NFL Week 1 2024: Bills open as 7-point favorites against Cardinals

The Buffalo Bills’ Week 1 game to open the 2024 NFL season won’t begin until we’re through the next 111 days of the calendar, almost a third of a year in distance. However, it’s not too early to get in on the action with DraftKings, who last week shared opening odds for all 32 NFL clubs.

At this point, Buffalo is a seven-point favorite heading into its season opener (and home opener) against the Arizona Cardinals. The over/under is currently at 48 points, while the moneyline is -355 for the Bills, and +255 for the Cardinals.

Last season, the Buffalo Bills finished the regular season with the fifth-best record in the league (11-6), while the Arizona Cardinals were near the bottom, ranked 29th and with a 4- 13. The Bills finished with the fourth-best offense, ninth-best defense and 26th-ranked special teams. The Cardinals had the 19th offense, 25th defense and 23rd special teams in the league.

Established in 1898, the Cardinals are one of two remaining chartered franchises since the dawn of the NFL’s first season in 1920. Today, the Cardinals remain the oldest continuously operated team in the league.

The records between the two teams date back to 1971, with Buffalo holding a 7-5 overall record against the Cardinals. The 12 games between these two NFL teams over the past 53 years aren’t a very large sample size, which is to be expected when teams from opposing conferences often only play each other once every four years.

Despite their unfamiliar relationship on the field, you probably remember the last time these two played in 2020. The rosters are very different now — save for quarterbacks Josh Allen and Kyler Murray, as well as a few additional cornerstones of the franchise – but almost every member of the Bills Mafia who saw the previous game remembers the final game, and probably every player involved in what became known as “Hail Murray” and was named the NFL’s 2020 play of the season.

After losing 32-30 at Arizona, the Bills didn’t lose again during the regular season, eventually winning eight straight games (including the playoffs) before suffering an unforgettable overtime loss on the road against the Kansas Chiefs City.

With so many roster changes from season to season — and that will likely continue to happen over the next few months leading up to Week 1 — it’s difficult to gauge how Buffalo and Arizona will match up. This may give you the feeling that it might be a little too early to discuss key matchups ahead of this Week 1 matchup, but don’t bet against Allen and Murray coming out of the gate firing on all cylinders.

Will the Bills be ready to set the Cardinals back a bit and emerge from Week 1 as winners? As expected, Vegas expects the Buffalo Bills to do well in week one. We will know in a few months if this is the case.

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