Week 2 NFL Picks: Vegas Odds, Spread Advice and Predictions

If the Antonio Brown drama didn't bury the Oakland Raiders in Week 1, then surely the Von Miller-led Denver Broncos defense would.

At least, that's what everyone thought until the Raiders laughed in the face of conventional NFL wisdom.

Save for some NSFW chants and Brown jersey burning, the blink-and-you-missed-him ex-Raider was rendered a footnote as the team won 24-16 at the Coliseum.

Quarterback Derek Carr was almost flawless (22-of-26 for 259 yards and a touchdown), rookie running back Josh Jacobs looked electric (113 scrimmage yards, two scores) and Oakland's bend-don't-break defense limited Denver to one touchdown on four red-zone trips.

Disaster seemed imminent, and Oakland's avoidance of it surely turned some heads around the league.

But don't expect those good vibes to carry over into Week 2.

The Raiders are set to host the Kansas City Chiefs, a sliders-all-the-way-up kind of offense that just dropped a 40-burger on the vaunted Jacksonville Jaguars defense.

Reigning MVP Patrick Mahomes kept humming along (25-of-33 for 378 yards and three scores), Sammy Watkins dazzled (nine grabs for 198 and three touchdowns) and LeSean McCoy masterfully debuted (93 scrimmage yards on 11 touchdowns).

While the Chiefs lost explosive wideout Tyreek Hill in the process, this offense has enough to keep steamrolling without him. Just ask Caesars, which views KC as seven-point favorites away from home and set the over-under at a hefty 53 points.

If Carr stays upright, he can put points on the board with upgraded weapons around him. What he can't do, though, is match Mahomes and Co.'s top speed. Look for the Chiefs to separate in the second half, covering the spread and blowing past the over-under.

NFL Odds, Spread Advice

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Carolina Panthers (-6.5, 48.5 O/U): CAR 28-20 (under)

San Francisco 49ers at Cincinnati Bengals (-2.0, 45 O/U): SF 24-17 (under)

Los Angeles Chargers (-2.5, 48 O/U) at Detroit Lions: LAC 30-27 (over)

Minnesota Vikings at Green Bay Packers (-3.0, 44.5 O/U): MIN 21-16 (under)

Indianapolis Colts at Tennessee Titans (-3.0, 45 O/U): Tennessee, 23-20 (under)

New England Patriots (-18.5, 48 O/U) at Miami Dolphins: NE 41-13 (over)

Buffalo Bills (-1.5, 44 O/U) at New York Giants: NYG 17-13 (under)

Seattle Seahawks at Pittsburgh Steelers (-4.5, 45.5 O/U): PIT 33-24 (over)

Dallas Cowboys (-5.0, 46 O/U) at Washington Redskins: DAL 32-21 (over)

Arizona Cardinals at Baltimore Ravens (-13.5, 46 O/U): BAL 38-20 (over)

Jacksonville Jaguars at Houston Texans (-9.0, 43 O/U): HOU 31-17 (over)

Kansas City Chiefs (-7.0, 53 O/U) at Oakland Raiders: KC 49-23 (over)

Chicago Bears (-2.5, 40.5 O/U) at Denver Broncos: CHI 23-19 (over)

New Orleans Saints at Los Angeles Rams (-2.5, 52 O/U): NO 29-25 (over)

Philadelphia Eagles (-1.5, 51 O/U) at Atlanta Falcons: ATL 28-22 (under)

Cleveland Browns (-2.5, 46 O/U) at New York Jets: CLE 24-20 (under)

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Carolina Panthers

Brian Blanco/Associated Press

Jameis Winston giveth, and James Winston taketh away. That's been the story of his NFL career, and it defined the opening of his 2019 season.

The top pick in 2015 made plays here and there—including a 10-yard touchdown strike to Chris Godwin—but his miscues were more than Tampa Bay could overcome in its 31-17 home loss to the San Francisco 49ers. Winston was intercepted three times (by a defense that recorded two all of last season), and two were returned for touchdowns.

The Carolina Panthers' 30-27 loss to the Los Angeles Rams raised far fewer alarms.

Cam Newton wasn't great (25-of-38 for 239 yards, no scores and a pick), but he was far from disastrous. Christian McCaffrey was incredible, even by his lofty standards (29 touches, 209 yards, two scores). Carolina's offense outgained L.A.'s by 0.6 yards per play.

The Panthers ran out of gas against a better team. The Bucs suffered a two-touchdown defeat to a team they probably viewed as equal or inferior to them.

Momentum, then, should be on Carolina's side. So, too, will home-field advantage and talent edges at quarterback and running back (a massive one).

Our crystal ball sees each team thwarting a potential scoring drive or two with an untimely mistake, which sees the final score just below the over-under. The Panthers seize control late and ride McCaffrey to the finish line and the cover.

Dallas Cowboys at Washington Redskins

Michael Ainsworth/Associated Press

Rivalry games are tricky, especially for a favorite trying to deal with a pesky underdog on its own turf. But it's hard to look at these rosters and see how the Dallas Cowboys fail to cover a five-point spread.

The Cowboys looked incredible in their season-opening 35-17 drubbing of the New York Giants (another NFC East rival).

Ezekiel Elliott skipped training camp and the preseason and then promptly had 63 yards and a score on only 14 touches (4.5 yards a clip). But the bigger story was Dak Prescott, who completed 25 of his 32 passes for 405 yards and four touchdowns, each to a different pass-catcher (including the unretired Jason Witten). It was the most convincing #PayThatMan argument Prescott could make.

"Prescott spread the ball around and led the offense like he needed to, getting five different players three or more catches on the afternoon," Albert Breer wrote for The MMQB. "... If this is who Prescott's going to be in 2019, the Cowboys are really in business."

For Week 2, that could mean the Redskins are in trouble.

They counter Prescott with Case Keenum, who looked good in Week 1 (30-of-44 for 380 yards and three touchdowns) but is also on his sixth different team in the past six seasons. They counter Elliott with Adrian Peterson, apparently. The 34-year-old was a healthy scratch in Week 1, but he's now the starting running back with Derrius Guice nursing another knee injury.

Oh, and tight end Jordan Reed remains in the concussion protocol, while 2017 first-round pick Jonathan Allen could miss a week or two with an MCL sprain, per ESPN's John Keim.

Again, how exactly is this a five-point spread?

It's easier to envision the Cowboys blowing this open than failing to cover, and Dallas could do the heaviest lifting in terms of getting the final score comfortably north of the over-under.