The Touchdown Three: Week Two

By Paul Mainwaring

TO OVER REACT OR NOT?

So Week 1 was not great. 1-2 with losses in the Panthers and Broncos games. The issue with Week 1 is always that you aren’t completely sure how a team will play (except Miami), and sometimes this means picking is very difficult. The question for Week 2 is how much do you overreact to what you saw in Week 1? Well, I will let my NFL picks do the talking on that one.

Colts +3 @ Titans

If you look on the surface, Colts lost and the Titans won, and won well. Scratching the surface you see that the Colts left a lot of points on the board and should have won, on the road, at one of the best teams in the AFC. The Titans beat a Browns team, who were sloppy and underperformed, but it was still 16-13 towards the end of the 3rd quarter prior to the Baker meltdown.

Even with the gigantic loss of Andrew Luck I still really like the Colts and the roster they have. They finally have an OL and not only will that protect Brissett, but will open up large running lanes for Marlon Mack to feast on. Additionally, although the Titans scored  scored 43 points I was not fully convinced by the offense against Cleveland, and I still believe Mariota has a lot to prove if he is to get that long term extension.

I think the Colts are the better team in this matchup and given it is a division game I expect it to be very tight. Give me Indianapolis here

NFL Picks

Bears -2 @ Broncos

Well at least the kicking didn’t make the headlines after the game in Chicago. A truly putrid offensive display spoiled a great defensive one (stop me if you have heard this before Chicago fans). When you have concerns about your QB I don’t think the right thing to do is throw it on your last 33 plays! Nagy and the offensive coaches have to fix this if the Bears want to challenge for the playoffs. With that defense they don’t need 30 every week but they sure need more than 3!

Broncos you let me down last week and it hurt. I have never been high on the Broncos but I expected them to deal with a reeling Raiders, I was very wrong. They were another team that struggled to score on offense not finding the endzone until close to the 2 minute warning at the end of the game. If Elway and the front office expect Flacco to be the answer they will need him to be much better than he was on Monday night.

I don’t see many points and the 2 offenses maybe similar (see meme below), so I am going to take the better defense here and that is the Bears

NFL Picks

Browns -2.5 @ Jets

Wow the bubbles of the Browns and Jets fans were seriously popped in Week 1. The Browns had been talked up all offseason, and they laid a massive egg and undisciplined one at that. The Jets were a sleeper team for many, and led 16-0 midway through the 3rd quarter and lost, in standard Jets fashion.

It may only be Week 2 but this feels like a loser goes home matchup. I never thought either team would win their  division, but if either goes 0-2 I also don’t see them going 10-4 to make the playoffs. Both coaches are also under fire and need to prove they are worthy of their lofty perches as the talent is much better than the product on the field week 1.

You have 1 more chance Cleveland. Don’t let me and the Dawg Pound down. Take the Browns here

Paul Mainwaring

NFL Analyst

A former UKEndzone writer, Paul has been dragged out of an enforced retirement to give his thoughts on the NFL and anything else  he can slide past the editorial team.

Paul is most famous (infamous?) as Mainz one half of Waxing Lyrical. alongside his Partner in Crime Neil ‘Dutts’ Dutton.

Find him @MAINZEY7 where all manner of sports are on the menu.

Image credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports & Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports