NFL football knockout, survivor pool picks, advice, strategy guide for Week 1, 2025: Avoid Arizona

Some NFL survivor pool players have already advanced or been eliminated on Thursday or Friday, but with 14 games remaining, it’s time to lock in any Week 1 NFL survivor picks if you haven’t already. In 2024, there was a stunner right off the bat as the New England Patriots upset the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 1, knocking many NFL survivor players out of their pools before even reaching Week 2. NFL survivor strategy does involve thinking about what’s down the road, but advancing past Week 1 in NFL knockout pools is the first objective.

The latest Week 1 NFL odds show four remaining games with a spread of 5.5 points or more, including Bengals vs. Browns (+5.5), Cardinals vs. Saints (+6.5) and Broncos vs. Titans (+8.5). Those are the games many NFL survivor players will be targeting, but among those favorites, which ones bring the most value in NFL survivor pools? Before finalizing any Week 1 NFL survivor picks, see which team the red-hot SportsLine Projection Model just went all-in on.

The model, which simulates every NFL game 10,000 times, is up well over $7,000 for $100 players on top-rated NFL picks since its inception. The model went 31-15 on top-rated picks in 2024. Anybody following its NFL betting picks at sportsbooks and on betting sites could have seen strong returns. The model can be used to crush the survivor pool format, which calls for picking one team to win each week but never using the same team twice.

Now, it has turned its attention to the latest Week 1 NFL schedule and locked in its Week 1 survivor pool pick. You can only see who the model is backing this week at SportsLine. New users can also target the DraftKings promo code, which offers $300 in bonus bets instantly plus over $200 off NFL Sunday Ticket:

Top Week 1 NFL survivor pool predictions 

In Week 1 of the 2025 NFL season, the model is shying away from the Arizona Cardinals as they take on the New Orleans Saints. They are 6.5-point and -292 money-line favorites in the Week 1 lines as they come off an 8-9 season in 2024. The Saints, meanwhile, are projected to be perhaps the worst team in the NFL in 2025.

The model, however, projects this to be a field goal game, and only has Arizona winning 58% of the time as it isn’t ready to trust a franchise that’s had just one winning season since 2015. Additionally, the Cardinals started slow last season, losing three of their first four, while the Saints actually won their first two in 2024 before struggling afterwards. See which team to pick instead here. You can also use the latest FanDuel promo code to get $300 in bonus bets instantly:

How to make Week 1 NFL survivor pool picks 

Instead, the model is confidently backing one surprising team to win outright in nearly 80% of simulations. The time to pick this team is now, and you can only see the play over at SportsLine.

Which surprising team is a must-back in your Week 1 NFL survivor pool? Visit SportsLine now to see which team carries you to victory in Week 1, all from the advanced computer model that nails survivor picks and is up well over $7,000 since its inception.