Week 2 Previews and Picks

Last week I promised to preview Superfan. I was not impressed. The Superfan package on DirecTV's Sunday Ticket was disappointing. The Red Zone Channel had Washinton/Chicago on for the better part of the day, even when other teams were in the Red Zone. And watching 8 games on one screen? No thanks. Way too distracting. I'll spend that $100 on something else.

Week 2 should hopefully start getting us back to normalcy. It's doubtful that Miami, San Francisco, and Washington will all win on the same weekend too many times this year.

Best Games to Watch
1. New England at Carolina - A past Super Bowl rematch. Carolina has to avoid going 0-2 without one of their best defensive players. New England looked good against a bad Oakland team, can they score on this defense?

2. San Diego at Denver - One of these teams goes 0-2, which is very bad in this division. The Chargers haven't had much success in Denver. The Broncos were embarrassed last week and will come out strong.

3. Buffalo at Tamp Bay - This will be low-scoring but fun to watch. One of them will go 2-0 and get a leg up in their division.

4. Jacksonville at Indianapolis - The Colts struggled against the Ravens for a couple of quarters last week. If Baltimore had any offense at all, the Colts would be 0-1. Leftwich plays well against the Colts. This could be a classic.

5. Washington at Dallas - Parcells has his team looking good. Gibbs has his defense looking good. The winner stays one up on Philly.


Best Fantasy Games (Highest Scoring)
Kansas City at Oakland - Lots of offense, very little defense. Trent Green, Holmes, and Gonzalez will be big, Larry Johnson get score some, too. Collins and Moss should hook up often.

Jacksonville at Indianapolis - We all know the Colts can score, but the Jags have opened up their offense, too. Manning, Harrison, and Stokely should do well. Leftwich and Jimmy Smith could also put some numbers up. Fred Taylor also has good potential here.

Minnesota at Cincinatti - Culpepper won't play thet poorly ever again! The Vikings all have something to prove. The Bengals are looking to go 2-0 and have the offense to do it. Palmer and Chad Johnson should do well. Don't count on Rudi doing too much. Culpepper and Nate Burleson could have big days. Also watch for Jermaine Wiggins. Culpepper likes him close to the end zone and when they must have positive yards.

My Picks (5-8 this season)
Last week was bad for prognostication. Too many bad impressions from the pre-season. Need to ignore ESPN.

Baltimore at Tennessee - Baltimore, big.
Buffalo at Tamp Bay - Tampa Bay, Losman didn't impress against bad Texans defense.
Detroit at Chicago - Detroit, but it will be close.
Jacksonville at Indianapolis - I'm tempted to take the upset here, but I think the Colts will win.
Pittsburgh at Houston - Pittsburgh. No contest.
San Francisco at Philadelphia - Trotter's back, Eagles win.
Atlanta at Seattle - Atlanta wins, Holmgren starts the hot seat squirm.
St Louis at Arizona - Both were disappointed last week. St Louis wins a close one.
Cleveland at Green Bay - Packers offense looked horrible. Browns in a minor upset.
Miami at New York Jets - The Dolphins defense looks super, the Jets look 0-2. Dolphins win.
San Diego at Denver - The Chargers struggle in Denver. Denver wins a close one.
Kansas City at Oakland - The Chiefs will win a wild game.
Washington at Dallas - Cowboys. The Redskins have no offense.

Upsets of the Week (1-1 this season)
Minnesota at Cincinatti - The Vikings offense rebounds big. Vikings by 10. My Homer pick.
New Orleans at New York Giants - The Saints could win this one easily.
New England at Carolina - It's not often I go against the Patriots, but this one just smells like an upset.