The 2026 regular season actually opens up with a Wednesday game, so if you include that, coupled with the normal Thursday night, Sunday night, and Monday Night Football Games, there are four primetime games coming in Week 1 of the NFL Season.
It's right around the corner, which is awesome, as real football is in view, and with the preseason and roster cuts both done, teams across the league can now truly begin to prepare for the first week of the season.
This offseason has flown by, too, which is even better. With the regular season beginning in one week, let's roll out some early picks and predictions for all four primetime games.
Early picks and predictions for every primetime game in Week 1
Wednesday, September 9th
New England Patriots @ Seattle Seahawks, 8:20 PM ET
In a rematch of the Super Bowl, the New England Patriots are in Seattle to face the defending champions. The Super Bowl simply wasn't close - it was clear that not only were the Seahawks significantly better, but that the Patriots insanely easy 2025 schedule was a huge aid in their advancing to the final game of the season.
While the Patriots did appear to bring in some solid talent this offseason, the Seahawks are still the better team and also get this game at home. Seattle's homefield advantage is among the best in the league, so this game is trending toward being a Seahawks' victory.
Seattle's defensive front matched up with New England's offensive line is still very much tilted in the S Seahawks' favor.
Prediction: Seattle wins 24-16
Thursday, September 10th
San Francisco 49ers @ Los Angeles Rams
Week 1 could be the first time we see the new-look Los Angeles Rams defensive front. Myles Garrett and Aaron Donald have joined the mix this offseason. LA swung a major trade for Garrett and were just recently able to coax Donald out of retirement.
The Rams also happen to have the top-ranked scoring offense from a year ago and two new, perhaps even underrated additions at cornerback in Jaylen Watson and Trent McDuffie. Overall, while the San Francisco 49ers are plenty talented enough to make the playoffs in 2026, the Rams outmatch the 49ers across the board.
With that said, this is a divisional matchup, and those typically end up being quite close. We've predicted the Rams to win in a pretty standard 27-23 score. LA is simply the better team.
Prediction: Los Angeles wins 27-23
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