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NFL Week 3 Game-By Game Preview:
NY Giants at Cleveland - The G-Men are beginning to show many of the same problems that have sidelined them during playoff times in recent seasons. It's not looking good for Big Blue. And the Browns feel like a good team, likely a playoff contender, and they have home field advantage, to boot. My pick: Cleveland
Denver at Tampa Bay - The Bucs have really surprised me with how good they have proven to be so far this season. Now, they host the Denver Broncos, a team that has struggled quite a bit this season, and does not appear to be coming close to reaching their highest potential. With home field advantage and a ton of momentum and confidence, the Bucs should be able to produce a win here in this one, one would suspect. My pick: Tampa Bay
Philadelphia at New Orleans - As hard as it is to believe, if there is one team in the NFC, if not perhaps the entire league, who looks simply dominant to this point, it would be the Saints. They crushed the Panthers in the Super Dome to open this season, which itself was not a surprise. But last weekend in Dallas, the Saints dominated the Cowboys, and earned a surprisingly easy looking, and very convincing, road win against a tough team. With the Eagles, you have a less than certain team that could be turning it around from the disastrous end of their season last year (following an amazing 10-1 start that had people believing that Philly was going back to the Super Bowl, they lost six of their final seven games, including their one and done playoff appearance). So this one is really hard to tell. Still, the Saints have a ton of momentum and are at home against a team that looks still a little suspect, which makes me believe that they should produce a win. My pick: New Orleans
Green Bay at Tennessee - Jordan Love is still questionable, and the Pack will sit out other starters. So they are not at full strength. If they were, my pick would go in favor of Green Bay. However, the Titans are due for their first win of the season, and a weak Packers team feels like a good opportunity for them to finally earn it. My pick: Tennessee
Houston at Minnesota - A battle between two unbeaten teams. This one is tough to call. Both of these teams have at least met, if not exceeded, expectations to this point in the season. Neither has lost a game. The Vikings beat a weak team in the G-Men on the road in Week 1, but they got the best of the defending NFC champion 49ers last weekend, which was a really impressive win. The Texans have beaten the Colts, and then outlasted Da Bears in a tough game last weekend. That is how the two teams arrived at this point, but this one feels like a toss up. There are reasons for belief in victory for both teams, yet there is enough room for doubts, as well. Still, I will give the Vikings the benefit of the doubt, having earned more accolades by surprising people so far this season, and also enjoying home field advantage in this game, which I think that they can win, albeit in a tight contest that should go right down to the wire. My pick: Minnesota
Chicago at Indianapolis - The Bears have not played poorly so far this season, having fought the Texans hard right to the end last weekend, after winning their season opener. One question mark for me is their offense, which really still appears to be struggling. The Colts also are struggling, of course, with an 0-2 record and still searching for their first win of the season. But I expect them to earn that first win soon, and in fact, this feels like the game where they will finally manage it. My pick: Indy
LA Chargers at Pittsburgh - A battle between unbeatens, and easily the toughest test that either team has faced so far in this young season. The Chargers feel like they might be making that jump, similar to the way to the 49ers did once Harbaugh took over that team. They have won both of their first games, and have looked good doing it. However, the Steelers are a tough team, and are winning grinding, low-scoring, physical games with a tough defense and producing just enough offense to earn the "W." This one feels like it could go either way, and my expectations are that it will be decided late in the fourth, quite possibly with the last team to get the ball earning the win. My pick: Pittsburgh
Carolina at Las Vegas - The Raiders looked dangerous last week in beating the Ravens, one of the presumed elites, on the road in Baltimore. True, they also lost convincingly against the Chargers, but they have played tough defensively this season. And let's face it: the Panthers simply are not playing at a very high level, and are looking frankly terrible to this point this year, having produced all of 13 points to this point in the season. We should probably expect further offensive struggles for Carolina, and not too many points by them. Look for the original, iconic Silver and Black franchise to come up big on "D" and to win this home game by a comfortable margin. My pick: Las Vegas
