2012 Week 2 Picks

Same deal as last week. Last week we tied, which was interesting. I'm still searching for that perfect week, which I've never had as long as I've been doing picks -- but I feel really good about this week! I have some upsets in there, notably Rams and Browns. They came so close last year, and always play well against each other. Remember all the first picks are mine.

Cardinals (1-0) vs. Patriots (1-0)
Pick: Patriots       Pick: Patriots
Buccaneers (1-0) vs. Giants (0-1)
Pick: Giants        Pick: Giants
Raiders (0-1) vs. Dolphins (0-1)
Pick:  Raiders     Pick: Raiders
Saints (0-1) vs. Panthers (0-1)
Pick: Saints    Pick: Saints
Vikings (1-0) vs. Colts (0-1)
Pick: Vikings    Pick: Vikings
Texans (1-0) vs. Jaguars (0-1)
Pick: Texans   Pick: Texans
Browns (0-1) vs. Bengals (0-1)
Pick: Browns   Pick: Bengals
Ravens (1-0) vs. Eagles (1-0)
Pick: Ravens   Pick: Ravens
Chiefs (0-1) vs. Bills (0-1)
Pick: Bills   Pick: Bills
Cowboys (1-0) vs. Seahawks (0-1)
Pick: Cowboys    Pick: Cowboys
Redskins (1-0) vs. Rams (0-1)
Pick: Rams   Pick: Redskins
Jets (1-0) vs. Steelers (0-1)
Pick: Steelers   Pick: Steelers
Titans (1-0) vs. Chargers (1-0)
Pick: Titans   Pick: Chargers
Lions (1-0) vs. 49ers (1-0)
Pick: 49ers   Pick: 49ers
Broncos (1-0) vs. Falcons (1-0)
Pick: Broncos  Pick: Broncos 

Thursday Night Football (early in the season!)

I'm not sure how they managed to wing Thursday night football this early in the season. I'm not a huge fan of Thursday Night football for a few reasons. 1. It's a school night and as a college student I do actually have homework to do. 2. It can only be seen on NFL network, a network I don't get at school and many people don't get in their homes.  3. A game like Packers/Bears is a game that most hardcore football fans would like to see and by limiting it the NFL is doing the fans a disservice.

All of that being said, I do think the Packers will bounce back and win tonight. They had a tougher test in Week 1 than the Bears did and are unlikely to lose two games at home.

Bears (1-0) vs. Packers (0-1)
Pick: Packers

2012 Week 1 Picks

Here's the deal for picks this year. For the first week, my boyfriend Steven and I are going head to head and you all get to watch. Hopefully, I represent well and beat him. (In interest of fairness, we picked completely separately from each other, which is easy because we live in different states right now.) The first pick of each game is my pick. The second is his. Because each team is undefeated, I haven't put records in like I normally would have. Enjoy! I've also provided a link here to the "experts" picks. NFL.com "Offical" picks

Colts vs. Bears
Pick: Colts    Steven: Bears
Falcons vs. Chiefs
Pick: Falcons   Steven: Falcons
Eagles vs. Browns
Pick: Eagles   Steven: Eagles
Redskins vs. Saints
Pick: Saints    Steven: Saints
Rams vs. Lions
Pick: Lions   Steven: Lions
Patriots vs. Titans
Pick: Patriots   Steven: Patriots
Jaguars vs. Vikings
Pick: Vikings   Steven: Vikings
Bills vs. Jets
Pick: Bills   Steven: Jets
Dolphins vs. Texans
Pick: Texans   Steven: Texans
Seahawks vs. Cardinals
Pick: Cardinals   Steven: Seahawks
49ers vs. Packers
Pick: Packers   Steven: Packers
Panthers vs. Buccaneers
Pick: Panthers  Steven: Panthers
Steelers vs. Broncos
Pick: Broncos   Steven: Steelers
Bengals vs. Ravens
Pick: Ravens   Steven: Ravens
Chargers vs. Raiders
Pick: Chargers  Steven: (Update) Chargers

AFC West 2012 Predictions

Denver Broncos
Goodbye Tim, Hello Peyton.

