Projecting the first loss of every NFL team

Arizona's starting quarterback is still to be determined, but the Cardinals will face an offense that similarly saw turnover during the offseason in Washington in Week 1. That game will be key for the start of their season with a brutal Week 2 visit to the Rams. For the Cardinals sake, they have the sixth-best home record in football since 2007, at 62-29-1.

The 2018 NFL regular season opens with a Thursday night NFC Divisional Round rematch between the Falcons and Eagles. The teams are top NFC contenders again this season, with the Falcons offense hoping to bounce back after a change at offensive coordinator last year and the Eagles getting Carson Wentz back from injury. Including the playoffs, the Eagles were 9-1 at home last year, so this will be a tough task for the Falcons.

The Ravens have high hopes for a bounce-back season in 2018 after missing the playoffs for three consecutive years. Joe Flacco has a new set of weapons, and Baltimore opens with a relatively easy schedule vs. Buffalo, at Cincinnati and vs. Denver, before visiting the division-rival Steelers in Week 4. For what it's worth, the Steelers have won the last three matchups between the teams.

Buffalo has an unsettled quarterback situation after moving on from Tyrod Taylor, with AJ McCarron, rookie Josh Allen and Nathan Peterman competing for the starting job. (Although it may be between Allen and Peterman for the first part of the season after McCarron suffered an injury in a preseason game.) For the near future, this situation probably doesn't excite many Bills fans, and Buffalo was just 3-6 on the road last season. Not unexpected, the Ravens opened as nearly a touchdown favorites.

Carolina has a competitive Week 1 matchup vs. Dallas before heading to Atlanta in Week 2. If Cam Newton, Greg Olsen and Luke Kuechly are healthy entering the season, the Panthers have an excellent shot in the first game. But the Falcons are another story. They have won four of the last five head-to-head matchups, including three games in Atlanta.

New head coach Matt Nagy and a bevy of offensive additions have Bears fans excited about 2018, but we shouldn't get ahead of ourselves. Packers fans will be pumped for an opening Sunday night matchup, and the Packers have won 16 of the last 19 games between the division rivals. As of mid-August, the Packers are the second-biggest favorites on the board in Week 1 with an 8-point advantage.

The Bengals are looking to rebound after a down year and have made the necessary moves to fix their offensive line issues. They have a winnable game at Indianapolis to open the season before facing the division-rival Ravens in their home opener. The teams have gone back and forth over the last four matchups, but the revamped Ravens wide receiving corps could be too much for the thin Cincinnati secondary.

The Browns certainly look better on paper heading into the season with notable additions like Tyrod Taylor and Jarvis Landry, but that doesn't mean they're ready to beat the Steelers. Cleveland is just 1-31 over the last two seasons, compared to Pittsburgh's 26-10 record, second best in the NFL.

Fans of ground and pound will be in for a treat in Week 1 when the Cowboys visit Carolina. Dallas could feed Ezekiel Elliott even more than his first two seasons after losing Dez Bryant and Jason Witten, while Cam Newton, Christian McCaffrey and C.J. Anderson should rack up plenty of yards in Norv Turner's offense. Ultimately, the presence of Luke Kuechly could be too much for the Cowboys to generate offense, especially on the road against a Panthers team that was 6-2 at home last year.

The Broncos are optimistic that Case Keenum can help them get back into playoff contention. The opening schedule will also help, starting the year with two home games at Mile High vs. Seattle and Oakland. Since 2003, the Broncos have the seventh-best record at home at 86-43 thanks in part to the home elevation that opponents hate so much. Over that same period, they're just .500 on the road.

Matt Patricia is starting his head coaching career against a familiar foe in the Jets before traveling to San Francisco. This visit will be difficult after the 49ers finished last season 5-0 and are fully immersed in Kyle Shanahan's offense. But Matthew Stafford and Co. have shown much more offensive consistency. In Week 3, the Lions host Patricia's former employer in an exciting matchup between master (Bill Belichick) and student. Since 2003, the Patriots are an amazing 87-37 on the road, and the Lions offense makes for an easy project for Belichick if Detroit isn't able to establish the run early.

Aaron Rodgers is 88-38 as Green Bay's starting quarterback since 2009, while the Packers have the second-best home record in football during that time, at 58-18-1. Green Bay players have four home games in their first six contests before a Week 7 bye, including games vs. Minnesota and San Francisco. Even with rest from the bye, Green Bay will have a tough time visiting the Rams and an impressively talented defense that includes Aaron Donald, Ndamukong Suh, Marcus Peters and Aqib Talib.

Houston fans are excited for the start of the season now that Deshaun Watson and J.J. Watt are healthy again, but the team's opening schedule couldn't be much tougher with visits to New England and Tennessee. The Patriots started last season off on the wrong foot, losing to Kansas City, but they will try to make sure that doesn't happen in consecutive years. The Texans hope to have solved their leaky secondary from last season, but even in that case, Bill Belichick is a legendary game planner vs. young quarterbacks like Watson.

The return of Andrew Luck should certainly provide a boost for the Colts, but it's the rest of their team that's still a problem. The Colts haven't finished better than .500 over the last three seasons, albeit under a different coaching staff, and continue to rebuild their personnel. Meanwhile, the Bengals addressed their offensive line issues in the offseason and still have one of the top defensive lines in the NFL.

The Jaguars are one of the most intriguing teams of 2018 after coming up just short of making the Super Bowl in 2017. They have a tough Week 1 matchup at the Giants where they're favored by less than a field goal as of mid-August, and then they have a Week 2 AFC Championship rematch vs. the Pats. Blake Bortles was able to expose the Patriots defense using the read-option, but it's fair to bet the Patriots will adjust appropriately.

The Chiefs have one of the toughest schedules in the NFL, along with a new starting quarterback in Patrick Mahomes. If they're able to get past the Chargers in Week 1, a visit to Pittsburgh Week 2 makes for an even more daunting task. Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers have had the Chiefs number recently, winning the last six contests in which Big Ben has played.

The Chiefs have won the AFC West the last two years, but Los Angeles is the Vegas favorites to win this season. This game will be of huge importance if the Chargers hope to get over the hump after losing eight contests in a row vs. Kansas City, dating back to 2014. Not only have the Chargers lost consistently, but they've lost by double digits in the last three matchups. The Chargers defensive line will have to pressure new Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes consistently after losing cornerback Jason Verrett to a season-ending injury once again.

The Rams are one of the Vegas favorites to win the Super Bowl, but their early schedule hasn't done them any favors. They visit Oakland in Week 1 on Monday Night Football and then come home to face Arizona on a short week before meeting the crosstown rival Chargers in Week 3. There should be a bit of Chargers support in the Coliseum stands, and Philip Rivers is all too familiar with the Rams starting corners, Aqib Talib and Marcus Peters, both coming from AFC West teams. However, it's the front sevens that could be the funnest part of this matchup, with the Chargers featuring Joey Bosa and Melvin Ingram, while the Rams have the defensive line duo of Aaron Donald and Ndamukong Suh. Even if the Rams emerge in Week 3, they have another brutal showdown in Week 4 vs. Minnesota on Thursday night.

There's been significant turnover for the Dolphins this offseason, especially on offense with new additions Frank Gore, Albert Wilson and Danny Amendola, along with Ryan Tannehill returning from injury. However, it's the loss of Ndamukong Suh that could play the biggest role against a powerful Titans offensive line and a running back duo of Derrick Henry and Dion Lewis. The Vegas line gives Tennessee the slight edge as of mid-August.

The Vikings are one of the year's most hyped teams after acquiring Kirk Cousins. Their schedule still doesn't do them any favors, opening vs. San Francisco before a visit to the division-rival Packers. Aaron Rodgers is hoping to get revenge after injuring his collarbone vs. Minnesota last year, and new defensive coordinator Mike Pettine hopes to cure a leaky Packers defense. The Vikings have won four of the last five matchups, but Rodgers won the last game in which he played from start to finish, winning 38-25 at Lambeau in 2016.

The Patriots have two tough games to open the year against AFC South opponents Houston and Jacksonville. Then they face former defensive coordinator Matt Patricia at Detroit in Week 3 before some relief vs. Miami and Indy. Their third straight home game is a bit tougher against Kansas City, a franchise that has had its way with New England during the Andy Reid era in the regular season, winning in 2014 and last season in Foxborough. Of course, more aggressive quarterback Patrick Mahomes should create opportunities for the New England defense to get takeaways.

