What are the odds? The Washington Commanders open the season as home favorites against the Arizona Cardinals

Home favorites to start the year

The Washington Commanders finished last season with an 8-8-1 record, and they missed the playoffs while all three of their divisional rivals got in. Washington made some big offseason changes by firing Offensive Coordinator Scott Turner, and replacing him with Assistant Head Coach/OC Eric Bieniemy. They also moved on from two of their three starting QBs from the 2022 season by releasing Carson Wentz and not re-signing Taylor Heinicke. Sam Howell started the Week 18 game against the Dallas Cowboys and got the win. He will compete with free agent signing Jacoby Brissett for the starting job, but Howell is projected to be Washington’s Week 1 starter when they face the Arizona Cardinals.

The Washington Commanders open up the 2023 season as 5.5-point home favorites to the Arizona Cardinals. Another former Washington starting QB is likely to be under center for the Cardinals when they come to town. Kyler Murray tore his ACL last year, and Colt McCoy has been the team’s starter. This will lead to a QB showdown between Sam Howell an McCoy, a QB that one ESPN analyst recently comparer him to. The O/U on this game is up from the 39.5 it has been the last few weeks, and opens at 40.5.

Washington is a big favorite in Week 1, but DraftKings only has them favored in one other game for the rest of the season. The Commanders will host the Bears in a rematch from last season’s thriller, and they are currently 1.5-point favorites for that Thursday Night Football matchup. The Commanders currently have an over/under of 6.5 wins for the season, which would be another disappointing season, and would likely lead to massive changes under new ownership.

DraftKings Sportsbook odds:

Point spread: Commanders -5.5

Point total: 40.5

Moneyline: Cardinals +185, Commanders -215