Kansas City Chiefs
May the force be with you, Matt Cassel and Jamaal Charles.

San Diego Chargers
Dear Philip, please throw to the team with the same decal on their helmets as you have on yours.

Oakland Raiders
The silver and black will be back on the right track…in a year or two.

AFC South 2012 Predictions

Houston Texans
The Texans finally broke through last year, for a franchise first playoff appearance and win. That success should continue this year, especially with the permanent departure of Peyton from this division. Schaub will be back, hopefully for the whole season. Though I wouldn’t lose faith if T.J Yates had to jump in and start again. After all, he does have the only playoff win in Texans’ history under his belt. Arian Foster must remain healthy, as must Andre Johnson, both of whom had issues last year. And there aren’t that many concerns on the defense—they let Mario Williams, their 1st overall pick, go. J.J Watt and new LB Bradie James, among Brian Cushing, Brooks Reed and Glover Quinn anchor the unit. They were the 2nd ranked defense last year! They’ll sweep through this division and into the playoffs without a problem.

Indy Colts
I believe in Andrew Luck. This is my daring pick for the AFC. They probably won’t make playoffs, but they will have a much better record. He is the real deal. He has good receivers around him, mostly Reggie Wayne. The offensive line is newly composed of new players (Samson Satele, Mike McGlynn and Winston Justice) who will try to protect the Luck. Maybe Donald Brown and Mewelde Moore will put together some form of a running game. The biggest change here will be Chuck Pagano’s arrival because he will improve the defense. Many of the pieces are already there and maybe the new additions of Vontae Davis and Tom Zbikowski in the secondary will help generate more coverage sacks. Except the Colts to surprise this year!

Tennessee Titans 
Chris Johnson’s poor year last year was a major concern and shock to many. What if it continues this year? Have defenses figured him out? Defenses probably won’t have a hard time figuring out Jake Locker as the QB. Britt and Washington are decent receivers, but nothing superb. If Johnson performs as he should, he could make or break Locker’s first season as the starter. The defense has its moments, but will remain in the middle of the pack as they were last year. That pretty much describes the whole Titans team—middle of the pack.

Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jaguars are perhaps the NFL’s most floundering franchise. Blaine Gabbert has not even come close to performing at an NFL level. The return of MDJ will make all the difference for this team, though Rashard Jennings could be a very nice surprise as the year goes on. Justin Blackmon and Laurent Robinson are the new receiving core. Marcedes Lewis could return to the form he had in 2010, but that remains to be seen. The defense (ranked 6th last year, believe it or not) needs to produce more sacks and pressure to contain the quarterbacks and running backs in this division. But William and Mary’s very own Derek Cox leads the secondary, boosted by the arrival of Aaron Ross from New York. Rebuilding isn’t even a good enough term for what’s going to happen to the Jags this year.

AFC East 2012 Predictions

New England Patriots
The Patriots will win this division. I do not believe they will go on to win, or even necessarily play in, the Super Bowl this year. Their offense, full of Brady, Lloyd, Welker and Gronkowski will blow people out of the water. However, I’m concerned about the running game. The leading career rusher on the roster right now is Tom Brady. Who is not a running quarterback. The defense should be better, but not great. It ranked 31st last year—people tend to forget that. There haven’t been too many changes either. Just the additions of Dont’a Hightower (LB) and Steve Gregory (FS). Kyle Arrington is also around, but how much playing time he’ll see is up for debate. A soft schedule should be kind to this unit. Playoffs for sure.

