The NFL is back to fill Sunday afternoons with football for the next few months, and 12 games get us off to a great start on the first full slate of the year. With eight games kicking off at 1:00 p.m. ET, DraftKings Sportsbook is ready to celebrate the start of the new season by giving out some bonus bets in the NFL Slate Breaker promo.
The NFL Slate Breaker promo will split a huge $2 million in bonus bets between all the bettors who placed their token on the player who scores the first touchdown of the day. The first touchdown of the game slate is defined as the player who scores the fastest touchdown in the least amount of time elapsed in their game compared to the rest of the 1:00 PM ET start time games. Following Opt-In, players will receive a token to place on any “First Touchdown” bet with a $10 minimum. Not only will the slate breaker deliver a win to those bettors as the first touchdown scorer in their game, but they’ll also earn a share of those bonus bets.
Earlier today, I gave out my top picks for NFL Slatebreaker, and in this post, we’ll focus on a few long-shot picks. These options are less likely to hit, but they bring huge payouts if they deliver. There is an advantage to picking long shots, since the total bonus bets will be divided by the total number of tokens. If 10,000 tokens are on the winner, each bettor would receive $200 in bonus bets, but if only 100 people place their token on the winner, each bettor would receive $20,000 in bonus bets. The fewer people who have their token on that player, the larger the payout will be, so it’s important to balance the popularity of the pick with the likelihood of it hitting.
NFL Slate Breaker — What You Need to Know
NFL Slate Breaker Long Shot Picks for Sunday, Sep. 13:
When making NFL Slate Breaker picks, we’re looking for players who have the potential to score the first touchdown in their game and in the opening few minutes. It could be a long score or a short score; it’s just about who can score with the least game time elapsing. There’s definitely some randomness in play with the coin toss, and which team gets the ball first, but we’re looking for players with the potential to break a big play and score a long touchdown right away. The NFL Slate Breaker should definitely bring some extra mayhem as the action begins at 1:00 p.m. ET
These three picks are long shots who I think have the potential to claim the NFL Slate Breaker title in Week 1.
1. Chris Olave First TD Scorer (+1200)
The Lions and Saints meet in what could be a high-scoring contest in the Motor City, and Olave is lined up to be the top target in the Saints offense this season. He scored nine touchdowns with exactly 100 catches in 16 games last season, and he finished with a strong run of four touchdowns in his last three games as he and Tyler Shough found a good rhythm down the stretch.
Olave signed a four-year, $132 million extension through 2030 this past offseason after 151 targets last year, which was the sixth-most in the NFL. The Saints added Jordyn Tyson in the draft to support Olave in the WR corps, but Tyson is on IR and will not be available for this matchup, leaving Olave with as much work as he can handle.
The Lions gave up the second-most WR touchdowns and the sixth-most FPTS to wide receivers last season, and their secondary is shaky coming into this year as well. With Shough and Olave healthy and ready to go for second-year head coach Kellen Moore, the Saints will look to pull of a big upset in Detroit. Whether they have the firepower to keep up with the high-scoring Lions is uncertain, but Olave could get loose for a deep score early and deliver a Slate Breaker win at great odds at 12:1.
2. D.J. Moore First TD Scorer (+1500)
The Bills added a dynamic receiver to their offense this offseason by trading a second-round pick to the Bears in exchange for Moore and a fifth-round pick. Moore had nine touchdowns in 19 games in the regular season and playoffs last year with the Bears, and he has scored at least six touchdowns in four straight seasons. He had to compete for targets in a crowded Bears offense, but this year, he’s expected to be the No. 1 option in Buffalo.
He made an immediate impact in training camp and the preseason, and he has already built a strong rapport with Josh Allen. According to The Athletic’s Joe Buscaglia, “Allen routinely pushed the ball downfield to Moore, making a concerted effort all summer to build on-field chemistry… The days of ‘everybody eats’ seem to be in the rearview mirror.”
If new coach Joe Brady looks to show off his new tool early in this matchup against the Texans, Moore could have a quick-strike score. Houston’s defense is strong, but Moore’s odds make him an exciting contrarian option for this week’s NFL Slate Breaker.
3. Garrett Wilson First TD Scorer (+1100)
Another clear No. 1 receiver with a chance to get on the board early enough to deliver a quick-strike NFL Slate Breaker win is Garrett Wilson of the Jets. Wilson and the Jets start their season on the road in Tennessee against the Titans, and they’ll be looking to turn their offense around by turning back to old friend Geno Smith, who returns for another stint with the team after spending last year in Las Vegas. Smith will be working with new offensive coordinator Frank Reich, who has been heaping praise on both Smith and Wilson leading up to Week 1.
Wilson’s knee injury cost him 10 games last season, and he only had four touchdowns. Before that down year, he racked up three straight 1,000-yard seasons to start his career and brings plenty of big-play potential if he and Smith can connect early.
The Titans hired former Jets coach Robert Saleh this offseason, and he’s in the process of tuning up the Titans’ defense. Wilson will look to take it to his former coach in this matchup, and he has the ability and upside to be a surprise NFL Slate Breaker in Week 1.