Miami at Seattle - The Seahawks have surprised some people with their surprisingly solid start. They have raced off to a 2-0 start, and now host a suddenly vulnerable looking Dolphins team that will be without their starting quarterback, who of course suffered another concussion last week against the Bills. He will be going to Seattle, and courted controversy by attending a Disney event which apparently enraged some Miami fans (although I am not sure why, since that clearly is not as dangerous as an NFL game would be). One way or the other, it feels like Miami is not at full strength. Meanwhile, the Seahawks seem to be firing on all cylinders to this point. And hosting a big game like this, with a chance to improve to 3-0, look for the 'Hawks to do what they need and win another ugly game to keep their beautiful unbeaten record intact. My pick: Seattle
Baltimore at Dallas - Neither of these teams are where they want to be at this point in the season. The Cowboys did win their opening game on the road in Cleveland. However, that brutal home loss to the Saints last weekend made that win feel, frankly, like it was a long time ago. They surely feel like they need a strong performance in this one. Yet the team that they are playing is, in fact, perhaps more in need of a win. It's beginning to get urgent for the Ravens, who absolutely cannot afford to lose this game, and find themselves in an 0-3 hole to open the season. They lost both games to Kansas City and the Raiders, but they also crucially were in both games. And my expectation is that they make the necessary adjustments and get things right enough to earn a tough road win in Big D, and to finally get their first win of the season. My pick: Baltimore
San Francisco at LA Rams - The 49ers have owned the Rams in recent seasons. And seeing as though the Rams are a frankly astonishing 0-2 at this point, having just suffered a blowout loss on top of it in Arizona, I am skeptical that this team has what they need to overcome an obstacle on the level of the 49ers at this point in time. My pick: San Francisco
Detroit at Arizona - Another game that is tough to call. It feels like the Lions should be 2-0 at this point. But they are not, and suffered a tough home loss to the Bucs, the team that they earned a solid postseason win against back in January. Now, they go on the road to take on the surprising Cardinals, who almost stunned the Bills up in Buffalo in Week 1, and then obliterated the Rams last weekend in an early NFC West divisional showdown. So this is a tough one, because I could see it going either way. For now, I'll give the nod to the Lions, who still feel (again, for now) like the better of these two clubs overall. My pick: Detroit
Sunday Night: Kansas City at Atlanta - The Chiefs are 2-0, although cynics feel like they were helped by the refs in last weekend's squeaker over the Bengals. KC has managed to win both of their first two games, however, and they now go on the road for the first time this season. The Falcons managed a big win at Philly, and are thus riding high. However, the Chiefs have a ton of experience, and obviously, considerable talent, as well. They know how to win tough games, even in less than glamorous circumstances. And so I expect them to find a way to win this one, as well. My pick: Kansas City
Monday Night Football Game # 1: Jax at Buffalo - Both of these teams figured to be among the playoff contenders. Yet somehow, the Jaguars have dropped their first two games, while the Bills have won both of their first two. The Bills also have had some time to rest following their surprisingly dominant win at Miami, and so that also gives them an edge entering this game. The Jaguars were in both games which they lost (at Miami and hosting Cleveland), but the key is that they lost both games. The Bills are a tough team, and especially on the road up in Buffalo. Expect the Bills to win this one. My pick: Buffalo
Monday Night Football Game # 2: Washington at Cincinnati - This game is a tough one to pick. Logic would suggest that Cincy is the better overall team. However, they have not shown that too much so far this season. Then again, Washington has also struggled, and their offense still has not produced all that much, and betrayed struggles. So both teams have yet to show the best of themselves, and that makes this more difficult than perhaps it otherwise should be. Still, sooner or later, the better version of the Bengals are bound to show up. Might as well be in this game, to avoid digging themselves in what likely would be a truly disastrous 0-3 start. My pick: Cincinnati
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