Not too good last week with I believe 5 wins on my OTC picks (I had 6 in my pool with the Thursday game, which I won, so Im assuming I only had 5 on Sunday and Monday). Maybe this week will work out a little better to help me get back to 0.500.
CHIEFS (-4.5) over Eagles– Are the Chiefs as good as what they showed in week 1? Probably not, but this is asking a lot of the Eagles to go into KC after a big divisional road win last week. Chiefs 24 Eagles 17
Titans (-1.5) over JAGUARS– Generally I don’t like close road favorites early in the year, but I’m more sold on the Texans being bad than the Jaguars being good right now. Titans losing this game would be a pretty bad start for them. Titans 23 Jaguars 20
STEELERS (-6.5) over Vikings– Bradford or no Bradford, I think the Steelers just have too much firepower even against a good defense like the Vikings. Steelers should be able to wear them down and pull away late. Steelers 27 Vikings 17
Cardinals (-7.5) over COLTS– Its basically unheard of for a team like Arizona to be favored this big on the road this early in the year, but the Colts looked that bad in week 1. I hate picking the Cardinals with a spread this big, but…Cardinals 30 Colts 13
SAINTS (+6.5) over Patriots– Are the Saints good? No, but in that dome I cant pass up nearly 7 points no matter how bad their defense may be. Patriots looked bad in week 1 as well and Im not sure their defense can stop the Saints either. Last ball wins. Patriots 31 Saints 27
BUCCANEERS (-6.5) over Bears– Big game for Tampa who is looking to start the year off hot. Bears didn’t look as bad as expected last week, but will have a harder time on the road. Bucs 23 Bears 14
Browns (+7.5) over RAVENS– Do I expect the Browns to win? No. Do I expect them to be within two scores late and have a good chance at a backdoor cover? Yes. Ravens don’t have the firepower to cover this unless the Browns implode like the Bengals. Ravens 20 Browns 13
PANTHERS (-7.5) over Bills– I don’t like either of these teams and don’t think the Bills can run very effectively against the Panthers front 7, which basically neutralizes the entire Bills offense. Bills did everything in their power to hand the Jets a win last week and on the road that wont work out nearly as well. Panther 24 Bills 10
RAIDERS (-13.5) over Jets– This early in the year you should never see a team favored this big and under normal circumstances you always take the points, but my Jets stink. This is as bad a team as I can recall in my Jets fandom which is really saying something. Only hope for the Jets is if the Raiders press so much that they make mistakes. Raiders 41 Jets 13
CHARGERS (-4.5) over Dolphins– Miami has had a long time to prepare for this one and is already set for west coast time, but I just think the Chargers are the better team and need this one more. That said counting on the Chargers is always risky. Chargers 24 Dolphins 16
BRONCOS (+1.5) over Cowboys– When this game is over I think the talk is going to be more about how the Cowboys beat a bad team in week 1 than the Cowboys being an elite team. This is a different type of defense and environment for Dallas. Broncos 23 Cowboys 17
49ers (+12.5) over SEAHAWKS– Seattle looks primed for their traditional slow start and there are few easier teams for a veteran laden team to overlook than the 49ers. This may be the 49ers Super Bowl this year. Seahawks 23 49ers 20
RAMS (-2.5) over Redskins– If Goff is for real the Rams could actually be pretty good. Even if he is just adequate they should have enough to beat a Washington team that never does that well on the road. Rams 27 Redskins 20
Packers (+2.5) over FALCONS– Ive gone back and forth on this one, but I could see the Falcons pressing more in this game than the Packers who really are playing with “house money” this week. That said I don’t expect the points to come into play here and if the Pack loses they will lose by far more than a field goal. Packers 27 Falcons 23
GIANTS (-4.5) over Lions– Are the Giants as bad as they looked last week? Maybe so, but Detroit was a big stinker on the road last year and I expect that to carry over against what should be a good defense. Giants 17 Lions 9