NFL Week 2 Picks: Rounding Up Top Experts' Predictions

The 2014 NFL season saw plenty of Thursday night duds, with the approximately 96 hours of rest afforded to those football teams often resulting in sluggish, turgid play. 

The Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs bucked that trend this Thursday. Peyton Manning looked sapped of arm strength and essentially quarterbacked like a post-surgery Chad Pennington, except he still had his awesomely refined football algorithm running his brain. Despite a nasty pass rush and the throwing issues, Manning still led his Broncos down the field with less than two minutes in the fourth quarter to tie the game at 24-24. 

Manning had a pick-six early in the game, but it would not be decisive, as Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles committed a ghastly "fumble-six" with just seconds remaining in the contest, one that cornerback Bradley Roby ran in for a shock 31-24 Denver win.

It was a truly thrilling contest and perhaps a bit unexpected. If that kind of chaos continues on Sunday and Monday, football fans are in for a treat, and those trying to correctly pick those games could be in for a rough weekend.

With that in mind, let's take a look at which teams experts from around the Web see picking up a big "W" in Week 2.

Matchup	Mike Freeman, Bleacher Report	Pete Prisco, CBS Sports	Ron Jaworski, ESPN	David Fucillo, SB Nation	Consensus (# of picks from listed contributors at each site)
HOU at CAR	CAR	CAR	CAR	CAR	CAR 24-12
SF at PIT	PIT	PIT	SF	SF	PIT 32-4
TB at NO	NO	NO	NO	NO	NO 36-0
DET at MIN	MIN	MIN	DET	MIN	MIN 22-13*
ARI at CHI	ARI	ARI	ARI	ARI	AZ 28-8
NE at BUF	NE	NE	BUF	BUF	BUF 19-17
SD at CIN	SD	CIN	CIN	SD	CIN 26-10
TEN at CLE	TEN	CLE	TEN	TEN	TEN 27-9
ATL at NYG	NYG	NYG	ATL	NYG	ATL 19-17
STL at WSH	STL	STL	STL	STL	STL 36-0
MIA at JAX	MIA	MIA	MIA	MIA	MIA 34-2
BAL at OAK	BAL	BAL	BAL	BAL	BAL 33-1*
DAL at PHI	DAL	PHI	PHI	PHI	PHI 30-6
SEA at GB	GB	GB	GB	GB	GB 28-8
NYJ at IND	IND	IND	IND	IND	IND 30-6

Note: Picks come from Bleacher Report, CBS Sports, ESPN.com and SB Nation.


Tough Calls

New England Patriots (1-0) at Buffalo Bills (1-0)

After a stunning performance against Indianapolis in Week 1, Buffalo is getting some serious love ahead of its matchup against resident AFC East bullies, the New England Patriots.

The Bills can count on the home crowd, raconteur Rex Ryan at head coach and a marauding defense that will see the return of defensive tackle Marcell Dareus after a one-game suspension. Forcing three turnovers and holding an Andrew Luck offense to a shade over 300 yards on 68 plays is a fine afternoon of work.

The Bills could use an even finer shift against Tom Brady, who was sharp as ever in Week 1. The suspension-overturning quarterback threw four touchdown passes—three to tight end Rob Gronkowski—without an interception in a 28-21 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. 

If Brady isn't going to make mistakes throwing quick passes to Julian Edelman and lobbing the ball up to Gronk, then neither can Tyrod Taylor and the rest of the Bills offense.

Taylor threw for 195 yards and one score while rushing for 41 yards against Indy. He has game-changing speed and a strong arm. However, he has little experience as a starting NFL quarterback and will face a Bill Belichick-coached team that has had 10 days to prep for the new signal-caller on the block. 

The Boston Herald's Karen Guregian believes New England will serve as a litmus test for Taylor's ability to lead this team:

"

Ryan and offensive coordinator Greg Roman kept it fairly simple. They didn’t ask him to do too much, but what they asked, he couldn’t have done much better. He was efficient, played with composure and made smart decisions. Granted, it was the Colts defense, but still, you have to start someplace.

But now he’s on film. There’s more of a sample size. Belichick has something to study, and while it’s not much, it’s something for him and defensive coordinator Matt Patricia to scheme around.

Now Belichick will test him like he’s never been tested before. The Patriots are going to do whatever it takes to stop the Bills running game with LeSean McCoy and Karlos Williams, and make Taylor beat them with his arm.

"

Shutting down the running game could be a simpler task than the Pats had expected, with ESPN.com's Mike Rodak reporting LeSean McCoy has had an injury setback:

Much to the comfort of Bills fans and chagrin of McCoy's fantasy owners, rookie halfback Karlos Williams and Bobbie Dixon both scored touchdowns against the Colts. If McCoy is hurt or hobbled, it will be up to them to keep the offense balanced, lest Taylor be tasked with keeping pace with the Pats on the strength of his arm and speed of his feet. 

Still, he may not have much work to do if the Bills defense is firing on all cylinders. The team has talented players at every level of the defense. Will it be enough to overcome the Pats, who have won 21 of their last 23 meetings with the Bills? Sunday will tell.

Detroit Lions (0-1) at Minnesota Vikings (0-1)

Rick Osentoski/Associated Press

The Vikings were a complete dud for four quarters in a Week 1 loss to San Francisco. Detroit was a dud for only two quarters, but it was enough for the Lions to give up 30 straight points to San Diego in a 33-28 road loss. 

