Somehow, someway, Cowboys-Buccaneers was just the pacesetter for Week 1. We closed with a flurry thanks to Vegas serving up football like only Vegas could with the Raiders winning a thriller over Baltimore. Can Week 2 deliver as an encore? I'm a little doubtful. The slate isn't bad. It's also not pre-stacked like a Week 1 gauntlet the NFL wants for ratings purposes.However, there's more than enough intrigue just because it's Week 2. We "learned" a billion things about 32 NFL teams and 99.9 percent of them will end up being false in a few weeks. The key here is to figure out what is noise and what is a signal (speaking of signals, if you want a supplement to your award winning CBS Fantasy coverage, ; the annual cost is a steal for the content if you're serious about fantasy) and then adjust accordingly.If you're worried about how to adjust, (promo code EDGE gets you a month for like a dollar).Apologies for sounding like an #ad but winging it just doesn't work anymore in this space. You need upgraded resources. There are a lot of great options and different stuff I use myself, but those two stood out while writing this. Finally, before we get to the picks. Norm McDonald died. He was an all-time funny human, a compulsive gambler (one of his final tweets top-20 at the British Open; , and Norm would have appreciated that) and someone who zigged comedically before most people were even thinking about a zag. He wouldn't want a bunch of appreciation columns because he loved the comedic pregnant pause too much.Anyway, a lot of people have suggested Norm would get cancelled if he was doing comedy today, which is hilarious. Norm got "cancelled" from SNL fun of O.J. Simpson. And 18 months later he was back hosting and doing exactly . the , . He would probably ask why we haven't gotten to the picks yet, so let's go. Thursday, 8:20 p.m. ETTV:NFL Network|Stream:fuboTV ( )Follow: I was all set to back the bizarre trend of being 4-19 against the NFL that isn't Washington Football Team and 4-0 against WFT in his career and to take the 3.5 points. But then, courtesy of our CBS Sports HQ production team and via producer Ryan Stryker, I stumbled upon sporting a Fleetwood Mac t-shirt to a pre s conference. And I almost pivoted to Washington. But then someone alerted me to a trend of young people (A VERY DEPRESSING THING TO WRITE) going to department stores and purchasing t-shirts of old rock bands as an ironic fashion statement. No idea if that's true, but I'm not going to let this potential modern day Spencer's Gifts move shake my confidence in that sweet, sweet hook. What a rollercoaster for me. Unders are the look here anyway.The pick:WFT 17, Giants 14Props, Best Bets: 1H under 20 or better, under receiving yards 55.5 or better, under receiving yards 45.5 or better Sunday, 1 p.m. ETTV:Fox|Stream:fuboTV ( ) I ended up rewatching the Steelers-Bills game a couple times (one for work, Alex Cobb Jersey another when it ended up on TV one night this week and I kind of got sucked in) and I don't think that game is indicative of what we get from those respective teams in Week 2. The Bills defense is set to bounce back big and the are just going to be good on defense again. I'm not gonna comp anyone to but might become the next Grady Jarrett/Geno Atkins this year. I would bet on this defense finishing top 10 in DVOA this season fairly easily a suming no cluster of injuries. More importantly for this game -- the Steelers didn't blitz at all! They sat back and played a ton of zone against and still got home with their front four. That's not gonna work against anyone, even an MVP candidate. The Dolphins don't do that -- they're man heavy (54 percent last year but only 47 percent last week against , which warrants monitoring) which is why Josh Allen shredded them last year. Don't rule out a defensive shift, because Brian Flores ain't no dummy, but the Bills are just good and we underestimated the Steelers preseason.The pick:Bills 35, Dolphins 17Props, Best Bets: Bills -3.5 (obvs prefer -3 but doesn't matter), hoping for low Diggs catches/yards numbers but not out yet Sunday,1 p.m. ETTV:Fox|Stream:fuboTV ( ) One day you'll be able to tell your grandkids you saw back-to-back NFL seasons with Revenge Games (tm). This line has MOVED -- the Bears were a one-point favorite as of Wednesday evening. The matchup works in theory because Chicago's secondary and offensive line are a lot more suspect than people are talking about. Mainly because everyone is talking about . If Cincy's defensive line is legitimately improved this year and Dalton is pre sured this could get ugly. But at home, with everyone backing Zac Taylor and against a good Bears front while trying to ease in? Plus non-prime-time Dalton in revenge mode (he won 30-7 against the Bengals last year with Dallas) and getting a home NFL team as a pick 'em? Have to go Bears here. If these two teams putz around in the first half, look for a second half over.The Pick: Bears 27, Bengals 24Bets: Bears -1 is a lean, over anything le s than 60 receiving yards is a betSunday, 1 p.m. ETTV:CBS|Stream:Paramount+ ( ) So this Urban Meyer thing is going great, right? Anytime you can of an