FOOTBALL IS STILL BACK! (NFL Week 2 Preview)

Ryan: Week one has come and good. It felt so good for football to finally be back. There I was, sitting on my couch, two fifty inchers in front of me, one on RedZone and the other on the Saints.  I had my Four Loko and nachos and wings and realized, this was the perfect Sunday. I also realized, I have sixteen more. Takeaways from week one:

1.       Peyton Manning is going to win MVP and lead the Broncos to the Super Bowl. The man threw for seven touchdowns against the defending champs. The Broncos have too many weapons to contain.
2.       The Saints defense has been revamped thanks to Rob Ryan. A defense that looked pedestrian last year, held the defending division champions to just 17 points. The defense closed out the game with a red zone stand, similar to last year’s win.
3.      The Jaguars are the worst team in the NFL. This just begs the question: Why not get Tim Tebow?
4.           The Anquan Boldin trade was a steal for the 49ers. Boldin is one of the most physical and sure handed receivers in the game. To give him up for a sixth round pick makes John Harbaugh look foolish.

Matt: Wow! What a first week of action in the National Football League. Unfortunately, I was at work so I missed all the games, with the exception of the night game and the two Monday Night Football Games. Well, one and three-quarters, I fell asleep in the fourth quarter of the Texans-Chargers game, a mistake that I regretted the next day. Anyways, we once again will be looking at the big matchups this week. Last week, Ryan went 10-6, while I went 8-8. Here is a preview of some of the matchups this week

New York Jets at New England Patriots, Thursday, 8:25 ET, NFL Network

Ryan: The Patriots displayed how much they missed Wes Welker last weekend during a hard fought win against the Buffalo Bills. Danny Amendola got injured late in the game and is now doubtful, while Rob Gronkowski doesn’t look ready to play either. Leading rusher Shane Vereen is also out, leaving the carries to Steven Ridley. The Jets looked just as awful as we thought they would, beating Tampa Bay by a field goal after a questionable personal foul penalty in the final seconds. The defense showed up, but against a lacking Buccaneer team. I look for the battered Patriots to find a way to win this football game.
Winner: New England

Matt: The New York Jets finally found a way to win last week, and that was by replacing their franchise quarterback with a fresh new talent in Geno Smith. Geno Smith threw for 256 yards, 1 touchdown, 1 interception, and 0 butt fumbles. It’s a bit too early to figure out if Geno Smith is the answer for the Jets, but at least he was able to do what Sanchez wasn’t able to do much last year, win. On the other side, the Patriots barely escaped the Buffalo Bills thanks to the late game heroics of Danny Amendola. And once against, Danny finds himself with an injury. Going forward that is not good for the Patriots. However, this team still has plenty of targets and after almost losing to the Bills, I expect them to come out strong and win this one
Winner: New England

Washington at Green Bay, Sunday, 1:00 ET FOX

Ryan: Robert Griffin came out last weekend against the Eagles just how I thought he would: Rusty and scared. Throughout the game, he failed to plant his feet and throw hard balls to his receivers, thus accounting for multiple interceptions. Alfred Morris was unable to get going, fumbling on his first carry of the game and getting a safety on another. The Packers left Candlestick Park with a sour taste in their mouths after yet again a failed call by the referees. However, Green Bay never looked like they were going to take control of the game. This week, the Packers get to face a Redskin team that looks to have lost its way since last year’s playoffs. I see Aaron Rodgers having his way in a blowout.
Winner: Green Bay

Matt: Not going to lie to you, RGIII came out last week looking like shit. He wasn’t running as much, his passes were questionable, and he just overall sloppy. The Redskins D also didn’t look too hot, allowing LeShaun McCoy to run all over them. Green Bay on the other hand looked pretty solid versus the 49ers. They were able to keep pace with possibly the best NFC team in the league. However, they did give up quite a few yards to the new 49ers target, Boldin. The Redskins have plenty of targets they can hurt you with, but in the end I think the Packers are a much better team overall and win this one pretty easily.
Winner: Green Bay  

