NFL 2023 preview: Kickoff cheat sheet, with fantasy tips, predictions, power rankings and more
The 2023 NFL season has arrived, kicking off five straight months of football bliss. From previews of all 32 teams to Fantasy player rankings to staff Super Bowl predictions, here's everything you need to know for opening weekend.
(This was excerpted from Thursday's Yahoo Sports AM newsletter. Subscribe here to have it hit your inbox every weekday morning.)
Power Rankings: Team-by-team previews
Last season's Super Bowl opponents top our Week 1 power rankings, courtesy of Frank Schwab. At the bottom are the Cardinals, who have already been accused of tanking for Caleb Williams (should he decide to leave USC).
Team-by-team previews:
1. Chiefs: The defending champs seek their eighth straight division title, but it may not be smooth sailing with Travis Kelce's injured knee and Chris Jones' continued holdout.
2. Eagles: They came maddeningly close to winning it all last year and should be right back in the mix. But you never know: the NFC East hasn’t had a repeat champion in 19 years.
3. Bengals: Cincinnati has the league's worst pass block win rate since drafting Joe Burrow, so four-time Pro Bowl tackle Orlando Brown Jr. is a welcome addition.
4. Bills: Buffalo needs to find a way to turn elite regular-season play into postseason pay dirt. Come on, guys, do it for Bills Mafia!
5. 49ers: San Francisco has made three of the last four NFC title games, and this might be their best team yet. QB is a bit of a question mark, though.
6. Cowboys: The Micah Parsons-led defense could become the first since the 1972-74 Steelers to lead the NFL in takeaways for three straight years.
7. Lions: They've gone 29 seasons without winning their division, the league’s longest active drought. Could this be the year?
8. Jets: Last season they looked like they were a solid QB away from contending in the AFC. Enter Aaron Rodgers.
9. Dolphins: Prepare for another track meet in South Beach, where Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle stretch defenses like Silly Putty.
10. Ravens: Sign Lamar Jackson to an extension? Check. Give him new playmakers in Odell Beckham Jr. and first-rounder Zay Flowers? Check.
11. Seahawks: Geno Smith’s age-32 breakout was astonishing, setting the single-season franchise mark for yards and completion percentage. What does age 33 have in store?
12. Jaguars: Best player? Trevor Lawrence, primed for a huge season. Best name? Rookie RB Tank Bigsby.
13. Steelers: Major sleeper potential in Pittsburgh, where Mike Tomlin has gone 16 straight years without a losing record.
14. Chargers: Justin Herbert has thrown for the most yards (14,089) and second-most TDs (94) through any player's first three NFL seasons.
15. Packers: For the first time since 2004, Aaron Rodgers won't be on the sideline at Lambeau. And so begins the Jordan Love era.
16. Browns: Deshaun Watson didn’t look great in last year's brief stint post-suspension, but he says he's better now than ever. For $230 million guaranteed, Cleveland should hope so.
17. Saints: Bettors love New Orleans to win the weak NFC South, which could be even worse than it was last year when the Bucs won with a losing record.
18. Vikings: The offense should be characteristically solid. If new defensive coordinator Brian Flores can turn around one of last year's worst units, watch out.
19. Giants: Which team shows up this year? The one that started last season at 7-2, or the one that finished 2-5-1?
20. Patriots: New England is in danger of finishing last in the AFC East for the first time since the NFL split into eight divisions in 2002.
21. Falcons: The good news as Atlanta seeks to end its five-year playoff drought? They've got the league's easiest schedule.
22. Titans: Since Derrick Henry's 2019 breakout campaign, he's averaging 110 rushing yards per game, 19 more yards than anyone else.
23. Commanders: They're already celebrating in D.C., where new owner Josh Harris has the easiest job in sports: be better than Daniel Snyder.
24. Broncos: Sean Payton is getting paid a whopping $18 million this year to do one thing: Make Russell Wilson great again.
25. Panthers: The last 14 QBs who went No. 1 overall lost their first career start. Can Bryce Young break the streak?
26. Raiders: Nine of their 11 losses last season came by just one score, so they hope an improved defense may be just what the doctor ordered.
27. Bears: Justin Fields needs to become more of a dual threat for Chicago, which led the league in rushing last year but finished dead last in passing.
