Predictions and fantasy tips for the NFL's week 2

Straight Shootin’ NFL Picks for Week 2

Last week I was 12-4 overall, 2-0 on locks, and 1-1 on upsets.

Carolina 17 (0-1)
Atlanta 24 (1-0)
The talk in Carolina is already about Bill Cowher and Colt McCoy. That’s how badly week one went. The Falcons, on the other hand, had a very good game beating up on a good Dolphins team, and will be riding high into this one. The Atlanta passing game is emerging as their strength. While the Panthers are probably a better football team, I have to favor the Falcons at home in this one. These teams split the series last year, each winning on there home turf, and I would expect the same this week.

Minnesota 27 (1-0)
Detriot 10 (0-1) -lock
If AP had 180 yards against Cleveland, what will he and the Vikings offense do to Detriot? This one shouldn’t even be close. If Matt Stafford thought the Saints gave him a rough introduction, he aint seen nothin yet! Not with the Vikings on the schedule. This one shouldn’t be close.

Cincinnati 3 (0-1)
Green Bay 31 (1-0) -lock
It looks like Cincinnati’s offense has been bought down to the level of the defense. They suck! The Packers defense had a great showing on Sunday Night against the Bears, and they have the makings of one perhaps the league’s #1 offense. Expect a complete blowout, maybe a shutout.

Houston 10 (0-1)
Tennessee 17 (0-1)
Houston didn’t show up ready to play in week one. The Titans did, but still lost to the defending champ Steelers. Houston is probably the better ball club, but Tennessee is in better shape as of right now. The Titans are even more capable of pushing the Texans around than the Jets were last week. Expect Houston to turn it around before too long, but the turnaround is drastic enough it will take more than one week.

Oakland 24 (0-1)
Kansas City 17 (0-1) -upset
Two teams that were surprisingly strong in games against two of the AFC’s top teams in week one will go head to head in week two. Oakland’s power run game and seemingly improved defense should be able to bring down a Kansas City team that is likely to start Matt Cassel at QB despite Tyler Thigpen’s strong showing last season and Brodie Croyle’s impressive week 1.

New England 21 (1-0)
New York Jets 24 (1-0) (Overtime) -upset
Jets NT Kris Jenkins is the key in this one. One of the most dominant players in the NFL, if Jenkins can get a consistent push up the middle, the Patriots offense will lose its potency. Jenkins up the middle combined with Rex Ryan’s willingness to blitz Brady (for some reason a rarity in the NFL) could spell bad news for Brady, who is obviously not at 100% mentally coming off of knee surgery. The Jets ground game could be dominant.

New Orleans 24 (1-0)
Philadelphia 27 (1-0)
Two teams coming off of blowout wins will square off in week two, but both have big questions going in. New Orleans will transition from facing the terrible Detriot defense to a Philly unit that is consistently one of the best in the league. Philadelphia will go into the game missing two QBs, their own starter Donavan McNabb, out with a cracked rib, and the Panthers starter Jake Delhomme, who won the game for the Eagles in week 1. Kevin Kolb is a good QB, so expect fairly high scoring. Any game with the Saints in it can be expected to turn into a shootout.

St. Louis 7 (0-1)
Washington 16 (0-1)
Both of these team’s offenses look awful in week one, but the Redskins defense looks decent enough to carry them to the win. Bonus prediction: The Skins offense won’t score any TDs, and Shaun Suisham will miss at least one kick. Talk of Mike Shanahan and Colt Brennan will be ramping up in Washington.

Arizona 21 (0-1)
Jacksonville 14 (0-1) -upset
This should be a good game. Both teams were in close games last week against good teams, but both teams lost. Arizona looks to be off to a rough season, as I predicted. Typical of the Super Bowl losers. Jacksonville still has hope of a division title. Surprising that Vegas favors Jacksonville in this one.

Tampa Bay 14 (0-1)
Buffalo 24 (0-1)
Buffalo was a real surprise in week 1, but the magic started to wear off late in the game. This will be a matchup of two of the NFL’s worst teams. The loser of this game may end up with the #1 overall pick in next year’s draft. Buffalo definitely showed more last week, so they get the edge in this one.

