5 Key Games Across the NFL’s September Schedule
With just a few weeks to go before the start of the 2025 NFL season, fans will be busy marking their calendars for the long stretch to January (or February for some). The NFL Preseason games in August can provide some interesting action, as well as some insight into your team’s strengths and weaknesses.
Nonetheless, nothing beats the real thing. And once the regular season gets underway, a lot of the things that looked like common sense in preseason can quickly disappear. Predictions can look foolish. And highly-fancied teams can find themselves underwater, whereas dark-horse teams can surprise.
September is not the time to hit the panic button, but it can set the tone for the season. In light of that, we wanted to pick out five games that feel key for the season ahead, setting the narrative and telling us about teams’ chances to do something special in the months ahead:
Week 1: Ravens @ Bills (September 7th)
The first Monday Night Football of the season starts with a blockbuster between the two teams that many believe will be the AFC’s best. It looks incredibly tough to call in the betting,with home advantage just about nudging the lines in favor of the Bills, and it will be an interesting market for NFL player props bets as Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen go head-to-head. It’s no surprise to see both teams at the head of the betting markets for Super Bowl LX, and this one will tell us a lot about who is ready to take that mantle as favorites.
Week 2: Commanders @ Packers (September 11th)
This feels like one of the most intriguing games of the season. On the one hand you have last season’s surprise package, the Commanders, who will be looking to progress further with Jayden Daniels at the helm. On the other hand, you have a quietly going radar Packers team planning for more than just Playoff also-rans. For the Commanders, it’s a chance to show last season was no fluke. This game comes after the Packers’ opener against the Lions, so it’s the second of two tough games that can show Green Bay means business this season.
Week 2: Eagles @ Chiefs (September 14th)
It’s a Super Bowl LIX rematch. As is often the case, the Eagles and Chiefs go into the new season among the favorites by way of being in the previous Super Bowl, but not everyone is totally convinced, with many sportsbooks preferring the Bills and Ravens. The differences in the odds are marginal, though, but they could shift significantly after games like this one. Both teams have made changes in the offseason, but there have been few spectacular arrivals to either roster.
Week 3: Vikings @ Bengals (September 21st)
Last season, there was a sense that the Vikings were not as good as their 14-3 record suggested. Conversely, there was a feeling that the Bengals were better than their 9-8 record. Sothis game is the most intriguing of Week 3 in our view. The Bengals have an elite quarterback in Joe Burrow, but the supporting cast let him down last season. The Bengals’ bet is that cast will get better. The Vikings’ bet is on JJ McCarthy. Let’s see who gets it right.
Week 4: Ravens @ Chiefs
We started this by saying that the Bills and Ravens were the Super Bowl LX favorites, but both teams have struggled against the Chiefs. The Ravens have won only one game in the last seven against Kansas City, and the Bills’ struggles against the Chiefs in the Playoffs have been well-documented. The Ravens have an absolutely brutal start to the season (Bills, Lions, and Chiefs in the opening four games), so it feels like it will either make them or break them as serious betting favorites for the Super Bowl in February.
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