We’re two weeks through the season in a season that’s already had a handful of upsets & surprises. This week, we expect some more upsets & we’ll be breaking down our predictions for each matchup. Through 2 weeks, we are 21-11 in our predictions.
New England Patriots at New York Jets
The first snooze fest of the Thursday Night games is here with the New England Patriots and New York Jets squaring off. The NFL is notorious for scheduling rather dull games in the Thursday night slot and it starts early this year in this week 3 AFC East matchup. Both teams enter with a 1-1 record but neither have really shown flashes of being good. The Patriots did beat the Bengals on the road and have that going for them, but Cincinnati lost that game more than New England won it. The Jets lone win was over a Tennessee team that has no offense. This game is going to be low scoring and ugly to watch. The winner is going to come down to which team can run the ball better and we think that Breece Hall and Braelon Allen will claim that feat.
Winner: New York Jets
New York Giants at Cleveland Browns
Two offenses that struggle face off as the Giants who lack a run game and have inconsistent play from Daniel Jones go up against the Browns who lack a quarterback and are still without star running back Nick Chubb who is on the PUP list. This game is going to come down to defense and with Myles Garrett healthy, the Browns are the better team and Garrett will completely take over the game.
Winner: Cleveland Browns
Green Bay Packers at Tennessee Titans
With Jordan Love likely to miss this game despite Green Bay not officially ruling him out just yet, the Packers will need to start Malik Willis once again. In a surprise to all of us, Malik Willis & the offense stormed over the Indianapolis Colts in Love’s absence. The Packers can still compete without him and leaned on the running game a bit more heavily. They face a defense that has surprisingly allowed the least amount of yards per game through 2 weeks. They also haven’t faced serious competition yet and the Packers are a step above the Bears & Jets. Malik Willis should do a fine job in beating his former team.
Winner: Green Bay Packers
Chicago Bears at Indianapolis Colts
One of the hardest games to predict is the Chicago Bears at the Indianapolis Colts, both teams are having major offensive struggles. Caleb Williams is trying to avoid the bust label & Anthony Richardson is in a sophomore slump. Both quarterbacks need to get things turned around & the one most likely to do that sooner is Anthony Richardson. We still expect him & Caleb Williams to struggle, but we think the Colts can get the run game going that will be enough to barely overcome Chicago in an ugly low scoring matchup.
Winner: Indianapolis Colts
Houston Texans at Minnesota Vikings
The showdown between the Texans and Vikings is set to be one of the best matchups of the week. Both teams come into this game undefeated with their offense being the story of their season. For the Texans, it’s the whole offense, it’s working on all units but their issue is closing out games and almost losing them. The Vikings have succeeded with the play of Sam Darnold who is making a statement to the league. Their issue is going to be if Justin Jefferson can play or not. The Vikings were able to hold off the 49ers fire power offense which gives us confidence that they can do the same with Houston who might be without Joe Mixon. The lack of a run game without Mixon is going to spell trouble. The Vikings can win without Jefferson, but the Texans are going to have a harder time without Mixon. The Vikings are an unlikely 3-0 and one of the best stories of the season.
Winner: Minnesota Vikings
Philadelphia Eagles at New Orleans Saints
Philadelphia’s defensive line has looked non-existent this season. This issue is going to hurt the Eagles against a New Orleans offense that just obliterated Philly’s NFC East rival in Dallas. Alvin Kamara alone has 4 touchdowns in a monster performance and the Eagles just lost to Kirk Cousins on a short week. The Saints defense has been able to shut down their first 2 opponents and without AJ Brown, the Saints secondary can prioritize DeVonta Smith making the Eagles need to lean on the run more which isn’t going to win them the ballgame.
Winner: New Orleans Saints
Los Angeles Chargers at Pittsburgh Steelers
Both the Chargers and Steelers have question marks at quarterback entering this matchup between undefeated teams. The Chargers should have Justin Herbert still who suffered a leg injury in the 2nd half. Even if Russell Wilson is healthy enough to play, the Steelers might stick with Justin Fields who has won 2 straight games. Herbert is an upgrade over both of them and the Chargers offense still has been solid despite all the losses to the group in the off-season. If Herbert plays, the Chargers move to 3-0.
Winner: Los Angeles Chargers
Denver Broncos at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Buccaneers are winners of 2 straight with a commanding win against Washington & a road upset against Detroit. Baker Mayfield is playing his best football and he’s not slowing down anytime soon. The Broncos who have looked pathetic in their first 2 games are going to get crushed by Baker’s who is on a mission to prove to doubters that he’s the real deal.