Seattle 17 (1-0)
San Francisco 27 (1-0)
The winner of this game will become the leader in the NFC West. Surprising? It shouldn’t be if the 49ers win. And I expect them to do just that. The 9er passing game surprisingly outshined the run game in week one, but I don’t think it will take the running game long to catch up. The strength of the 49ers squad is their defense, led by Patrick Willis and Mike Singletary. The Seahawks had an easy one against an ill-prepared Rams team in week one, and they aren’t likely to have much of a chance behind their weakened offensive line in this one.

Pittsburgh 20 (1-0)
Chicago 17 (1-0)
No, Jay Cutler’s not that bad, but yes, the Steelers defense is that good. Even without superstar safety Troy Polamalu, the Steelers are capable of holding anyone under 20 points. Offensively, they’ll find a way to get just enough. The mass media will be eating up a lack luster performance from Cutler, but things should turn around for him in a big way in week 3 and beyond. At least Cutler won’t need to worry too much about the fans. If they can put up with Alphonso Soriano, Carlos Zambrano, and Milton Bradley, I’m sure they can deal with Cutler starting out with a few bad games. The Bears need to get the ball back into the hands of Matt Forte.

Baltimore 24 (1-0)
San Diego 21 (1-0) -upset
This is a matchup between two AFC favorites who were both nearly the victims of huge upsets last week. Both teams will be looking to bounce back on defense, and San Diego was also disappointed in what should have been a potent offense. Baltimore’s defense and fourth quarter power running game will win it.

Cleveland 17 (0-1)
Denver 10 (1-0)
Cleveland was beaten pretty handily in week one, but they did look better than I expected against a strong Vikings team. Denver on the other hand, looked just as bad as I had expected them to be, if not worse on offense. They were lucking to be facing a similarly weak Bengals squad. Cleveland’s defense will need to make a few game changing plays.

Sunday Night

New York Giants 28 (1-0)
Dallas 17 (1-0) -upset -lock
I’m sure Dallas enjoyed starting the season against Tampa Bay, but now it’s time for them to start NFL play. The Cowboys will go from facing one of the weakest teams to one of the strongest, and the results will show up on the scoreboard. The Cowboys have no answer for the Giants defense and power running game. Welcome back the old Tony Romo. Can someone please tell me why Vegas favors Dallas?

Monday Night

Indianapolis 24 (1-0)
Miami 17 (0-1)
Both teams in this matchup had a disappointing week one, but at least the Colts came out of the week with a win. Miami on the other hand was walloped by the Falcons thanks to their failure to hold onto the football. The Dolphins offense made a living last year on controlling the ball, but going back to their playoff loss last year, they haven’t done that since. If they don’t get that fixed, they may be in trouble. The Colts are typically a fairly safe bet, and they get better as the year goes on.

Upsets only apply when the team I pick to lose is picked to win across the boards by all of the lines at BookMaker.com, OddsMaker.com, SBGGLOBAL.com, BetOnline.com, Sportsbook.com, and SportsBetting.com.

Top Performers

QB

Aaron Rodgers
The Bengals defense will be a welcome break from what was a tough Bears team last week. The Rams are next, with the Lions two weeks after that. Good times in Green Bay.

Brett Favre
Favre will be limited by his attempts, but he’s up against a horrid Lions defense.

RB

Ray Rice
Rice makes this list for the second week in a row, and be even better against a SD defense that was run all over by Oakland last week.

Fred Jackson
Jackson delivered against the Pats as a rusher and a receiver, and now he gets the Buccs, who have proved very vulnerable to the run.

DeAngelo Williams
He’s still DeAngelo Williams, and as long as he gets his touches, he should be in for a big game against the Falcons. His value may be about as low now as it will be all season.

Ryan Grant
See Aaron Rodgers.

Maurice Jones-Drew
MJD could be ready to go off against the Cards. I have some qualms about this matchup though, since MJD wasn’t as good as I expected last week against the Bob Sandersless Colts, and the Cards managed to shut down what I thought would be a strong SF running game last week.

Adrian Peterson
AP against the Lions is as big a dream matchup as anyone could dream up.

