Blazin' 5: Colin Cowherd Gives His Five Best NFL Bets For Week 1

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2022 Blazin' 5 record: 44-37-4

2023 Blazin' 5 record: 44-34-7

Titans at Bears (SPREAD: CHI -3.5) [Sunday 1:00 pm ET on FOX]

“I am going to take the Titans +3.5 at Chicago. Both teams were undefeated in the preseason. Will Levis now has actual weapons -- Tony Pollard, Calvin Ridley, L'Jarius Sneed. It's a whole new coaching staff. All Tennessee has heard all off-season is how they're going to get run out of the building by this phenom. By the way, the Bears never open well -- 2-8 in their last 10 openers. The Bears defense has had the fewest sacks the last two years in the NFL. The number one pick as a rookie quarterback in the common draft era is 4-15-1 in the opener. Nine straight losses since David Carr won in 2002. Bottom line is that if they played in six weeks I think it would be different, but there is way too much hype. You can get this at +4 in a lot of places. Shop the number -- I'm going to take the Titans to upset the Chicago Bears, 26-24."

Colin's prediction: Titans 26, Bears 24.

Colin's pick: Tennessee +3.5

Panthers at Saints (SPREAD: NO -4) [Sunday, 1:00 pm ET on FOX]

“I like the Panthers +4, in fact I think they can win. You may wanna bet the moneyline. They've got a new head coach, Dave Canales. He's the one who gave Baker Mayfield that great season last year. Carolina has upgraded on the o-line, edge rusher, and wide receiver. Bryce Young in the last month last year was not terrible. He competed 65% of his throws with a mid-80's passer rating with a bad o-line and bad receivers. Dennis Allen has an argument for worst coach in the league and he's on the hot seat. Their offensive line was the second-worst in the league last year, and they didn't generate a pass rush. Even though it was on the field constantly last year, the Panthers defense was top 5 and 6 in many categories. The Panthers will win this game outright. Take the points, 24-20."

Colin's prediction: Panthers 24, Saints 20.

Colin's pick: Carolina +4

Broncos at Seahawks (SPREAD: SEA -6) [Sunday, 4:05 pm ET on CBS]

“I'm going to take Seattle -6. I can think Bo Nix is going to have a good year and also think this is a terrible spot. Geno Smith has had back-to-back Pro Bowl years. He's a grown-up, he's an adult, he won't be nervous, and he's at home. Mike McDonald is the new Seahawks coach; he is a wiz defensively. The Ravens had the number one scoring defense with him. Seattle has got the weapons here. Kenneth Walker, DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Noah Fant. Denver, meanwhile, defense struggles, and has rookie QB on the road. First-round rookie quarterbacks in Week 1 are 13-26-1 all-time with a passer rating of 69. The Seahawks win 27-20, take Seattle minus the points to cover and win."

Colin's prediction: Seahawks 27, Broncos 20.

Colin's pick: Seattle -6

Rams at Lions (SPREAD: DET -4.5) [Sunday, 8:20 pm ET on NBC]

“I usually don't do this but I'm going to take the Lions -4.5. In five weeks I wouldn't do this. The Rams o-line is a mess. They're moving their center to guard, their right tackle -- their best o-lineman may not play, their left tackle they're using a backup. Detroit's pass rush has been the talk of their camp. The Lions have more players in their prime. The Rams are a very young team. Jared Goff at home has a 42-9 touchdown/interception ratio the last two seasons. He is a great indoor quarterback and he's a great home quarterback. Matt Stafford is an older quarterback. I love Matt, but last year he only completed 63% of his throws. Puka Nacua has been banged up, and Cooper Kupp is coming off an injury. I do not like the Rams in this spot and in this moment. In a month I would take the points, but I think the Lions win and they cover, 30-24.

Colin's prediction: Lions 30, Rams 24.

Colin's pick: Detroit -4.5

Jets at 49ers (SPREAD: SF -4.5) [Monday, 8:20 pm ET on ESPN]

“Very close game, I'm taking the points. Take the Jets +4.5. I think it comes down to a field goal at the very end, but you gotta take the Jets. They won three of their last five last year and they were terrible at quarterback. They've added Mike Williams, a couple offensive linemen, Haason Reddick won't play but he will eventually. This should be a good team. Their offensive line features three new starters. I'm OK with that because they're upgrades in all of them, and now Alijah Vera-Tucker is healthy. Garrett Wilson, Breece Hall, they have big-time playmakers. The Niners -- McCaffrey is hurt, Trent Williams just got into camp; super noisy. The Ricky Pearsall incident. I don't like the Niners in this spot. I might feel differently a month and a half from now, but I think the Niners are going to start slow. If you look at the Jets defense last season -- and they were on the field the whole year -- they were top 2 and 3 in many categories. Now they get an offense and it's a more rested defense. I like the Jets to cover. I'm going to go Niners to win 24-23. If there's a time to beat the Niners in this spot, it is now. They've been a circus for a month. I'm not saying the Jets don't have issues, but outside of Haason Reddick we haven't heard much in the last few weeks.

Colin's prediction: 49ers 24, Jets 23.

Colin's pick: New York +4.5

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