Macho Rhino's NFL Week 1 Selections

Week 1 of the NFL season starts tonight! After months of waiting, pro football is back and ready to control our attention for the next five months. We’ve got some good matches and other games I wouldn’t even bother watching unless for the bloopers that will no doubt result.

Thursday
Minnesota Vikings at New Orleans Saints – If not for the turnovers the Vikings had at the Super Dome last January, this game may be in Minnesota and the Vikings would be Super Bowl Champions. They played the Saints better that day but the fumbles and interceptions kept the Saints in it and eventually led to the overtime win for New Orleans. The Vikings enter with the defense ready to attack Drew Brees but the offense is missing Sidney Rice. The Saints have about the same group who won the Super Bowl back in the black and gold. It’s time for the celebration to end and focus on repeating to begin. Minnesota needs to run Adrian Peterson in this one and hope he hangs on to the ball so they can slow down the pass rush of the Saints. The Saints need to get their variety of weapons touches. They need to get their running backs out in space to utilize their speed and make the Vikings chase them across the field. Saints 27, Vikings 24

Sunday
Cleveland Browns at Tampa Bay Buccaneers – The Bucs are very young and look like they’ve got the talent that in a few years might be very good. The Browns don’t have much and Jake Delhomme has to scare Browns’ fans. The winner of this game gets a top 5 five pick, the loser gets a top 3 pick. Bucs 16, Browns 10

Cincinnati Bengals at New England Patriots – I think this starts the downfall of the Patriots. The Bengals are good and want to show the world they’re better than that horrendous performance they had against the Jets in the playoffs last year. The Patriots offense has problems as Wes Welker doesn’t seem to be near 100% and Randy Moss seems disinterested. Bengals in an upset. Bengals 24, Patriots 20

Carolina Panthers at New York Giants – Does Matt Moore play as well as he did last year? The Panthers will still rely on their running game and should be able to keep this one close. The Giants will again try to find a go-to receiver for Eli Manning and the defense gets a test to see if it’s back to elite. Giants 20, Panthers 10

Oakland Raiders at Tennessee Titans – The road to 2,000 yards begins at home for Chris Johnson against a pretty good defense. He’ll go for about 120 yards and get the Titans a W. Jason Campbell will be turnover free but won’t hook up enough with his receivers to get the Raiders off to an undefeated start. Titans 20, Raiders 13

Denver Broncos at Jacksonville Jaguars – This was the toughest game to pick. I expect for both teams to run the ball effectively and think it comes down to who converts on third down. I like the Jags defense a little more and think they’ll get the win. Jaguars 17, Broncos 10

Indianapolis Colts at Houston Texans – This is a gigantic game for the Texans. They need to win this one and prove they can get over the hump against the Colts. If they’re going to be a playoff team this year they need this victory. You know Peyton Manning is going to come in and lead an impressive offense. I think the Texans find a way to win this one though. Texans 34, Colts 31

Detroit Lions at Chicago Bears – Jay Cutler needs to look out for a rookie named Suh. The Lions will be better but still need to find a way to win games at the end. Jay Cutler will improvise on a fourth quarter drive that puts the Bears in position for a game winning fieldgoal. Bears 16, Lions 13

Atlanta Falcons at Pittsburgh Steelers – Atlanta brings in a balanced attack against a stiff Steeler defense. Michael Turner and the offensive line will have their hands full but should be able to make some plays. Dennis Dixon will make the Falcons chase him but they’ll miss Big Ben in this one. Falcons 24, Steelers 17

Arizona Cardinals at St. Louis Rams – Derek Anderson will be the starting QB for Arizona so I expect them to run the ball a lot. Rookie Sam Bradford will be under center for the Rams. This one shouldn’t see too much offense as neither QB should have a big game. Derek Anderson should find Larry Fitzgerald enough times to move the chains and eek out a victory. Cardinals 13, Rams 9

San Francisco 49ers at Seattle Seahawks – Pete Carroll’s debut in Seattle against a good San Francisco team. Even though it’s tough to play in Seattle, Alex Smith can handle it and leads his team to a win. 49ers 30, Seahawks 20

Green Bay Packers at Philadelphia Eagles – I think this is the game of the weekend. The Eagles feature Kevin Kolb now as the full-time started against the prolific Packer offense led by Aaron Rodgers. This should be an offensive game and that’s the type of game you don’t want to have against the Packers. Packers 38, Eagles 30

Dallas Cowboys at Washington Redskins – How healthy is Donovan McNabb? He’s used to playing the Cowboys but it’s now with Mike Shanahan as head coach. The Cowboys hope their offense comes together in this one and performs better than they did in the preseason. It’s a classic battle between these rivals. Cowboys 21, Redskins 17

Monday
Baltimore Ravens at New York Jets – An absolute terrific game to start the year. Both of these two teams will know just how good they are after this one. The Ravens showcase their new and improved offense and the Jets will be out to prove their defense is just as stingy as it was last year. This should be close game throughout. Jets 20, Ravens 17

San Diego Chargers at Kansas City Chiefs – The new Arrowhead Stadium will be rocking to cap off the first weekend of the 2010 NFL Season. The fans will be deafening for Phillip Rivers and company. The Chargers will be without Marcus McNeil and Vincent Jackson. I like the Chiefs to steal one to open the year. Chiefs 23, Chargers 21

See more of our 2010 NFL Preview here.