1. San Francisco 49ers (-3) vs. Seattle Seahawks – The Niners enter 2010 as the clear favorites to win the NFC West. The Seahawks are in the process of purging their entire roster of veteran players and going with youth. This game will be won in the trenches.
The Niners defense will be too much for the injury laden Seahawks offensive line and will keep QB Matt Hasselback and Co. from finding a rhythm. On offensive, RB Frank Gore will run wild and the Niners will cruise to a 24-10 win. This is the best football bet of the opening week.
Next In Line
2. Jacksonville Jaguars (-2.5) vs. Denver Broncos – Can the Broncos really win this game with WR Brandon Marshall and DE Elvis Dumerville no longer on the roster? We don’t think so. Not that the Jags are good, just more of a low opinion towards Denver. Look for QB David Garrard, who plays his best ball at home, to manage the game efficiently and for Maurice Jones-Drew to prove too much for the Broncos Defense.
Defensively, the Jags will key on RB Knowshon Moreno and QB Kyle Orton will have a difficult time moving the ball through the air without a true No. 1 at the receiver position.
3. Carolina Panthers (+7) vs. New York Giants – John Fox always has a solid game plan for New York and the Panthers have a history of playing the Giants well in the Meadowlands. The Giants will be a much better outfit than a year ago, especially on defense, but the Panthers will keep the outcome close. The point spread (7) is too high.
4. Kansas City Chiefs (+4.5) vs. San Diego Chargers - See Money Line Bet below.
A Few More
5. Pittsburgh Steelers (+2) vs. Atlanta Falcons – The Steelers have given QB Dennis Dixon the ball before and he did admirably, nearly beating the Ravens in Baltimore a year ago. Expect Pittsburgh’s offensive game plan to focus heavily on the run and keep Dixon out of low percentage passing situations.
Defensively, expect DC Dick LeBeau to run an aggressive blitz scheme which limits RB Michael Turner’s effectiveness and puts pressure on QB Matt Ryan. It’ll be a low scoring affair which the Steelers will win.
6. Arizona Cardinals (-4) vs. St. Louis Rams – The 2010 version of the Cardinals is certainly not a world beater, but the Rams should be downright awful. Rookie QB Sam Bradford makes his career debut and has no one to throw the ball to.
The Cards will key on RB Steven Jackson and put the game into Bradford’s hands. On offense, expect the Rams to see a healthy dose of RB Beanie Wells and RB Tim Hightower and for Arizona to win by at least a TD.
7. New Orleans Saints (-4.5) vs. Minnesota Vikings (Thursday) – The defending Super Bowl Champs typically put on a show the first Thursday Night of the season. And we see the Saints following suit tomorrow. The Vikings are without WR Sidney Rice, a huge piece of their offense, and this means DC Gregg Williams will put eight men in the box to stop RB Adrian Peterson. He’ll also blitz aggressively to force Favre into ill advised throws (see his last pass of 2009 NFC Championship Game).
Offensively, QB Drew Brees will come out firing, and the Saints prolific passing game will be too much on this night. Expect a 31-24 final.
Money Line Bet
Kansas City Chiefs (+180)
The Chargers have come out slow from the gate each of the last three years. In 2009, though vastly superior to Oakland, they struggled mightily to win at the end. The Chiefs have a lot more talent offensively in 2010 and Offensive Coordinator Charlie Weis knows how to get the most out of his players.
Though the Chargers offense will move the ball, missing LT Marcus McNeill could prove devastating as it exposes Phillip Rivers’ blindside. Expect KC to try and exploit this weakness.
As such, look for the Chiefs to catch the Chargers off guard and win a close contest on Monday Night.
Pro Football 101» 2010 Week 1 Suicide Pool Picks
September 9th, 2010 at 09:27
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[...] 2. Arizona Cardinals vs. St. Louis Rams – The Rams are going to be very bad this year, especially on offense. RB Steven Jackson is the only player defenses need to worry about and Arizona is good at taking away the opposing team’s running game. On offense, RB Beanie Wells and RB Tim Hightower will lead the charge and Arizona will coast to an easy divisional win. [...]
Pro Football 101» 2010 NFL Picks – Week 2
September 17th, 2010 at 08:56
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[...] Chalk this selection up to the strangeness of the NFL. Did anyone else see the Chiefs win over the Chargers coming last Monday? [...]