Plus, fantasy football lineup help and Week 2 college football bets.
The day you’ve been waiting for is finally here.
After a summer of gobbling up training camp reports and hearing that virtually every player is in The Best Shape Of Their Lives, it’s time for offseason hype to give way to bonafide NFL action. And what better game to kick things off than Bills-Rams.
In today’s Winners Club we’ll get into:
- All the storylines—and line movement—that make the 2022 season opener so compelling
- Week 1 fantasy football lineup decisions
- The best Week 2 college football games
- SI Sportsbook's Perfect 10. Play for FREE. Win $10,000
Keep reading to prepare yourself and your fantasy team(s) for a full weekend of football.
A Season Opener of Super-Bowl Sized Proportions
8:20 p.m. ET (NBC)
The intrigue for this bout is clear: The Rams are the defending champions, having won Super Bowl LVI against the Bengals at SoFi Stadium back in February, and the Bills stand alone as the favorites to take home the Lombardi Trophy this season.
Gregory Fisher-USA TODAY Sports
Frankie Taddeo previewed the game for SI Betting, made his bet and singled out a few prop bets he likes tonight. Albert Breer, Jen Piacenti and Michael Fabiano also discussed the top storylines for this matchup from every angle.
Some things you should know:
- L.A. opened as a one-point favorite and is now a 2.5-point home underdog.
- The game total opened at 52.5 and has dropped to 52.
- Rams Coach Sean McVay said of his quarterback Matt Stafford: “There won’t be any limitations. He’ll be ready to go.”
- Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen enters the season as the MVP favorite (+700).
- The Rams are 5-0 ATS in their last five Week 1 games.
- Bills star corner Tre’Davious White is out while he continues to recover from a torn ACL.
- Los Angeles running back Cam Akers, who struggled last season after a quick return from a torn Achilles, said: “I know I’m healthy. Everybody else will just get to see (Thursday).”
- Receiver Allen Robinson will make his Rams debut against the Bills alongside Cooper Kupp and he’ll be catching passes from the best quarterback of his career.
- This is Buffalo receiver Gabe Davis’s first game since he destroyed the Chiefs in the postseason and his fantasy stock skyrocketed.
Kirby Lee/USA TODAY Sports
Taddeo also took a cursory look at each game on the board this week to prime bettors for the “Perfect 10” contest at SI Sportsbook.
“The weekly game requires bettors to make 10 selections against the spread (ATS) for a chance at a $10,000 prize. Every bettor who picks at least six games correctly will be awarded consolation prizes in the form of free bets.”
From Thursday’s potential Super Bowl preview to Monday’s revenge game between Russell Wilson’s Broncos and the Seahawks, there’s plenty of good games on the docket.
And for our future-minded fans (and bettors), our SI Fantasy and SI Betting analysts each made their Super Bowl, AFC and NFC Champion picks for the coming season, as well as their favorite team over/under, player prop and award wagers.
Fantasy Football Lineup Assistance
Assembling the best roster possible is crucial to setting yourself up for victory week-to-week. But, unless you’re playing best ball, there’s much more to fantasy football success!
A few missteps when setting your lineup could be the difference between bragging rights and a hefty payout and, well, explaining to an employee at Waffle House just how long you’re going to be sitting there as part of your last-place punishment.
Luckily, the SI Fantasy team has a few weekly article series aimed at helping you make the correct calls:
Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em
Fabiano describes his famed column as follows:
He also throws in a few DFS bargains and fades for your daily fantasy lineups.
Quarterbacks: Jameis Winston is in; Tua Tagovailoa is out.
Running backs: Plug in Josh Jacobs this week and leave Clyde Edwards-Helaire on your bench.
Wide receivers: Give Adam Thielen the nod and leave Tyler Lockett out of your lineup.
Tight Ends: Cole Kmet is a go but pump the brakes on Noah Fant.
Kickers and Defenses: Trust the Ravens against the Jets and sit Greg Zuerlein against Baltimore.
