Week 1 of the NFL regular season comes with all sorts of different motivations for every team.
Some teams are looking to reaffirm their dominance like the Buffalo Bills did on Thursday night. Others will try to work in new acquisitions that they hope will carry them forward in their championship quests.
Some struggling franchises are trying to erase poor performances and start strong with a clean slate for the 2022 season.
All of the unknowns make putting together daily fantasy lineups a challenging task. Some top lineup stacks are clear, but some unlikely stars will emerge and win you extra cash in large contests.
Philadelphia and Baltimore have two of the best matchups on paper, and that may lead to high roster percentages for Jalen Hurts, Lamar Jackson and others.
There are also potential fantasy stars waiting to break out on teams that are not on your radar when you immediately look at the schedule.
Jacksonville, Houston and Atlanta may not have great rosters, but they have a few individuals that could carry your lineups to greatness on Sunday afternoon.
The Philadelphia Eagles and Baltimore Ravens must be salivating to get on the field on Sunday.
The two franchises get to face two of the four worst defenses in total yards concession from the 2021 campaign.
Philadelphia will debut its new-look offense with A.J. Brown partnering with Jalen Hurts and DeVonta Smith. A stack of the trio, and even with tight end Dallas Goedert added, could be a strong foundation for Week 1 daily fantasy lineups.
Jackson and the Ravens could rout the New York Jets, who are starting former Raven Joe Flacco, at MetLife Stadium.
Jackson has Mark Andrews as his mainstay in the passing game and he has a few intriguing options at wide receiver to work with. Rashod Bateman should be the top choice at wide receiver. Demarcus Robinson and Devan Duvernay could be sleeper plays to pair with Jackson, Bateman and Andrews.
Philadelphia and Baltimore each have questions at running back and that might aid the passing numbers from Hurts and Jackson.
Miles Sanders was not listed on the injury report, but he dealt with a hamstring issue for the bulk of training camp.
J.K. Dobbins is officially listed as questionable and his status will be revealed on Sunday morning as to how much he can play.
Hurts and Jackson can make up for the running back production with their legs, and that could add to their fantasy point totals and lead to them being near the top of the quarterback leaderboard.
There will come a time this season when you avoid AFC South players at all costs.
But Week 1 presents new opportunities and optimism about the Jacksonville Jaguars and Houston Texans.
Jacksonville ushers in the Doug Pederson era at Washington in a game that the Jaguars could win if Trevor Lawrence outplays Carson Wentz.
Lawrence is surrounded by two healthy running backs in Travis Etienne and James Robinson, a new top wide receiver in Christian Kirk and a potential fantasy football sleeper at tight in Evan Engram.
Pederson achieved success in Philadelphia by utilizing all aspects of the offense and some of the Jaguars' skill position players could benefit from Lawrence spreading the ball around against the Commanders.
Houston's offense built some chemistry toward the end of the 2021 season. Davis Mills might not receive much national attention, but he could make the Texans offense respectable in every week this season.
Brandin Cooks is a great top option for a young quarterback to have, Nico Collins could be in for a breakout season at wide receiver and Dameon Pierce has been hailed as one of the breakout running backs in fantasy football.
The Jags and Texans have some intriguing pieces on their roster, and if things go well for Lawrence and Mills, they could provide some of the best fantasy value on the Week 1 slate.
No one knows for sure what we will get from either team, but the same could be said about the other 26 teams in action on Sunday, so it may be worth risking some roster spots on Jaguars and Texans.
The Kansas City Chiefs have a bevy of new faces inside their offense, but one person remained the same.
Remember this is still an offense with Patrick Mahomes leading it. Mahomes will help the new additions achieve success throughout the season.
JuJu Smith-Schuster, Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Mecole Hardman will be Mahomes' top three wide receivers. Skyy Moore could be used as a risky sleeper play if you think he can break out for a few big plays.
Mahomes will still target Travis Kelce at a high volume, but he needs to work the ball around to his top wide outs to go back-and-forth with Kyler Murray and the Arizona Cardinals.
Kansas City could be involved in a high-scoring affair with Arizona, and if that is the case, one or two of the wide receivers must step up to support Mahomes.
The easy way to stack the Chiefs is to pair Mahomes and Kelce with one of the wideouts, but you could also use Smith-Schuster, Valdes-Scantling or Hardman as a third wide receiver or flex option to support other lineup stacks.