Winner: Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Carolina Panthers at Las Vegas Raiders
After a dud in week 1, the Raiders went on the road and pulled off a big upset over the Baltimore Ravens. The offense was finally showing off what it can do and the defense looked solid as well forcing turnovers on NFL MVP Lamar Jackson. The Panthers on the other hand were an absolute embarrassment getting blown out in 2 consecutive weeks. The offense, defense, and everything in between was atrocious leading to Panthers management to pull the plug on Bryce Young starting. Andy Dalton steps in and should give new life into this team, but we still don’t think it will be enough to get past the Raiders, but they should fare much better than the past 2 weeks.
Winner: Las Vegas Raiders
Miami Dolphins at Seattle Seahawks
The Seahawks are off to a 2-0 start but it’s been a bit ugly getting to that spot. If Tua was healthy, it would be another hard fought battle between these two teams. With Tua out & Skylar Thompson getting the nod, it’s going to be an ugly matchup for Miami. Skylar Thompson is not a serviceable starter in the league and the previous starts he does have under his belt were all brutal. The Dolphins are going to be in a rough time until Tua is back on the playing field or someone new comes into the picture to take over the offense.
Winner: Seattle Seahawks
Baltimore Ravens at Dallas Cowboys
This Ravens at Cowboys matchup is a tough one to predict as both teams lost in embarrassing fashion last week. The Ravens lost at home against the Raiders where costly mistakes were the key to them falling. The Cowboys just looked awful and lost their home winning streak against New Orleans. It’s hard imagining either the Ravens starting the season off 0-3 or the Cowboys starting 1-2, but for one of those teams, it’s going to be their reality. For the Ravens, they are going to avoid 0-3 and force the Cowboys losing two games in a row at home with the play of Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry. The Cowboys gave up 190 yards on the ground last week and with those two dynamic runners, it’s going to be what makes the difference.
Winner: Baltimore Ravens
San Francisco 49ers at Los Angeles Rams
Both of these NFC West teams made the playoffs last year, but one of these two is most likely going to miss it this year. That team being the Los Angeles Rams after they are now without top two wideouts Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp who both are on the IR and going to miss a significant chunk of the season. Without the two, their offense falls flat and that was evident in the 41-10 loss against Arizona. The 49ers also lost last week and have two injuries of their own in Deebo Samuel & CMC, but their offense still has life left in it with Jordan Mason picking up the slack & receiving threats in Aiyuk & Kittle. The 49ers should overpower the Rams and get their season back on track after their hiccup in week 2.
Winner: San Francisco 49ers
Detroit Lions at Arizona Cardinals
The best quarterback from week 2 was Kyler Murray. Him and the entire offense looked stellar. A big change from week 1 as they made Marvin Harrison Jr a key point of the offensive game plan. If they continue to do so, it’s going to spell trouble for Detroit who’s weak spot on defense lies in their secondary. They do have Aidan Hutchinson who finished with 4.5 sacks against Tampa Bay, but Kyler Murray is a more mobile quarterback than Baker and is used to making amazing plays under pressure. The Cardinals offense is legit and an upset over Detroit shouldn’t come as a shock.
Winner: Arizona Cardinals
Kansas City Chiefs at Atlanta Falcons
Kansas City continues to squeak by in games that come down to the wire. We don’t expect this one to come down to the wire as the Chiefs get their most comfortable win to date. The Falcons offense hasn’t lived up to the potential they have as Kirk Cousins is still trying to get back into form. In the 4th quarter upset against the Eagles was the best form that we’ve seen Kirk this season. Until he’s fully 100%, Atlanta needs to be faded against Kansas City and their Super Bowl level roster.
Winner: Kansas City Chiefs
Jacksonville Jaguars at Buffalo Bills
What the Jacksonville Jaguars and Buffalo Bills have in common is they both have faced the Miami Dolphins this season. The Jaguars went cold in second half and collapsed. Meanwhile, the Buffalo Bills shut down Miami’s offense even when Tua was still playing on their way to a 31-10 rout. The game now between Jacksonville and Buffalo should fare similar to how each of their games against Miami went with the Bills shutting down Jacksonville and lighting up the scoreboard.
Winner: Buffalo Bills
Washington Commanders at Cincinnati Bengals
Surprisingly the Washington Commanders enter this game 1-1 & the Cincinnati Bengals are the team that’s winless. If you asked us at the beginning of the season, you would’ve thought it would be the other way around. The Commanders barely pulled out the victory against the Giants despite not scoring a touchdown. Against Cincinnati, their offense is going to need to perform better if it wants a chance at winning. After a dud in week 1 against New England that we still can’t explain what happened, the Bengals looked back to their old selves despite the last minute loss against the Chiefs. Expecting the Bengals to play like they did last week, they shouldn’t have a problem putting the Commanders away.
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