Prime-Time Props -- Thursday Night Football, Week 1

The time has finally come. It’s Thursday, and we have a regular season NFL game to bet on. The Baltimore Ravens are traveling to Arrowhead to take on the Kansas City Chiefs in a rematch of last season’s AFC Championship game to kick off the 2024 season.

FanDuel Sportsbook now offers alternate first-quarter prop lines for players, and I’ve found some great spots to target for the season kickoff. For Week 1, it’s a same-game parlay.

Baltimore Ravens @ Kansas City Chiefs

(Chiefs -3, O/U 46.5)

Thursday the “King” begins his reign in Baltimore. The Ravens signed star running back Derrick Henry in free agency this offseason after the veteran spent eight dominant years with the Titans. The Ravens were the best rushing team in the NFL last season, and with them now pairing Henry with Lamar Jackson, there’s no reason they won’t defend that rushing crown. In four career meetings, Henry has had his way with the KC defense averaging 5.7 yards per carry. Thursday, we’ll look to ride that prior success and take Henry for 10-plus rushing yards in the first quarter.

Per the FTN Fantasy StatsHub, the Chiefs allowed the third-most first-quarter rushing yards in the NFL last season (552), and the 13^th-highest yards per carry (4.6). Derrick Henry averaged 3.5 yards per carry in the first quarter for the Titans last season.

With the second leg of our SGP, we’ll look at Chiefs running back Isiah Pacheco. The opening quarter was by far the best for Pacheco last year from a yards-per-carry standpoint. He averaged 6.8 YPC in the first quarter last season while only playing 57% of the team’s snaps. With an injury sidelining Clyde Edwards-Helaire and the offseason departure of Jerick McKinnon, Pacheco has a clear path to being the bell cow back for Kansas City. Pacheco ripped off 26 rushing yards in the first quarter of the AFC Championship game against Baltimore. Per the chart above, the Ravens’ defense allowed the seventh-most first-quarter rushing yards last season (525), and the 12th-highest yards per carry (4.6).