Kansas City at New England NFL Week 1 Odds & Betting Preview

The Kansas City Chiefs visit the New England Patriots on Thursday night for a national-television broadcast that opens NFL Week 1 of the 2017 regular season. The Chiefs finished with a 12-4 record last season, winning the AFC West, but then they lost to Pittsburgh, 18-16, at home in the divisional round of the playoffs. The Patriots enter this season as the defending Super Bowl champion. Both teams enter the season down a key contributor on offense, as the Patriots have lost wideout Julian Edelman (ACL), and the Chiefs have lost tailback Spencer Ware (knee). So, how much will it affect both teams? Right now, Kansas City is the underdogs in the NFL odds against New England.

Kansas City at New England NFL Week 1 Odds & Betting Preview

Always ‘in pic.twitter.com/HdQ7T6uYQx

— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) September 5, 2017

When: Thursday, September 7, 8:30 PM ET Where: Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, MA TV: NBC Radio: KCFX – FM 101.1 (Kansas City) / 98.5 The Sports Hub (New England) Live Stream: NBCSports.com NFL Week 1 Odds: New England -8, O/U 48

Weather Forecast

• Partly Cloudy: 17^°C/63^°F
• Humidity: 80%
• Precipitation: 19%
• Wind: 4 mph SW
• Cloud Cover: 31%
• Type of Stadium: Open

Why Should you Bet on the Chiefs?

It’s hard to tell whether Kansas City is trying to rebuild or to contend for this season. They have drafted Patrick Mahomes, who looks like the quarterback of tomorrow, while also releasing star wideout Jeremy Maclin. They also brought in Kareem Hunt to carry the ball. However, losing Ware leaves them looking at Charcandrick West and Hunt as their only options to carry the ball. In the meantime, quarterback Alex Smith enters the regular season with fewer weapons than he had in 2016. On defense, the Chiefs’ roster also took a big step back, as nose tackle Dontari Poe has followed free agency and left the Kansas City defensive line. This is a team that ranked #26 in the NFL in both running yards and passing yards permitted per game. If you like the Chiefs, then you think that the defensive issues that the Patriots showed in the preseason will continue — and that the plodding Chiefs will be able to take advantage of them.

Why should you put your money on the Patriots?

If you think that the loss of Edelman will doom the Patriot offense, just look back to 2016, when New England won a title without star tight end Rob Gronkowski. In the off-season, the Patriots traded a draft pick to the Saints for wideout Brandin Cooks and in the last week sent Jacoby Brissett to Indianapolis for wideout Phillip Dorsett. With Gronkowski back, and with Danny Amendola still on the roster, Tom Brady still has plenty of targets. Kansas City’s pass rush is not dominant enough to force Brady to hurry his throws, which should give him plenty of time to find targets down the field. On the defensive side, the Patriots should revert to last season’s form. They don’t have a big-name guy on the pass rush but still sacked opposing quarterbacks 34 times last year. They permitted 326.4 yards per game, good for sixth in the NFL. Malcolm Butler and Devin McCourty make a solid pair of cornerbacks, while Rob Ninkovich and Jamie Collins anchor a strong linebacker corps. If you like the Patriots, you think that they can chip away against the Chiefs’ defense and keep the Kansas City offense from making big plays.

Latest NFL Week 1 Trends

• Kansas City is 5-2 ATS in the last 7 games
• Kansas City is 10-3 SU in the last 13 games
• The total went UNDER in 9 of Kansas City’s last 13 games
• New England is 5-0 ATS in the last 5 games
• New England is 5-0 SU in the last 5 games
• The total went OVER in 4 of New England’s last 5 games

Expert NFL Week 1 Pick and Final Score Prediction

Kansas City does a lot of things well — but generally against the bottom-feeders of the league. Last year, they did won a dozen games — but only three of those wins came against teams that made the playoffs — a shocking win at Atlanta, and a pair of wins over Oakland. The other nine wins came over teams that didn’t make the playoffs. Kansas City runs an offense that focuses on the running game and a short check-down passing game, and they are happy to swap punts and gradually win the field position war. The Patriots have a quick-strike offense that can take advantage of mistakes in a hurry. I predict a final score of New England 31, Kansas City 17.