Football is back! I knew it was here, but it didn't really set in until those passes started flying on Thursday night. And man does it feel good.

The return of football means making sure you win your office pool and secure any, ahem, tangential victories as well. Every week in this space we're gonna find you some locks. You can see our full 2017 NFL Expert Picks here.

This year for the first time I'm competing in the Las Vegas Westgate SuperContest, which features over 2,500 contestants selecting five games against the spread every week. I've kept track of these bets the last few years separately from the contest, firing over .500 with regularity. Now there's actual pressure, Dan, with cash on the line.

There's also a substantial amount of pride on the line: Oddshark.com has a group of us in the contest (#TeamOS) and not finishing near the top (at least above Nick Kostos and Pete Prisco) would be a major disappointment. 

I've traditionally hung my hat on taking a bunch of underdogs that looked tasty early in the week, so what better way to get this party started than with five favorites. It feels pretty safe that next week I'll be writing the words "never go full chalk." But my goal here isn't to get cute and identify the best lines. I'm looking for the best teams out of the gate with small lines. 

And I've got a group of five teams that I think are just better than the opposition. Part of taking lines in Week 1 is identifying where there might be some value. You've got to trust your instincts and your research and hope it works out for the best. Even if everyone and their brother is on the same game.

Bonus picks coverage if you're interested: me, Kostos, Prisco and Jason La Canfora (or some form of us four) will be picking every single game against the spread throughout the season on the Pick Six Podcast, which you can subscribe to on iTunes here.

Love the picks, hate the picks or want to mock me when I miss? Hit me up on Twitter @WillBrinson or on Facebook @WillBrinsonSports.

Titans -2.5 vs. Raiders

This is a major red flag game because of the interest surrounding the Titans. We -- media, fans, generally everyone -- have the Titans penciled in to win the AFC South. Thursday night's Chiefs-Patriots game is a fresh reminder nothing ever goes as planned in the NFL.

But the matchup here is too good. The Raiders defense can be run on and the Titans' strength is pounding the rock with DeMarco Murray and Derrick Henry. Tennessee's defense will get a real test here with the high-powered Raiders passing attack, and we might learn a lot about Marshawn Lynch. i just think the Titans are a better, more physical team that's being slightly undervalued while playing at home in this particular scenario. 

Cardinals -1.5 at Lions

Road chalk. Soak it up, buddy. The Cardinals are the team I picked to win the Super Bowl, so this was an easy choice, although obviously I would prefer to have them getting points on the road. I actually think that in four or five weeks if this game was played, there would be a substantially bigger line involved.

To me, the Lions' nine-win season was a major fluke last year (it featured eight fourth-quarter comeback wins for Matthew Stafford) and Arizona is undervalued because people believe their defense won't be as good without Calais Campbell. That's true, but they have a ton of young talent that can step up. Carson Palmer and Larry Fitzgerald are going to get their potential retirement tour started with a bang in this one. 

Eagles -1 at Redskins

More road chalk! And this one I don't really even love, I don't think. It's more about finding value in a team that I believe is capable of winning the NFC East in Philadelphia. Carson Wentz and Alshon Jeffery can move the ball even with Josh Norman presenting a physical matchup, and Torrey Smith or Mack Hollins will get deep at least once in this game.

The Redskins offense looked unsteady at best in the preseason and is going to take a few weeks to find its rhythm. The Eagles, who might have the deepest front seven in football, take advantage of that by putting pressure on Kirk Cousins who turns the ball over three times to help Philadelphia win.

Texans -5 vs. Jaguars

There is absolutely some sentiment for the Hurricane Harvey situation baked into this game. Irma will be hitting South Florida about the time this game kicks off (Sunday 1 p.m. ET) and we will very much be concerned about those in South Florida (especially my colleagues at the CBS Sports offices -- stay safe people!). But Harvey is still causing major problems in Houston, and even the $30 million raised by superstar defensive end J.J. Watt is going to come short when it comes to the recovery efforts.

But this is a city that is going to rally behind football, and this is a football team that gets a juicy matchup against Blake Bortles. Watt, Jadeveon Clowney and Whitney Mercilus are going to tee off. The offense won't dominate here against a good Jaguars defensive team, but Tom Savage can produce enough points with Lamar Miller and DeAndre Hopkins to give the Texans an easy win.

Bengals -2.5 vs. Ravens

Another favorite in a division matchup. Weeeeeee. There are no locks in the NFL anyway, so low spreads at least give you a shot. This game should be close, and I wouldn't take the Bengals if it was a field goal or more. But I like Cincinnati's offense here, even without speedy rookie John Ross. The Ravens strength is absolutely their defense, especially a physical front seven, and it's going to be an immediate test for new starting tackles Cedric Ogbuehi and Jake Fisher. If they can hold up their end of the bargain and justify the Bengals' investment in them, Cincy can roll here. There's no reason to believe that a bad-backed Joe Flacco can put up a bunch of points for Baltimore, even with Vontaze Burfict and Adam Jones missing from this Cincy defense.

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