It’s finally time! Week 1 of the NFL season is finally upon us! With that comes a full slate of player props to sift through. Fear not, we did the heavy lifting for you, and here are three NFL player props to consider for Week 1:
Lamar Jackson – Over 222.5 Passing Yards
At first glance, you think that the under is the best bet. Last season Jackson only broke 222 yards three times. Even in his MVP season of 2019, he only hit the 222-yard mark or higher half the time.
But consider that the Ravens just lost their best running back, J.K. Dobbins, which means the offense will be in Jackson’s hands even more. And consider that the opponent on September 12th is the Las Vegas Raiders, a team that gave up at least that amount of passing yards in 12 of 16 games in 2020.
One of those four “good” games by the Raiders pass defense came in 40 mph winds, one came against the 30th ranked passing offense, one came in a 43-6 blowout loss in which the other team stopped playing, and the last came against the 31st ranked passing offense.
The Raiders pass defense isn’t much better in 2021, but Jackson will be better. Take the over.
DeAndre Hopkins – Over 86.5 Receiving Yards
The Cardinals open the season at the Tennessee Titans, and even though Arizona has a deep wide receiver room that features A.J. Green, Rondale Moore, Christian Kirk, and Andy Isabella, DeAndre Hopkins is still the man.
In order to stay healthy, quarterback Kyler Murray is going to run less and pass more. In his last 34 starts Hopkins has gone over 86 receiving yards in 17 of them. The Titans were terrible against the pass last year, and are expected to be just as bad in 2021.
Eleven different receivers went over 86 yards against the Titans in 2020, and Hopkins will do the same in Week 1 of 2021.
Christian McCaffrey – Under 77.5 Rushing Yards
Christian McCaffrey is healthy again, and he’s going to gain a lot of yards this season. But a lot of factors are at play that will keep him under the line of 77.5 rushing yards in Week 1.
It’s the Sam Darnold revenge game, and he’ll pass the ball more against a bad Jets secondary. And a lot of those passes will go to McCaffrey, boosting his receiving total. And as bad as the Jets secondary is, their front is actually good. Quinnen Williams, Shaq Lawson, Sheldon Rankins, and C.J. Mosley are all good against the run.
McCaffrey has a good game, but it won’t come with more than 77 rushing yards.
