine in enemy territory. The game falls one week after the one-year anniversary of Seattle’s memorable fourth-quarter rally from 16 down, forced overtime and walked it off with a 38-37 victory over the Rams.

5. Baltimore Ravens at Cincinnati Bengals, Thursday, Dec. 31
Last season wasn’t a typical set of Bengals-Ravens games. The AFC North rivals split with an average margin of victory of 21 points. Rewind to 2025 and unleashed Lamar Jackson vs. bomb-happy Joe Burrow produced scores of 35-34 and 41-38 (overtime). If we get a New Year’s Eve snow game with division and playoff consequences, even better.

6. New England Patriots at Seattle Seahawks, Wednesday, Sept. 9
A Wednesday night opener ahead of the Thursday Rams-49ers matchup in Australia, we’ll find out if the Patriots are better prepared for a Super Bowl rematch with months to prepare. New England oscillated from disjointed to complete disarray in the February loss to Seattle and didn’t have all oars in the water during an offseason when Mike Vrabel’s off-field, ahem, affairs were a constant talking point.

7. Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Chicago Bears, Sunday, Nov. 8
Baker Mayfield vs. Caleb Williams piques our interest in a midseason “Sunday Night Football” matchup with the undercard of Buccaneers head coach and defensive maestro Todd Bowles against Bears coach and offensive brain Ben Johnson. The Bucs fell short of the postseason in 2025 for the first time since 2019, while the Bears are trending upward after the franchise won a playoff game (well, two of them, actually) in January to snap a 15-year drought dating to 2011.

8. Dallas Cowboys at Seattle Seahawks, Monday, Dec. 7
Crossover games with the NFC West add a degree of difficulty to the Dallas schedule this season. While we wait to offer judgment on the revamped defense, the Cowboys are likely to bring all the smoke to test Seattle’s versatile, attacking defense in a game sandwiched between matchups with the Eagles and Rams for Dallas.

9. Jacksonville Jaguars at Denver Broncos, Sunday, Sept. 20
Some called the Denver AFC West run last season but far fewer anticipated Jacksonville winning 13 games and dealing the Broncos one of the team’s three regular-season losses. First-year head coach Liam Coen reflects many of Broncos head coach Sean Payton’s qualities as a play-caller and designer, adding built-in entertainment value.

10. San Francisco 49ers at Kansas City Chiefs, Sunday, Dec. 27
What will the 49ers have left in the tank? San Francisco is setting a record for miles traveled in a season thanks to international treks to Mexico and Australia and the closing stretch for the 49ers is some kind of minefield from NFL schedulers. Patrick Mahomes and Brock Purdy are familiar foes but 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan has not beaten Andy Reid as a head coach (0-3). Two of those losses were agonizing Super Bowl defeats (LIV, 2020 and LVIII, 2024). After falling short of historical track and expectations in 2025, is the window closed on one or both of these longtime contenders?

About The Author

troyderengowski61@gmail.com

See author's posts