28. Buccaneers: This is the first NFL season without Tom Brady since 1999. Baker Mayfield, born in 1995, takes over for him in Tampa.
29. Colts: For the eighth straight year, Indy's Week 1 starting QB will not be the same as the previous season.
30. Rams: They won just five games last season in a historically bad Super Bowl hangover, and the outlook isn’t much better this year.
31. Texans: Patience is the key word in Houston, where they'll be trotting out a rookie QB (C.J. Stroud) and a rookie head coach (DeMeco Ryans).
32. Cardinals: With Kyler Murray (ACL) out indefinitely, the QB room comprises Josh Dobbs and Clayton Tune. This could get ugly.
Yahoo Fantasy: Player rankings
The top 10 fantasy football players entering the season, according to our experts, are a near-even mix of running backs and receivers.
1. Justin Jefferson, WR (Vikings): Jefferson's career is off to a historically great start. The 23-year-old needs just 688 receiving yards to surpass Michael Thomas (5,512) for the most ever by a player in his first four seasons.
2. Ja'Marr Chase, WR (Bengals): Among the 17 players who saw at least 130 targets last season, only Chase played fewer than 15 games (12, due to injury). Simply put: Joe Burrow loves Ja'Marr.
3. Christian McCaffrey, RB (49ers): After playing just 10 games across two injury-riddled seasons, CMC returned to full force last year with 13 TDs and nearly 2,000 scrimmage yards. His first full year in the Bay Area should be electric.
4. Tyreek Hill, WR (Dolphins): The fastest man in the league saw no ill effects after leaving Patrick Mahomes, setting career highs in targets, catches and yards his first year in Miami.
5. Austin Ekeler, RB (Chargers): Ekeler's 38 scores over the past two seasons are 12 more than any other player. Catch him all season long on “Ekeler's Edge,” his weekly fantasy podcast show with our Matt Harmon.
6. Stefon Diggs, WR (Bills): Since linking up with Josh Allen in 2020, Diggs is one of just four players with over 4,000 receiving yards, alongside Jefferson, Hill and Davante Adams.
7. Nick Chubb, RB (Browns): He's surpassed 1,000 rushing yards in each of the last four seasons and added 40 rushing TDs. As far as pure running backs go, he's almost without equal.
8. Bijan Robinson, RB (Falcons): Atlanta made him the highest-drafted RB (No. 8) since Saquon Barkley (No. 2 in 2018) for a reason. With young Desmond Ridder under center, the rookie out of Texas could see a massive workload.
9. Garrett Wilson, WR (Jets): He won Offensive Rookie of the Year despite catching passes from Zach Wilson, Mike White and 37-year-old Joe Flacco. Imagine what he might do with Aaron Rodgers.
10. A.J. Brown, WR (Eagles): The move to Philly did wonders for Brown, who set career highs in targets, catches and yards last season. Another year alongside Jalen Hurts and Devonta Smith could see him level up yet again.
Team names: The 10 most popular team names on Yahoo Fantasy are Hurts So Good, Run CMC, Fields of Dreams, Hot Chubb Time Machine, Judge Jeudy, Olave Garden, Finding Deebo, Bijan Mustard, Baby Got Dak and Slim Pickens.
You can still create or join a league on Yahoo Fantasy, even after Week 1! Sign up for Yahoo Fantasy Plus to get an edge on the competition with premium draft, trade and research tools. Try 7 days free.
Betting/Predictions
Five years after the Supreme Court struck down PASPA, sports betting is legal in 34 states plus Washington, D.C, with four more states coming online soon.
The new normal: 73.5 million Americans (~28% of adults) plan to bet on the NFL this season, per the American Gaming Association. The league has fully embraced this new normal, signing lucrative partnerships and opening in-stadium sportsbooks, all while cracking down on players for violating its gambling policy.
Here are some of the latest betting odds, courtesy of BetMGM …
Super Bowl odds: The defending champion Chiefs are title favorites (+600), followed by the Eagles (+800), Bills (+900), 49ers (+1000) and Bengals (+1100). Rounding out the top 10 are the Cowboys (+1500), Ravens (+1800), Jets (+1800), Lions (+2200), Chargers and Dolphins (both +2500). Our experts like Buffalo's odds.
