NFL Picks Week 2: Examining Recent Odds and Expert Predictions
Other than the New England Patriots putting together successful season after successful season, nothing is certain in the NFL, and even fewer things tend to have any staying power. Several teams that got off to winning starts in Week 1 may soon find themselves back at .500 with tougher tests in Week 2.
Take the San Francisco 49ers for example (but please, don't take them in the betting sense of the word). They repeated their Monday night magic from a year ago with a 28-0 win over the Los Angeles Rams in Week 1. Is head coach Chip Kelly an improvement over Jim Tomsula? Probably, but even he can't get this team past a Carolina Panthers team sharpening its fangs after losing to the Denver Broncos in the season opener.
Or how about the Minnesota Vikings? Veteran quarterback Shaun Hill was good enough to get the team past the Tennessee Titans, but showing out against the Green Bay Packers and Aaron Rodgers, even at home, is another task entirely.
There are plenty of matchups that could swing either way, with the New York Jets-Buffalo Bills scrap and the always feisty duel between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cincinnati Bengals slated for Week 2.
For those seeking wisdom and guidance before making picks for Week 2, here are the latest odds and expert predictions (straight-up, not against the spread) from around the web.
| Thursday, Sept. 15 | 8:25 p.m. | New York Jets (-1) at Buffalo Bills | Jets | Jets | Jets | Jets | Bills 57% |
| Sunday, Sept. 18 | 1 p.m. | New Orleans Saints at New York Giants (-4.5) | Giants | Giants | Saints | Giants | Giants 62% |
| Sunday, Sept. 18 | 1 p.m. | Tennessee Titans at Detroit Lions (-6) | Lions | Lions | Lions | Lions | Lions 81% |
| Sunday, Sept. 18 | 1 p.m. | Dallas Cowboys at Washington Redskins (-2.5) | Cowboys | Redskins | Cowboys | Redskins | Redskins 63% |
| Sunday, Sept. 18 | 1 p.m. | Kansas City Chiefs at Houston Texans (-2.5) | Texans | Texans | Texans | Texans | Chiefs 56% |
| Sunday, Sept. 18 | 1 p.m. | Miami Dolphins at New England Patriots (-6.5) | Patriots | Patriots | Patriots | Dolphins | Patriots 81% |
| Sunday, Sept. 18 | 1 p.m. | Baltimore Ravens (-6) at Cleveland Browns | Ravens | Ravens | Ravens | Ravens | Ravens 57% |
| Sunday, Sept. 18 | 1 p.m. | San Francisco 49ers at Carolina Panthers (-13.5) | Panthers | Panthers | Panthers | Panthers | Panthers 78% |
| Sunday, Sept. 18 | 1 p.m. | Cincinnati Bengals at Pittsburgh Steelers (-3.5) | Steelers | Bengals | Steelers | Bengals | Steelers 64% |
| Sunday, Sept. 18 | 4:05 p.m. | Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Arizona Cardinals (-6.5) | Cardinals | Cardinals | Cardinals | Cardinals | Cardinals 78% |
| Sunday, Sept. 18 | 4:05 p.m. | Seattle Seahawks (-3.5) at Los Angeles Rams | Seahawks | Seahawks | Seahawks | Seahawks | Seahawks 67% |
| Sunday, Sept. 18 | 4:25 p.m. | Atlanta Falcons at Oakland Raiders (-4.5) | Raiders | Raiders | Falcons | Raiders | Raiders 60% |
| Sunday, Sept. 18 | 4:25 p.m. | Jacksonville Jaguars at San Diego Chargers (-3) | Chargers | Chargers | Chargers | Chargers | Chargers 66% |
| Sunday, Sept. 18 | 4:25 p.m. | Indianapolis Colts at Denver Broncos (-6) | Broncos | Broncos | Broncos | Broncos | Broncos 80% |
| Sunday, Sept. 18 | 8:30 p.m. | Green Bay Packers (-2) at Minnesota Vikings | Packers | Packers | Packers | Packers | Vikings 58% |
| Monday, Sept. 19 | 8:30 p.m. | Philadelphia Eagles at Chicago Bears (-3) | Eagles | Bears | Bears | Bears | Eagles 51% |
Note: Odds are courtesy of Odds Shark and updated as of Thursday at 12 p.m. ET. Expert picks are from Bleacher Report, CBS Sports, ESPN.com, SB Nation and FiveThirtyEight.
That Rams-Seahawks Spread Looks A Little Too Close
The Rams turned in easily the worst performance of Week 1, putting up a goose egg on the scoreboard and mustering as many first downs as they did punts (10).
The defense didn't let the 49ers offense get away with too much, but Blaine Gabbert managed to look competent and avoid turning the ball over, while Carlos Hyde and Shaun Draughn combined for three rushing touchdowns.
Seattle didn't look good at all in a lethargic 12-10 win over the Miami Dolphins, but it is still only getting 3.5 points on the road against the Rams.
