NFL Week 1 Picks: Teams in for Rude Awakenings in Opening Games

The preseason is one thing. Once the games start counting, it's a totally different beast.

That means bad news for some of the teams who rolled through their exhibition schedule without a hitch. They may have all of the confidence in the world right now, but it's not going to last for long.

Here's a look at some of the teams who won't fare so well in Week 1.

Seattle Seahawks
at Arizona

Somehow, the Seahawks went undefeated in the preseason. That can possibly be attributed to the heroics of Russell Wilson, who has since been named the Week 1 starter.

But how will Wilson fare in his first-ever NFL start?

Wilson was a perfectly competent college quarterback. In four years at N.C. State and Wisconsin, he threw for a total of 109 touchdowns and had an average completion percentage of 60.9. In the preseason, he's been fine, too—but a real game, against real starters, will be a whole new breed of challenging, especially for an inexperienced player.

Wilson may be riding high right now, but his first professional game will be a huge test—and he may not get the results he wants, even against the Cardinals.

Pick: Arizona

San Francisco 49ers
at Green Bay

This is a tough draw for the 49ers in Week 1. Nobody wants to start their season off against one of the toughest—if not the toughest—teams in the NFL, especially on the road. 

And even the retooled 49ers, who made it all the way to the NFC Championship Game last season, are going to have a difficult time shutting down Aaron Rodgers and the Packers in the season opener, especially considering the way the 2011 season ended for Green Bay.

The 49ers have made necessary improvements in the offseason. They've poached Brandon Jacobs and Mario Manningham from the Giants. They've added Randy Moss. But there are still a lot of what-ifs where the 49ers are concerned. What if Jacobs is on the decline? What if Manningham can't match his Super Bowl XLVI heroics? What if Moss is washed up?

And most of all, what if Alex Smith reverts back to the 2005-10 version of himself?

The Packers are proven champions, whereas the 49ers still have a lot to prove.

Pick: Green Bay

Pittsburgh Steelers
at Denver

The last person you want to run into on opening week is Peyton Manning, especially when he hasn't played since 2010 and is gunning to prove that the Colts made a mistake by letting him go.

Such is the case that faces the Steelers in Week 1.

Pittsburgh compiled a 3-1 record in the preseason, putting up 104 points in the process. But the vaunted Steelers defense also allowed 71 points, and only one of the Steelers' three wins came by a margin of more than two points.

I know, it's the preseason; but the Steelers haven't been dominating, and they're going to face one of the most efficient and crafty quarterbacks in the game on Sunday, which—if nothing else—will be a true measurement of how much work this defense has to do. 

Pick: Denver