This week has been wild, so the picks are going to be short and sweet, which doesn’t leave much for me to congratulate myself on an 8-7-1 start to the season. Week 2 is the hardest week of the entire season because everything you thought you knew about the league’s 32 teams was likely changed in Week 1 and now you only have one week of information to base your opinions and picks on.
(Home team in caps)
CLEVELAND -6 over Cincinnati
If the Browns can blow out the Bengals at home on a short week then it’s going to be another long season for them.
NEW YORK GIANTS +5 over Chicago
Can the Giants avoid 0-2 for the fourth straight season and the seventh time in the last nine? I doubt it. But I think they can keep the game close enough to possibly pull of an upset.
San Francisco -7 over NEW YORK JETS
There will be a time this season when the line gets so high that I will have to pick the Jets to cover. We aren’t there yet.
Atlanta +5.5 over DALLAS
We might see a 7-9 team could out of the NFC East this season. The Giants, Eagles and Cowboys all lost in Week 1 with only the Redskins winning. The Giants and Washington Football Team will likely lose in Week 2, the Eagles could lose and the Cowboys could as well. The Giants could be 0-2 and be a 1/2 game out of first. Go Falcons!
MINNESOTA +3.5 over Indianapolis
Kirk Cousins is so unbelievably bad that he has to be the most overpaid athlete relative to performance. The Vikings’ window might have already close, but I’m willing to give them another week for me to find that out.
TAMPA BAY -8 over Carolina
I would like to know how many times Tom Brady has lost back-to-back games. I could look it up, but I know it’s a low number. It might be even once. It’s not happening here.
Rams +1.5 over PHILADELPHIA
The Eagles blew a 17-0 lead to Washington and cost me a four-team parlay. I still hadn’t learned that you can’t trust the Eagles, but now I know.
Buffalo -6.5 over MIAMI
The Bills’ defense is enough for me to possibly not pick against them all season.
GREEN BAY -6.5 over Detroit
The Lions blew yet another game under Matt Patricia and the Packers continued where they left off last season after going to the NFC Championship Game. Per usual, I have a hard time believing in the Lions.
PITTSBURGH -6.5 over Denver
The Broncos aren’t good. That’s all.
TENNESSEE -7.5 over Jacksonville
I really like the Titans. I would like them more if Ryan Tannehill weren’t their quarterback, but Mike Vrabel (my favorite head coach in the league) has turned him into an actual quarterback and an actual threat. The Titans’ defense against Gardner Minshew seems almost too easy.
Arizona -7 over WASHINGTON
I like this Cardinals team and I like them even more after their upset win on the road over the 49ers. As for Washington, they cost me a monetary win last week, but they hand the Eagles an all-important divisional loss if the Giants are ever able to compete for a postseason berth this season.
Kansas City -8.5 over LOS ANGELES CHARGERS
There will never be a day when I pick Tyrod Taylor to cover a spread against Patrick Mahomes. The Chiefs could be -28 and I would take them and would be fine with losing the pick if they didn’t cover.
Baltimore -6.5 over HOUSTON
I won’t be picking the Texans to cover against any even somewhat decent team this season. Against a Super Bowl contender? Nope.
New England +4 over SEATTLE
It’s so weird to see Cam Newton in a Patriots uniform and not see Brady as their quarterback. It will never not be weird. It’s also weird to see the Patriots as much as four-point underdogs.
New Orleans -5.5 over LAS VEGAS
I hate picking Saints games. I either pick them to cover and they screw me, or I go against them and they screw me. After last week’s win I don’t have a choice.
Last week: 8-7-1
Last modified: Jul 23, 2023