Brandon Jacobs
Jacobs should be able to outphysical Dallas on the way to a 100 yard game.

Thomas Jones
The Jets running game could go off against the Pats.

Darren McFadden & Michael Bush
The Raiders duo got it done on the ground against SD last week, and now they get KC.

Clinton Portis
Any RB, much less one as talented as Portis, is a good start against the Rams right now.

WR

Reggie Wayne
After last week’s showing and minus Gonzo, how can you not consider Wayne a good play against a Miami secondary that struggled against Atlanta last week?

Santana Moss
A good performance from Moss is the likely product of facing the Rams defense. Moss is the only real target the team has at WR, and he needs to bounce back from a poor showing last week.

TE

Todd Heap
Just like last week, when Heap’s healthy, he’s a beast. He faces a SD defense that was torched by Zach Miller last week. Week one let it be known that the Ravens are willing to throw a lot. Too much.

Dallas Clark
With Anthony Gonzalez out, Clark should see a few more balls coming his way against an Miami team that couldn’t contain another great TE, Tony Gonzalez, in week one.

Visanthe Shiancoe
I’m a little surprised that I’ve got Shiancoe on this list two weeks in a row, but against the Lions, just about any TE makes for a great play.

Dustin Keller
I thought about putting Keller on the sleeper list, because for some reason he’s being undervalued. He should post some more solid numbers against New England.

Zach Miller
Despite JaMarcus Russell’s terribleness, it looks like Miller and rookie Louis Murphy could form quite a duo in the passing game to go along with Oakland’s RBs. Miller is one of the most undervalued players in the league since he plays for the Raiders. Kansas City may be even less equipped to slow Miller down than SD was last week.

Brent Celek
Celek makes a good play in what should be a shootout against NO. Kevin Kolb should look his way early and often.

Heath Miller
Like I said last week, Miller has a way of coming up with big performances in big games.

Chris Cooley
Cooley is a dream play against the Rams despite Jason Campbell’s struggles. The Rams were completely dismantled by John Carlson last week.

D/ST

Green Bay
This Packers defense is GOOD. They get the Bengals this week, who couldn’t even score double digits against the Broncos last week. This is a great matchup.

Minnesota
Minnesota was a little disappointing against Cleveland last week, but they get a chance for redemption against Detriot. They may give up some yardage and a few scores, but they should get their share of sacks and turnovers too.

New York Giants
It should be turnover and sack central against Dallas this week.

Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh is always on this list, even against the Bears. If Jay Cutler continues to throw picks, that’s just icing for the Steelers D.

Washington
Washington is much better on offense than defense, and they face a St. Louis team that was shut out in week 1 by the Seahawks.

Top Sleepers
Sleepers won’t necessarily give you as many points as the top performers, but they may give you more bang for your buck. Sleepers are typically undervalued players who have a chance to put up a good line against a weak opponent.

QB

Jake Delhomme
I wouldn’t recommend starting Delhomme, but keep in mind that his value is about as low as it will ever get right now. If you want him, get him now.

Kevin Kolb is a good QB, and I believe he will have a long and successful NLF career. He should be available in basically all leagues if you’re desperate for a QB this week. Philly takes on the Saints in what is sure to develop into a shootout. Don’t overlook Kolb. I still maintain that he could end up in St. Lou by the end of the season.

Shaun Hill
Hill delivered as one of my sleepers next week, and he goes into another week still undervalued. He should have another solid game against Seattle. Eventually people will catch on, so better grab him now if you need a QB.

Jason Campbell
I sure don’t think much of Campbell or the Redskins offense in general, but if you’re ever gonna use him, use him this week against the Rams, who were blown out by Seattle last week. Campbell could post passable numbers, but he won’t win your matchup.

RB

Jamal Lewis
Lewis was a pleasant surprise against a tough Vikes D last week with Jerome Harrison and James Davis both hurt. How long can he keep it up? At least one more week. The Browns take on Denver’s terrible run defense this week.

Leon Washington
The Jets should have a big day running the ball against New England, and Washington has firmly established himself as the #2. The Patriots may have some trouble with Washington’s speed, especially when matched with a tough running Thomas Jones.

