NFL Predictions Week 1: 5 Teams That Could Be in for a Beating

Week 1 is a time to stop the speculating and start playing. The following five teams might prefer to speculate instead of play, however. 

Week 1 can be as important as Week 17. When push comes to shove, we will learn some things about every team during this first week. 

I'm not saying definitively that these teams will get a beating, but it's definitely more likely than not. These five teams are probably going to walk away licking their wounds.  

Indianapolis Colts

Peyton Manning is officially out for the Colts' first game against the Houston Texans.

That means that the ancient Kerry Collins will be the starter and that's not good news for Colts fans. Collins may be the most statue-like quarterback in the NFL. More worrisome is the fact that there's no way he could have learned the offense in two weeks—or ever run it like Manning did.

The Texans surprised everyone last year when they came out and laid a 34-24 smack down on the Colts, with Arian Foster running for a whopping 231 yards.

Foster may be questionable for this Sunday, but if he plays, the results might be just as devastating as the first time around. Even if he doesn't, the talented Derrick Ward and Ben Tate could pick up the slack just as easily.

The Colts could get rolled in this game. They aren't going to put up 24 points on an improved Texans defense with Collins instead of Manning. That leaves it to their defense, which has never been able to prove they're up to stopping top offenses.

Texans 36, Colts 16 .

Buffalo Bills

The Bills have slowly been improving, but they have to start the season rolling into one of the toughest places to play.

Arrowhead Stadium is known for its intense noise and the great advantage it gives the Chiefs. If you don't believe me, ask the San Diego Chargers about their experience there for the home opener last year. Every fan fills the seats—even in an absolute downpour.

The Chiefs had a rough preseason and they will be looking to make a statement in their first game. Having almost every analyst be down on you means you want to go out there and prove them wrong.

The Chiefs and Bills met in Week 8 of the regular season. The Chiefs very well could have scored 24-plus points, but they squandered opportunities as they got down the field. The Chiefs ran the ball for 274 yards. With Cassel being a little banged up, you can be sure Charles will get another 22 carries in this game, just like he did last year.

The Chiefs offense should be improved in the passing game, with the addition of Jerheme Urban and Steve Breaston and the return of a healthy Dexter McCluster.

Chiefs 30, Bills 13.

Cincinnati Bengals

Bengals fans might think they have a decent matchup for the first game of the season against the Cleveland Browns. They would be wrong.

This Browns team is improving. They have Colt McCoy, who has the look of a real NFL quarterback and the hard-nosed Peyton Hillis to rely on. The Bengals were a below-average defense last year and the Browns offense is getting better.

It's not even about how much the Browns have been improving. It's more about how much worse the Bengals are getting. Andy Dalton looks like the most overwhelmed rookie quarterback out there; it's clear he isn't ready to start leading an NFL team. Despite that, he will start—and he will most likely crash and burn. 

It doesn't help that Dalton's first start of his career is going to be on the road. Colt McCoy has the experience, and the Brown's defense, led by the talented Joe Haden, will take advantage of Dalton's inexperience at every turn.

To be honest, the Bengals could be in for a beating every week of the year.  

Browns 24, Bengals 6.

Chicago Bears

By all accounts, the Bears were one of the luckiest teams in the NFL last year. Unfortunately for Chicago, there won't be a botched Calvin Johnson call to save them from their first loss of the season this year. 

People have been talking about the Steelers defense getting old, but the Bears are less talented and have six starters over the age of 30 years old. 

They aren't exactly stacked in the secondary either. Tim Jennings and Charles Tillman comprise a mediocre cornerback tandem and the Bears lost Danieal Manning to the Texans via free agency. 

Meanwhile, the Atlanta Falcons are ready to unleash their brand new, shiny offense. They expect Julio Jones to contribute early and often and, with Roddy White, Tony Gonzalez, Harry Douglas and Michael Turner, they will be able to score points at will. 

Matt Ryan will show he's one of the elite quarterbacks in the NFL this week and administer a shellacking to the Bears.

Atlanta 30, Bears 16.

Minnesota Vikings

This is a game that could go either way. 

If Donovan McNabb isn't a zombie quarterback yet and is able to play the way he did a couple of years ago, the Vikings stand a chance. If their defense can suffer the loss of the suspended Kevin Williams, and Jared Allen returns to form, they could stand a shot. 

However, that's probably not going to happen—at least not this early in the season. 

The Chargers are notorious for starting slow and are looking to break that label. With the return of Vincent Jackson and Antonio Gates, this offense is going to be firing on all cylinders. 

The Chargers' additions of Travis LaBoy, Takeo Spikes and Bob Sanders only make them better. The Chargers special teams had no gaffes in the preseason. Unless Norv Turner tries to Norv his team out of September wins yet again, they will probably be laying 30 points on the Vikings. 

Chargers 30, Vikings 16.