Week two was another relatively successful week for Rayonsports in picking winners of the NFL’s scheduled games. I picked 11 winners out of the 16 games played, bringing the 2 week total to 23 correct and 9 wrong. Here are the week 3 picks:
New York Giants at Carolina – the Giants could easily be 0-2 to start the season, but to their credit rallied to win last week. I expect this game to be a high-scoring shootout, with Cam Newton outdueling Eli Manning and leading the Panthers to a win.
Buffalo at Cleveland – the Browns, who have been anemic on offense for a couple of years, came alive and produced some points last week in a loss to the Bengals. Despite the fact they haven’t shown much of an ability to win on the road the last 2 years, I expect the Bills’ defense will be able to confuse rookie QB Brandon Weeden enough to pull out a Buffalo victory.
St. Louis at Chicago – as expected, coach Jeff Fisher has the Rams playing competitive football, but the Bears are tough at home and will win this game with a dominant performance from their defense.
Tampa Bay at Dallas – the Buccaneers’ defense was exposed by Eli Manning last week, and the Cowboys have the weapons to do the same. Dallas should win this game, since they can be a powerhouse team when playing at home.
Jacksonville at Indianapolis – this isn’t exactly a battle of NFL titans, but rookie QB Andrew Luck has been as good as advertised and I expect him to lead the Colts to a win at home.
New York Jets at Miami – the Dolphins were dominant against the Raiders last week, and the home field advantage is big for them. However, the Jets’ defense is too good for rookie QB Ryan Tannehill to handle, and I see them being the difference in what should be a hard-fought game. New York wins on the road.
San Francisco at Minnesota – the 49ers have looked like the NFL’s best team so far this season, the main reason being the play of their tough defense. They are physical and tackle well, which is a rarity in the league today. They’ll continue their impressive start by beating the Vikings.
Kansas City at New Orleans – despite looking really bad through the season’s first 2 weeks, I’ll pick the Chiefs to rebound and pull off an upset over the Saints, who are struggling also.
Detroit at Tennessee – this looks like it will be a close game, dominated by defense, but the Lions’ passing game will be the difference and they’ll get a road win here.
Cincinnati at Washington – I really believe the Bengals, overall, are the better team in this matchup but I expect Robert Griffin III and the Redskins to rebound from a tough loss last week and win at home.
Philadelphia at Arizona – the Cardinals’ upset win over New England last week was a real eye-opener, and they should be flying high at home. I’ll pick them to hand Philly their first loss of the season.
Atlanta at San Diego – a matchup of unbeaten teams led by good quarterbacks, which looks like a shootout waiting to happen. I’ll go with the Chargers.
Houston at Denver – this is another matchup where I feel the visiting team, the Texans, are better overall but also feel that the Broncos’ home field gives them a decided edge. Denver wins at home, with Peyton Manning taking extra care to protect the football.
Pittsburgh at Oakland – the Steelers are still one of the class teams of the NFL, while the Raiders’ house-cleaning following last season appears to have backfired, as they are a club that has regressed. Pittsburgh wins easily.
New England at Baltimore – I expect the Pats to rebound after last week’s shocking loss, but the Ravens are looking to avenge their AFC title game loss to New England, a game they had a couple of chances to win but couldn’t seal the deal. Baltimore will win.
Green Bay at Seattle – the Seahawks can be a tough out at home, but I expect the Packers to be efficient on both offense and defense and outlast the home team, pulling away in the fourth quarter to grab a road win.
