The Commish's Picks - Week 2

Commish's picks are in BOLD.

Carolina Panthers at Atlanta Falcons
Two words to explain my pick: Jake Delhomme.  His last two outings have been complete implosions and I don't expect it to get any better.  I expect the Falcons to refocus on the running game to balance out Matt Ryan and Tony Gonzalez and cruise to a fairly easy victory.

Minnesota Vikings at Detroit Lions
Detroit hasn't won a game since 2007 and I don't think they are going to break the streak against Adrian Peterson and the rest of his Vikings teammates.  I expect the Vikings to replicate their offensive game plan from week 1 and load up on the Lions running game to put the game in Matt Stafford's hands.

Cincinnati Bengals at Green Bay Packers
The Packers offense is ready to explode and I think that the visiting Bengals are ready to oblige.  In addition, I believe that the Packers defense is capable of being a top ten defense, so I expect them to prove that their dominance of the Bears defense was not a fluke.

Houston Texans at Tennessee Titans
In week 1, the Texans looked awful against the New York Jets.  I think that the Titans have a better defense then the Jets, so I don't expect it to improve too much for Houston.  The Titans have a young and deep defensive line that is going to be chomping at the bit to get their chance to go against the Texans' offensive line.  I predict that Matt Schaub will be under pressure all game long, which will lead to turnovers and short fields for the Titans offense.

Oakland Raiders at Kansas City Chiefs
Both teams looked better than advertised on offense in week 1.  I'm mainly going with the Chiefs because they have the home field advantage and the Raiders have the look of a team that is much more comfortable in the Black Hole than on the road.

New England Patriots at New York Jets
The Patriots looked enormously vulnerable on Monday Night against a team that they have owned over the last several years.  They needed a gift fumble from the Bills just for the Patriots to pull out a victory.  Their defense was inconsistent and the Bills used Fred Jackson to exploit the New England linebackers.  In addition, the Bills pressured Tom Brady on a regular basis.  Now they have to face a more dynamic offense without their defensive leader, Jarrod Mayo and they have to face the aggressive, Rex Ryan-designed defense that is more than eager to get their chance at Brady.  Let's just say that I don't like the Pats this week.

New Orleans Saints at Philadelphia Eagles
I have a hard time picking against Drew Brees and the high flying Saints.  I think that the Eagles defense is still finding its way without Jim Johnson and some of the veterans that have left the team and I think Brees is at the top of his game, which gives him the advantage.  I think that Kevin Kolb starting at quarterback plays right into the hands of a Saints defense that needs every break they can get.  Even if Donovan McNabb finds a way onto the field, I still like the Saints to move to 2-0.

St. Louis Rams at Washington Redskins
The Rams are a complete mess.  They have no playmakers outside of Steven Jackson on offense and their defense has too many holes to plug them all before they face the Redskins.  I think that the Redskins will be able to get healthy against a team that was absolutely destroyed in Seattle in week 1.

Arizona Cardinals at Jacksonville Jaguars
There are two reasons why I don't like the Cardinals in this one.  First of all, they were even less then one-dimensional in their week one loss because they couldn't run the ball and their injuries at wide receiver limited the passing game.  Secondly, I never like West Coast teams playing early games on the east coast.  I think a heavy dose of Maurice Jones-Drew mixed with a dash of David Garrard and his no-name wide receivers will be enough to get a win for Jacksonville.

Seattle Seahawks at San Francisco 49ers
The 49ers are mediocre on offense and improving on defense.  I think the Seahawks new look defense forces Shaun Hill to beat them, which he is not able to do and the Seahawks offense has enough balance to out-smart the 49ers defense.  Seattle just looks like the more complete team.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Buffalo Bills
Buffalo deserved to win on Monday night in Foxboro.  They will not allow the chance to get a victory slip through their fingers again.  I think that the Bills will force Byron Leftwich into at least two mistakes and Trent Edwards will study the Bucs-Cowboys game from week one to see the myriad of ways to exploit the Bucs rebuilding defense.

Pittsburgh Steelers at Chicago Bears
Even without Troy Polamalu, I think that the Steelers will copy the game plan of the Green Bay Packers.  I think they will stuff Matt Forte and put the game in Jay Cutler's mistake-prone hands.  On offense, I think the Steelers will run the ball early and often in an attempt to soften up the Bears defense.  After taking all of the body blows, I think the Steelers will finish off the Bears with deep balls late.

Cleveland Browns at Denver Broncos
I wish I didn't have to make a pick in this match-up because I don't like either team.  The Browns have only scored two offensive touchdowns in their last seven games and the Broncos needed a miracle play to pull out a victory in week one.  In the end, I hate the Broncos just a little less than the Browns.

Baltimore Ravens at San Diego Chargers
This is one of the marquee match-ups of the weekend.  The Ravens were exposed a little bit by the lowly Chiefs, so I would expect the more high-powered Chargers to have their moments against the vaunted Baltimore defense.  I also expect the Chargers defense to play much better than they did on Monday night, which should make life tougher for Joe Flacco.

New York Giants at Dallas Cowboys
I believe that the Giants will ruin the regular season debut of the Jones Mahal.  They will pressure Tony Romo with their deep cadre of defensive linemen, which will cause Romo to fold like he customarily does when the going gets tough.  On the offense, Eli Manning will be able to take advantage of the suspect Cowboys defense that was absolutely shredded by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Indianapolis Colts at Miami Dolphins
The Dolphins looked horrible against the Falcons.  I don't think they can improve enough in the course of one week to defeat one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. 

Last Week: 13-3