David John makes San Francisco with a start at home to Carolina his best bet from Sunday night's action in the NFL.
Pittsburgh at Cleveland (1800BST, Sky Sports Main Event)
The early live fixture on Sky was originally Jay Cutler’s debut under centre for Miami against Tampa Bay but the severe weather expected in Florida means that game has moved to a later date.
So we head up country to the AFC North with Pittsburgh heavy favourites on the road in Cleveland.
There remains an obvious gulf in class between a strong Super Bowl contender in the Steelers and a team undergoing an umpteenth rebuild after a 1-15 season in Ohio but the Browns could start to show some signs of improvement in 2017.
They have upgraded at a lot of positions on offense while the other side of the ball could well come together nicely with games under their belts once game-changing top draft pick Myles Garrett recovers from an ankle sprain.
Rookie DeShone Kizer has won the battle to be starting quarterback and it will be a bit of a disappointment if they don’t win somewhere in the region of four or five games.
Expect some early growing pains so I would be surprised if it all came together immediately against such a testing opponent.
Prediction: Pittsburgh 24-14 Cleveland
Seattle at Green Bay (2125BST, Sky Sports Main Event)
Two leading Super Bowl candidates meet at Lambeau Field with plenty of human interest – brothers Michael and Martellus Bennett face off while long-time Packers running back Eddie Lacy makes a return for his new team but in all likelihood will play second fiddle behind Thomas Rawls.
Seattle did some late wheeling and dealing in the off-season as they sent wide receiver Jermaine Kearse to the New York Jets in a trade for defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson and head coach Pete Carroll feels he is the final piece of the puzzle in what could be the "best defensive front" he has ever had.
Earl Thomas is back from a broken leg as well to solidify what perhaps remains the game’s finest secondary and I like their chance of keeping a lid to some extent on outstanding Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
The hosts are on a quest to make it eight straight victories over this rival at Lambeau and that streak looks under serious threat but the best path to profits is to rely on a fearsome visiting defense to keep Green Bay’s score down below the line.
Prediction: Seattle 23-20 Green Bay
New York Giants at Dallas (Monday 0130BST, Sky Sports Action)
A marquee fixture to finish off the action on Sunday night and a chance for one of the two to get an early leg-up in the NFC East.
Controversy has swirled around last season’s leading rusher Ezekiel Elliott and a six-game ban he has to serve but he does get to suit up for the Cowboys this weekend.
He and quarterback Dak Prescott were both sensational last year in their first season in the NFL as they guided Dallas to the play-offs – they may well find it tougher without that element of surprise while the Giants managed to get the better of them in both divisional encounters.
We shall have to see whether that turns into a trend but the visiting defense has the opportunity to be extremely good and did limit Prescott and Dallas to just seven points last December.
Veteran quarterback Eli Manning begins a journey that will hopefully lead to a third Super Bowl ring although needs to take a few less silly risks but star receiver Odell Beckham Jr is a doubt for the opener as he battles an ankle sprain.
The Giants need to get a running game going too and that rests currently with Paul Perkins – this one could go either way and should be pretty close if you have the stamina to stick it out through the night.
Prediction: NY Giants 20-16 Dallas
Best of the rest:
There is not a huge amount of optimism from the outside looking in when it comes to San Francisco but I believe they will make a competitive start when they host Carolina.
Kyle Shanahan, the man who masterminded Atlanta’s march to the Super Bowl as their offensive co-ordinator, is the new head coach in the Bay Area and signs over the summer have been extremely positive.
Vastly experienced quarterback Brian Hoyer admitted in a recent interview that his job with the 49ers was "the most fun I have had playing football" and the fact he has worked with Shanahan previously in Cleveland has allowed the pair to hit the ground running.
Former track star Marquise Goodwin is part of a receiving corps that can stretch the field while an aggressive defense could turn out to be very good as they develop over the season.
The Panthers still have enough talent on the roster to bounce back from a surprising dip in form in 2016 with rookie Christian McCaffrey very much a player to keep a close eye on but quarterback Cam Newton is still on the road to recovery after shoulder surgery and may not be razor sharp quite yet.
The other wager well worth a look is a touchdown anytime for Jacksonville rookie wide receiver Dede Westbrook.
He has been a rare bright spot in a clunky Jaguars offense during pre-season and the jury very much remains out whether incumbent Blake Bortles will hang on to his job at quarterback.
Jax are very well stocked at wide receiver with proven talent in Allen Robinson and Allen Hurns but Westbrook gives them an additional string to their bow and should be backed to find the end zone.
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Posted at 1640 BST on 08/09/17
