Munaf Manji and Dave Essler talk NFL betting for Week 1. Munaf Manji and Uncle Dave Essler open the NFL season with a brand new weekly format, breaking down a full Week 1 slate, handing out best bets, and setting the stage for a Monday recap show that will carry the crew through the season. The headline story sits in Pittsburgh, where the Atlanta Falcons arrive with real quarterback uncertainty. Tua Tagovailoa was named the Week 1 starter before an oblique injury popped up in Thursday practice, opening the door for Cooper Rush to potentially take the reins against a Steelers team now led by new head coach Mike McCarthy following the long Mike Tomlin era. Munaf lays out the timeline at 2:32 while Dave, at 3:56, leans hard into the under, arguing Pittsburgh's defense remains legitimate regardless of who plays quarterback and that a young Steelers offensive line will limit what Aaron Rodgers can do on the move. Both land on the under 41.5. From there the two move to Baltimore visiting Indianapolis, where the Ravens are three and a half point road favorites with Daniel Jones back from injury for the Colts and new Ravens head coach Jesse Minter making his debut after serving as the Chargers defensive coordinator a season ago. Dave, at 9:22, calls it a wrong team favored spot and backs Indianapolis at plus three and a half, trusting Colts head coach Shane Steichen over an unproven new staff in Baltimore, and Munaf agrees at 12:54, pointing to efficiency numbers that favor the Colts. The conversation then shifts to Cincinnati, where the Bengals are laying three and a half at home against Tampa Bay with a rebuilt defense that added Dexter Lawrence, Bryan Cook, and Jonathan Allen this offseason. Dave backs the Buccaneers team total under at 15:27, and Munaf goes a step further, taking Tampa Bay outright at plus three and a half and citing a history of slow Cincinnati starts under head coach Zach Taylor. The Packers and Vikings clash gets its own segment at 21:13, with Kyler Murray making his first start at quarterback for Minnesota and Micah Parsons sidelined for Green Bay. Dave breaks from a colleague's earlier take to back the Vikings, and Munaf projects a 23 to 20 final while liking the under 46.5. Sunday Night Football between the Cowboys and Giants closes out the main card at 28:17, with new Giants head coach John Harbaugh looking to flip a franchise that has dropped a striking number of one score games, and both hosts land on the Giants team total over 22.5. Munaf wraps the card with a look at Buffalo visiting Houston, detailing a strong recent history for the Texans defense against Josh Allen specifically and settling on the Texans plus one and a half alongside the under 44.5 as his top best bet of the week, while Dave's top play is the Bengals team total under bought up to 24.5. Along the way the two touch on shorter looks at the Lions, Saints, Dolphins, Eagles, Commanders, Bears, and Panthers, and remind listeners about a discounted All Access subscription at Pregame.com. The episode closes with a preview of what is ahead, a full Monday recap show breaking down the weekend's line moves and a Monday Night Football preview between the Broncos and Chiefs, kicking off a schedule that will run twice a week for the entire season. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
