And so starts another new
series, Who You Got?! This series will be every Thursday
before kickoff and will basically give you an idea of how each game of the week
will go down. I refuse to do final score projections because a) it is
impossible to predict a majority of the time and b) it's silly. The teams I
project to win will be in bold. Along with my prediction of the winner of every
game, I give a brief look at why I am picking each team to win. That's about
all the explanation this needs. Let's get started (p.s. I obviously hate your
team if I pick them to lose).
Thursday Night Football
(5:30 pm AZ time):
Carolina Panthers @ Denver Broncos
A Super Bowl 50 rematch to
open the regular season?! How kind of you, NFL. This game will be intense and I
wish I could watch it live (stupid education getting in the way). Regardless,
I’ll pay plenty of attention to what happens and how everyone played. For my
money, the Panthers should be pretty pissed off going into this game. The
Broncos lost some key contributors on defense and count me in as a non-believer
in Trevor Siemian. Panthers will walk in and should win a close game.
Sunday Morning Football
(10:00 am AZ time):
Oakland Raiders @ New Orleans Saints
The Raiders are a hot,
young team on the rise and the Saints are an older team that looks to be
regressing. The Saints defense should also be one of the worst, if not the
worst, the NFL will see this season. The Raiders offense, featuring Derek Carr
and Amari Cooper, should put up points with ease. While the Saints should be
able to put up points, their defense will get them inti a shootout. Quite
frankly, I don’t believe the Saints offense can muster more than 20 points
against this Raiders defense.
Cleveland Browns @ Philadelphia Eagles
The Browns are bad. Bad
enough that an Eagles team featuring rookie Carson Wentz at quarterback should
walk in and win a game that may look close on the box score but won’t be in
reality. Ryan Mathews has to love this matchup against a mediocre Browns run
defense. The Browns defense in general should be bad. If RGIII can return to
his rookie season form, this game could go to the Browns. I’m just not a
believer.
Minnesota Vikings @ Tennessee Titans
If Teddy Bridgewater was
playing quarterback for the Vikings, I would take them in a heartbeat. This
game, however, I lean towards a young and talented Titans team. The Vikings
just simply won’t have the chemistry at quarterback no matter if Shaun Hill or
Sam Bradford is the starter. The Vikings defense will have to win this game,
but unless they can score two touchdowns and get a couple field goals, I don’t
think the Vikings can take the beating of the Titans power run game right now.
They certainly aren’t helped by the fact they are on the road in Tennessee.
San Diego Chargers @ Kansas City Chiefs
The Chiefs were the hottest
team in the NFL last season, winning 11 straight games before losing to the
Patriots in the divisional round of the playoffs. The Chargers are coming off a
four-win season and will be without their number one pick Joey Bosa. Keenan
Allen is back, so that’s good news. But Rivers, behind a porous offensive line,
will be under duress all day long. Meanwhile, the Chiefs will be without Jamaal
Charles. Spencer Ware will likely get the start, but the Chiefs will through
mistake free football led by Alex Smith.
Cincinnati Bengals @ New York Jets
I so badly want to pick the
Bengals in this game. But without Tyler Eifert and with an inconsistent ground
game, the Bengals might lose a shootout. I am banking on the Jets offense to
pick up where the left off last season, but A.J. Green could have fits going up
against Darrelle Revis. On the other side of things, the Jets wide receivers
(Brandon Marshall and Eric Decker) should have a field day against an average
secondary that lost interceptions leader Reggie Nelson this offseason. A stout
defensive front seven led by Muhammad Wilkerson will help the Jets turn the
Bengals into a one-dimensional offense.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ Atlanta Falcons
The
Buccaneers a young team with a bright future. I don’t think they are playoff
bound just yet, but this is a great opportunity to show the world who they are
this season. The Falcons have a great offense matched with a below average
defense. The Falcons should struggle to get any pressure on Winston as he fires
bombs to Mike Evans (provided he catches them). All the Buccaneers need to do
is slow down Julio Jones… good luck with that. Even in a hostile environment, I
think the Bucs have a better defense that wins them the game in the long run.