NFL franchise only to answer "legitimate" (did you hear that question, lol) inquiries about leaving the team for a , things are probably going great. Sometimes this kind of turmoil rallies a locker room, but the dynamics of the Jags roster make it hard to believe it happens. It's annoying because this is an obvious bounceback spot to take the Jags as huge home dogs. But they're not good. piled up garbage time numbers and Denver's defense is a bit north of Houston's. I originally leaned Jacksonville as a market correction spot and now I think Denver will roll them but I'm going to stick with my gut and pray for Brendan McKay Jersey a backdoor from Lawrence as the second half scoring picks up. Fangio loves an unnece sarily close September football game. The Pick: Broncos 28, Jaguars 24Bets: Pa sSunday, 1 p.m. ETTV: Fox|Stream:fuboTV ( ) Another Week 1 overcorrection game here. and the Rams lit up the Bears in prime time. The Colts got smoked by the at home. The public is going to hammer the Rams here I would bet. I'm going to take them, but the stat concerning me the most is Frank Reich going 0-4 in Week 1 games and 3-0 in Week 2 games. It makes no sense when you look at them either. Lose to Jacksonville! Kill the ! Lose to the Bengals! Crush WFT! Injuries are too big a problem for Indy here though -- if and don't play, I can't see the Colts stopping Stafford and the Rams. Sean McVay's offense had two 50-yard plays (one on busted coverage fwiw) Diego Castillo Jersey last week, tied for most in the NFL ... and equaling the Rams total from last year. This offense is going vertical. If is somehow out and Aaron Donald is spearing through the middle against , the Rams would immediately become a best bet.The Pick: Rams 31, Colts 17Bets: Rams -4 (wait on injuries tho)Sunday, 1 p.m. ETTV:CBS|Stream:Paramount+ ( ) Nothing like laying double figures against an undefeated division leader. Yeah, sure, it's Week 2, but the qualify. Again, the "gambling numbers" scream to take the Texans, but the matchup is just bad for Houston. David Culley wants to run the ball and Cleveland's rush defense looked much improved against Kansas City. The Texans could pre s against a bad Jaguars offense last week in a gotcha moment, but the have a monster OL and run game. They should be able to get downhill on Houston, take play-action shots, build a lead and keep chunking. It's also the home opener for the Dawg Pound after seeing the best Browns team -- at least in terms of preseason expectations -- since 1999 go toe-to-toe with the . Maybe it's a let-down spot, but I saw a good Cleveland team. Houston fought hard too and I don't want to bet this, but I have to, so give me Cleveland.The Pick: Browns 28, Texans 14Bets:Pa sSunday, 1 p.m. ETTV: Fox|Stream:fuboTV ( ) The Saints would probably qualify as the surprise of Week 1, except they forced the award on Green Bay. looked legit! The Panthers were impre sive but hard to judge against the . Carolina tied for most sacks last week (6) but, again, Jets. Unfortunately for the Saints, is out with an injury and is filling in at center. Carolina's front will give the Saints more problems than Green Bay did. This is an emerging unit with , (good DPOY bet at 50-1 or better imo) and lining up. Week 2 is a good litmus test of where they are in terms of a breakout as an overall defense, but I'm willing to be ahead here. was great last week, but I don't expect many points either way. Remember, Sean Payton coached Joe Brady prior to LSU. Some che s here, but I don't expect aggre sion. The Pick: Panthers 21, Saints 17Bets: Panthers +3.5 (no lower than +3), under 45Sunday, 1 p.m. ETTV:CBS|Stream:Paramount+ ( ) I'm kicking myself for not being higher on the Steelers this offseason. I buried them last offseason (whoops) and the numbers got out of whack heading into 2021. 8.5 wins, 20-1 for AFC, 40-1 for Super Bowl. That's wild, man. The defense pre sured Josh Allen 22 times in Week 1 and only blitzed twice. That is going to be a problem for and that Raiders offense. beasted out for the home Vegas opener and the Raiders defense was definitely a pleasant surprise. But Pittsburgh may have dealt with a good defense on their own and now gets home field against a team on short rest with an emotional win. Carr was 5 of 15 with a pick when pre sured in that game. This could be a Steelers blowout.The Pick: Steelers 28, Raiders 9Bets: Steelers -6, Under 47Sunday, 1 p.m. ETTV: Fox|Stream:fuboTV ( ) What is Kyle Shanahan doing? was an insanely talented/explosive rookie wide receiver who Shanahan traded up to get in the first round and now he has to beat out while not seeing any targets Week 1? Shanahan also traded up to get , who crushed it in the preseason, only to make him a healthy scratch and declare he was behind Eli Mitchell? In the words of Tone Lc, . I'm not the type , but if you were a rational human being you'd be hard pre sed to figure out why Shanahan decided these guys weren't worth using in what looked like a blowout win before the week started and only narrowly turned into a Bad Beat. At any rate, I think they come back this week and play well. I also think the Eagles are going to be good! looked