New Orleans Saints at Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Sunday, 4:05 ET FOX

Ryan: The New Orleans Saints defense came out with a bang after last year’s struggles. The additions of Rob Ryan and head coach Sean Payton proved to be the solution. The defense accounted for three sacks, and interception, and held Steven Jackson to only 77 rushing yards. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers looked awful against the Jets. Josh Freeman was sacked five times, fumbled the ball out of the back of the end zone for a safety and threw an interception. Doug Martin didn’t show up either, rushing for only 65 yards and minus one yard receiving. The revamped defense and high power offense of the Saints will prove to be too much for Tampa Bay. Saints win by double digits.
Winner: New Orleans

Matt: Both of these teams were involved in close games last week, the Saints winning over the Falcons after stopping them at the goal line, while the Bucs lost to the Jets after a game winning field goal. I think some questions I had about the Saints were totally answered last week, and I think they looked pretty solid against the Falcons. The Bucs on the other hand, didn’t look so good and I don’t think they’ll have better luck against a high powered offense such as the Saints. I’m taking the Saints in this one.
Winner: New Orleans

San Francisco at Seattle, 8:30 ET, NBC

Ryan: The Seattle Seahawks squeaked by with a win against the Carolina Panthers. The Seahawks were able to move the ball through the air, but Marshawn Lynch never got it going on the ground. Lynch only rushed for 43 yards on seventeen carries. The Seattle defense was able to hold Carolina to only seven points. However, they don’t play the Panthers this week, they play the San Francisco 49ers. Colin Kaepernick exploded for 412 yards and three touchdowns. Anquan Boldin and Vernon Davis were key to Kaepernick’s success. Boldin had 208 receiving yards and a touchdown while Davis had 98 yards and two touchdowns. Frank Gore also punched in a touchdown but only had 44 yards rushing. The 49ers defense also held the Packers to only 63 rushing yards. San Francisco looks to be in midseason form while Seattle is still living in 2012. I have the 49ers in this one.
Winner: San Francisco

Matt: The 49ers looked great last week against the Green Bay Packers, almost leaving where they left over last year in the Super Bowl, but even better. A lot of people questioned the addition of Boldin, but he came out of the gate and shut everyone up. He really helped the team (and my fantasy team), but I think against the tough Seattle defense, he’ll have a bit more trouble. Russell Wilson and the Seahawks barely won over the Panthers and that will always raise a question mark for me. Either the Panthers are a lot better than I thought they were going to be this year or it was just an off day. Either way, the Seahawks have a big test here, and even with their great defense, I think the 49ers are running on all cylinders and will come out with a victory in this one.
Winner: San Francisco

Pittsburgh at Cincinnati, Monday, 8:30 ET ESPN

Ryan: No AFC North Team won a game last weekend. Cincinnati didn’t look too bad. Pittsburgh on the other hand, looked terrible. The Steelers only rushed the ball for 32 yards. 32. That’s it. Ben Roehtlisberger never had time to throw. He was sacked five times and ran for his life all game. To make matters worse, star center Maurkice Pouncey is out for the year with torn ligaments in his knee. AJ Green shined for the Bengals with 163 receiving yards and two touchdowns. The run game was lackluster, only gaining 63 yards. Both of these teams struggle to run the football. The game is going to come down to whose defense can stop the pass game. With Pouncey out and no real run game to keep the Bengals pass rush honest, I have the Bengals winning.
Winner: Cincinnati

Matt: As Ryan said, no team from the AFC North was able to produce a win last week. The Steelers looked god awful against the Titans, scoring no offense points against the Titans until the fourth quarter. On the other side of things, the Bengals looked pretty decent against the Chicago Bears, only falling short of winning the game by three points. With AJ Green doing AJ Green things, and Big Ben not able to pull out a win against the Titans, I’m going to have to go with the Cincinnati Bengals on this one.
Winner: Cincinnati

There you have it! Our week 3 preview and predictions, make sure you tell all your friends about how awesome our blog is.