Week 1 of the 2025 NFL season is finally here, and we get a healthy 12-game slate to break down on DraftKings and FanDuel. Week 1 always delivers the excitement of having football back, while both DraftKings and FanDuel are offering up $1 million top prizes in a couple of different contests. There’s plenty of money to be won on Sunday, so let’s break down the NFL DFS Week 1 D/ST Coach!

NFL DFS Week 1 D/ST Coach for FanDuel & DraftKings Fantasy

With this being the first week of the season, it’s worth acknowledging that we could see some bad football this weekend. Sure, all teams have had a full camp, and they’re healthy for the most part. But no team is truly in midseason form.

With that said, we should acknowledge that underdogs and unders thrive in Week 1. Per Graham Barfield of Fantasy Points Data, over the past four seasons, 60.9% of Week 1 games have gone under the implied betting total. And to that point, just 42.2% of favorites have covered the spread. So if you have your own convictions on some underdogs this weekend, by all means, lean into it and take some wagers toward the under.

We are due to see some poor performances, and those typically go hand-in-hand with overreaction on Monday following the first full Sunday slate. DFS is a one-week season, so let’s try and find the top plays in the NFL DFS Week 1 D/ST Coach.

 

 

 

NFL Week 1 Defense/Special Teams

We have 12 games on the main slate for Sunday, with a lot of the presumably “explosive” offenses playing in primetime this week. For Sunday afternoon, we’re going to be without the Eagles, Cowboys, Chiefs, Chargers, Bills, Ravens, Vikings, and Bears.

Pricing for Week 1 is soft across the spectrum, and remember that it’s all relative. For example, De’Von Achane is $6,900 at running back, which is very generous compared to what we saw at times last year. The same could be said for teammate, Tyreek Hill ($6,700). But these two are also more expensive than the likes of Chase Brown, Kyren Williams, Alvin Kamara, Mike Evans, Drake London, and Tee Higgins.

Because the position players are priced down, and there are great values at the wide receiver and tight end positions, you should be able to easily build cash game lineups for Week 1 and play the more “safe” D/ST options. And for tournaments, there are some salary savers that jump off the page as well with some upside.

Across all the pricing tiers, we have you covered with the NFL DFS Week 1 D/ST Coach!

NFL DFS D/ST Top Tier Pick for Week 1

Arizona Cardinals – DraftKings: $3,500 | FanDuel: $4,200

Admittedly, I’m not as high on this play as most might be. And truthfully, you can scroll to the bottom if you want another play in the price range (as the play of the week). Or you can possibly look to the next team as an option you can pay up for while saving some of your salary on DraftKings.

The Cardinals are pretty heavy favorites, but they’re also playing on the road, which I don’t particularly love. The Saints have an implied team total of just 18.5 points as Kellen Moore makes his debut as the new head coach in the bayou. I don’t like betting against Moore, even if the quarterback situation in New Orleans is rather murky. This shouldn’t surprise anyone, but Moore acknowledged that Alvin Kamara will see a bulk of the carries on Sunday. And I’m sure he’ll be heavily involved in the passing game, as is usually the case.

Perhaps Moore can elevate Spencer Rattler as a starting quarterback in the NFL. But the Saints went 0-7 in games Rattler appeared in last year, and he was responsible for eight turnovers in those games. He also has a bad habit of staring down his target without going through the progressions. But again, Moore can help him here.

The Saints also upgraded the offensive line by drafting Kelvin Banks Jr. in the first round of April’s draft, and he looked outstanding in preseason and training camp, so the protection for Rattler should be much improved. I know it sounds more like I’m recommending fading the Cardinals when in reality, I just want to highlight what concerns me about this play. If you’re rostering the Cardinals, you’re doing so hoping Rattler falls back into some bad habits and the Saints aren’t able to put up points as the sportsbooks are predicting.

Pittsburgh Steelers – DraftKings: $3,300 | FanDuel: $4,600

The Steelers are a borderline mid-tier price on DraftKings, so they’re a nice value over there. And this is actually quite the matchup in the AFC on Sunday. The Pittsburgh Steelers and New York Jets effectively swapped quarterbacks from a year ago. Aaron Rodgers is now with the Steelers. Justin Fields is now with the Jets. And funny enough, Russell Wilson is with the New York Giants. Funny how things play out sometimes.

The Steelers know Justin Fields’ strengths and weaknesses. He’s certainly capable of making plays on his own, but at the same time, he can struggle to read a defense. And to make matters worse, it appears as if the Jets' offensive line is getting worse right before the season, as Alijah Vera-Tucker is feared to have torn his tricep, which likely will cost him the whole year.

This game has an implied total of 38.5 points as of Wednesday afternoon, and that’s the lowest total on the slate by four points. The Steelers are favored by a field goal despite the road matchup, so the price on DraftKings is tempting even if there isn’t an ownership discount.

 

 


 

NFL DFS D/ST Mid-Tier Picks for Week 1

New England Patriots – DraftKings: $3,100 | FanDuel: $3,900

There is some risk here, and by no means would I play the Patriots in cash games. As I mentioned earlier in this article, you should be able to pay up at D/ST with ease in those contests. But I do like getting exposure to the Patriots in tournaments.

The skill position players will be targeted on both sides because it’s a fun, cheap game to stack on DraftKings and FanDuel. But the Patriots made big moves on the defensive side of the ball in the offseason. New head coach, Mike Vrabel, reunites with Harold Landry to help improve the pass rush as the Patriots ranked last in the NFL with just 28 sacks last year. They also added Robert Spillane (a former Raider), who can make tackles anywhere on the field. New England signed Carlton Davis III to improve the CB2 position opposite Christian Gonzalez. But perhaps the biggest defensive splash they made was signing Milton Williams to pair with Christian Barmore on the defensive line.

