The Tennessee Titans take on the San Francisco 49ers in Week 1 of the 2026 NFL Preseason. Titans head coach Robert Saleh returns to the Bay Area for this game, as he was the 49ers’ defensive coordinator last season.
The 49ers are dealing with numerous injuries throughout camp so far, including banged-up veterans like Mike Evans and Christian McCaffrey, while George Kittle continues his return from a torn Achilles. But as is the case with preseason games, the focus is on the backups, so let’s dive into NFL prediction markets to see where we can find value.
The Titans are priced at 58 cents to win this game. Even though the 49ers are the much better team, they’re not going to be playing many of their starters. Those who do will only see limited snaps.
The biggest edge I see here, which is why the Titans are favorites, is at quarterback depth. Former first overall pick Cam Ward is heading into his second season, so he may get at least one series here, especially with rookie fourth overall pick Carnell Tate to try to build more rapport.
On top of that, the Titans have former starters in Mitch Trubisky and Will Levis behind Ward, not to mention Hendon Hooker, who was once a third-round pick back in 2023. That gives the Titans an advantage over the 49ers.
While Brock Purdy and Mac Jones are strong depth, they’re unlikely to see many snaps in this game, especially the former. Behind them are Kurtis Rourke (rookie 7th round pick) and Adrian Martinez, who has been on the practice squad for much of his career.
I’m going with the Titans to win this game at 58 cents. I’m taking them to win instead of -2.5 on the point spread to avoid any potential bad beats where I lose by two or one point. Those are key numbers in the preseason, where teams will go for two to avoid a tie at the end of the game.
The biggest factor here is that with Will Levis, you have a motivated former starter looking to prove that he can still play. The edge at quarterback here is too much for the 49ers to overcome in my eyes.
We also have to acknowledge that Robert Saleh is in his first year as Titans’ head coach. There’s more incentive for him to have his team put forth a strong performance in preseason than with a veteran side like Kyle Shanahan and the 49ers.
Titans rookie running back Nick Singleton has looked explosive in camp. Currently third on the depth chart behind Tony Pollard and Tyjae Spears, we could see Singleton make an impact in this matchup vs. the 49ers.
It will be interesting to see how many snaps 49ers’ rookie wideout De’Zhaun Stribling gets in this game. Reports out of training camp have been overwhelmingly positive, so Stribling could make an impact in this one if he sees meaningful action.
The Titans opened as 38.4% underdogs for this game, but we’ve seen significant movement in their direction, as they’re now priced at 58 cents. This isn’t surprising, as traders see how the Titans have more at stake for this game, along with superior quarterback depth when it comes to third and fourth on the depth chart.
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