Week 1 of the NFL regular season in the books, but there’s still plenty of intrigue to go around now that we’ve seen just a glimpse of all 32 teams in action for the first time. As such, readers such as yourself will need supplemental material to help sort out the opening week’s pile and take home another round of sweet winnings.
Keep on reading to get an upper hand on each Week 2 game on tap. Can’t get enough football? Go on and check out which college football games are worth watching (and wagering on) with our feature on the best games from Week 3 of the NCAA here.
[sc:Football ]2015 NFL Week 2 Picks
Thursday, September 17
Denver Broncos (+3) vs. Kansas City Chiefs (8:25 PM ET)
[sc:NFL240banner ]Both Denver and Kansas City are coming off of close wins, but strangely, the Chiefs showed more life on offense with their 27-20 win in Houston than the Broncos did with their 19-13 victory at home over the Ravens. And with Kansas City playing in Arrowhead for the first time this season, expect tight end Travis Kelce (106 yards, 2 TDs) to put on another show, this time in front of the home crowd.
Writer’s Prediction: Kansas City with a close win over its bitter division rivals, 24-21.
Sunday, September 20
Detroit Lions (+3) vs. Minnesota Vikings (1:00 PM ET)
On the flipside, both Detroit and Minnesota are reeling from their respective Week 1 losses on the road. And once again, we’ll side with the home team on this. Vikings quarterback Adrian Peterson should bounce back from a disappointing 39-yard outing in his first game back in over a year against a Lions defense that gave up 4.2 yards per carry versus a San Diego team that’s not known for its running game in Week 1.
Writer’s Prediction: Minnesota squeaks by, 19-17.
Arizona Cardinals (-2.5) vs. Chicago Bears (1:00 PM ET)
Easy call here. The Cardinals saw the return of Carson Palmer’s form (306 yards, 3TDs) and held Drew Brees and the Saints to just 19 points this past Sunday. Meanwhile, the Bears couldn’t contain Aaron Rodgers’ assault in spite of Matt Forte’s 141 yards on the ground. Forte’s outlook against the Cards’ daunting D-line looks very bleak as well.
Writer’s Prediction: Arizona wins convincingly, 34-20.
Tennessee Titans (-1) vs. Cleveland Browns (1:00 PM ET)
Marcus Mariota proved to be more pro-ready than Jameis Winston when he torched Tampa Bay for 209 yards and four touchdowns in Week 1. Mariota will likely have another walk in the park against the stumbling Browns, who cannot catch a break after seeing starting quarterback Josh McCown bow out of the Browns’ fame against the Jets due to a concussion, and with Johnny Manziel not finding any rhythm at all.
Writer’s Prediction: Tennessee make quick work of Cleveland, 27-10.
New England Patriots (-1.5) vs. Buffalo Bills (1:00 PM ET)
The logical move here would be to go with the Pats, winners of six of the last seven meetings against the Bills. However, Buffalo had the more impressive win in Week 1 with the 27-14 upset over the Colts behind a stifling defense that gave Andrew Luck quite a fit, which doesn’t bode well for Tom Brady.
Writer’s Prediction: Buffalo edges past New England, 19-17.
Houston Texans (+3) vs. Carolina Panthers (1:00 PM ET)
Continuing with the trend of great defenses, the Texans will likely be able to contain a Panthers offense without a dependable receiving corps. Carolina could also be playing without stud linebacker Luke Keuchly, which could give whoever starts for Houston at QB a much better performance than the one Brian Hoyer had against the Chiefs.
Writer’s Prediction: Houston wins a low-scoring affair, 14-9.
San Francisco 49ers (+6) vs. Pittsburgh Steelers (1:00 PM ET)
Were you just as shocked as we were when the 49ers kept Adrian Peterson and the Vikings in check on Monday night? San Francisco’s early season celebration would likely come to a screeching end, though, as the Steelers and their high-octane offense will look to shred the Niners’ D apart, especially when DeAngelo Williams (127 rushing yards, one TD) played well against the Pats in place of suspended Le’Veon Bell.
Writer’s Prediction: Pittsburgh with an easy 37-20 win.
San Diego Chargers (+3) vs. Cincinnati Bengals (1:00 PM ET)
Although the Chargers had to rally from an 18-point deficit for the win this past Sunday, the team also faced a much tougher opponent in the Lions than the Bengals did in Week 1 (Cincy defeated the lowly Raiders). It’s really a toss-up between these two offensive powerhouses, but we’ll side with Philip Rivers’ arm over Andy Dalton’s for now.
