NFL Week 1 Predictions: Lead-Pipe Locks You Can Take to the Bank

Week 1 of the 2013 NFL regular season is finally upon us, and the predictions surrounding the opening slate of games has everyone claiming they have the lead-pipe locks fans can take to the bank.

While there are several crapshoot matchups to start the year, all three of the games below have guaranteed outcomes and should be safe to make a wager on this Sunday and Monday.

Full Week 1 Predicted Winners

Date	Matchup	Predicted Winner	Time (ET)	TV
Thursday, Sept. 5	Baltimore at Denver	Denver Broncos	8:30 p.m.	NBC
Sunday, Sept. 8	New England at Buffalo	New England Patriots	1 p.m.	CBS
Sunday, Sept. 8	Cincinnati at Chicago	Cincinnati Bengals	1 p.m.	CBS
Sunday, Sept. 8	Miami at Cleveland	Cleveland Browns	1 p.m.	CBS
Sunday, Sept. 8	Atlanta at New Orleans	Atlanta Falcons	1 p.m.	FOX
Sunday, Sept. 8	Tampa Bay at NY Jets	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	1 p.m.	FOX
Sunday, Sept. 8	Tennessee at Pittsburgh	Pittsburgh Steelers	1 p.m.	CBS
Sunday, Sept. 8	Minnesota at Detroit	Detroit Lions	1 p.m.	FOX
Sunday, Sept. 8	Oakland at Indianapolis	Indianapolis Colts	1 p.m.	CBS
Sunday, Sept. 8	Seattle at Carolina	Seattle Seahawks	1 p.m.	FOX
Sunday, Sept. 8	Kansas City at Jacksonville	Kansas City Chiefs	1 p.m.	CBS
Sunday, Sept. 8	Arizona at St. Louis	St. Louis Rams	4:25 p.m.	FOX
Sunday, Sept. 8	Green Bay at San Francisco	San Francisco 49ers	4:25 p.m.	FOX
Sunday, Sept. 8	NY Giants at Dallas	New York Giants	8:30 p.m.	NBC
Monday, Sept. 9	Philadelphia at Washington	Philadelphia Eagles	7 p.m.	ESPN
Monday, Sept. 9	Houston at San Diego	Houston Texans	10:15 p.m.	ESPN

Week 1's Lead-Pipe Locks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers Devastate the New York Jets

The biggest lock of the week will be the Tampa Bay Buccaneers walking into MetLife Stadium and beating down the New York Jets. While interconference battles are typically lacking storylines and familiarity, cornerback Darrelle Revis has thrown a wrench in the works.

New York traded Revis to Tampa Bay this offseason, and after recovering from serious knee surgery, the talented player will return to the field against his former team, per the Buccaneers' official Twitter:

The Jets will also have to contend with the elite rushing attack of second-year back Doug Martin and his rookie-season 4.6 yard-per-carry average as the defense continues to struggle (26th in the league allowing 133.6 yards on the ground per game).

Add in the quarterback drama for Gang Green between the injured Mark Sanchez, rookie Geno Smith and newcomer Brady Quinn, and there is little doubt that Tampa Bay will beat New York in every facet of the game.

Predicted Final Score: Tampa Bay 34, New York 13

Tennessee Titans Lose To the Pittsburgh Steelers

The Tennessee Titans must travel to Pittsburgh to play an aging Steelers team, but there is still plenty of fight left in the tank for Pittsburgh. Led by a healthy Ben Roethlisberger under center, the home team will walk out of Week 1 with a decisive win.

Pittsburgh's offense isn’t as explosive as it was a year ago because of the departure of wide receiver Mike Wallace, but Roethlisberger has made stars out of role players in the past.

Against a lackluster Titans defensive unit (26th against the pass and 24th against the run), the veteran QB will do it again with players like Antonio Brown, Emmanuel Sanders and possibly Markus Wheaton.

Tennessee will be leaning more on running back Chris Johnson and its improved offensive line this season, but a Week 1 matchup against a Steelers defense that was ranked first against the pass and second against the run in 2012 will result in a rough start to the season

Predicted Final Score: Pittsburgh 24, Tennessee 10

Houston Texans Destroy the San Diego Chargers

Monday Night Football will feature two matchups in the opening week, but the biggest lock of the night will be the Houston Texans traveling to California and beating the San Diego Chargers in spectacular fashion.

San Diego has plenty of talent, but a new head coach in Mike McCoy and a new scheme has the offensive unit playing out of rhythm.

While the Chargers could develop into a talented team as the season progresses, they will be picked apart by a Texans defense featuring the 2012 Associated Press NFL Defensive Player of the Year, J.J. Watt.

There is hope in San Diego that the defense will be the saving grace for the franchise, but Houston’s dangerous zone-blocking rushing attack led by Arian Foster and Ben Tate, along with an improved passing game, should have the Chargers on their heels Monday night.

Expect Houston to win decisively.

Predicted Final Score: Houston 27, San Diego 13