Steve Starr
- BetOnline has the Buccaneers as 7.5-point favorites over the Cowboys on Thursday Night Football
- The Andy Dalton era in Chicago may be short-lived with the Bears as 7.5-point underdogs to Chicago in Week 1
- Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens play the Las Vegas Raiders on Monday Night Football
After a year of empty seats and piped-in crowd noise, NFL stadiums will be jam-packed during the 2021 season. It all starts this Thursday night with the defending champion Buccaneers raising their Super Bowl banner before clashing with the Cowboys.
With the week’s other two prime-time games, the league is giving the Rams and Raiders a chance to showcase their shiny new stadiums after they sat empty for a year during COVID. Los Angeles hosts the Bears in SoFi Stadium while Las Vegas welcomes the Ravens to Allegiant Stadium.
As we’ll do every week from here on out, let’s look at the odds for all the prime-time contests on Thursday, Sunday and Monday Night Football. Here’s where you can also find tips and advice for betting on NFL football games.
Thursday Night Football
 | Spread | Money Line | Total Points |
| Dallas Cowboys | +7½ (-115) | +275 | Ov 51½ (-110) |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | -7½ (-105) | -330 | Un 51½ (-110) |
Buccaneers vs Cowboys
The NFL isn’t messing around this year, opening with the most glitzy, glamorous game imaginable. With Dak Prescott and their offensive line back healthy, the Cowboys should be much better than their 6-10 record last year. But the real question is if new DC Dan Quinn and rookie linebacker can fix Dallas’ porous defense.
Tampa Bay provides the ultimate early test with 44-year-old Tom Brady slinging it to Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, Antonio Brown and Rob Gronkowski on Thursday night. The Buccaneers also brought back every member of the Todd Bowles defense that dominated Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs in the Super Bowl. Pick: Buccaneers -7.5 (-115) at BetOnline
.@TomBrady explains why he thinks football catering to the offense is hurting the game ✍️@brgridiron
(via @Buccaneers)pic.twitter.com/oKZcwbz6KR
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) September 3, 2021
Sunday Night Football
| Spread | Money Line | Total Points |
| Chicago Bears | +7 (-105) | +275 | Ov 44½ (-105) |
| Los Angeles Rams | -7 (-115) | -330 | Un 44½ (-115) |
Rams vs Bears
Sorry, Bears fans. No matter how good rookie Justin Fields looked in the preseason and no matter how much you complained on Twitter, Matt Nagy is rolling with Andy Dalton on Sunday night versus the Rams. The good news is if the Red Rifle is embarrassed by Jalen Ramsey and Aaron Donald in prime-time (a hallmark of his career by the way), the No. 11 overall pick could be behind center as soon as Week 2.
Expect Sean McVay to get creative with new quarterback Matthew Stafford at the controls. Los Angeles will run up the score against the Bears overrated defense as Cris Collinsworth says something like, “I just don’t understand how Fields isn’t playing in this game, Al.” Pick: Rams -7.0 (-115) at BetOnline
Monday Night Football
| Spread | Money Line | Total Points |
| Baltimore Ravens | -4 (-110)- | -205 | Ov 50 (-115) |
| Las Vegas Raiders | +4 (-110) | +175 | Un 50 (-110) |
Raiders vs Ravens
The Raiders have steadily improved under Jon Gruden, posting 4-12, 7-9 and 8-8 records over the past three seasons, but that’s not exactly why owner Mark Davis cut a $100-million check. Las Vegas has question marks all over the offensive line after releasing a bunch of veterans and it’s difficult to see their defense improving that much under new coordinator Gus Bradley considering the talent limitations.
Baltimore was among the hardest-hit teams in the lead up to the season, losing sophomore running back J.K. Dobbins and rookie Rashod Bateman to injuries, but Lamar Jackson should be at full steam after recovering from COVID-19 for the second time. Against my better judgment, I think this game will be closer than many think. Raiders lose by a late field goal as Justin Tucker once again comes up clutch. Pick: Raiders +4.5 (-112) at BetOnline
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