Week 1 NFL Survivor Pool Strategy: Best 3 Picks Featuring the Jacksonville Jaguars
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NFL Football is finally back! That means NFL Survivor pools are back and after a dud of a season opener and an unexpected romp of the Rams by the 49ers on Thursday Night Football, we have a nearly full slate of Sunday games coming up to choose from. The Rams shouldn’t have been your pick for Week 1 as they’ll have easier games and if they were, well then you’re probably not reading this article anyway.
There are maybe two potentially obvious picks this week, but it’s Week 1 so anything can happen.
Chalk Pick:
The Jacksonville Jaguars v. Cleveland Browns
Let me rephrase the above sentence. Anything can happen, except for the Browns winning.
The Jaguars aren't expected to be a particularly strong team this season, but they do have a competent quarterback in Trevor Lawrence. Meanwhile, Cleveland's ongoing quarterback controversy has somehow landed on the worst version of Deshaun Watson we've seen yet as the starter.
Jacksonville likely won't have another game in which it's favored by this many points until Week 10, when it faces the Titans for the first of two meetings. Even then, there’s no guarantee the Jaguars will be favored. That makes this an important opportunity for Jacksonville, which could view this as its best—and perhaps only—chance to get above .500 this season.
The Browns, meanwhile, continue to Brown. They appear to be in one of their Browniest phases of all time, especially considering their quarterback might not even enjoy hearing his own home fans cheer.
In case you haven't realized, I'm very low on the Jags. But against the Browns, they are a safe option.
Safe but not Chalk:
The Los Angeles Chargers v. Arizona Cardinals
Counting on the Chargers to help you win money is usually a dicey thing to hang your hat on. However, the Cardinals don't look like they've done much to improve from last year's three-win season beyond drafting running back Jeremiyah Love. And a running back, no matter how talented, isn't going to magically solve an NFL team's problems without a good offensive line in front of him.
Vegas likes the Chargers in this one, too, with the line sitting at 9.5 points after opening at 11.5 according to FanDuel Sportsbook. That's currently the largest spread of Week 1. Los Angeles also has a few other games worth considering down the road, including a matchup against the Raiders next week and another against the Jets in Week 11.
Week 11 is a long way to hold onto the Chargers, though. If you're going to use them, Week 1—or Week 2—is the time to do it.
Risky
Pittsburgh Steelers v. Atlanta Falcons
Winning on the road in Pittsburgh has always proven to be a tall task for any team. Now paired with the fact that the Falcons are likely going to be starting Cooper Rush makes the Steelers much less of a risk than they were previously, when it appeared the Falcons were going to start Tua Tagovailoa. Tua appears to have suffered a back injury that has Cooper Rush taking all of the first team snaps in practice, and likely to be the starting week 1 for the Falcons.
The line opened with the Steelers as three-point favorites according to FanDuel Sportsbook, and has now doubled with the Steelers currently as six-point favorites. Of course, you could always hold onto the Steelers until Week 4 or Week 8 when they play the Browns. But this week is not a bad week to consider going with them if Cooper Rush remains the starter.
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Matthew Rumack has been working in the Fantasy Sports space for almost a decade, including stints at FantasySP, DrRoto, Varsity Sports Media, and the FNTSY Sports Network. He specializes in Fantasy Golf and Fantasy Football. Born and raised in New York, he's a massive Knicks, Giants, and Yankees fan. When he's not writing about, playing, or watching sports, he's usually walking his dog, Freddie.