Buffalo Bills
Ryan Fitspatrick needs to return to the form of his first half season last year. The talent around him needs to help him once again rise—they need to be coherent as a unit. However, if Fred Jackson can stay healthy, I believe they have a shot to do just that. I believe in the Bills. I just do, for some reason I can’t even really put into words. A revamped defense, including Mario Williams, should help take some pressure off the offense. Is Mario Williams the Reggie White of today? Can his arrival change the outlook of a whole franchise? He will certainly help them in the division, containing Sanchez, Tebow and Tannehill. It’s the third year in the system—look for the Bills as a whole to put together some more consistent performances.

New York Jets
Honestly, I wish I had the guts to put the Jets in the bottom of this division. I really do, but I won’t. The defense will keep them afloat, in a manner of speaking. Tebow and Sanchez cannot co-exist. That was the one move this off-season that made no sense to me (for the Broncos it did). Sanchez will play badly because he has no receivers and very little running game and then the whole of New York will cry Tebow. Ryan probably won’t cave, but it certainly won’t help Sanchez’s confidence. The defense remains the same, however, with the exceptions of Laron Landry (SS) and Yeremiah Bell (FS) in the secondary. The hope is that second year player Muhammad Wiklerson matures to put some pressure on the opposing QBs. This ship is sinking fast, however.

Miami Dolphins
Can Joe Philbin lead this team back to a place of prominence in a city where the Heat also reside? We’ll see. However, people forget that though he was in the background in Green Bay, the players loved him. And players that love their coach are more likely to put more effort into making him look good. Soft spoken doesn’t always mean poor leadership. Speaking of leadership, Ryan Tannehill must take control of this team. He must instill a sense of hope in the players around him. A revamped offensive line hopes to keep him upright and able to find targets such as Reggie Bush and Davone Bess. The defense is nothing to write home about, but is home to several noteable players, such as Cameron Wake and Karlos Dansby, who might surprise. People hate the term rebuilding year, but this is certainly one for Miami.

AFC North 2012 Predicitions

Baltimore Ravens
The Ravens have been the strongest team in this division since the Harbarugh/Flacco era started five years ago. They were one missed kick away from going to the Super Bowl last year and that playoff game showed how Flacco has matured as a quarterback. The defense will be strong as long as Ray Lewis and Ed Reed are on the field, though the absence of Suggs for most, if not all of the season, will hurt them. Paul Kruger and Jameel McClain are going to have to pick up the slack. A new kicker should almost erase the memories of last year…almost.

Pittsburgh Steelers
The Steelers have had some rare drama this off-season. After getting bummed from the playoffs last year, they endured a lengthy holdout with wideout Mike Wallace and have running back issues. Todd Haley and Roethlisberger have to get on the same page, which has been fairly well documented throughout the off season. The defense is always good under Dick LeBeau, so that isn’t a huge concern, though injuries do. James Harrison is already a “game time decision” for this weekend’s opener. The schedule isn’t too brutal, but they need to put together a new look offense.

Cincinnati Bengals
The sophomore curse is coming after Andy Dalton and A.J Green. And by sophomore curse, I mean a killer schedule. Also, BenJarvis GreenEllis isn’t the back that Cedric Benson was. Last year, they had the advantage of surprise – no one expected them to burst onto the scene. This year, there’s no trickery involved; in other words defenses will be ready for what’s coming. And in this division, that means Baltimore and Pittsburgh are coming. Cincy’s defense itself is pretty good, ranked 7th overall. They didn’t make any huge acquisitions however, so nothing has really changed. Last year was a blip on the radar for these Bengals.

Cleveland Browns
The Browns still don’t know what they want from their team. Who are they? Who do they want to be offensively and defensively? After a failed experiment with Colt McCoy, they went out and drafted 28 year old Brandon Weeden. His age will be an advantage here because of the maturity that comes with it, something this team has lacked for a long time. The larger addition of Trent Richardson is more important for this team to finally find some offense. A good running game can cover a lot of other problems. A revamped DL with John Hughes and Frostee Rucker will attempt to reign in the quarterbacks of this division. However, the rest of the division is just too strong for the poor Browns.