The Saints are heavy favorites in Week 1 vs. the Jameis Winston-less Bucs, and they'll likely be big favorites at home again vs. Cleveland in Week 2. Then comes a rough visit to Atlanta, and running back Mark Ingram will still be serving his four-game suspension for PEDs. The Saints last win at Atlanta came in Week 17 of the 2015 season.

The Giants offense is rightfully getting some hype with several offensive line additions along with rookie running back Saquon Barkley and the return of Odell Beckham Jr. from injury. They'll be tested early against last season's No. 2 defense in football, and there's an even more intriguing connection here with former Giants head coach Tom Coughlin making his return to New York as VP of football operations for the Jags. For all the Giants additions, Eli Manning must play better than he has in recent seasons for the Giants to beat a loaded Jags team.

With each passing day, it's looking more like rookie Sam Darnold will be the starting Jets quarterback to open the season. Tearing up defenses in the preseason is one thing, but new Lions head coach Matt Patricia will present some complicated defenses that Darnold never saw at USC. On the road, this would hardly be a favorable place for the rookie to start his career.

The Jon Gruden 2.0 era in Oakland appropriately starts on Monday Night Football, where Gruden has broadcast games since 2009. He's hoping to revitalize the Raiders offense, but the team in Week 1 vs. the Rams defense could be too much to overcome. Wade Phillips' defense is loaded with talent after an active offseason, though Vegas is giving the Rams only a field goal in the early going.

The road to another Super Bowl won't be easy for the defending champs, and they could easily slip up in Week 1 vs. Atlanta or Week 4 at Tennessee. Week 5 is one of their toughest tests of the year with Minnesota paying a visit. The Eagles blew out the Vikings in the NFC Championship last year, but that was with Case Keenum at quarterback. Kirk Cousins could present a much bigger challenge for the Eagles.

The Steelers first three home games will be challenging in their own way, vs. Kansas City (Week 2), Baltimore (Week 4) and Atlanta. Pittsburgh could easily slip up in any of those contests, but the Falcons likely present the biggest challenge with an improving defense and an offense highly capable of rebounding from last year with Matt Ryan, Devonta Freeman, Julio Jones and Co. Pittsburgh is fortunate that its first two road games, in Weeks 1 and 3, are at Cleveland and Tampa Bay.

Fans are optimistic about the 49ers this season, but they couldn't have a much tougher Week 1 game at Minnesota. Jimmy Garoppolo won all five of his starts with the 49ers last season, but the Vikings defense presents a much stiffer challenge than Garoppolo has had since joining San Francisco.

Seattle shed significant talent in the offseason and go into Mile High as underdogs in Week 1. Meanwhile, the Broncos should be able to get better quarterback play than last season after signing Case Keenum, and Denver is always a difficult place for opponents to play early in the year due to the elevation. Russell Wilson certainly will need to be at his best for Seattle to win.

Playing without Jameis Winston in Week 1 due to a suspension, the Bucs visit New Orleans. The Saints were 8-1 at home last season, including the playoffs, and are the biggest early favorites in the league at nearly 10 points as of mid-August. Bucs fallback quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick could have his hands full.

The Mike Vrabel era in Tennessee begins with a winnable game at Miami, followed by the home opener vs. division rival Houston in Week 2. Vrabel certainly has a good chance of starting 2-0, but the Week 3 visit to Jacksonville looks tougher. However, Tennessee won both of the head-to-head matchups last year, leaning on its great running game. The Titans could face the defending champs at 3-0 if they're able to get past Jacksonville, but the dynamic Eagles attack led by Carson Wentz could be too much for the Tennessee defense to handle.

Seasoned veteran quarterback Alex Smith should give Washington a chance in most games with his conservative brand of football, but the lack of a running game could be an issue if the Skins can't find a viable replacement for injured rookie Derrius Guice. Vegas has the Week 1 matchup as a tossup as of mid-August, and Arizona certainly will be motivated to start the Steve Wilks era off right.