The Green Bay Packers go at it with the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 1 of the 2026 NFL Preseason. At first glance, we have an interesting storyline with Steelers’ quarterback Aaron Rodgers taking on his former team, but it’s unlikely that he plays in this one.
There are some intriguing players to watch for this one, including Packers’ running back MarShawn Lloyd, who should see extensive work with Josh Jacobs sidelined. I’m also interested to see Steelers’ wide receivers Roman Wilson and Germie Bernard, who are competing for WR3 on the depth chart. With that in mind, let’s dive into NFL prediction markets to see where we can find value.
The Packers are priced at 56 cents to win this game. This isn’t surprising because head coach Matt LaFleur has already confirmed that starting quarterback Jordan Love will see limited snaps in this game, whereas Aaron Rodgers is likely out.
As such, the Packers get an edge with their starting signal-caller seeing action against Steelers’ backups. In fact, LaFleur publicly stated that there is value in getting some plays in for the starters, even though it’s preseason. So with several starters getting playing time for a portion of this game, the Packers have a clear advantage.
The good news for Pittsburgh is that they have some interesting quarterback depth, which can help them out in this one. Veteran quarterback Mason Rudolph has starting experience, while rookie Drew Allar has generated some buzz for his strong play during camp.
I’m taking a different angle with this game, targeting the Packers to win the 1st quarter by over 2.5 points at 65 cents. With starters like Jordan Love playing for a series or two, that gives a significant edge to Green Bay in the opening frame.
By focusing only on the first quarter, I can avoid a scenario where the Packers jump out to an early lead, but then the Steelers take over in the second half with rookie quarterback Drew Allar leading the way. All we need is a 3-0 result for Green Bay, and we hit this one, so I’ll take a shot here.
Packers running back MarShawn Lloyd is finally healthy after a pair of injury-plagued seasons to start his career. He was a touted prospect coming out of the draft, so it will be interesting to watch him in this one.
Steelers quarterback Drew Allar has a chance to prove that he can be in their future plans with Aaron Rodgers planning to retire after the season. The developmental QB prospect has performed well in camp so far.
The Steelers have an intriguing position battle between Roman Wilson and Germie Bernard for No. 3 WR behind DK Metcalf and Michael Pittman Jr.
Green Bay has a new defensive coordinator in former Cardinals’ head coach Jonathan Gannon. We’ll keep a close eye on any changes in scheme during this preseason matchup, although coaches tend to keep that under wraps before the season starts.
The Packers were 51.3% favorites for this game back on August 5th, but the market has moved in their direction, as they’re now listed at 56 cents. It’s not surprising to see this type of movement after head coach Matt LaFleur announced that several starters will see action in this game.
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