The Lions have to hit the road again, hopefully with a better outcome. Considering the way Carlos Hyde ripped up the Minnesota defense on Monday, one might expect to see heavy doses of Joique Bell and rookie Ameer Abdullah.

The latter may get the lion's share of carries on Sunday after breaking Eric Weddle's ankles en route to a touchdown on his first carry and turning on the jets on this long scamper, per the NFL: 

The Lions will be hoping for a bounce-back week from wideouts Calvin Johnson and Golden Tate, who combined for a mere six catches and 63 yards against the Bolts' sneaky-good cornerback duo of Brandon Flowers and Jason Verrett. Matthew Stafford threw two picks in San Diego and isn't without fault; he'll have to be wary of Vikings safety Harrison Smith and corner Terence Newman.

Marcio Jose Sanchez/Associated Press

For Detroit, the defensive effort in the second half was concerning, but it can take solace in the fact that Vikings signal-caller Teddy Bridgewater is no Philip Rivers, at least not yet. Bridgewater completed 23 of 32 passes for 231 yards and one interception against the 49ers. 

Bridgewater identified his issues after the game. 

"There were plays where they may have taken away the first progression, and I had to get down to the second guy, third guy," the second-year quarterback said, via ESPN.com's Ben Goessling. "San Fran did some things well, also, but I know I could have done a better job Monday night of getting the ball out faster."

Quick passes were the death of Detroit against San Diego—Keenan Allen caught 15 passes, many of them on short crossing patterns—so look for Bridgewater and offensive coordinator Norv Turner to emulate that success.

Detroit could also be unlucky in the fact that running back Adrian Peterson, who missed all of the 2014 season due to suspension, might end up having his big return performance this Sunday after rushing for just 31 yards against San Francisco.

Marcio Jose Sanchez/Associated Press

Deadspin's Barry Petchesky noted the shotgun offense that's developed around Bridgewater might not be conducive to AP's success: 

"

As Peterson noted, he’s the new one in this relationship, not the shotgun. It was implemented once Bridgewater took over as the starter last season, and became the slight default: after Week 4, the Vikings ran 65 percent of their snaps out of the shotgun or pistol. It worked for Minnesota’s run game, but notably, it worked for younger, flexible backs without extensive experience of doing things another way. Per ESPN, Matt Asiata and Jerick McKinnon combined for more shotgun carries in 2014 than Adrian Peterson has had in his career.

"

Finding a way to make both Bridgewater and Peterson comfortable will be absolutely crucial to Minnesota's success this year. Turner is noted more for his development of quarterbacks than the running game; look no further than headlines from his tenure in San Diego when LaDainian Tomlinson's numbers dropped off as Rivers' grew.

Vikings fans will have to hope Turner is up to the task this year, or Detroit could walk away with this one, given all its talent on offense.

Atlanta Falcons (1-0) at New York Giants (0-1)

Michael Ainsworth/Associated Press

New York almost pulled off a strange win against Dallas in Week 1, turning big defensive plays into a double-digit fourth-quarter lead that Tony Romo erased in spectacular fashion in a 27-26 Cowboys win.

Per NFL on ESPN, the Giants held the ball for just less than eight minutes in the first half and 22 minutes, 10 seconds overall. They racked up 289 yards to Dallas' 436, and Eli Manning didn't throw a touchdown. Despite all this, they still almost beat what should be one of the league's better teams. 

Now they have a home game against the Atlanta Falcons, who look likes they might stack up pretty well against the G-men. 

New York let Dallas go on several long drives in Week 1. Atlanta has the talent on offense to do the same with Matt Ryan, Julio Jones and Roddy White driving the passing game and rookie back Tevin Coleman looking solid with 80 rushing yards in his pro debut. 

Generating a pass rush will be crucial, as Philly couldn't put much pressure on Ryan, racking up just one sack and three quarterback hits, per ESPN.com. New York should have an easier time against Atlanta's offensive line than Dallas' brilliant group of trench warriors, but the performance is concerning. Romo had ample time to throw all night; Ryan is plenty good enough to take advantage of a similarly clean pocket. 

Scott Cunningham/Getty Images

If the Falcons keep mistakes to a minimum, they should have little trouble scoring points against New York. Atlanta's own pass rush looked fairly good for at least one half against Philly, as it has been revitalized by the addition of rookies Vic Beasley Jr. and Grady Jarrett.

NFL Live's Trey Wingo liked their work against Jason Peters, while Grantland's Bill Barnwell could apparently only criticize Beasley's jersey number: 

A rumbling running game led by Rashad Jennings could blunt the pass rush, allowing time for Manning to get in a rhythm. Jennings rushed for a respectable 54 yards and one touchdown on 13 carries against Dallas. Andre Williams and Shane Vereen are both capable understudies in the backfield; the latter is a solid target in the passing game, which could see some improvement if given an opportunity to jell. 

With the Giants offense as flat as his helmet hair, star wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. put in a pedestrian first week in the 2015 season, tallying just five catches for 44 yards. He'll have quite the test against corner Desmond Trufant, who praised the young pass-catcher's abilities.

"Honestly, I just look at my strengths," he said, via ESPN.com's Vaughn McClure. "He's well-rounded. I really can't say he has a glaring weakness. I just look at my strength and what separates me [speed, technique, confidence]."

With wideout Victor Cruz likely to miss this contest, per NFL.com's Around the NFL staff, Beckham Jr. will need to have a big game for the Giants to keep up with Atlanta's offense.