Positional Player Rankings
Fabiano’s player rankings go a step further and can help you make lineup decisions for players not mentioned in Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em.
Quarterbacks: Jalen Hurts is a top-five play against the Lions—see which signal-caller holds the top spot.
Running backs: Christian McCaffrey was the 1.01 in plenty of fantasy drafts this summer, but he’s not the top running back play Week 1.
Wide receivers: Davante Adams is in a new situation this season, though his expectation is still a top-five weekly finish, including Sunday against the potentially J.C. Jackson-less Chargers.
Tight ends: The top-tier talent at this position gets thin rather quickly, and naturally Mark Andrews and Travis Kelce are No. 1 and 2 this week, respectively.
Flex (RB-WR-TE): Receivers crept their way up draft boards this summer, but running backs still account for four of the top five flex spots.
Kickers: Who else would be the top option?
Defenses/Special Teams: The Broncos’ defense could have a field day against Wilson’s former team.
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Stat Projections
Want to go even deeper? We’ve got you covered. Shawn Childs has rows and rows of projected statistical breakdowns and scoring totals for quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers and tight ends to consult.
Curious how many times Dak Prescott is going to air it out? Or how many carries the backfield of Javonte Williams and Melvin Gordon will see? It’s all in there.
Tim Heitman/USA TODAY Sports
And just a bit more news and housekeeping: Patrick Mahomes apologized to fantasy managers for how the Chiefs offense will run this year, George Kittle is day-to-day with a groin injury, Zach Wilson will miss at least three weeks to start the season, Brian Robinson is off his crutches and the swelling in his knee has gone down, Matt De Lima checked in with his Week 1 dynasty stock watch and Shawn Childs has a few waiver pickups to make before the season even kicks off.
Trio of Top-25 Matchups Headline CFB Week 2
Week 1 of college football brought plenty of exciting action and, as always, a few upsets. In case you missed it earlier this week, the updated AP Top 25 came out after the long weekend with a familiar team (Alabama) still on top and some movement beyond the No. 1 spot.
Taddeo has four bets for Saturday’s slate and Robin Lundberg and I got together to discuss two of this weekend’s marquee matchups.
Plus, Pat Forde previewed this week’s action by looking at the best quarterback matchups on the gridiron this weekend and addressing coaches and programs that may be headed for breakups.
Jerome Miron/USA TODAY Sports
Top 25 Action
3:30 p.m. ET (ABC): No. 24 Tennessee (-6) vs. No. 17 Pittsburgh
7 p.m. ET (ESPN): No. 20 Kentucky vs. No. 12 Florida (-6.5)
10:15 p.m. ET (ESPN): No. 9 Baylor vs. No. 21 BYU (-3)
Other Games for Your Consideration
12 p.m. ET (FOX): No. 1 Alabama (-19.5) vs. Texas
4 p.m. ET (FS1): No. 25 Houston vs. Texas Tech (-3.5)
National Championship Odds Watch
The title odds didn’t shift dramatically following Week 1, though Alabama’s championship odds shortened a bit. The Crimson Tide, after a 55-0 win against Utah State, went from +190 to win it all to +150 at SI Sportsbook.
The top five is largely the same, though Georgia leapt Ohio State in both the polls and in title odds after handling Oregon, while the Buckeyes struggled a bit against Notre Dame.
In Other News
NFL Preseason Power Rankings: The MMQB team voted on the best to worst teams in the NFL, 1-32. The two team’s playing tonight, unsurprisingly, check in with top-five rankings. See where the rest of the league stands.
Lamar Jackson Sets Deadline for Extension: The Ravens’ quarterback told reporters that Friday is the last day for him and the team to come to an agreement on a contract extension. Jackson, a former league MVP, is entering the final year of his rookie deal.
Analyzing the NFL’s Top Broadcast Crews: For all the offseason quarterback movement, there are plenty of changes at the networks as well. See what the new booths will look like this season.
Thanks for reading Winners Club. Enjoy the game tonight and remember to set your fantasy lineups—and get your Thursday night players out of your flex spot!