NFL Preseason Best Bets: Week 1 Predictions & Picks (2026)
The 2026 NFL regular season is less than a month away. For now, our football fix focuses on the preseason – which kicked off with a wild Hall of Fame Game last Thursday – won by Carolina 33-30 over Arizona on the final play. Week 1 is now upon us, and all 32 teams will take the field. There are 16 games spanning Thursday (six), Friday (three) and Saturday (seven). Yes, we have three consecutive days of action on the gridiron! Here are my three best bets for Week 1 of the 2026 NFL preseason. Additionally, our experts have combed through all the major NFL futures betting markets to deliver their NFL predictions and NFL best bets — including the Super Bowl winner, MVP winner and EVERY player award! You can also find out our expert NFL Preseason picks for EVERY GAME this week!
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NFL Preseason Best Bet: Denver Broncos vs Atlanta Falcons Under 40.5 (-110)
Denver head coach Sean Payton does not mess around in the preseason. The Broncos are 7-0 in their last preseason games dating back to the 2023 finale, largely because they put the absolute clamps down on defense. They shut out the Rams to wrap up their 2023 preparation, allowed a combined 14 points in their last two preseason contests in 2024, and gave up a grand total of 35 points in a trio of 2025 outings. Payton has already said that most of his starters will get some playing time on Friday, although he would not commit to putting quarterback Bo Nix in that mix.
Meanwhile, the Falcons’ top two QBs are Tua Tagovailoa and Michael Penix Jr. Penix has not yet recovered from a 2025 ACL injury and Tagovailoa is so injury-prone that there is no reason to risk him in the preseason. This is tied for the second-highest total of the week (only Arizona vs Las Vegas is higher at 41.5). That gives you all the more reason to back the Under.
Read our full Broncos vs Falcons prediction
NFL Preseason Best Bet: Philadelphia Eagles vs Baltimore Ravens Over 35.5 (-110)
I know meaningless games are relatively low scoring more often than not -- but when a total is set at 35.5, there is generally value on the over. And keep in mind that this 2026 preseason opened with a 33-30 offensive outburst in the Hall of Fame Game. I'm not saying that the Eagles and Ravens are going to light it up quite to that extent, but they should be able to put up at least decent numbers
Unsurprisingly, new Baltimore head coach Jesse Minter has already confirmed that Lamar Jackson will have the night off. However, he also indicated that all of his defensive starters will also be on the sidelines. You have to think that Philly head coach Nick Sirianni will be of a similar mindset. Each side comes in with proven backups at the quarterback position who should be able to exploit second and third-string defenses. It's the Eagles’ Andy Dalton and the Ravens’ Tyler Huntley. Both veterans have a ton of regular-season starting experience in the NFL. Baltimore scored 24, 31 and 30 points in its 2025 preseason games.
Read our full Eagles vs Ravens prediction
