NFL Predictions Week 2: Early Odds, Picks and Projections for Upcoming Schedule

Following a tell-all opening week of the 2015 NFL season, excitement is already at a fever pitch for another packed slate of games for Week 2.

With bye weeks still a couple of weeks on the horizon, all 32 teams are in action again over the weekend with a more traditional slate that includes just one Monday Night Football encounter. Throw in a Thursday night battle as the Denver Broncos visit the Kansas City Chiefs, and you have yourself a jam-packed weekend of football.

Here's a look at all of the odds, as well as predictions for Week 2.

Week 2 NFL Odds and Predictions

Game	Spread	Selection	Raionale
Denver at Kansas City	KC -3	Denver	Manning's Week 1 struggles are overblown and he'll continue his dominance over KC.
New England at Buffalo	Even	New England	It's a new year, but Tom Brady still has the Bills' number.
Houston at Carolina	Car. -3	Carolina	Houston has QB troubles, not to mention a surprisingly inept defense.
Arizona at Chicago	Ariz. -1	Arizona	Cutler doesn't have enough help around him to take down a Top 10 defense.
San Diego at Cincinnati	Cin. -3	Cincinnati	Jeremy Hill and A.J. Green are too much to handle for the Chargers.
Tennessee at Cleveland	Cle. -1	Tennessee	Mariota will still have the magic touch against a weak Browns D.
Detroit at Minnesota	No line	Minnesota	Minnesota will bounce back from a Week 1 drubbing to smoke the downtrodden Lions.
Tampa Bay at New Orleans	NO -11.5	New Orleans	Buccaneers defense will get absolutely gashed by Drew Brees.
Atlanta at N.Y. Giants	No line	NYG	The Falcons nearly gave their opener away, and the Giants did. NYG will answer.
San Francisco at Pittsburgh	No line	Pitt.	Steelers have too much on offense for the Niners to handle.
St. Louis at Washington	St. L -3	St. Louis	Off a strong Week 1 upset, St. Louis will continue peaking.
Miami at Jacksonville	Mia. -7	Miami	Dolphins got away with one last week, and get a scheduling bump here.
Baltimore at Oakland	No line	Baltimore	Ravens will be intent on righting the ship after tough opening loss.
Dallas at Philadelphia	No line	Philadelphia	Murray will feast on his former team and the Eagles will build off Week 1.
Seattle at Green Bay	GB -3	Green Bay	Seattle's defense has serious problems suddenly, and Rodgers knows.
N.Y. Jets at Indianapolis	Ind. -7.5	Indianapolis	Luck is simply too dangerous to be held down on consecutive weeks.

Odds courtesy of Odds Shark

Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles

Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo has gotten used to doing things on his own in Dallas throughout his career, but the next several weeks will bring an unfamiliar challenge even for him.

That's because star Cowboys wideout Dez Bryant suffered a broken foot in the team's season-opening win over the New York Giants that will keep Bryant out for an extended time. He's already had surgery, which means he'll be out for the foreseeable future.

The replacement process has already begun for a receiving corps that is far from deep, as ESPN's Todd Archer noted, but Romo is sure to have his hands full:

Romo shouldn't struggle to put up some serious yardage against an Eagles defense that still showed plenty of room for improvement Monday night in Atlanta. Julio Jones alone went for nearly 150 yards and two touchdowns.

That left the Eagles reeling in a 26-24 loss to the Falcons, but the way Philadelphia responded should have the team ready for Dallas. DeMarco Murray shrugged off a slow start by rushing for a touchdown and catching another, and he's excited about the offense's potential, per the team's Twitter:

The Cowboys are better up front with Sean Lee back, but Murray should still be in line to gash his former team. Avoiding an early hole will allow Philadelphia to establish the ground game like it couldn't in Week 1 and will also allow the defense to play better and more carefree.

Following an opening weekend with plenty of ups and downs for both, expect the Eagles to improve most in the upcoming week to take an early NFC East lead.

Prediction: Eagles 28, Cowboys 24

Houston Texans at Carolina Panthers

Patric Schneider/Associated Press

Just one week into the season, the Houston Texans are already staring at themselves in the mirror as they prepare for a Week 2 trip to Carolina.

The Texans' 27-20 defeat to the Chiefs on Sunday didn't look so bad in terms of the final score, but it unfolded much more worrisome than that. Houston's offense struggled impeccably, forcing a switch to Ryan Mallett under center that appears to be a permanent one.

There's been no official word from the Texans on who will start, but Mallett's improvements down the stretch indicate he'll be the guy. Either way, Chris Brown of SmartFootball.com noted that Carolina likely won't lose any sleep over it:

The offense eventually got things going, but defensive ineptitude is what should worry Texans fans the most. J.J. Watt and the front line got some push, but not enough to keep Houston's secondary from getting torched by Alex Smith.

The Panthers don't have the types of weapons to seriously take advantage in that department, but it's not like the Chiefs are flush with receiving threats. The Chiefs still punished Houston on the ground en route to their 27-point first half, and the Panthers will do the same behind bruising tailback Jonathan Stewart.

Prediction: Panthers 21, Texans 15