Buffalo
Bills @ Baltimore Ravens
OH NO, I
TOOK THE RAVENS. I AM SUCH A HOMER! Hold up one second and let me explain
before you attack me. Of course the fan in me will take the Ravens every week,
but I am objective and not afraid to say what needs to be said. Therefore, the
Bills are playing without their top two draft choices due to injury. The Ravens
will roll out a unit that is completely healthy and stable thanks to Mark
Trestman returning as the offensive coordinator. Both defenses are young with
talented play makers, and the Ravens should have trouble with Sammy Watkins. In
the end, the Ravens speed at receiver and dynamic backfield prove too much for
the Bills defense that struggled to rush the passer last year.
Chicago
Bears @ Houston Texans
The Bears
will be a very fun team to watch this season, as they could either be 9-7 or
6-10. The defense appears to be much improved and could wind up a nice sleeper
for this season. The offense has Alshon Jeffery and Kevin White at wide
receiver, two big bodied, big play targets for Jay Cutler. The Texans have a
J.J. Watt… oops. The Texans defense will harass Cutler all day long and bait
Cutler into some bad interceptions. The Texans new and improved offense needs
some time to gel, but some extra possessions curtesy of the defense will help
with that problem.
Green Bay Packers @ Jacksonville Jaguars
Oh man, I
want to take the Jaguars so badly… I just can’t bring myself to do it just yet.
Aaron Rodgers gets Jordy Nelson and an in-shape Eddie Lacy back. Against a
young Jaguars defense, these vets should move the ball well. Rodgers will take
a few sacks, but it won’t be enough to stop him. The Jaguars offense should be
able to keep themselves in the game for a while before a costly turnover proves
to be the biggest difference maker. This is the Jags season! I can feel it!
Just not this week…
Sunday
Afternoon Football (1:05 and 1:25 pm AZ time):
Miami
Dolphins @ Seattle Seahawks
I don’t
have much to say about this game at all. Brand new head coach in Miami travels
to face the 12th man and one of the best teams in the NFL. Ryan
Tannehill struggles. Russell Wilson throws darts while running for his life.
The Seahawks win by at least two possessions.
Detroit
Lions @ Indianapolis Colts
I may be
alone in believing in the Lions to be a decent team this season, but Andrew
Luck is back. With Luck back, the Colt’s offense could be hard to stop, against
the pass at least. Ziggy Ansah will live in the Colt’s backfield, but it won’t
be enough to stop T.Y. Hilton and Donte Moncrief’s after the catch abilities.
Not to mention, we have to see how the Lions handle life after Calvin Johnson.
The Lions do have some nice options at receiver, but now we will truly see just
how important Megatron was to this offense.
New York Giants @ Dallas Cowboys
Dak
Prescott was electric in the preseason. Now let’s see how he handles first team
defenses that will run complicated blitzes and zones. I think Dak will struggle
in his first game while the Giants offense can’t be stopped against this
terrible Dallas defense. The Cowboys will have to manufacture a pass rush,
thanks to suspensions to pass rushers Randy Gregory and Demarcus Lawrence, and
that will lead to some big plays by the Giants offense. Oh, and I didn’t even
mention Odell Beckham, did I? even in Jerry’s World, the Giants should come out
on top with a crucial division win.
Sunday
Night Football (5:30 pm AZ time):
New
England Patriots @ Arizona Cardinals
Oh man, I
can’t wait for this game. Put this down as my game of the week, because this
will be a classic smash mouth football game. Two Super Bowl contenders go head
to head after both teams lost in their respective conference championship back
in January. For what it’s worth, I would take the Cardinals even if Tom Brady
were playing. But take Brady out of the equation and throw in Jimmy Garoppolo
behind a bad offensive line and this could get ugly. I think the Pats keep it
close, but I take the Cardinals with ease.
Monday
Night Football (4:10 and 7:20 pm AZ time):
Pittsburgh Steelers @ Washington:
This
Steelers offense will be high flying, even without Martavis Bryant. I believe
in Josh Norman this year, but Antonio Brown will definitely get his dues. This
Washington offense could end up being one of the better units in the NFL if
Kirk Cousins can pick up where he left off and the team can get some semblance
of a run game going. Both teams will feature average at best secondaries with
great front sevens. The Steelers just have better talent offensively than
Washington, and win in a shootout.
Los Angeles Rams @ San Francisco 49ers:
The 49ers
are bad. They will lose a lot of games this year. I promise. The Rams have a
great defense and Todd Gurley to power the offense. The 49ers have Torrey Smith
and not much else offensively. This will likely be a lopsided game. Give me LA
by two possessions. Sorry, San Fran… it’s gonna be a long season…
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