Philadelphia at Detroit
This may sound a little crazy (and maybe its because I hate the Eagles) but I like Detroit in this game. They are coming off a game they deserved to win last week in Chicago. I think with a cautiously excited sell-out crowd behind them they have a legitimate chance, despite Matthew Stafford being out with a shoulder injury. Detroit has a formidable running game and some good receiving options for QB Shaun Hill, including the explosive Calvin Johnson who will give the Eagles secondary fits all day.
Philadelphia on the other hand has backup QB Michael Vick starting. Many people think this is a good thing, but with a whole week to prepare for Vick as the QB the Lions should be in a better position to slow him down than the Packers who likely had prepared mostly for Kevin Kolb. The Eagles also have some key injuries to 3 starters (MLB Stewart Bradley, C Jamaal Jackson, and run blocking FB Leonard Weaver). The Eagles defense does generate a lot of pressure with their various blitz packages but if Shaun Hill can make the right reads, he should be able to effectively pick apart the Eagles secondary. This is a risky pick but I like it.
Final: Lions 14 Eagles 13
Buffalo at Green Bay
There doesn't seem like much to root for up in Buffalo anymore. The Bills have been irrelevant seemingly since 1994 and things are not looking any brighter on the horizon. Trent Edwards is still a poor excuse for a quarterback, probably even in the CFL. Their defense lost their best pass rusher (Aaron Schobel) to retirement and their best linebacker (Paul Posluszny) is out for at least three weeks. The Bills have a solid secondary but I don't think it will be enough to match the potency of Aaron Rodgers who is looking improve upon a, by his standards, "subpar" performance from last week.
The one area of the game that the Bills may have a distinct advantage is in the run game. They have a stable of three reliable running backs. Their game plan should be to pound the rock as much as possible to take the pressure off of Trent Edwards and keep him safe by calling for simple play action plays. Green Bay on the other hand is going to have to find a way to deal with the loss of 1200 yard rusher Ryan Grant who is out for the season with an ankle injury. In the end Aaron Rodgers is too good, Trent Edwards is too terrible, and the Packers defense will capitalize on his mistakes.
Final: Packers 31 Bills 14
Miami at Minnesota:
I was a little surprised at how close the Dolphins Bills game was last week, and I am a follower of the idea that Miami will be a competitive team this year. All that aside, Minnesota is going to lay a beat-down this weak on the Dolphins. Brett Favre, despite his age, will not settle for another subpar performance and I expect both him and Adrian Peterson to have monster games. The Vikings have not lost a home game with Brett Favre at the helm and the Dolphins are still not good enough to make that a first. There are questions about the ability of the Vikings front 5 to protect the old gunslinger but I think the Dolphins will be overwhelmed with the difference in play makers between the Vikes and the Bills.
On defense we saw that Minnesota is very much praiseworthy. Jared Allen and the Williams' make a strong interior that should harass Chad Henne all day and slow down Ricky Williams and Ronnie Brown. They held the NFL's offensive juggernaut, the Saints, to 14 points last Thursday and have had ample time to work out the kinks in their rusty offense, that often seemed to be out of synch.
Final: Vikings 23 Miami 17
Tampa Bay at Carolina
The first question that has to be addressed is: Does anyone really care about this game one bit? No, but somewhere down the road one or both of these teams could help another get into the playoffs, so they do serve a purpose. Matt Moore's NFL career could hinge on his performance this week. He was, to quote "Jets legend" Ray Lucas, "horrendous" last week against the Giants. No professional quarterback should be allowed to throw 3 redzone pics and still don the teams game-day uniform. The Panthers are supposed to have game-breaking running backs in DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart, but both ran on flat tires last week against the Giants.
The Bucs weren't overly impressive against the Cleveland Browns but they do have Cadillac Williams running the rock and despite his thumb injury, I think that Josh Freeman is up and coming. The Bucs D will play hard and I think this team will take advantage of a light schedule to get on a fast track for the tough season that awaits them. Two things that Carolina does have going for them: Jimmy Clausen is waiting in the wings and once inserted into the lineup will make people care about the Panathers; Jon Beason was in the 7th floor crew at the U.
Final: Buccaneers 16 Panthers 13
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