Michael Bush
DMC had a good game against San Diego last week, but Bush looked even better. Snatch him up against a weak KC defense. With Denver and Houston up next, both Oakland backs should be big on the ground.

Jacob Hester
With LT out, somebody’s gonna have to do what Darren Sproles can’t (inside running, short yardage/goal line, block) and that someone is Jacob Hester. Even against a strong Ravens defense, Hester could be worth a play in very deep leagues. The Chargers schedule doesn’t get much easier till week 6 after the bye.

Derrick Ward
Ward is still the #1 back in Tampa, but everyone will be clamoring over Carnell Williams this week. Earnest Graham seems to have been pretty much eliminated from the offense for now (who knows why), so both of Tampa’s top backs should have a good game against a Buffalo defense that hasn’t seen any sibilance of a running game yet.

WR

Donald Driver
Driver shouldn’t be a sleeper, but he is. I saw him dropped in one of my leagues this week. Driver is still a very solid #2, so grab him if by any chance he’s available. The Pack take on a weak Bengals team this week.

Pierre Garcon
I just love this guy. With Gonzo out at least 2-6 weeks, this is Garcon’s chance to shine. The only thing that could limit him is the presence of rookie Austin Collie (I like him too), but the top 3 WRs always get their numbers anyway in Indy’s offense. Grab Garcon now while you still can.

Austin Collie
With Anthony Gonzalez out, Collie becomes the #3 in Indy, and may even get a crack at #2. That means good numbers from a player nobody knows anything about.

Torry Holt
Holt had a solid game against Indy in a low scoring game last week, and now he gets an Arizona defense that couldn’t even slow down the 49ers passing game.

Bernard Berrian, Percy Harvin, and Sidney Rice
After Berrian’s hamstring troubles, some owners have started to forget him already. Even if he’s isn’t 100%, he should have a good game against the Lions. Harvin and Rice will both do well regardless of how much Berrian plays. It’s all about the Lions.

Wes Welker
With the Jets pass rush, I expect to see a lot more dump offs to a now healthier Welker than bombs to Moss.

Chansi Stuckey
One of my favorite sleepers this year followed through with a big game last week, and has established himself as the Jets top big play receiver. He should be able to beat a questionable New England secondary deep a few times this week. Grab him while you still can.

Louis Murphy
I told you about Murphy in the offseason, and I told you about him last week. If last week’s big game (that should have been bigger, no more complaining about bias refs SD fans!) didn’t convince you, maybe a big game against the Chiefs will. Get Murphy now! He is what DHB was supposed to be.

Justin Gage and Kenny Britt
Who needs Washington? Gage and Britt both looked pretty good against the league’s top defense last week, and now they get a chance against the Texans, who were manhandled by a weak Jets passing game last week. Gage especially is a great play, and Britt has huge potential when he stops making so many rookie mistakes.

TE

Vernon Davis
Davis makes the sleeper list for the second week in a row. Is he finally reaching his potential? If he is, you want him on your team yesterday. Mike Singletary seems to have done wonders with him (what did I tell you?), and he’s even a team captain now. Davis looks pretty good against Seattle, and just like last week, his backup Delaine Walker, another converted WR, could see a few looks too.

D/ST

Buffalo
The Bills did a decent job last week against an explosive NE offense, and now they get the Buccs, one of the worst offenses in the league. Tampa Bay’s running game looks OK while they’re healthy though, so keep that in mind.

Cleveland
The Brownies did a better job than I expected against the Minnesota passing game last week, and this week, they face a Denver team that had just about zero offense last week. More importantly, the Browns don’t face AP this week.

Oakland
I know, you think I’m crazy. The Oakland defense has had potential, but now they may finally be starting to put things together. Their matchup against KC this week may be good enough to earn them a start if you’re desperate enough for defense.

San Francisco
Seattle’s big score last week will have a lot of people overlooking this matchup, but I maintain that the 49ers will be one of the league’s top defenses this year. They made it awful hard on an explosive Cardinals offense last week. Seattle will be in for a shock after walking all over the Rams. Get the 9ers D while you still can.