Prime-Time Props — Thursday Night Football, Week 1
Prop God
Usually, it costs money for us to be entertained, but the NFL season offers us the opportunity to profit while enjoying the wonderful drama that unfolds over the course of 17 regular-season games and ensuing playoffs. FTN has every tool you need to make expert picks and grow your bankroll. We’re using our tools to highlight some of the best long shot parlay picks in Week 1.
Parlays give the opportunity to have a significant return on investment quickly. Of course, these parlays are longshots for good reason. We use only partial units on these plays.
Let’s dive into three long shot parlay picks that you must consider getting in on for this Sunday.
The moneyline special
The bet: Jets, Texans, Eagles, Chargers
+3,500, DraftKings Sportsbook
Looking for the big swing? We can combine three one-score underdogs who went through significant change this offseason to go with a playoff hopeful for an amazing payout. While the public is down on the Jets, Texans and Eagles, we can easily find some value on each this week.
The Jets have a ton of young offensive talent and a fierce new coaching staff. Their matchup with Carolina has them at a disadvantage, but it would be foolish to fully trust Sam Darnold‘s fit in the Panthers’ offense. The Jets are tough enough to hang in this game and pull out a late win.
Houston may be the toughest sell after their disastrous offseason. But facing Urban Meyer and Trevor Lawrence in their first career NFL game might be their best chance all year to steal a win. Houston has some intriguing offensive talent and can play ball control as they hope to pull the home upset.
In my opinion, the Eagles are a terrific underdog value. Yes, Atlanta has Matt Ryan and some quality offensive playmakers. They also have a horrible defense that caused them to finish with a bottom-four record in 2020. The Eagles can absolutely win this game.
Finally, the Chargers are going to Washington in a tough road battle of defensive teams. Trusting Justin Herbert and Brandon Staley to beat a Ryan Fitzpatrick-led team doesn’t sound crazy. Adding the road favorite made this parlay jump from +1,350 to an incredible +3,500.
The contender spread
The bet: Rams -7.5, Packers -3.5, Chiefs -5.5
+581, DraftKings Sportsbook
Welcome to the land of favorites. Life is good on this island, at least for now. Some of the league’s top Super Bowl contenders have reasonable lines against quality foes. We’d be betting the most promising trends from the league’s top coaches.
Both Sean McVay and Andy Reid are dominant Week 1 coaches, and Matt LaFleur has a significantly better Packers team than the Saints have. Each has drawn elite performances from their roster when it matters most. These are ATS kings.
With almost a 6-1 return for individual picks most of our own sharps have recommended, you could score a huge value for an extra two clicks to make this a parlay.
(Join this FREE contest at DraftKings Sportsbook to earn your share of $20,000.)
Player props
The bet: Stefon Diggs, James Robinson, Nick Chubb all score any touchdown
+700, DraftKings Sportsbook
Our amazing wide receiver/cornerback matchup tool will be invaluable for prop bets this year. I’m utilizing trends and in-depth stats to find this incredible value. All three of Stefon Diggs, James Robinson and Nick Chubb will score a touchdown at some point in Week 1.
Diggs and the Buffalo Bills are solid favorites against the aging Pittsburgh Steelers. Diggs spent 37% of his 628 routes in 2020 at the right receiver spot, and 33% in the slot. He’s most likely to be guarded by the combination of Ahkello Witherspoon and Cameron Sutton because the Steelers refuse to move their corners across the formation.
This bodes extremely well for Diggs’ ability to score. Witherspoon is athletic but not consistent or technically refined. Sutton lacks the burst needed to keep up with Diggs. It’s almost a lock he’ll score.
Meanwhile, Robinson has a wonderful matchup against the Texans’ woeful defense. Urban Meyer will run the ball often and give Robinson more carries than he needs. I don’t see how the Texans stop a young but quality group of playmakers in Jacksonville.
Chubb is also a star worth investing into. Cleveland will work to win the trenches and limit Patrick Mahomes‘ snap count. Chubb is arguably the best pure rusher in the NFL and can take over this game if the Browns can stay within two scores and keep running the ball.
