​The kickoff of the 2026 Saints season begins with fresh optimism in New Orleans. This Saints team enters the season with second-year head coach Kellen Moore and second-year quarterback Tyler Shough for their first full season behind the wheel together. Thanks to a draft that has added some high-quality parts to this rebuilt chassis, these Saints find themselves poised to turn some heads this season.The expectations have greatly increased for the Saints this season, with the team expected to be a front-runner for the division title, following a last-place finish a season ago. These Saints might not quite yet have what it takes yet to compete for the Lombardi Trophy in Super Bowl LXI in Los Angeles, California next February, but they will certainly attempt to shock the league. Their chance to open the throttle and kick into the next gear begins here in Week 1.All season and postseason, we will be presenting you with each and every game on the NFL schedule along with my picks for each game. It’s been a long wait for this season to begin, so let’s get started.WEEK 1Wednesday, September 9th – NFL Kickoff 2026Patriots at SeahawksThis rematch of February’s Super Bowl LX will hopefully turn out much better than that game. Seattle’s rivals in Los Angeles are getting the spotlight this season, but the reigning Super Bowl Champions will remind everyone that they are still the team to beat. New England has had an interesting offseason to say the least, but this team is every bit as good as the one that reached the Super Bowl last season. The problem for the Pats is that Seattle is still just as talented and well coached as they were that Super Bowl Sunday. Seattle wins 26-17.Pick: Seahawks***Thursday, September 10th – NFL International Game49ers at* Rams – East Melbourne, Victoria, AustraliaFew teams enter an NFL season with the level of expectations that the Rams face this season. They boast arguably the most intimidating defensive line we have seen in many years, and soon we will see if this team is more than just the hype that precedes them. On the other side, their rivals from San Francisco have faced an offseason full of turmoil and injuries. Despite it all, the Niners have an annoying ability to play better than they have any right to, under Kyle Shanahan. Without Aaron Donald, and with great familiarity between these bitter rivals, this showdown Down Under will be a pretty close one. Los Angeles wins 33-26.Pick: Rams***Sunday, September 13th – Early GamesBears at PanthersChicago found themselves so very close to the NFC Championship Game last season, and now look to take that next step under second-year coach Ben Johnson. The reigning NFC South Champs hope their triumph from last season wasn’t just a fluke. Tough break for the Panthers, facing these Bears right from the jump. Chicago wins 26-14.Pick: Bears***Buccaneers at BengalsTampa saw their unimpressively long reign atop the NFC South come to an unceremoniou