NFL fans have grown accustomed to a Thursday night game in the opening week, but this year, the league added a rare Friday night game that will take place in Brazil between two NFC heavyweights.
Previously, there had been only 12 Friday games in NFL history, and you have to go back to 1970 to find the last time the league scheduled a game on the Friday of Week 1.
The Packers and Eagles will be at the forefront of a new trend when the two teams meet in São Paulo’s Arena Corinthians, which hosted the 2014 World Cup.
The matchup’s biggest surprise is the total, which is up to 49.5 points after opening at 48.5. According to Action Network, Week 1 unders are more profitable than overs as they’ve gone 164-137-2 for 17.35 units.
Bettors can find some correlation by targeting props from both quarterbacks to go under their projections.
Here are my favorite player prop bets for Friday’s Packers-Eagles tilt in Brazil.
Packers vs. Eagles prop bets
Jordan Love under 34.5 pass attempts (-105, DraftKings)
The Packers were one of the biggest surprises in the NFC last season, winning their final three games to clinch a wild-card spot.
Love was a big reason for the second-half surge, throwing for more than 4,000 yards while registering a 32-11 touchdown-interception ratio in his first season as the full-time starter. It earned the quarterback a four-year, $220 million contract extension in the offseason.
Green Bay also signed free agent running back Josh Jacobs to a four-year deal worth $48 million to bolster the offense. The Packers’ offense thrives off play-action, which makes the addition of Jacobs an integral part of any future success.
Week 1 is often about establishing a rhythm, and the Packers will likely want to get Jacobs involved sooner rather than later.
Love has gone under 34.5 attempts in the last five games of 2023 and in five of his last six away from Lambeau Field.
With both teams having to adjust to the conditions in Brazil, look for them to utilize the running game as a stabilizing force.
Jalen Hurts under 1.5 passing touchdowns (-138, FanDuel)
The Eagles also has a new runner in their backfield following the free-agent signing of Saquon Barkley, who should enhance the team’s production inside the red zone.
According to TeamRankings, the Eagles were ninth in red zone touchdown percentage (59.7%) and eighth in overall touchdowns (2.8 per game) last season.
However, they dropped to 18th in passing touchdowns with 1.4 per game. It’s imperative that teams play to their strengths, and the Eagles are more built to score on the ground.
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Moreover, Hurts has stayed under this touchdown prop in his last five games when facing teams with a top-10 pass defense.
Going back to his last 10 games, this prop line stayed under seven times and had a 67% hit rate over the 2023 season.
In a game where both offenses will try to shake off some early rust, look for the Eagles to lean more on their running game when it’s time to get into the end zone.
