For the NFL fans who have been waiting to bet on the Cowboys, your first chance in 2025 is here as the Cowboys and Rams headline a loaded NFL preseason schedule this Saturday. We'll preview each game and give you our top NFL preseason betting tips.

Cowboys vs. Rams NFL Preseason Betting Preview

The Dallas Cowboys are in Los Angeles to take on the Rams in the first preseason game under new coach Brian Schottenheimer. The Cowboys are a 2-point road favorite. Rams coach Sean McVay is notorious for benching his starters for preseason games.

NFL 2025 PRESEASON Week 1 • 7:00 PM ET • AUGUST 9, 2025
DAL @ LAR

SPREAD
Cowboys -2.5
TOTAL
O/U 33.5

• 🛡️ Defensive Advantage: Cowboys’ new defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus likes to run vanilla schemes as it is and could have more success with a roster with several veteran backups.
• ⚡ X-factor: If Jimmy Garoppolo plays a lot of the game for the Rams, he is a quarterback with plenty of experience and high passing efficiency in his career.
• ⚠️ Note: Rams coach Sean McVay does not play starters in August, and his team has not scored more than 17 points in 7 straight preseason games.

There’s also breaking news this week that quarterback Matthew Stafford is nursing an aggravated disc in his back with an epidural, but he hopes to be ready by Week 1 in the regular season. Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott missed half of last season, but he reportedly did very well in Tuesday’s joint practice against the Rams as the teams scrimmaged their starters against one another.

  • Cowboys O/U regular season win total for 2025: 7.5
  • Rams O/U regular season win total for 2025: 9.5

But since it’s the first preseason game, you shouldn’t expect to see Davante Adams make his LA debut or for Prescott to throw to CeeDee Lamb or new acquisition George Pickens.

The game could be a chance for veteran Jimmy Garoppolo to shine for the Rams, and they also have former Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett on their roster. Despite four interceptions, Bennett threw a game-winning touchdown pass with 0:04 left to beat the Cowboys 13-12 in last year’s preseason opener.

🎯 SFA Betting Prediction: The Rams (and head coach McVay) usually mail it in for the preseason. Take the Cowboys to cover on the road (-2.5 at FanDuel).
Cowboys vs. Rams NFL Preseason week 1 odds at FanDuel

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Other NFL Preseason Games to Bet On Today

In the first full week of NFL 2025 preseason action, the league has eight games lined up for the day. In addition to the Cowboys vs. Rams, let's cover the other games this Saturday and give you our best NFL preseason bets (don't forget to take advantage of top NFL betting promos).

1:00 PM ET | New York Giants vs. Buffalo Bills (+1.5, O/U 37.5)

The Bills are currently featured on HBO’s Hard Knocks, so expect more in-depth coverage of their matchup with the Giants on next week’s episode. The Giants have much to prove this year in trying to keep coach Brian Daboll’s job and save new quarterback Russell Wilson’s legacy. But let’s see if rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart makes his NFL debut this week for the Giants.

🎯 Best Bet: Giants -1.5. Back the Giants to show out with their deep quarterback roster, as this is more important for them than it is for Buffalo, a team expected to go far this year.

4:00 PM ET | Houston Texans vs. Minnesota Vikings (-1.5, O/U 38)

Quarterback J.J. McCarthy is the wild card of the 2025 NFL season. We only saw him play one preseason game last year before he needed meniscus surgery, but he’ll reportedly get the start at home Saturday against the Texans.

🎯 Best Bet: Vikings -1.5. The Vikings were 3-0 and scored at least 24 points in each preseason game in 2024. Trust McCarthy and coach Kevin O’Connell to come out on top in this year’s debut.

7:00 PM ET | Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Jacksonville Jaguars (-2.5, O/U 36)

New quarterback Aaron Rodgers has expressed interest in playing in the preseason opener, but Mike Tomlin may want to put a lid on that for now. All eyes will be on Jacksonville rookie Travis Hunter if he plays as we could see him at wide receiver and cornerback for new coach Liam Coen.

🎯 Best Bet: The Jacksonville Jaguars have been a thorn in Mike Tomlin’s side going back to his rookie year. Trust that the Steelers won’t show much of anything on offense in this one and take the under 36 points.

7:30 PM ET | Tennessee Titans vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (+3.5, O/U 32.5)

This could be our first look at No. 1 overall pick Cam Ward for the Titans at quarterback. He’s got a chance to elevate this team right away like C.J. Stroud (2023 Texans) and Jayden Daniels (2024 Commanders) have done the last two seasons. Meanwhile, the Buccaneers will try to win their fifth-straight NFC South title this year.

🎯 Best Bet: The Titans are one of the biggest road favorites this week, and they were 3-0 last preseason for coach Brian Callahan. Let’s go with Ward to do well and the Titans to cover the 3.5-point spread.

8:00 PM ET | Kansas City Chiefs vs. Arizona Cardinals (-1.5, O/U 38.5)

The Chiefs pick things back up after losing their three-peat bid in the Super Bowl. Maybe we’ll see a more vertical offense in the regular season, but it’ll be vanilla on Saturday night. The Arizona Cardinals are looking for more consistent offense and an improved defense in Jonathan Gannon’s third year as the head coach.

🎯 Best Bet: Chances are the starters play very few snaps, so back the under in this one with Arizona’s improved defense. Take under 38.5 points.

8:00 PM ET | New York Jets vs. Green Bay Packers (-2.5, O/U 36.5)

Aaron Rodgers won’t be there, but his former teams are meeting at Lambeau Field. It’s Aaron Glenn's debut as the Jets’ new head coach, and the Packers will look to build up the offense after finally taking a first-round wide receiver (Matthew Golden) for the first time since 2022.

🎯 Best Bet: Matt LaFleur usually gets the offense cranked up in the preseason, so you could trust the Packers -2.5 at home, or even take them to score over 17.5 points where team props are offered at top-rated NFL sportsbooks.

8:30 PM ET | Denver Broncos vs. San Francisco 49ers (-6, O/U 34.5)

Saturday’s biggest spread sees the Broncos as a 6-point favorite in San Francisco, where the 49ers are just trying to get to a new season as healthy as possible after last year’s disaster. Meanwhile, Denver reached the playoffs for the first time since Super Bowl 50 and is looking for more under coach Sean Payton.

🎯 Betting Tip: Payton likes to play his starters in the preseason while Kyle Shanahan doesn’t, so back the balanced Broncos (3-0 in 2024 preseason) to cover the spread in this one (-6).

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