Yes, I’m a Patriots fan and wildly excited about the potential of this defense ahead of the year. For the Raiders, they do have some weapons with the likes of Brock Bowers, Ashton Jeanty, and Jakobi Meyers. Geno Smith is definitely an upgrade at quarterback, but he tends to play better in controlled environments. But the offensive line for Vegas leaves a lot to be desired, and this game is on the road for Week 1, where the Raiders are underdogs. I’m happy to get contrarian and play the Pats D/ST in GPPs on Sunday.

Sunday Update: We're downgrading the two mid-range D/ST's on Sunday. With Christian Gonzalez being ruled out for New England, we're less optimistic the defense shuts down the perimeter.

Green Bay Packers – DraftKings: $2,900 | FanDuel: $3,500

Let’s take a shot with this play for tournaments, shall we? By now, everyone has read up on the stat from Bill Barnwell about how vital Micah Parsons was to the Cowboys' defense. For those in the dark, the Cowboys were the league’s best defense in terms of EPA per play over the last four years. But across a 1,000+ play sample size without Parsons, the Cowboys instantly became the worst defense in the league. That’s the impact Parsons can have when he’s healthy and active.

So with Parsons now on the Packers, we should expect Green Bay to take a massive leap defensively. And this is a game script and matchup that may scare people away against the Detroit Lions. Maybe you can hang your hat on the fact that the Lions are without Ben Johnson calling the plays on offense nowadays. And the Lions' offensive line did take a hit with Frank Ragnow retiring in the offseason.

The Packers are favored by almost a field goal, and this matchup features one of the higher implied totals on the slate (46.5 points). But if we can observe the impact that Parsons had with the Cowboys, why don’t we take some stabs at the Pack with our NFL DFS lineups? The upgrade he gives this team could be massive.

Sunday Update: We have to downgrade Green Bay. I still love the outlook for this defense on the year but if Parsons isn't getting a full share of snaps then we should expect Detroit to exceed their implied team total of 22.5 points.

 

 

 

NFL Week 1 DFS D/ST Value Picks

Houston Texans – DraftKings: $2,500 | FanDuel: $3,800

The Texans go on the road for Week 1, and they are priced down for a reason. Value D/ST picks are never a slam dunk, but this is a team that still has incredibly talented players like Derek Stingley, Danielle Hunter, and Will Anderson Jr. Coming into the season, plenty of fantasy providers had the Texans ranked as a top-five D/ST in season-long formats.

NFL DFS is a one-week season, so we can’t just assume they’ll pay off this price tag. But again, it’s a good defense that is priced down. The matchup is tough as the Rams reloaded by acquiring Davante Adams to pair with Puka Nacua, and the run game still goes through Kyren Williams. But I do think it’s worth mentioning that veteran quarterback Matthew Stafford dealt with a back injury during training camp and may very well still be bothered by it.

But the combination of Anderson and Hunter creates pressure. Hunter ranked first in pass rush win rate in 2024 (26%) while Anderson wasn’t far behind at 22%. The Texans were top five in yards per game allowed (315) and sacks (49) as a team last year. The Rams are favored by three points, but we see great defenses step up all the time in these matchups, so I love the Texans as a paydown option.

 

 


 

NFL DFS D/ST Fade for Week 1

Cincinnati Bengals – DraftKings: $3,600 | FanDuel: $4,500

It may be a bit bold to go with a more expensive team as the first fade of the 2025 NFL DFS campaign. I could easily have taken a layup with the Las Vegas Raiders, but I’m a man of conviction. I’ll take a page right out of Howard Bender’s NFL DFS Week 1 Watch List: “The Bengals spent all their money on offense once again, and their secondary looks just as soft as it did last season when we targeted against them almost every week.” Despite the team re-signing Trey Hendrickson, Howard hit the nail on the head.

The Bengals are on the road in this matchup, although it’s not like it was the most tedious travel going across the state of Ohio. The Bengals even held the Browns to 20 total points in their two matchups in 2024. However, Dorian Thompson-Robinson played the entirety of that second matchup and sparingly in relief in the first game. He was responsible for four interceptions in those two games, and he also fumbled twice, but they weren’t recovered by the defense.

All this is to say that the Browns enter this matchup with a more stable quarterback situation for at least this game. Joe Flacco gets the start, and even at 40 years old, he’s a better option than DTR. And like Howard said, the Bengals didn’t do anything to drastically improve their secondary. If the Browns are chasing, they can put up points later on. Even the sportsbooks are giving the Browns an implied total of 21 points, so I’m of the mindset of avoiding the Bengals D/ST at this price tag.

 

 

 

NFL DFS Week 1 D/ST Play of the Week

Denver Broncos - DraftKings: $3,800 | FanDuel: $4,800

The Denver Broncos check quite a few boxes. They’re playing at home (which just so happens to be at elevation). They’re relatively big favorites (-8.5) in a game with a low implied total (42.5 points). And to top it all off, they get to welcome a rookie quarterback (Cam Ward) to the NFL.

Truth be told, from a DFS perspective, I really like Tony Pollard for Week 1 because the volume he could potentially see is massive. But we need to be honest with ourselves and at least acknowledge that it’s a bad matchup all around.

Last season, the Broncos allowed just 19.0 points per game (third fewest in the NFL) and only 14.9 points per game at home (fewest in the NFL). They allowed just 102.7 yards per game on the ground (fifth fewest in the NFL) and just 325.7 total yards per game (ninth fewest). This is potentially the worst possible matchup you could ask for as a rookie quarterback. Cam Ward and the Tennessee Titans will certainly have their hands full.

Am I taking a layup here with the Broncos as the Play of the Week? Sure. But it’s Week 1, and you shouldn’t have any issues playing this team in cash games and tournaments.