NFL Upset Teams In Week 1: Three Capable Teams

NFL Week 1 is typically a week full of upsets, as bettors make NFL picks without seeing new rosters perform with one another yet. This Week 1 isn’t set to be much different, as there are several prime candidates to be upset in the opening week of the 2021 campaign. These three teams, in particular, are going to be vulnerable to an upset as they work together for the first time all year.

Green Bay Packers -3.5 @ New Orleans Saints

The Green Bay Packers were one game away from reaching the Super Bowl last year, making them popular among those doing NFL betting to start this season. But the Packers are on upset alert this week, as they take on a Saints team with good defense and the ability to stretch the field thanks to a change at quarterback. While the Packers are favored in this game, they could very well lose it outright.

New Orleans’ new quarterback is Jameis Winston, who should be an upgrade over the diminished version of Drew Brees that we saw last season. Winston will restore the vertical passing potential to the Saints’ offense, which will open up the underneath passing game again as well. The question for the Saints is whether they can stop Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams, one of the most dangerous quarterback and receiver duos in the league today.

This game was scheduled to be played in New Orleans but has been moved to Jacksonville due to Hurricane Ida. But Rodgers has a losing record in Florida in his career, and the heat and humidity in Duval County should still work in favor of a Saints team that is used to practicing in those conditions. This game is expected to be competitive throughout.

Baltimore Ravens -4 @ Las Vegas Raiders

The Baltimore Ravens finished yet another perfect preseason, as their streak of preseason games won has become the stuff of sports betting legend. But coming into the regular season, the Ravens find themselves in the position to be upset on Monday Night Football against the Las Vegas Raiders. According to BetUS, the Ravens are four-point favorites against Las Vegas in what should be a closer game than people think.

As we are coming into this game, the injury concerns for the Baltimore Ravens are too much to overlook. They have lost running backs, JK Dobbins and Gus Edwards, along with cornerback Marcus Peters, to a season-ending knee injury before the year has even started. Against a Raiders team that will look to put the ball in the air early and often with Derek Carr, the loss of Peters could be incredibly costly in this Week 1 game.

Chicago Bears +7.5 @ Los Angeles Rams

NFL odds heavily favor the Los Angeles Rams in their Week 1 Sunday Night Football game against the Chicago Bears. Some of that line has to do with the Rams bringing in Matt Stafford to lead their offense in the offseason. But Stafford will be making his first start with the Rams in that game and may not perform at his highest level with the team just yet.

It is also worth noting that the Rams and Bears have met up for three low-scoring games over the last three years. In three matchups during the 2018, 2019, and 2020 seasons, the two teams have failed to combine for over 35 points in any of those games. This indicated it should be a low-scoring game between two teams that have been very competitive with one another, and there could be some value in the underdog in this high-profile NFL matchup.