Eagles open as Week 1 favorites over the Patriots

The Eagles were absolutely dominant in 2022, but that doesn’t really mean a whole lot as the team gets ready for Week 1 of the 2023 NFL season. Still, they return most of their starters, and added some pretty exciting young talent this offseason, which is probably why the Eagles opened as favorites (-4) over the Patriots, according to DraftKings Sportsbook.

New England will host the Eagles for this season opener, a game in which the Patriots will honor Tom Brady — I don’t know if Brady will get some kind of physical award, but if so, Brandon Graham should run onto the field and strip it from him. (It’d be only fitting.)

The Patriots were down to only one quarterback when they made their final 53-man roster cuts, Mac Jones... the QB who was occasionally benched toward the end of last season, but also did just enough this offseason to win back the starting job. Bill Belichick is still at the helm in New England, which means the team always has a chance, but there’s plenty of uncertainty surrounding the team heading into the season.

For the Eagles, Jalen Hurts by all accounts has looked great and has put in the work this offseason, but since he didn’t play in any of the preseason games, Week 1 will be his first taste of live action. (Read: It’ll be the first time he’s hit in nearly seven months.) That’s not just him, either, most of Philly’s starters sat on the sideline in the weeks leading up to the opener, so we haven’t really had a chance to see if the momentum sustained last season will trickle into this one.

With all the talent on the Eagles roster, it’s certainly tough to bet against this team. But, what do you think?