The lines are from Vegas and the home teams are in CAPs.
Houston +6.5 over CINCINNATI
Thursday night’s game was a good reminder that Thursday Night Football isn’t the highest quality game. Or perhaps it was just that both teams had no quality on their offensive lines.
PITTSBURGH -5.5 over Minnesota
We shouldn’t forget that the Vikings came out looking incredible last year and slowly faded. While Sam Bradford put on a good show in Week 1, can we count on him being able to do it again and against a much better team? Another week of practice will only help LeVeon Bell, too.
INDIANAPOLIS +7 over Arizona
I can’t believe I’m betting on Scott Tolzien, but here we are. The Cards lost the lynchpin of their offence, David Johnson, last week and Carson Palmer struggled. This Arizona team might be headed for the gutter, although the Colts are already there. Seven points is too much to pass up, though.
BALTIMORE -8 over Cleveland
The Ravens have a real home-field advantage and a defence that looks pretty good. While the Browns stood up to the Steelers last week, Baltimore has almost as good of a record.
KANSAS CITY -5.5 over Philadelphia
Andy Reid’s Chiefs are coming off an impressive win against the defending champs and now get to host his former pupil, Doug Pedersen, and his own former team. The Eagles are coming off a nice win over Washington, but that’s not nearly as impressive as that Thursday night demolition by K.C.
TAMPA BAY -7 over Chicago
Hopefully the Bucs can ride the emotional wave after Hurricane Irma better than the Texans did last week in their first game coming off of Harvey’s devastation. The Bears weren’t pushovers against the Falcons, but going on the road is different.
Tennessee -2 over JACKSONVILLE
Can the Jags repeat what it did last week? Probably not. Facing off against a much better offensive line like the Titans’ will also slow down a pass rush that had an amazing 10 sacks last week.
Buffalo +7.5 over CAROLINA
This line seems a bit off. The Bills didn’t impress against the Jets last week, but they played hard. The Panthers did away with the 49ers on the road, but also didn’t look completely up to speed. So, why not take the points and Sean McDermott, the man who was coaching the offence in Carolina last year?
New England -6.5 over NEW ORLEANS
The Pats defence was exposed last week, but Bill Belichick will have likely been at repairing it for the past 10 days while the Saints are coming off a loss and a short week. The Saints offence can certainly move the ball, but you can’t expect the Pats to start out 0-2, right?
L.A. CHARGERS -5 over Miami
The Dolphins are coming off their inopportune bye week while the Chargers are playing their first game in L.A. We’re not sure how they’ll fare in their new stadium, but any home-field advantage is better than the one they had in Qualcomm Stadium the past few years. Also, it’s too hard to trust Jay Cutler on the road.
OAKLAND -13 over New York Jets
Derek Carr showed no ill effects of last year’s broken leg and the Raiders defence looked improved over the sieve it has been at times the past few years. The Jets won’t be keeping this one close in the Black Hole.
Dallas -2.5 over DENVER
With the whole Ezekiel Elliott situation no longer hanging over their heads, the Cowboys can be a real contender this season. And with the defence stepping up, Dallas might have close to a complete team.
Washington +2.5 over L.A. RAMS
I can’t do it. I can’t over-react to how bad the Colts were in L.A. last week. Washington didn’t look good against Philly last week, but the line has been moving big time in the Rams’ direction and I’m inclined to take the points.
San Francisco +14 over SEATTLE
It’s looking incredibly easy to put pressure on Russell Wilson, which could be enough to keep this game close. It’s also a rivalry game, too, even though the Niners have certainly fallen off in the past few years. Straight up, Seattle will win, but I don’t think they cover this big number.
Green Bay +3 over ATLANTA
What did the Falcons do to impress you last week? The offence couldn’t get firing against lowly Chicago and will be even more hard-pressed against the Packers. This is probably as good as you can get for a Sunday night game and Aaron Rodgers shines in prime time.
NEW YORK GIANTS -3.5 over Detroit
With Odell Beckham Jr. looking more certain to play this week, he can make the difference here – even at less than 100%. The Giants looked lost without him last week, but that can change quickly. The Lions took advantage of a Cardinals team that seems like it was overrated coming into the season.
Last week: 7-7-1
This season: 7-7-1