NFL Week 2 Picks: Final Overview of Consensus Picks

There is no such thing as a safe bet when predicting NFL games, especially during Week 2.

Before tabbing the Super Bowl contenders and pretenders, we must absorb the early feeling-out process. The Miami Dolphins and Buffalo Bills both played well in Week 1 wins, but will either team remain strong throughout the season?

Looking at this weekend's schedule, there are few, if any, games onlookers can handicap with full confidence. A Sunday without any upsets would mark the greatest upset of them all.

Yet these games are the closest it gets to safely surmising victory. First, here are picks for all 16 games.

Away	Home	Spread	Prediction
Detroit	Carolina	CAR (-2.5)	DET 20-17
Miami	Buffalo	Even	MIA 23-21
Jacksonville	Washington	WAS (-7)	WAS 30-20
Dallas	Tennessee	TEN (-3)	TEN 28-24
Arizona	N.Y. Giants	ARI (-1)	ARI 24-10
New England	Minnesota	NE (-7)	NE 34-17
New Orleans	Cleveland	NO (-7)	NO 35-16
Atlanta	Cincinnati	CIN (-5.5)	CIN 31-30
St. Louis	Tampa Bay	TB (-5.5)	TB 26-12
Seattle	San Diego	SEA (-5.5)	SEA 17-10
Houston	Oakland	HOU (-2.5)	HOU 20-9
N.Y. Jets	Green Bay	GB (-8.5)	GB 23-13
Kansas City	Denver	DEN (-12.5)	DEN 38-20
Chicago	San Francisco	SF (-7.5)	SF 23-16
Philadelphia	Indianapolis	IND (-3)	PHI 27-24

All odds, updated as of Saturday evening, are courtesy of Odds Shark. 

New Orleans Saints at Cleveland Browns

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The New Orleans Saints and Cleveland Browns each began the season with a three-point loss, but the circumstances were as diverse as possible. While the Browns entered with no expectations, the Saints still harness Super Bowl aspirations.

Both squads fought to a wire against a division foe in high-scoring affairs. Cleveland's late comeback fell short against the Pittsburgh Steelers, and Matt Ryan's 448 passing yards fueled the Atlanta Falcons to an overtime win at the Georgia Dome.

Cleveland fans needing some glimmer of hope can look to New Orleans' recent road struggles, as laid out by ESPN Stats & Info.

The Saints have struggled during that small sample size, but the theory that Drew Brees is nothing without the Superdome is hogwash. Sure, he's better at home, as most athletes are, but he's also effective on the road.

Category	Home	Road
CMP %	66.86	65.03
YDs/Game	279.2	270.7
YPA	7.74	7.30
Pass TDs	211	153
INTs	85	93

He went 29-of-42 with 333 yards and a touchdown in defeat. The problem proved to be New Orleans' defense, which ranked fourth last season before adding safety Jairus Byrd. All those points are a greater sign for Atlanta's resurgence than New Orleans' decay.

Rob Ryan's unit will shine on the road against Brian Hoyer, and Brees won't have trouble moving the ball during a decisive victory.

Houston Texans at Oakland Raiders

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The Oakland Raiders only lost by six points, but the New York Jets thoroughly manhandled them last Sunday.

During Derek Carr's NFL debut, New York gained 402 total yards to Oakland's 158. The rookie quarterback turned 32 pass attempts into only 151 yards through the air, and his running backs lent him no support.

Darren McFadden and Maurice Jones-Drew combined for 26 yards on 13 carries. Geno Smith accumulated 38 rushing yards for Gang Green, and he ranked a distant third behind Chris Ivory and Chris Johnson.

Jets	Rush YDs	Raiders	Rush Yds
Chris Ivory	102	Darren McFadden	15
Chris Johnson	68	Maurice Jones-Drew	11
Geno Smith	38	Marcel Reese	0
Bilal Powell	4	Derek Carr	-1
Total YDs	212	Total YDs	25

Conversely, the Houston Texans defense did not dominate Washington as much as the 17-6 score indicates. Robert Griffin III completed 29 of his 37 attempts for 267 yards, and Alfred Morris added 91 yards on the ground. Washington moved the ball but could not finish any drives.

Houston remains the sturdy choice going up against an inferior offense with an untested quarterback. Arian Foster also should be anxious to tee off against a defense that surrendered 6.0 yards per carry against a questionable rushing assault.

A year removed from toiling away at 2-14, the Texans will pick up their second win in Week 2. Unlike last year, when they accomplished the same feat, they'll continue to amass some victories in ensuing weeks.

Kansas City Chiefs at Denver Broncos

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Last year, this AFC West matchup produced two of the year's most anticipated games of the season. Now, it looks like a blowout waiting to happen.

Even when the Kansas City Chiefs went 11-5 in a regular season where everything went right, they still lost to the Denver Broncos twice. In a battle of offense vs. defense, Peyton Manning won out. This time around, Kansas City may not even possess the defensive edge.

During a sobering 26-10 loss to the Tennessee Titans, the Chiefs allowed 266 passing yards to Jake Locker, who is not Peyton Manning. Even Shonn Greene joined the fun with 71 yards on 15 carries. Considering the Chiefs ranked No. 24 in yards allowed last year, they were actually never that great in the first place.

Peter Aiken/Getty Images

Blaine Gabbert, Jeff Tuel, Terrelle Pryor and Jason Campbell eventually cleared the way for Manning, Philip Rivers and Andrew Luck on the schedule, and they lost six of their final eight games. Reality has struck Kansas City with a ton of bricks.

Denver, meanwhile, bolstered its defense by adding DeMarcus Ware, T.J. Ward and Aqib Talib. Andrew Luck compiled 370 yards in a late rally attempt last Sunday night, but defensive coordinator Jack del Rio believes the defense, especially the previously injured Von Miller and Chris Harris, will improve. Per ESPN.com's Jeff Legwold:

"

I think as a group, we feel we can be and need to be better. So with Von in particular, Chris, guys that are coming off injuries, that's their first real exposure for a significant amount of snaps. So certainly they'll build on that, learn from some things, the conditioning aspect and going with that many plays that will get better over the next couple of weeks so we're early in the season, early in the process but it's great to have those guys back.

"

The defenses have evened out, but these two offenses remain as far apart as ever. In a stark contrast from last year's 9-0 start, expect the Chiefs to kick off 2014 at 0-2. With the Dolphins, New England Patriots and San Francisco 49ers waiting after, it will likely get much worse before their Week 6 bye.