NFL Picks Week 2: Will Chargers Stop New England Patriots' Early Surge?

The New England Patriots looked incredibly impressive in their 38-24 pasting of the Miami Dolphins on Monday night.

The Pats racked up 622 total yards and looked unstoppable on offense. But don't expect New England to look similarly dominant next week, when they welcome the San Diego Chargers to Foxborough.

The Chargers also came away with a win in Week 1, knocking off the Minnesota Vikings 24-17. Led by quarterback Philip Rivers, the Bolts posted 407 yards of total offense despite being a bit unbalanced on that side of the ball.

The Chargers shone defensively, however.

They held the Vikings to 187 yards of total offense, and held quarterback Donovan McNabb to just 39 yards passing. While no one should expect them to hold the Patriots to such low numbers, there is no reason to believe New England will repeat its Week 1 dominance.

New England quarterback Tom Brady was completely in control against the Dolphins. He completed 32 of 48 passes for 517 yards, with four touchdowns and an interception.

He was sacked just once and hit only twice. It was an impressive night for the entire offense.

The Chargers had the NFL's top defense in 2010, allowing just 271.6 yards per game.

They also had the top passing defense, surrendering just 177.8 yards per game. Some would argue that they actually improved that unit this offseason with the addition of veterans Takeo Spikes and Bob Sanders, plus the drafting of cornerback Marcus Gilchrist and defensive end Corey Liuget.

On offense, the Chargers looked to be a bit out of sync at times on Sunday, but the Patriots looked anything but dominant defensively.

New England gave up 488 total yards to a Miami offense with a ton of question marks. The Pats' passing defense looked like a sieve, as it allowed a very suspect Chad Henne to throw for 416 yards. Philip Rivers has to be licking his chops thinking about facing New England this weekend.

This is sure to be an entertaining, hard-fought game. Don't expect the Patriots to just roll the Chargers like they did the Dolphins.