PrizePicks NFL Week 1 Recap

Saquon is back on his bully, Baker is 3-feet deep in regret, and the AFC South still sucks. These things are clear after watching the NFL's first week of games, but look past the obvious and you'll uncover an oasis of storylines, stellar performances, and daily fantasy successes within the PrizePicks community.

As the first article of its kind, the PrizePicks Weekly NFL recap will sum up the PrizePicks' community's performance by examining the MVP of the week, the sweat of the week, and the entry that we feel was the most impressive. You'll also get a taste of what's to come in the week ahead, so you can start getting those winning entries ready! Without further ado, let's get right into it.

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MVP OF THE WEEK

Cooper Kupp 

Only at PrizePicks can you be the weekly MVP as your team gets destroyed on National TV. But Kupp More than 0.5 TDs was the community's most popular non-Free Square play of the week. He also shattered his receptions, receiving yards, and targets projections. Well played to anyone who took the former Super Bowl MVP! 

Excluding the 200+ people who mysteriously took less than .5 passing yards, the vast majority of PrizePicks members are likely to give ol’ Tom Brady a slice of the MVP-pie for helping them win their entry as well. For those of you that did pick LESS, we suspect you may have done it by accident. Check out this guide on how to play, so you can take advantage of the next free square! Don’t worry, we all make mistakes. 

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SWEAT OF THE WEEK

Ja'marr Chase .5 TDs

We would have thrown our TV remote multiple times if we were one of the 96% of Members on the “More” side of this one. Joe Burrow was doing his best Nathan Peterman impression all game, and then a horrific call and baffling decision by the Bengals not to wait for a review stole a TD from Chase. 

By the time CBS erroneously credited Chase with a TD after a sick (but out-of-bounds) one-handed grab, there probably would have been a hole in my wall. 

But finally, with one second left, Chase caught a 6-yard TD pass from Burrow, tying the game and delivering a huge win for PrizePicks Members!

A complete swing of emotions from bliss, to frustration, and back again. Ja'marr Chase .5 TDs is our unequivocal sweat of the week! 

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ENTRY OF THE WEEK

$5k NFL Winner! 

We gave out free entries to win $5K as a reward for completing our NBA Finals Challenge, and one of our Members put it to great use this week. With $5,000 on the line, he put his trust in the proven, reliable stars: Jameis Winston and Jalen Hurts! 😂

His winning entry was:

- Jameis Winston MORE than 225.5 passing yards

- Christian McCaffrey MORE than 0.5 TDs

- Jonathan Taylor MORE than 22 fantasy points

- Jalen Hurts MORE than  24 fantasy points

- Travis Kelce MORE than 18 fantasy points

 Congrats, Dustin!

WHAT’S ALL THE BUZZ(CUT?) 

Would you shave our logo into your head for $5,000 in promo funds? This half-joking, Vom Miller-inspired challenge from our social media guy turned into several PrizePicks Members sending urgent, “You up?” texts to their barbers (or judging from some of the photos, their slightly drunk friend with clippers). 

These were too good, @rhjs08 and @bigtankbets you're both getting $5,000! DM us to claim your prize 🤑

Everyone else, please stop shaving your heads!

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These two were so good that we gave them both $5K. And because we didn’t want anyone to have to explain to their girlfriends or bosses why their hair looked like that without a reward, we hooked 5 more people up with consolation prizes. 

The whole situation begs the question: What would you be willing to do for $25,000 in promo funds? I don’t think we want to find out. Did someone say Tattoo? (Just kidding, for now) 

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THE WEEK AHEAD

Monday: Monday Night Football! Seeing Russ in orange is going to be bizarre. Geno Smith being a starting QB is even more bizarre.

Tuesday: It’s Taco Tuesday! The chefs are back in the kitchen ready to cook. That sentence was incomprehensible to all our new Members. But they’ll know soon enough!

Wednesday: Lots of baseball, including 5 afternoon games!

Thursday: Chargers - Chiefs. Mahomes - Herbert. Who likes points?

Friday: Flex Friday! Our brand new tradition of a promotion on flex entries every Friday. 💪

Saturday: No way last Saturday’s College Football slate can be topped, but Miami plays Texas A&M. That means we get to see (at least) one of those fanbases mad!

Sunday: Yesterday was fun (unless you’re a kicker). Let’s do it again!

Ahhhh NFL. Is there really anything better? From Jonathan Taylor making a defensive lineman look like a newborn giraffe, to Randy Bullock missing game winners for what feels like the 750th time in his career, this season feels like its going to be special. To turn up the fun-meter even further, keep an eye out for promotions, challenges, and more. Now, let’s get back to the board.