WR Malik Nabers will score the first touchdown of the season for the Giants.
John Schmeelk: Fiction – I am going to go with Tyrone Tracy Jr. The Commanders struggled to stop the run last year, and Dan Quinn's defenses have historically had some trouble there given all the movement and slanting he does with his defensive front always trying to get up-field. I think Tracy breaks one from 15+ yards out and runs it in for the Giants' first touchdown of the season. I also expect the Giants to try to run it a lot in the tight red zone, where both Devin Singletary and Cam Skattebo will get opportunities. I do expect Malik Nabers to lead all players in yards from scrimmage and get a slew of targets. I'm not sure the Commanders have a cornerback than can cover him.
Dan Salomone: Fact – Best not to overthink this one. Malik Nabers led the NFL with 11.3 targets per game as a rookie and the league saw why. The Giants were flying high in the preseason with three 30-point outbursts, but as Russell Wilson said after the Jets game, the "good part is we don't even have Malik Nabers out there yet." You know they're itching to get into a game together.
Matt Citak: Fiction – I believe Nabers is in for a massive Year 2 breakout, which is saying something after his success as a rookie. The young receiver is the Giants' best offensive playmaker, which will lead to the Commanders, and every other opponent, keying in on him. For the first touchdown of the season, I'm going with Tyrone Tracy Jr. In the Week 2 matchup between the two teams, Devin Singletary took 16 carries for 95 yards and the Giants' first touchdown of the game. In the second meeting, Tracy averaged over 4.0 yards per carry. After Russell Wilson drives the offense down the field, Tracy will fall into the end zone for the team's first touchdown of the season.
Rookie OLB Abdul Carter will record a sack in his NFL debut.
John Schmeelk: Fact – Abdul Carter will have a fresh cut at some point early next week. I expect the Commanders to help out their rookie right tackle Josh Conerly Jr. with chips against Brian Burns or Kayvon Thibodeaux. They will also have to double team Dexter Lawrence like all teams do. That will leave Abdul Carter, who I expect will move around various interior spots, with likely one-on-one matchups against Brandon Coleman, a second-year player moving inside to guard, and veteran Nick Allegretti or Andrew Wylie. I like him in those matchups to tally at least one sack this week. It is also important to remember that while Jayden Daniels is elusive, he did have a 19.7 percent pressure-to-sack ratio last year, 13th-highest in the NFL. He was sacked 51 times last year, so you can get to him if you have a disciplined rush.
Dan Salomone: Fiction – If he gets a half-sack, does he get half of a haircut? Maybe then I would feel comfortable going with "fact" here. You would expect Jayden Daniels' sack numbers to decrease as he builds off his Offensive Rookie of the Year campaign. Meanwhile, Abdul Carter will launch his Defensive Rookie of the Year campaign on Sunday. He will still have an impact, but getting the actual first career sack might have to wait a week or two. But once he does, like he did at Penn State as a true freshman, look out.
Matt Citak: Fact – The Giants were able to sack Jayden Daniels five times in the first meeting between the teams last year. Washington ended up allowing 50 sacks on the season, which was tied for the seventh-most in the NFL. While the Commanders improved their offensive line with the additions of Laremy Tunsil and Josh Conerly at tackle, I still think the Giants' pass rush is going to get after Daniels on Sunday. Based on what I saw from Carter on a daily basis during training camp, I don't think it's going to be long before he gets his first NFL sack (and many more after that). The No. 3 overall pick will get his haircut Sunday night.