Russell Wilson's right ankle injury is one reason for the small spread. He was limping all over the field and lacked touch or accuracy on several throws against the Fins but still managed to lead the team on a 14-play, 75-yard, game-winning touchdown drive in the fourth quarter.
Per ESPN.com's Sheil Kapadia, Wilson is in line to start against the Rams on Sunday.
"His attitude is as charged up as you can imagine, as always," coach Pete Carroll said, per Kapadia. "But he's excited to prove that he can make it back, get back and all that. He's half-crazy about proving, so it's good. His attitude's great."
Perhaps the oddsmakers believe the Rams will get a major boost from playing in front of their new/old hometown crowd and that Todd Gurley will find room to run despite likely facing eight in the box and a defensive line playing the run gaps all day long. Of course, the Rams will have to somehow get the Seahawks to respect their passing game, an unlikely feat considering the talent of the Seattle secondary.
Even though the Rams can only get better after that Week 1 display and Seattle's offense could be wobbly with Wilson's sprained ankle, it's not difficult to imagine the Seahawks winning the turnover battle and taking this one by at least a touchdown.
Please Take the Over In the Giants-Saints Game
The New York Giants and New Orleans Saints look poised for a close, hard-fought battle on Sunday. The Saints lost a 35-34 heartbreaker to the Oakland Raiders in Week 1, while the Giants narrowly edged the Dallas Cowboys 20-19.
With the Giants at home and 4.5-point favorites, the spread appears appropriate. What's more intriguing here is the over/under, which is at 53 points, per Odds Shark. For the sake of our fantasy teams and those with NFL RedZone subscriptions, please let these two teams smash that point total.
Last year saw Drew Brees throw seven touchdowns and Eli Manning six in a 52-49 win for the Saints. One can only hope for similar returns this year. Manning can spread the ball around to Odell Beckham Jr., an athletic Sterling Shepard and what one can only hope is a resurgent Victor Cruz. After battling injuries for two years, Cruz scored in Week 1 for the first time in approximately 700 days. If he can even approach his old form, Manning has a very dangerous three-pronged aerial attack at his command.
It's too bad the Saints lost cornerback Delvin Breaux in Week 1; this secondary is in trouble.
The Saints are not without their own speedsters, as the diminutive Brandin Cooks is capable of motoring his way into any seam in a defense, while Willie Snead goes deep and stretches the defense to its breaking point. Brees threw for 423 yards and four touchdowns against the Raiders, with Snead hauling in 172 yards and one score.
It's safe to say the G-men will have a tougher task on their hands than in Week 1, when they ably contained rookie starter Dak Prescott. If there's any game that's going to turn into a shootout in Week 2, it's this one.
Bengals-Steelers Is the Best Battle of Week 2
After the angry, destructive playoff game these two teams played last season, Bengals-Steelers is the must-watch football game of Week 2.
Both teams got off to a winning start in Week 1. Despite the New York Jets roughing up Andy Dalton to the tune of seven sacks, the Red Rocket still fueled his side to a 23-22 win.
Wide receiver A.J. Green was a key contributor to the success, torching cornerback Darrelle Revis time and time again on his way to 12 receptions for 180 yards and a touchdown. The Bengals run game wasn't great, but Jeremy Hill scored a touchdown and Giovani Bernard averaged five yards per carry in limited action.
Tight end Tyler Eifert is still out for Week 2, but this offense has plenty of firepower to take on a young Steelers defense.
While the Bengals are locked in for at least a couple of touchdown drives, it still might not be enough to keep up with a Steelers attack that fired on all cylinders in a 38-16 Week 1 win over the Washington Redskins.
Ben Roethlisberger threw for for 300 yards and three touchdowns, while running back D'Angelo Williams proved yet again he's the best understudy in the league with 143 rushing yards and two touchdowns in place of a suspended Le'Veon Bell.
Antonio Brown is a superhero and the league's most dangerous wide receiver, but the Bengals might be the closest thing he has to a kryptonite, per the NFL Network's Aditi Kinkhabwala (h/t CincyJungle.com's Braden Whited):
Of course, if Brown gets 80-90 yards and maybe a touchdown against the Bengals, one can't say he's really been all that limited, but it should inspire some hope in Cincy fans. Whited credited cornerback Dre Kirkpatrick for the team's relative success against Brown:
"In the time Captain Kirk has been covering A.B. he has only allowed two touchdowns which is downright impressive. We need more of the same on Sunday as Brown is the only credible pass threat the Steelers have healthy. Eli Rogers isn’t exactly dynamic, and Sammie Coates’ best play was having a ball bounce off his face into the hands of Rogers. If 27 can keep mitigating 84 then I like the Bengals’ chances.
"
Containing Williams is arguably more important to the Bengals, as one can almost consider an overall successful passing attack to be a constant for the Steelers. The Bengals' own rushing game will need to step up, as some clock-chewing drives are in order to keep Pittsburgh's quick-strike offense off the field as much as possible.
Hopefully, the Bengals can pull the Steelers into another nasty, physical battle, as their best bet to win is to keep the point total low.
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