Writer’s Prediction: San Diego hangs on for a 31-28 win.
St. Louis Rams (-3.5) vs. Washington Redskins (1:00 PM ET)
Here’s a no-brainer. The Rams have all the momentum in the world right now after defeating the Seahawks in overtime. Meanwhile, the Redskins had to rely on a punt return for the team’s only touchdown this past weekend. Washington will be lucky to put up double-digits against St. Louis’ formidable front seven.
Writer’s Prediction: St. Louis cruises to a 24-9 victory.
Atlanta Falcons (+3) vs. New York Giants (1:00 PM ET)
The Falcons defense was bent by the Eagles, but ultimately did not break in the end. The exact opposite happened to the Giants, though, as Eli Manning (193 yards and no touchdowns) and his team couldn’t hold on to their lead with less than two minutes left in the game against Dallas. Matt Ryan (298 yards for a pair of TDs) will likely carve up the Giants secondary just like Romo did Monday night.
Writer’s Prediction: Atlanta prevails, 30-21.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (+10) vs. New Orleans Saints (1:00 PM ET)
Yes, that’s a double-digit spread that the Bucs are facing right now, and rightfully so. Jameis Winston was rudely welcomed to the big leagues by the Titans of all teams. On the other hand, Drew Brees (355 yards) prove to still be unstoppable in the air, even as the Saints lost to Arizona on the road. Hey Drew, do we really need to bring up Mariota’s four TDs against the Bucs again just for you?
Writer’s Prediction: New Orleans with a 38-10 blowout.
Baltimore Ravens (-6.5) vs. Oakland Raiders (4:05 PM ET)
With both the Ravens and the Raiders playing poorly in Week 1, we can conclude that their upcoming matchup against one another will be a rather low-scoring affair. Oakland quarterback Derek Carr is not healthy, while Baltimore’s Joe Flacco is. We’re also not counting on the Ravens to put up less than 200 yards of total offense like they did this past weekend against Denver.
Writer’s Prediction: Baltimore wins with relative ease, 20-13.
Miami Dolphins (-6.5) vs. Jacksonville Jaguars (4:05 PM ET)
You can sense that the Dolphins are due for a resounding win against the meager Jaguars this coming Sunday after defeating Washington by just seven points. Meanwhile, Jacksonville are still praying for Blake Bortles to snap out of his poor form, but that won’t likely come this week against Ndamukong Suh and the ‘Fins’ intimidating defense.
Writer’s Prediction: Miami’s offense comes to life, 33-14.
Dallas Cowboys (+5.5) vs. Philadelphia Eagles (4:25 PM ET)
Here come the fireworks! Chip Kelly and the Eagles’ fast-paced offense didn’t get it going until late in the Monday night game against the Falcons, which was too little, too late for the team to make a comeback. And while the Cowboys pulled-off an impressive 18-point comeback over the Giants to tally their first ‘W’ of the season, Philly’s offense is at its best at home, where they have failed to score less than 20 points just once for the past ten games.
Writer’s Prediction: Philadelphia wins the shootout, 38-33.
Seattle Seahawks (+3.5) vs. Green Bay Packers (8:30 PM ET)
Don’t make plans this Sunday night, as the Seahawks and Packers square off in Lambeau. Seattle doesn’t seem to be in sync yet judging from their overtime loss to the Rams, while Green Bay’s life after Jordy Nelson’s injury is still passing with flying colors. Aaron Rodgers needed just 189 yards against the Bears on Sunday to win the game, which means that he’ll have to go nuts with his passes in Lambeau to dispatch the pesky Seahawks.
Writer’s Prediction: Green Bay gets the better of Seattle, 24-20.
Monday, September 21
New York Jets (+7) vs. Indianapolis Colts (8:30 PM ET)
The Jets may have won their opener against the Browns, but those were the Browns. The Colts lost to the Bills, but they were on the road against an evidently much-improved Buffalo squad. Will Andrew Luck have another rough time dissecting another defense that looks good on paper? We beg to differ, as Indy is 8-1 in its last nine games in Lucas Oil Stadium, while New York has lost six of its last eight games on the road.
Writer’s Prediction: Indianapolis gets their season back on track, 33-19.
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