Some Week One thoughts prior to the Sunday night game
Being a Chicago Bears fan living in Minneapolis, Minnesota and not being a subscriber to Direct TV means a few things, but mainly that if I want to watch most Bears games I need to go to a local sports bar or illegally stream it online. Today I chose the former and was treated to some good games on the televisions covering the walls. The service was great too, not the fastest but definitely easy on the eyes. I will probably be heading back to Station 280 to watch football often this season. Let’s take a look at some of the more interesting aspects of week one so far.
To me the most surprising aspect of week one is the amount of points that have been scored. Apparently the stoppers need more time and film to game plan for the scorers. Also contributing to the high number of points was the rust displayed by a few quarterbacks tossing a lot of balls to players in the wrong color jersey.
Not surprising to me, seeing as how he was the first quarterback I picked up in my fantasy draft in the seventh round, was the play of Robert Griffin III. He outplayed his proven counterpart, Drew Brees, in his first NFL regular season game and led his team to victory. Andrew Luck was not as fortunate in his first game with his Colts nearly being doubled up by the Bears 41-21 and throwing three interceptions. Had it not been for an ill-advised Jay Cutler pass that was intercepted and returned a few yards for a touchdown the score would have probably been more lopsided.
Although I am not yet prepared to post all of my picks I made for week one, I will say that I was close to having a heart attack while watching the finale of Philadelphia’s win over Cleveland. I took them in my survivor league and was sweating bullets throughout the second half.
The Carolina Panthers and New York Giants lost but neither of those upsets were as dynamic as the Saints loss. Are the Washington Redskins a team that should be taken as serious contenders for the NFC East title? Is RGIII ready to lead his team on long playoff run? Should Saints fans be scared? Next week should provide some clarity for us as New Orleans takes on Carolina in a divisional game and Washington has to travel to the West Coast and play a late game.
The biggest story for Bears and Vikings fans (other than the rookie kicker coming through in the clutch and ultimately winning the game for the Minnesota faithful) is the Green Bay Packers loss to the San Francisco 49ers. Another preview, I picked the ‘niners not only to cover the spread but to win outright.
I thought the same thing about the SF vs GB game. I have a friend who bets the games and he asked me what I thought since he could get odds on an outright win and I suggested he bet it. SF is for real now that Harbaugh is coaching and I think Denver is an AFC team that will have to be dealt with too. Manning still has that old magic.
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As I alluded to earlier, I am in a couple of different NFL Pick leagues. Below are my picks for each and every game and a short reasoning as to why I picked what I did. I know picks are normally posted ahead of the games but I do not want to tip my hand to anyone that I am picking against. If any proof is needed talk to me. Straight up picks will be bolded and spread picks will be italicized.
Dallas Cowboys@ New York Giants -3.5
New York has not been a great regular season team the last few seasons and had some injury trouble. Dallas is looking extremely promising on offense and I figured would come hot out of the gate.
Indianapolis Colts @ Chicago Bears-10.5
The Colts had the worst team in the league last season and even the number one pick in the draft cannot turn this team around. Chicago upgraded their offense in every aspect except offensive line and has the same serviceable defense as last year. Chicago is a playoff team this year
Philadelphia Eagles@ Cleveland Browns +8.5
I figured Philadelphia would come out stronger against the Browns, I have them fighting Dallas to win the NFC East this year. Cleveland is starting a rookie at running back and quarterback and has a poor offensive line. Philly was also my survivor pick and I almost did not make it out of week one.
St. Louis Rams @ Detroit Lions -8.5
The Lions are good, but not good enough to blow away the Rams. This was more a gut pick than based off of anything tangible.
New England Patriots@ Tennessee Titans +6.5
New England is a power team and Tennessee is a bottom feeder. Tom Brady over Jake Locker any day.
Atlanta@ Kansas City +0.5
I debated long and hard on this pick, KC returned a lot of big name players, but I knew Atlanta’s offense was just too potent. Not even the hallowed Arrowhead stadium could slow them down.
Jacksonville Jaguars @ Minnesota Vikings-4.5
Adrian Peterson was playing for the Vikings, that was good enough for me. I was fortunate that the Vikes didn’t fold under pressure like last season. Blair Walsh came up big for the purple men.
Washington Redskins @ New Orleans Saints -9.5
I was wrong about the Saints winning, but I knew that the Redskins would keep it close. Much turmoil about the Saints and Robert Griffin III is the real deal.
Buffalo Bills@ New York Jets -3.5
The Jets looked horrible in the preseason with no promise of better things coming. I was high on Fitzpatrick and was wrong.
Miami Dolphins @ Houston Texans-7.5
Miami looks like a bottom three team and Houston looks like a top three team in the league.
San Francisco 49ers@ Green Bay Packers -6.5
San Francisco returns this season with one of the best defenses in the league. They upgraded their offense and Smith looked better toward the end of the year. Green Bay likes to drop passes.
Seattle Seahawks@ Arizona Cardinals -1.5
I had more faith in Wilson than Skelton/Kolb. That was my mistake.
Carolina Panthers@ Tampa Bay Buccaneers +2.5
I really thought Cam Newton would play better than he did, and that Tampa did not have much talent.
Pittsburgh Steelers @ Denver Broncos-1.5
Peyton Manning manning any offense is a smart decision. Denver returns a solid defense and Pittsburgh is slowly getting old.
Cincinnati Bengals @ Baltimore Ravens-6.5
I feel as if the Bengals are a playoff team, but the Ravens play well in openers and Flacco has a lot to prove this season.
San Diego Chargers@ Oakland Raiders +1.5
The Raiders lost some key play makers and San Diego needs a win to keep pace with Denver.
Just so you don’t have to go back and count what I got wrong and what I got right, I finished with 12/16 in straight up to be at 99.6 percentile and ranked 1,613 amongst ESPN players and 11/16 against the spread to be at 98.9 percentile and ranked 1379.
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