NFL Week 3 Picks: Predictions for Each Game's Odds and Over/Under Lines

Week 3 will serve as the moment of truth for the 16 NFL teams that sit at 1-1 after two games. 

Parity makes for exciting football across the league, but it doesn't do much for discerning just what kind of start a team is off to in the beginning stages. A win for a 1-1 team in Week 3 means that the season is off to a winning start. Continue winning two out of three games, and a playoff spot is sure to follow. Lose two out of three, and teams will start hoping they don't fire the wrong scouts before draft time.

This early in the season, bettors can get some quality teams at relatively low prices. Only two point spreads have reached double digits on the Week 3 slate, and many are at a field goal or less going into the weekend. 

Bettors can take advantage of these opportunities based on the limited pool of information we have to make selections. 

Here's a look at the odds from Odds Shark as well as some of the most intriguing games of the week. 

Matchup	Spread	O/U	Predicted Winner
Houston at New England (TNF)	HOU -2	41	NE 20-16
Minnesota at Carolina	CAR -7	43	CAR 31-20
Detroit at Green Bay	GB -8	48	GB 21-14
Baltimore at Jacksonville	BAL -1	47	JAC 23-20
Arizona at Buffalo	ARI -4.5	47	ARI 31-21
Oakland at Tennessee	TEN -1	47	TEN 24-16
Cleveland at Miami	MIA -7	42.5	MIA 28-13
Washington at N.Y. Giants	NYG -4.5	47	WAS 24-17
Denver at Cincinnati	CIN -3.5	41	CIN 24-17
San Francisco at Seattle	SEA -10	40	SEA 24-14
L.A. Rams at Tampa Bay	TB -3.5	42	TB 28-17
N.Y. Jets at Kansas City	KC -3	43.5	KC 21-17
San Diego at Indianapolis	IND -3	52	SD 31-28
Pittsburgh at Philadelphia	PIT -5.5	46.5	PHI 23-21
Chicago at Dallas	DAL -4	45.5	DAL 21-10
Atlanta at New Orleans (MNF)	ATL -3.5	53.5	NO 38-35

Picks of the Week

Miami Dolphins (-7) over Cleveland Browns

David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports

The Miami Dolphins and Cleveland Browns exemplified how not all losses are created equal last week. 

The Browns lost by five points to the Baltimore Ravens, while the Dolphins fell by seven to the New England Patriots. 

It's easier to feel better about the Dolphins going into Week 3.

That's because the Ravens outscored the Brown 23-0 over the last three quarters of their game in Cleveland, while the Dolphins actually outscored the Patriots 21-7 in the second half of their contest in Foxborough. 

That's a serious disparity in momentum. 

The Dolphins had four costly turnovers against one of the best teams in football but still managed 7.5 yards per play. The Patriots might be dealing with injuries to quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo and tight end Rob Gronkowski, but they still have one of the league's most talented defenses. 

The bottom line is that the Browns have shown nothing to indicate they won't be a bad team this season. There are signs of promise, but you have to squint to see them. On top of going on the road to take on a team that scored a moral victory last week, this also marks the beginning of the Cody Kessler era. 

The rookie was a bit of a head-scratcher when the Browns took him in the third round of this year's draft, but head coach Hue Jackson is looking forward to proving everyone wrong, according to Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com:

The Browns are a bad football team with a rookie quarterback who is making his first start on the road against a team that is making its first home start of 2016. Trust the Dolphins to put it all together in this spot. 

Tampa Bay Buccaneers (-3.5) over Los Angeles Rams

Ross D. Franklin/Associated Press

Does anyone remember when the Los Angeles Rams failed to score in a 28-0 loss against the San Francisco 49ers?

That happened in Week 1. 

Yes, the Rams turned it around and beat the Seattle Seahawks 9-3 last week, but that was an emotional game, as it was the first game at home since the franchise's return to Los Angeles. So a team that is averaging 4.5 points per game is getting only 3.5 points this week?

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have not been the greatest defense thus far, but they have stopped the run. Evan Silva of Rotoworld noted that the defense that gives up just 2.9 yards per carry is still struggling against the pass:

That means in order to get on board with the Rams this week, one has to believe that either running back Todd Gurley will all of a sudden break his slow start to the season against a strong run defense or Case Keenum is going to throw his team to victory. 

It's much easier to envision a scenario where quarterback Jameis Winston—who was the NFC Offensive Player of the Week in Week 1—goes to work against a Rams defense that hobbled QB Russell Wilson couldn't figure out in Week 2. 

The Bucs struggled in Week 2 with a 40-7 loss to the Arizona Cardinals. Now it's their turn to have a home opener. While it's not going to have the same emotional effect of the Rams opening up a new stadium, it should be enough to help the Bucs recover from the egg they laid against the Cardinals. 

Expect the Buccaneers offense to outpace the Rams, who have yet to score in double digits. 

San Diego Chargers at Indianapolis Colts: Over 52

The San Diego Chargers are a prime candidate to upset the Indianapolis Colts on the road, but an even better bet is that the total will go over 52. 

According to Football Outsiders, the Chargers rank seventh in DVOA, while the Colts rank just 22nd, but what's most important is that neither defense is ranked higher than No. 20 by the metric. 

Chargers		Colts
7	Overall	22
2	Offense	10
20	Defense	31

What you see are two teams that have figured out how to score but don't have the defenses in place to stymie the opposition. 

Despite injuries to Keenan Allen for the Chargers and Donte Moncrief for the Colts, there should be points galore in this shootout. 

The biggest key for the Chargers' explosive offense has been running back Melvin Gordon. Quarterback Philip Rivers has had to carry the offense in San Diego for so long, but after Danny Woodhead's torn ACL turned the backfield over to Gordon full time, he has filled the role in a big way. 

The second-year back broke the 100-yard mark in rushing for the first time in his career in Week 2, and it is giving him confidence going forward. 

"It feels good (because) it's hard to get to 100," Gordon said, per Ricky Henne of the team's official website. "It's definitely not easy in the league. It's definitely something I'm happy about, for sure. ... Honestly (I'm) just more confident. And the guys around me actually give me the confidence and make me believe in myself even more because they want the success just as much as I do."

That confidence can only lead to greater things against a defense in Indianapolis that is allergic to stopping the run. 

Expect plenty of points as Andrew Luck and Co. try to atone for their defense's misgivings throughout Sunday.