fantastic and we all did the dumb "judge the pre s conference" thing on Nick Sirianni. He had them moving, got the most out of Devonta Smith/Jalen Raegor and set up Hurts to succeed. I think San Francisco wins but I'd back Philly if forced. Give me the over as a best bet though.The Pick: 49ers 34, Eagles 31Bets: Over 50.5Sunday, 1 p.m. ETTV:CBS|Stream:Paramount+ ( ) will be good in the NFL barring a total organizational collapse around him, which, weeeeeeell, let's just hope it doesn't happen. This ain't it though. Bill Belichick just got beat by Brian Flores and will have a rookie quarterback behind a bad offensive line he can pre sure aggre sively. Belichick's respect for the young QB. But this is a mismatch. Plus, the great Tom Curran of NBC Sports Boston and wear Hawaiian shirts for a few weeks if the Pats didn't roll. Sort of turns betting on the Pats to blowout the Jets into a win-win. The Pick: Patriots 24, Jets 14Bets: Pats -6, Under anything over 40 honestlySunday, 4:25 p.m. ETTV:CBS|Stream:Paramount+ ( ) Backing the Seahawks could be Nate Lowe Jersey considered an overreaction to Week 1 but there are a couple reasons it makes sense here in my opinion. One, got ROCKED on Sunday. Not just by -- . I'm honestly worried he'll use all the chatter as motivation and cut loose. I just don't know if it's that correctable this quickly while going into a RAWKOUS 12th man situation. Pete Carroll is undefeated in home openers. And Shane Waldron decided to . The Titans offensive line might figure it out, but the Titans defense won't this week.The Pick: Seahawks 35, Titans 24Bets: Seahawks -5.5, lean over 54 (but Tenne see hurt me), everything D.K. Metcalf over, DK to score 2 TDs, etc.Sunday, 4:05 p.m. ETTV:Fox|Stream:fuboTV ( ) The Falcons were utterly humiliated at home last week. Most of the problems stemmed from the defense being bad and the offensive line susceptible to interior pre sure. Fortunately they get to play the defending Super Bowl champion Buccaneers on the road, going up against a scorch-earth hot with an obscene amount of weapons and a Tampa defense with an obnoxious wealth of quarterback smushing defensive tackle talent. The Pick: Buccaneers 41, Falcons 21Bets: Over, I gue s, if the Falcons will score more than 6Sunday, 4:05 p.m. ETTV:Fox|Stream:fuboTV ( ) Polar opposite starts here: Kyle Murray vaulted himself into the Week 1 MVP conversation, we got a post-hype breakout from and the Cards defense looked nasty. Meanwhile, the Vikings can't pa s protect, got scorched by a rookie wideout who was struggling to adjust to the size of an NFL football and struggled to pa s protect. I'm going to zig off the theme of this particular picks column and actually take the "clearly unpopular underdog with a schematic disadvantage" because football is weird.The Pick: Cardinals 24, Vikings 21Bets: NopeSunday, 4:25 p.m. ETTV:CBS|Stream:Paramount+ ( ) The injury is just brutal for the Cowboys, who looked much better on defense against the Bucs than anyone expected. He's their best defensive player by far and now they're not going to be able to stop anyone. They' Chaz Roe Jersey re definitely not stopping and the Chargers, who could have hung 30+ on the WFTs last week but not for some dumb mistakes. is balling out but I'm not sure anyone is slowing down if the same offense shows up for the opening week. Over is a donkey play, but I don't care. Play it up to 56. I lean Chargers here but just enjoy the fireworks. On CBS! Nantz! Romo! Wolfson!The Pick: Chargers 35, Cowboys 31Bets: Over anything le s than 60Sunday, 8:20 p.m. ETTV:NBC|Stream:fuboTV ( ) I might be a sucker for the Ravens against the Chiefs -- they keep not winning or covering and I just keep taking them. Kansas City's defense looked vulnerable but and weren't out there. Baltimore's defense might not be elite either -- if they still had it's a different story. kept in check, but if he does the same to it will unlock and vice versa. Making John Harbaugh a dog in prime time at home, though? I'm taking the Ravens, especially with the "lost to the Raiders" discount. I'll obviously bet this game because it's Sunday night but I'm not thrilled about it. The Pick: Chiefs 34, Ravens 31Bets: Not for nowMonday, 8:15 p.m. ETTV:ESPN|Stream:fuboTV ( ) Congrats to Dan Campbell on the Comeback Cover of the Year Award. While it's not officially recognized by the NFL -- although maybe now it should be on NFL Honors with the swerve the league has taken towards gambling -- the Lions improbable storm back to the back door probably won't be beat this year. Unfortunately when they open that door an angry in prime time at home will be waiting. Bet on the Lions at your own peril here. However, if you like money bet the over on every and prop on the planet Monday night. They're soaking up usage from and the Lions won't give up on a game if Week 1 is any indication. On second thought, maybe PC Principle and Motown are just going to be our backdoor cover darlings all year. Something to think about.The Pick: Packers 35, Lions 21Bets: Swift/Hock overs, bet them before MondayWeek 1: 9-6-1 ATSSeason: 9-6-1 ATS
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