Week Two NFL Games Predictions

By Derek Lofland, NFL director at Fantasy Football Maniaxs

After a wild Week One, where I went  9-7, I look to redeem myself in Week Two. I present you Week Two of the 2008 NFL games' picks. Just straight winners.

Indianapolis (0-1) at Minnesota (0-1): These are my favorite early-season games. Two teams that many considered playoff teams with Super Bowl hopes. Both teams stand at 0-1. Barring the rare tie, one of these teams is going to fall to 0-2. 

The Vikings did not look very good on defense. Ryan Grant had 92 yards. Aaron Rodgers completed over 80 percent of his passes in the game, wasn’t sacked, and didn’t turn the ball over. 

On offense, Tarvaris Jackson really struggled. Manning should rebound now that he has a week under his belt. I can’t see the Colts starting the season 0-2. 

Look for Joseph Addai to bounce back a bit, but still not have a very big game. Really, look for Manning and the passing offense to rebound. 

Winner: Indianapolis 

San Francisco (0-1) at Seattle (0-1): This is a crucial game for the Seahawks and the 49ers. The 49ers lost a divisional game to Arizona last week. To start the season 0-2 in the division is a significant hole. Seattle can survive a bad loss to an AFC team, but they need a strong showing at home to calm their fans. 

Seattle has so many skill-position players hurt. They can’t afford to lose anymore. The key is Seattle’s defense.

They gave up three points in two games last season vs. San Francisco. While the 49ers have improved their offensive personnel, they are still not among the strongest offenses in the NFL.

I don’t expect the Seahawks to score a lot of points, but I think they make enough plays on offense to win the game. 

Winner: Seattle  

New England (1-0) at New York Jets (1-0): It is hard to pick a game like this, because you don’t know how the Patriots react to the Brady injury. Even though I am not a Patriot fan, and I was hoping that Favre could do well with the Jets, I was also looking forward to two Brady vs. Favre duels this the season. Now we don’t get that. 

The Jets will have to play better on offense, as I expect the Patriots defense to be much better than what the Dolphins had to offer.

What this allows the Jets to do is not worry about Favre having to score every drive and use their running game and defense to stay in the game, control field position, and allow Favre to make the timely plays to help put big points on the board. 

I like the Jets to beat the Brady-less Patriots, but for it to be a very close game. 

Winner: New York Jets 

Pittsburgh (1-0) at Cleveland (0-1): Cleveland was a team that I expected to win 10 games this season and contend for a wild card. I am quickly losing confidence. The Steelers were very impressive at home, and the Browns look to be regressing.

They excelled as the hunter last year. No one expected them to win. Now that they are the hunted and people aren’t preparing for them like they do their bye week, the Browns don’t seem to have adjusted. Dallas ran through the Browns. I expect the Steelers to do the same thing. Steelers and Steelers big. 

Winner: Pittsburgh

Philadelphia (1-0) at Dallas (1-0): Both these teams were very impressive in their season opener. Philadelphia roughed up a very bad St. Louis team at home. The Cowboys traveled to Cleveland and beat a Brown’s team that has looked really bad since they opened preseason.

These were my two picks to represent the NFC in the Championship Game. 

I think Dallas is a very tough place to play. I also think the Eagles will miss their injured receivers against a real NFL defense. I expect a typical NFC smash-mouth game, but I expect Dallas to prevail in a close game based on their superior offensive firepower. 

Winner: Dallas 

And the rest…

Tennessee (1-0) at Cincinnati (0-1): Chad Ocho Cinco did not have a very good debut. His one catch for 22 yards didn’t amount to a bang. Cincinnati killed Tennessee 35-6 last year, but that was in the Titans’ three-game skid where Haynesworth didn’t play and the defense stunk.

Tennessee has a very tough defense. I expect the Bengals’ offense to play better than it did against Baltimore, but not well enough to win this game. Veteran Kerry Collins should add a passing dimension to this offense that is much needed. He should be able to help the Titans score just enough points for the win. 

Winner: Tennessee 

Green Bay (1-0) at Detroit (0-1): Here is the key to the game. The Packers corners have struggled with bigger receivers. Detroit has two really big ones in Calvin Johnson and Roy Williams. The Lions have struggled to stop the run. Ryan Grant should be in store for a very big day. Whichever one handles that better wins this game. I like the Pack. 

Winner: Green Bay  

Oakland (0-1) at Kansas City (0-1):  I don’t know if I want to pick Oakland to win anything after that Monday Night beat down. I look for Larry Johnson to have a big day, and I look for the Chiefs to get a victory at home. 

Winner: Kansas City 

New York Giants (1-0) at St Louis Rams (0-1): The Rams have one of the worst offenses in the NFL. Philadelphia is a good team, but 38-3 is unacceptable. I expect the Giants to rough up the Rams as well. 

Winner: New York Giants 

New Orleans (1-0) at Washington (0-1): The Saints have a very tough offense, and the Redskins don’t look to be in an offensive rhythm.  While their defense will keep them in the game, you have to score points on New Orleans, and you need them in bunches. I like the Saints. 

Winner: New Orleans  

Chicago (1-0) at Carolina (1-0): Chicago has another tough road game. Steve Smith is still not back, which will make it tough for the Panthers to score against a good Bears defense. 

However, they had the same problem against the Chargers last week and managed to play well. I wouldn’t be surprised if either team won. I’m going to go with the road team. I really liked how the Bears defense looked and it should carry over to this week.   

Winner: Chicago 

Buffalo (1-0) at Jacksonville (0-1): Jacksonville opened up very slow last year. Losing to Tennessee was an upset, but not a completely unexpected surprise. Buffalo is improved, but they did lose 36-14 in Jacksonville last year.

I expect Maurice Jones-Drew and Fred Taylor to run better, Garrard to take better care of the ball, and Jacksonville to improve to .500 this week. 

Winner: Jacksonville 

Atlanta (1-0) at Tampa Bay (0-1): Tampa Bay played well in their season opener, but lost on the road to an explosive Saints’ team. Atlanta did play well in the opener, and Michael Turner looks like a beast. Tampa Bay’s defense is much better than Detroit, and I expect Atlanta’s offense to comeback to earth.

Winner: Tampa Bay  

Baltimore (1-0) at Houston (0-1): Houston played as badly as any team in the NFL, although it was a loss to the Steelers in Pittsburgh. Baltimore got a win, but they did it against a pretty average Cincinnati team. I like the Texans to rebound. 

They should be able to get stops against a weak Baltimore offense, and I look for Johnson to have a bigger role in this game than the other Cincinnati's receivers. 

Winner: Houston 

Miami (0-1) at Arizona (1-0): Miami isn’t going to be the 1-15 pushover they were in 2007. The Dolphins are still young and make a lot of mistakes, but I expect they will improve over the course of the season. However, this is not a game I expect them to win.  Kurt Warner, Larry Fitzgerald, and Anquan Boldin will be too much. 

Winner: Arizona 

San Diego (0-1) at Denver (1-0): Denver looked very impressive in their opener, but it was against the Raiders. The Chargers played the Broncos very tough last year. I like LaDainian Tomlinson to have a big day in Denver, and I look for the Chargers to even their record. 

Winner: San Diego