Week 1 NFL Picks: Playoff Contenders on Upset Alert

The NFL regular season is finally upon us, and the focus has shifted from teams guaranteed a victory in Week 1 to the playoff contenders that could be handed a tough loss to start the 2013 campaign.

Super Bowl contenders like the Green Bay Packers, the New Orleans Saints and the Baltimore Ravens have all been put on upset alert due to incredibly tough Week 1 matchups.

It’s hard to believe that these teams could lose to start the season, but there is a good chance that all three will enter the second week with a 0-1 record.

Green Bay Packers

The Green Bay Packers and star quarterback Aaron Rodgers look poised to make another deep playoff run in 2013, but Week 1 has the potential to start off with a tough loss against the San Francisco 49ers.

San Francisco stole both meetings with Green Bay last year—the teams met in Week 1 of the regular season and in the divisional round of the playoffs—and the 49ers will look to do it once again.

Rodgers did not play well during those two games due to the pressure from the defensive front seven (just four touchdowns and two interceptions in those two games). The Packers must do a better job blocking for the QB.

With plenty of question marks still remaining for the offensive line, Rodgers could be in for a long day.

Add in the talented San Francisco offense that will feature a fully integrated Colin Kaepernick (who managed two passing touchdowns, two rushing touchdowns and set the QB rushing record in a single game against the Packers in the divisional round), and Green Bay’s defense will be pushed to its limit once again by his dual-threat ability.

There were also genuine concerns about the lackluster Packers' secondary without veteran defensive back Charles Woodson. If those come to fruition this season, Green Bay could be in for a high-scoring battle—which it will lose.

Prediction: San Francisco 34, Green Bay 27

New Orleans Saints

The New Orleans Saints are looking to have a bounce-back season after finishing 7-9 in 2012, but the road to redemption features a Week 1 matchup against the vaunted Atlanta Falcons.

With veteran running back Steven Jackson taking the role of lead back for the Falcons (replacing Michael Turner) and the passing attack coming off a season where they ranked sixth in the NFL with 281.8 yards per game, New Orleans will not be able to stop its NFC South rival.

The Saints were dreadful on defense. Facing a pass-stopping unit ranked 31st (292.6 yards allowed per game) and the run-stopping unit ranked dead last (147.6 yards allowed per game), Atlanta will exploit the team once again on Sunday.

Unless New Orleans has a trick up its sleeve to stop the air attack of quarterback Matt Ryan, wide receivers Julio Jones and Roddy White or tight end Tony Gonzalez, there isn’t anything QB Drew Brees and the Saints offensive unit can do to keep up on the scoreboard.

Prediction: Atlanta 38, New Orleans 31

Baltimore Ravens

The Baltimore Ravens won the Super Bowl in 2012, but the team’s Week 1 matchup against the Denver Broncos has the earmarks of an intense battle that could easily find the defending champions on the losing end.

These teams met twice last season, and each franchise was able to capture a win. While Denver stole the first matchup in Week 15, it was Baltimore that won the divisional-round playoff game in two overtimes, 38-35.

While the Broncos have added pieces on both sides of the ball (wide receiver Wes Welker on offense and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie on defense), the Ravens have lost several key players such as linebacker Ray Lewis, safety Ed Reed and wide receiver Anquan Boldin.

Those losses may be too much for Baltimore to overcome in Week 1.

Add in the fact that the Ravens will travel to Denver (it’s always difficult to play in the altitude of Mile High Stadium), and the stage has been set for the defending Super Bowl champions to start this season with a loss.

Prediction: Denver 34, Baltimore 31

Full Week 1 Picks

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	1:00 p.m.	CBS
Sunday, Sept. 8	Cincinnati at Chicago	Cincinnati Bengals	1:00 p.m.	CBS
Sunday, Sept. 8	Miami at Cleveland	Cleveland Browns	1:00 p.m.	CBS
Sunday, Sept. 8	Atlanta at New Orleans	Atlanta Falcons	1:00 p.m.	FOX
Sunday, Sept. 8	Tampa Bay at NY Jets	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	1:00 p.m.	FOX
Sunday, Sept. 8	Tennessee at Pittsburgh	Pittsburgh Steelers	1:00 p.m.	CBS
Sunday, Sept. 8	Minnesota at Detroit	Detroit Lions	1:00 p.m.	FOX
Sunday, Sept. 8	Oakland at Indianapolis	Indianapolis Colts	1:00 p.m.	CBS
Sunday, Sept. 8	Seattle at Carolina	Seattle Seahawks	1:00 p.m.	FOX
Sunday, Sept. 8	Kansas City at Jacksonville	Kansas City Chiefs	1:00 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	7:00 p.m.	ESPN
Monday, Sept. 9	Houston at San Diego	Houston Texans	10:15 p.m.	ESPN

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