More futures:
MVP: Patrick Mahomes (+600), Joe Burrow (+700), Josh Allen (+750), Jalen Hurts (+1100), Justin Herbert (+1100)
Offensive Player of the Year: Ja’Marr Chase (+1000), Justin Jefferson (+1300), Christian McCaffrey (+1500), Tyreek Hill (+1800), Nick Chubb (+1800)
Defensive Player of the Year: Micah Parsons (+450), Myles Garrett (+600), TJ Watt (+750), Nick Bosa (+1200), Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner (+1200)
Coach of the Year: Dan Campbell (+800), Sean Payton (+1100), Matt Eberflus (+1400), Arthur Smith (+1400), Robert Saleh (+1600)
Offensive Rookie of the Year: Bijan Robinson (+250), Bryce Young (+450), Anthony Richardson (+700), Jahmyr Gibbs (+750), CJ Stroud (+850)
Defensive Rookie of the Year: Will Anderson (+400), Jalen Carter (+600), Tyree Wilson (+1000), Devon Witherspoon (+1000), Christian Gonzalez (+1400)
Comeback Player of the Year: Damar Hamlin (-275), Russell Wilson (+1600), Tua Tagovailoa (+2000), Lamar Jackson (+2000), Cooper Kupp (+3000)
Of note: If you find yourself in Las Vegas this season, visit the new Yahoo Sportsbook on the main floor of The Venetian Resort.
Week 1 schedule
The 104th NFL season kicks off tonight in Kansas City, as the Chiefs host the Lions to open their Super Bowl title defense.
Lions (+4.5) at Chiefs (Thursday, 8:20pm ET, NBC)
Panthers (+3.5) at Falcons (1pm, Fox)
Bengals (-2.5) at Browns (1pm, CBS)
Jaguars (-5) at Colts (1pm, Fox)
Buccaneers (+6) at Vikings (1pm, CBS)
Titans (+3) at Saints (1pm, CBS)
49ers (-2.5) at Steelers (1pm, Fox)
Cardinals (+7) at Commanders (1pm, Fox)
Texans (+10) at Ravens (1pm, CBS)
Packers (+1) at Bears (4:25pm, Fox)
Raiders (+3.5) at Broncos (4:25pm, CBS)
Eagles (-4) at Patriots (4:25pm, CBS)
Dolphins (+3) at Chargers (4:25pm, CBS)
Rams (+5.5) at Seahawks (4:25pm, Fox)
Cowboys (-3) at Giants (8:20pm, NBC)
Bills (-2.5) at Jets (Monday, 8:15pm, ESPN/ESPN2/ABC)
How to watch the NFL this season
NBC: 17 games on "Sunday Night Football," plus two on Thursdays and one on a Saturday, with coverage led by Mike Tirico (play-by-play), Cris Collinsworth (analyst) and Melissa Stark (sideline).
ESPN: 22 games on "Monday Night Football,"; Joe Buck (play-by-play), Troy Aikman (analyst) and Lisa Salters (sideline).
Prime Video: 16 games on "Thursday Night Football" starting in Week 2; Al Michaels (play-by-play), Kirk Herbstreit (analyst) and Kaylee Hartlung (sideline).
Fox: Sundays; Kevin Burkhardt (play-by-play), Greg Olsen (analyst), Erin Andrews and Tom Rinaldi (sideline).
CBS: Sundays; Jim Nantz (play-by-play), Tony Romo (analyst) and Tracy Wolfson (sideline).
Plus: Every out-of-market game streams on the NFL+ app, which now includes NFL Network and NFL RedZone. NFL Sunday Ticket is available through YouTube after nearly two decades on DirecTV.
More NFL
From feature stories and breaking news to fantasy analysis and podcasts, Yahoo Sports has you covered this NFL season. Here are some resources to get you ready for Week 1.
Features
How a new crop of QBs is transforming the NFL (Charles McDonald)
Inside the Cowboys’ crash course with ex-Navy SEALS (Jori Epstein)
Chiefs vs. Lions is the game of the century for Detroit (Dan Wetzel)
Quick reads
16 questions for NFC QBs (Charles Robinson)
Fantasy Football: Week 1 waiver wire pickups (Andy Behrens)
Which team is this year's Broncos, doomed for disappointment? (Frank Schwab)
Useful links
Podcasts
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