NFL Week 2 Odds and Preview

Week 1 is in the books and we look to have a little better read on teams in week 2.  It was a bit of a surprise to see the Redskins beat the Saints but Robert Griffin III was very impressive in his regular season debut.  The 49ers made a statement beating the Packers in their own back yard.  We are just getting started and there are sure to be many twists and turns on the path to the 2013 Super Bowl.  Here is this week’s lineup with the most current odds from America’s Bookie and a short preview of the games. 

Thursday September 13, 2012

Chicago Bears (1-0) @ Green Bay Packers (0-1) 8:20 PM ET

Green Bay is favored by 6 and the total is set at 50 ½.   It will be interesting to see how Green Bay responds after San Francisco came into their house and beat them in the first game of the season.  The Packers showed some major holes in their defense allowing the 49ers to rush for 186 yards.  It won’t get any easier for them trying to stop Matt Forte.  Jay Cutler had a very good opening game for Chicago passing for 333 yards and 2 touchdowns, but we all know we can’t judge Cutler by one game.  I definitely don’t see Green Bay losing two games in a row at home to open the season, but the question is will they cover?  I might be insane for this pick but take the Packers and lay the points at home.

Sunday September 16, 2012

New Orleans Saints (0-1) @ Carolina Panthers (0-1) 1:00 PM ET

New Orleans is favored by 2 ½ and the total is set at 50 ½.  New Orleans had to have been somewhat surprised by what hit them last week.  They started the season also with a home loss to Washington 40-32 in a brilliant debut for Robert Griffin III.  Cam Newton didn’t look so invincible like he did last year as Carolina fell 16-10 to Tampa Bay.  Even though the Saints are on the road, I’m taking this one as the lock of the week.  New Orleans won’t drop their first two so lay the points.  And bet it before the line goes any higher

Houston Texans (1-0) @ Jacksonville Jaguars (0-1) 1:00 PM ET

Houston is favored by 7 and the total is set at 41 ½.  Houston looked good last week against a weak Miami Dolphins team.  Jacksonville was edged out 26-23 in OT against Minnesota.  Houston will win this game but not sure I like them as a 7 point favorite on the road.  Don’t get me wrong, they may crush the Jaguars but I don’t have a clear read on Jacksonville yet.  We are going with the over here.

Tampa Bay Bucs (1-0) @ New York Giants (0-1) 1:00 PM ET

New York is favored by 7 ½ and the total is set at 43 ½.  This is a sucker line and I’m afraid I’m going to fall into the trap.  New York looked very flat last week losing to the Cowboys.  Tampa Bay didn’t look great but found a way to beat Carolina.  Eli didn’t have a bad game against the Cowboys although he was sacked 3 times so that offensive line needs to step up this week.  The Giants, like the Packers, will not open the season with two losses, both at home.  But Tampa Bay has played well in the preseason and they did get the win last week.  Take the points on the Bucs to cover.

Cleveland Browns (0-1) @ Cincinnati Bengals (0-1) 1:00 PM ET

Cincinnati is favored by 7 and the total is set at 38 ½.  Cincinnati got crushed 44-13by a very good Baltimore team to start the season while the Browns were edged 17-16 by the Eagles.  Brandon Weeden had about as bad a start to the season as could be imagined but the Browns still almost pulled off the upset.  This guy will pull it together.  He is a bit older than your average rookie QB and will analyze and improve as he goes.  Cincinnati is not ready to be a 7 point favorite over anybody.  Take the road dog +7.

Oakland Raiders (0-1) @ Miami Dolphins (0-1) 1:00 PM ET

Oakland is favored by 3 and the total is set at 37 ½.  The Dolphins are going to take a lot of beatings this season.  Though the team tried to put a positive spin on things I don’t like the Tannehill experiment so far.  But we will give him a little time before making a judgement.  Carson Palmer actually played well in the Raider’s loss to San Diego last week.  The Chargers contained Darren McFadden to 32 yards but I don’t see him being shut down 2 weeks in a row.  I just really can’t give any respect to the Dolphins from what I have seen.  Take the road dog Raiders -3.

Kansas City Chiefs (0-1) @ Buffalo Bills (0-1) 1:00 PM ET

Buffalo is favored by 3 and the total is set at 44 ½.  This should be a snoozer as neither team looks to be very exciting in 2012.  The Chiefs started the season with 40-24 loss to the Falcons and the Bills were routed 48-28 by the Jets.  Who knows who will win this one?  But I think that both teams should be able to score.  Take the over here.

Baltimore Ravens (1-0) @ Philadelphia Eagles (1-0) 1:00 PM ET

Philadelphia is favored by 2 ½ and the total is set at 46 ½.  Baltimore has tripped me up in the past during the early part of the season.  The Ravens looked superb as they throttled Cincinnati last week and Philadelphia looked pretty dismal as they barely beat Cleveland.  Baltimore is by far the better team in this contest but Vick is just likely to have a big game after struggling last week.  Be careful with this one but I just can’t help taking the Ravens plus the points in this spot.

