Monday Night Football games ended up salvaging my record for the first week of the season. A 10-6 record is nothing spectacular, but it's not too bad. However, I strive for better. Let's hope I can get that win total to about 12 this week.
Pittsburgh Steelers at Baltimore Ravens
I wish these two teams would wear an alternate color, blue, when they meet up with one another; substituting for the Steelers' yellow and the Ravens' purple. Know why? Because they've beaten each other up so much over the years in this intense rivalry that at least a few players must have been black and blue all over. It was an interesting first week for both these teams. The Steelers started great against the Browns, jumping out to a 27-3 halftime lead, losing that lead and then Shaun Suisham kicked home a 41 yard field goal as time expired to prevent what would have been a horrible loss. The Ravens began their game with Cincinnati by falling behind 15-0 until scoring 16 straight points to take a one point lead, but then the defense gave it right back on a long bomb to A.J. Green in a 23-16 Baltimore loss. I'd expect another close, physical, low scoring game between these two. I'll go with the black and purple in this one by a field goal. They don't want to start out of the gate by losing two straight at home, especially when one of those comes at the hands of their biggest rivals.
My Call: Ravens 20, Steelers 17
Miami Dolphins at Buffalo Bills
Two teams expected to open 2014 with a loss surprised with wins. Miami outscored New England 23-0 in the second half after falling behind 20-10 at halftime while the Bills went into Chicago and won 23-20 in overtime in a back and forth affair with the Bears. So which team goes to 2-0? I'm not so happy you asked me, but I'll take the Bills. I do think defensive tackles Kyle Williams and Marcell Dareus will be able to expose the middle of that Dolphins offensive line resulting in turnovers while the offense does just enough to capitalize on it all.
My Call: Bills 20, Dolphins 14
Jacksonville Jaguars at Washington Redskins
Both teams will be looking to bounce back from season opening losses. The Jags actually stormed out to a 17-0 lead in Philadelphia before falling 34-17 to the Eagles while the Redskin offense struggled all game long in a 17-6 loss to the Texans. Poor special teams play was part of the problem for Washington as they missed an extra point and had a punt blocked which resulted in a TD for Houston. Jacksonville had special teams issues of their own as kicker Josh Scobee missed two field goals. I think Robert Griffin III bounces back at home against a Jags squad that won't be able to consistently put up points with Chad Henne under center.
My Call: Redskins 27, Jaguars 20
Dallas Cowboys at Tennessee Titans
They say you shouldn't overreact to one week's worth of games, but the Titans looked like a much different, better team than you saw a season ago while the Cowboys had a hard time of it against the 49ers in an opening game loss. My guess for this game is Dallas QB Tony Romo can bounce back some, but the Cowboy defense is so bad that Jake Locker may be able to keep up his fantastic first week performance against Kansas City. With all this in mind, I'll take the Titans to move to 2-0.
My Call: Titans 31, Cowboys 24
Arizona Cardinals at New York Giants
Monday night games for both teams means they only have six days to prepare for their Sunday afternoon matchup. A long trip to the East Coast following an emotional come from behind victory over the Chargers won't prove to be an easy task, but I think as long as Carson Palmer can hold onto the ball, Arizona should be able to overcome that and win. It'll be close against a Giants team that won't want to start out 0-2 after being blown out by Detroit, but Michael Floyd might be able to break a couple big plays like Calvin Johnson did to make the difference. Plus Eli Manning is prone to throwing the interceptions if all else fails.
My Call: Cardinals 21, Giants 20
New England Patriots at Minnesota Vikings
Jumping out to a 20-10 halftime lead was not an omen for a good start for New England this year as they were outscored 23-0 in the 2nd half in a 33-20 loss to the Miami Dolphins. The Minnesota Vikings used their defense and Cordarrelle Patterson to batter the Rams in a 34-6 victory. As much as I'd love to see the Patriots start out this season 0-2, I just can't see it happening. They'll come ready to play here after a bad second half in Miami and the Vikings will be the unfortunate recipients of facing an angry New England squad.
My Call: Patriots 34, Vikings 21
New Orleans Saints at Cleveland Browns
Wild could be used to describe the games both these teams were involved in the first week. New Orleans lost 37-34 to division rival Atlanta in overtime while the Browns fell behind 27-3 in Pittsburgh before tying the game at 27 only to fall 30-27 on a Shaun Suisham field goal as time expired. Good news for the Saints is stopping the Cleveland offense shouldn't prove to be nearly the challenge that stopping the Falcons offense was and you know that their offense can put up the points. That should prove plenty to bounce back and even up their record.
My Call: Saints 34, Browns 13
Detroit Lions at Carolina Panthers
Carolina managed to survive its 2014 debut without the services of Cam Newton, who missed the game due to fractured ribs. They did so in part because their defense was able to keep the Bucs off the scoreboard until the 4th quarter while backup QB Derek Anderson had a solid game in relief. Assuming Cam is a full go, he'll pump some extra life into a Panthers offense with his arm and scrambling abilities. Another strong defensive effort will be needed defensively if Carolina wants to improve to 2-0. Either way, I expect they'll provide a far better challenge to Detroit than the Giants provided on Monday night. I'll surprise a bit and take the Lions. Cam could be a bit rusty after missing that first game while that Lions defense has the front seven capable of putting pressure on him. And of course, the Lions can put up points.
My Call: Lions 27, Panthers 23
Atlanta Falcons at Cincinnati Bengals
Got two teams here looking to move to 2-0 on the season. The Falcons showed some grit in rallying for a 37-34 OT win over rival New Orleans while the Bengals did the same in a 23-16 win in Baltimore after blowing a 15 point lead. This is a game where I am letting the venue make my pick for me. Cincinnati is very tough at home while their defense won't let Matt Ryan run as wild as the Saints defense did. It won't always be easy, but I'll roll with A.J. Green having a big day and that Cincinnati defense forcing a costly Matt Ryan mistake to lead the way to victory.
My Call: Bengals 34, Falcons 27
St. Louis Rams at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Watching the Rams in their opener, they didn't look like they'd be able to score on the sisters of the blind. Tampa Bay struggled offensively as well, but their struggles came against a very good front seven of the Carolina Panthers. I expect Josh McCown to get Vincent Jackson involved far more in this one and while the Ram defense will keep them in it, I trust the Bucs more to come up with a play offensively since between Jackson, Doug Martin and Mike Evans, they have the better, more trustworthy skill players than St. Louis does.
My Call: Buccaneers 17, Rams 10
Seattle Seahawks at San Diego Chargers
Ouch... the Chargers blew an 11 point fourth quarter lead on Monday night in Arizona and have to return home to take on the defending Super Bowl champs, who looked every bit the part in a dominating 20 point win over the Green Bay Packers this past Thursday night. I'd expect a motivated Charger team to take the field and give the Seahawks their best shot, but we saw how big a difference a healthy Percy Harvin can make. He'll play a major role in providing the difference in what I expect to be a very close game between these two decided in the final minutes.
My Call: Seahawks 24, Chargers 21
Houston Texans at Oakland Raiders
Had Jadeveon Clowney not gotten hurt in Houston's opening week win over Washington, we'd have seen the two top picks on the defensive side of the football from the 2014 Draft on the same field. For Oakland, they have a new outside linebacker by the name of Khalil Mack. He and that Raider defense are gonna have to pick up the slack for an offense that probably won't be putting up too many points on the board this season. Even though Clowney may not play in this one, J.J. Watt certainly will. I don't think anybody on the Raiders can stop him from wreaking havoc. In a very low scoring game where both defenses shine, I'll take Houston's to shine just a bit more.
My Call: Texans 14, Raiders 13
New York Jets at Green Bay Packers
Blowout city is my call for this one. Aaron Rodgers and that Packer offense will make amends for a horrible performance in Seattle while the defense will make life miserable for Geno Smith and that Jets offense. They'll put on a good show at Lambeau Field for the fans; easing a few tensions after being beaten soundly in the first week.
My Call: Packers 42, Jets 17
Kansas City Chiefs at Denver Broncos
Last thing a team wants to face after losing its first game is a trip to Denver to take on Peyton Manning and that high powered Broncos offense. However, that's the challenge facing Kansas City. Do the Chiefs have the answer to finding that magic formula which helped them begin last year 9-0? Not in this game, they won't. Like they did against the Colts, expect the Broncos to start off this one fast as well. However, KC won't be able to fight its way back into this one the way Andrew Luck and the Colts were able to do. They just don't have that kind of offensive firepower.
My Call: Broncos 38, Chiefs 13
Chicago Bears at San Francisco 49ers
An inconsistent Bears team fell short in overtime at home to Buffalo while the 49ers easily went into Arlington and beat up on a dead Dallas Cowboys team. Now they get to play their first ever regular season game in their new home, Levi's Stadium. Brett Favre has been upset with the Niners for a while for not naming their stadium after his favorite brand of jeans.. Wrangler. Anyway, Colin Kaepernick should find success against that inconsistent Chicago defense. While the Bears offense will have their moments, I just can't bet on Jay Cutler finding a way to pull this one off. Niners take it in a game that's more competitive than their game with Dallas was, but by a bigger margin of victory.
My Call: 49ers 34, Bears 20
Philadelphia Eagles at Indianapolis Colts
Game of the week type potential here as two teams will look to build off their momentum of solid finishes after slow starts. The Eagles fell behind 17-0 to Jacksonville at halftime before storming back for a 34-17 win and even though Indy went onto lose in Denver, they rallied back from a 24-0 deficit to make things a bit interesting in a 31-24 defeat. Both teams should put up some points. When in doubt, go with the team that's at home and needs to win the game more. Andrew Luck and the Colts by a field goal in a shootout that possibly goes to overtime.
My Call: Colts 33, Eagles 30
