The NFL is officially back in business with the preseason in the books and the real deal set to kick off this week. The Kansas City Chiefs are the reigning back-to-back Super Bowl champions but they will have plenty of competition from familiar contenders as well as some new teams potentially entering the mix this coming season. And we're finally back with an official week of NFL picks and score predictions ahead of Week 1.
The offseason simultaneously felt like it took an eternity and also went by in a blur with plenty of teams making wholesale changes, including a whopping six quarterbacks being selected in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft. Thanks to all of the offseason change, we're being blessed with a wide variety of intriguing matchups and storylines to kick off the 2024 season.
Including a rematch of the 2023-24 AFC Championship Game...
2024 NFL Picks and score predictions for Week 1
Baltimore Ravens @ Kansas City Chiefs
Thursday, September 5, 8:20 PM ET
The 2024 NFL season is going to kick off with one of the best matchups of the entire week. In fact, at least on paper, this probably is the best matchup of the entire week.
Kansas City didn't play host to the AFC Championship game, but they'd rather play host to the NFL season opener because it's typically going to be the Super Bowl champs hosting that game. And this matchup between the Chiefs and Ravens represents the beginning of Kansas City's quest to win a third championship in a row.
The Chiefs are favored at home by three points in this one, which tells you that the oddsmakers think this game is a toss-up on paper. And it really is. As good -- great -- as the Chiefs have been in recent years, they haven't exactly been a dominant regular season team. That could change this year as the over-under is set at 11.5 wins for Andy Reid's crew this season, but the Chiefs did lose one very significant piece of their defense in 2024 -- cornerback L'Jarius Sneed.
Is the secondary in Kansas City going to be more susceptible this year without Sneed and Trent McDuffie holding things down at cornerback?
They're getting a brutal early test against the Ravens and Lamar Jackson with a new "king" in the backfield. Derrick Henry has joined the fray in Baltimore, and this roster looks locked and loaded for another big run in the AFC. The Ravens can't overlook regular season success in their division, however, and this game could end up having huge playoff implications in terms of seeding at the end of the year.
Even though the Chiefs lost at home last year to open the season against Detroit, how can you pick against them at home, even against a tough Ravens squad?
Prediction: Chiefs win 27-26