Minnesota Vikings (1-0) @ Indianapolis Colts (0-1) 1:00 PM ET

Minnesota is favored by 1 ½ and the total is set at 44 ½.  Andrew Luck got a proper welcome to the NFL last week as he was sacked 3 times and threw 3 picks in the Colts opening loss to Chicago.  The Vikings were able to squeak out a win 26-23 over the Jaguars in overtime.  Throw out that opening loss; the Colts aren’t that bad.  Take them to win this one at home.

Arizona Cardinals (1-0) @ New England Patriots (1-0) 1:00 PM ET

New England is favored by 13 ½ and the total is set at 48 ½.  New England looked pretty scary in their 34-13 win over the Tennessee Titans.  Brady was Brady as usual but the scary part is that they seem to have filled in a lot of the holes from last year, and we know how close they came as it was.  Stevan Ridley rushed for 125 yards and the Patriots’ D looked much improved over last season.  Arizona came away with the win over Seattle 20-16 but they will need a prayer to beat the Pats.  This is a scary line though.  I could see New England blowing them out but would have to have the Cards get that back door cover on me.  Don’t look for a shoot out here.  Go for the under in this contest.

Washington Redskins (1-0) @ St. Louis Rams (0-1) 4:05 PM ET

Washington is favored by 3 and the total is set at 41 ½.  St. Louis lost a tough one to Detroit on the road in week 1 while Washington got the stunning win over the Saints.  The Rams, as I keep saying, are going to be a better team this year.  While Washington will improve on last season, the question is how much?  I really don’t know how this game will play out but I think both QB’s are going to turn it out.  I look for scoring in this one and think the over is the safest bet here.

Dallas Cowboys (1-0) @ Seattle Seahawks (0-1) 4:05 PM ET

Dallas is favored by 3 and the total is set at 41 ½.  This will be a somewhat defining game for both teams, maybe a little more so for Dallas.  The Cowboys got an important division win over the Giants last week behind a tough performance by Tony Romo.  They need another convincing outing here to prove that wasn’t a fluke.  A decisive win here only gives them confidence to build on and they are going to need it in the competitive NFC.  Seattle ripped through the preseason 4-0 only to be edged out 16-20 at Arizona.  Seattle is a young up and coming team but Dallas just seems to be a little more solid right now.  I’m hesitating but taking the Cowboys -3.

Tennessee Titans (0-1) @ San Diego Chargers (1-0) 4:25 PM ET

San Diego is favored by 6 and the total is set at 43.  Philip Rivers had a decent outing leading the Chargers to a 22-14 win over the Raiders on Monday night.  I’m still not a big fan of his and don’t see him taking the Chargers very far again this year.  The Titans ran into a very good Patriots’ team to start their season.  The Chargers will probably get the win here but I’m taking the Titans +6 to cover.

New York Jets (1-0) @ Pittsburgh Steelers (0-1) 4:25 PM ET

Pittsburgh is favored by 6 and the total is set at 41 ½.  The Jets opened up on offense after only scoring 1 touchdown in the preseason.  They beat the hapless Bills 48-28 and Jets’ fans had nothing to complain about with QB Mark Sanchez.  He had 3 touchdowns on the day with a quarterback rating of 123.4.  The Steelers took a tough season opening loss to the now Peyton Manning led Broncos.  It wasn’t a bad game on the Steelers’ part but I don’t think anyone expected Manning to return to being Manning in the first game.  The Steelers are for real and the Jets will be exposed as pretenders soon enough.  Take the Steelers -6 to get the home win.

Detroit Lions (1-0) @ San Francisco 49ers (1-0) 8:20 PM ET

San Francisco is favored by 6 ½ and the total is set at 46.  Detroit struggled a bit beating St. Louis 27-23 while the Niners went into Lambeau Field and took the win from the Packers.  San Francisco only looked stronger from the solid team that many felt should have been in the Super Bowl last season.  The Niners seem to have all the pieces in place to make a serious run at it this year.  St. Louis got 3 interceptions against Matthew Stafford last week and now he will be facing possibly the most formidable defense in the NFL.  Detroit is going to be an extremely good team this year but I don’t think they are of the same caliber as the Niners.  I’m taking San Fran -6 ½ but I want to make a disclaimer here.  Always be careful with week 2.  The oddsmakers are sharp and week 2 usually has lots of surprises.

Monday September 17, 2012

Denver Broncos (1-0) @ Atlanta Falcons (1-0) 8:30 PM ET

Atlanta is favored by 3 and the total is set at 51.  This should be a really great game for Monday Night Football this week.  Denver got the impressive win over Pittsburgh to start the season and Atlanta had an easy win over Kansas City.  This is an extremely tough game to pick.  Both teams produced a lot of offense in week 1 but both teams also have a decent defense.  Matt Ryan was extremely efficient also completing 75% of his passes and hitting 3 TD’s.  Everything points to an over in this game so that is why I’m going to take the under.  This high number is just begging you to bet the over with these 2 high scoring QB’s.  So we will do the opposite.

Keep up with the action at NFL Scores and Odds.