The Packers and their tough defense will be ready for whatever Commanders QB Jayden Daniels can dish out and likewise, the Washington defense showed they are strong and will attempt to prevent Packers QB Jordan Love and company from doing their thing. This game will be close and whoever protects the football better will win.
The big game on Sunday will feature the Kansas City Chiefs hosting the Philadelphia Eagles in a rematch of the most recent Super Bowl. The Chiefs got knocked out by the Los Angeles Chargers, 27-21 last Friday in Brazil while the Eagles won a tight one against Dallas, 24-20 in the NFL opener last Thursday night in Philly. Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes was running for his football life in that Super Bowl loss last February and would like to have more time to lead the offense this time around.
The Eagles look to be the better team yet again, but they have to prove it out on the field. Their win last week against Dallas featured a lackluster second half as the teams combined for only three points after a back and forth first half that saw Eagles QB Jalen Hurts score two rushing touchdowns. Expect the Eagles to do their thing and come away with a hard fought win against Kansas City.
The Detroit Lions and Chicago Bears were both losers last week and in Detroit this Sunday, expect a good game as Bears Head Coach Ben Johnson returns to the Motor City to attempt to beat his old boss Dan Campbell and the Lions. Detroit definitely rates the edge on offense, but the Bears looked better on defense (at least until the fourth quarter last Monday night) in their game than did the Lions, who should emerge with the win in this one.
The Buffalo Bills had the biggest comeback win as they shocked the Baltimore Ravens, 41-40 behind the heroics of QB Josh Allen and will face the New York Jets, who lost a heart breaker, 34-32 against the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Jets do not want to start out 0-2 at home to begin the 2025 season, but can their defense slow down the Bills attack? Not likely . . . but QB Justin Fields showed something in hanging 32 points on the scoreboard against the Steelers defense. It won't be easy, but look for the Bills to win.
The Sunday night game will see the Minnesota Vikings host the Atlanta Falcons as they attempt to go 2-0 to open the season. The Vikings woke up in the fourth quarter against Chicago to win, 27-24 as quarterback J.J. McCarthy showed why he was first round draft pick last year. The Falcons lost, 23-20 (at home) to Tampa Bay and kicker Younghoe Koo was the goat, missing a potential game tying 44-yard field goal in the closing seconds. Minnesota showed some moxie on both offense and defense and that should carry over in their home opener against the Falcons. The key for the Vikings will be keeping the Falcons ground game in control while airing it out on offense against a suspect Atlanta secondary.
The two Monday night games (yes, there are two for some reason this week) should be good ones, especially the night cap in Las Vegas where the Raiders host the Los Angeles Chargers, who rolled the Kansas City Chiefs in the season opener with QB Justin Herbert having a huge game, including three touchdown passes. The Raiders knocked off New England on the road, but would like to see rookie running back Ashton Jeanty get moving this week as he only ran for 38 yards on 19 carries in his pro debut.
The Chargers will look to continue that trend and get after Raiders QB Geno Smith as well. Meanwhile, the Raiders boast "mad" Maxx Crosby on defense and the Bolts offensive line will be hard pressed to keep him off Herbert. If they succeed, the Chargers will win this one. But if the Las Vegas defense can contain Herbert and their offense picks it up, they should have success. This game is truly a toss up, pitting two very good coaches (Jim Harbaugh with L.A. and Pete Carroll with Vegas) against each other.
The first Monday night game will be in Houston with the Texans facing the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and quarterback Baker Mayfield, who helped lead the come from behind win in Atlanta last Sunday. The Texans offense never got started as they lost to the L.A. Rams, 14-9 and were kept out of the end zone. They will need quarterback C.J. Stroud to get it going early in this game. The Bucs will have a far tougher test against a good Houston defense, so this one could be a low scoring affair with a late field goal by the Texans pulling it out.
The rest of the action in Week Two is featured in the capsule style previews and the Heftyinfo picks follow up.
Jacksonville (1-0) at Cincinnati (1-0) - The Jaguars looked good beating up on Carolina last week. Meanwhile, the Bengals struggled against the Browns, but did come away with a win. Toss up here.
N.Y. Giants (0-1) at Dallas (0-1) - If the Cowboys don't win this game at home, they might as well just mail it in for the rest of the season.
L.A. Rams (1-0) at Tennessee (0-1) - The Titans could spring a surprise at home in this one. Both teams have solid defenses, so expect a close game.
New England (0-1) at Miami (0-1) - The Dolphins completely laid an egg last week while the Patriots weren't much better in their home loss to the Raiders. Toss up here.
San Francisco (1-0) at New Orleans (0-1) - The 49ers are already beat up with injuries, including QB Brock Purdy (shoulder and foot) as well as tight end George Kittle (hamstring), so expect a tough game with the Saints, who battled last week down to the final minutes in a home loss to Arizona.
Seattle (0-1) at Pittsburgh (1-0) - The Seahawks blew their game late last week and are looking to rebound on the road against a Steelers team that will be jacked up in their home opener. Can Steelers QB Aaron Rodgers have another big game?
Cleveland (0-1) at Baltimore (0-1) - The Ravens have to be seething after their epic fourth quarter collapse last Sunday night while the Browns looked decent against the Bengals in defeat. These two teams usually play close games against each other, but the Ravens should get it done if they really are the team most people think they are.
Denver (1-0) at Indianapolis (1-0) - The Colts looked impressive with Daniel Jones having a big game as their new quarterback. The Broncos defense dominated, but the offense needs to improve and must cut down on so many turnovers (four last week) even though they won the game.
Carolina (0-1) at Arizona (1-0) - The Cardinals won a tight one on the road against the Saints, but Kyler Murray and company must be ready for a Panthers team that will be looking to make amends for a dismal opener at Jacksonville.
The Heftyinfo picks for Week Two . . . . . . . . . . . (Home teams are listed in bold; Lock of the Week is listed in BOLD CAPS)
Green Bay over Washington
Cincinnati over Jacksonville
Dallas over N.Y. Giants
Detroit over Chicago
Tennessee over L.A. Rams
Miami over New England
San Francisco over New Orleans
Buffalo over N.Y. Jets
Pittsburgh over Seattle
BALTIMORE over Cleveland
Denver over Indianapolis
Arizona over Carolina
Philadelphia over Kansas City
Minnesota over Atlanta
Houston over Tampa Bay
L.A. Chargers over Las Vegas
Last Week's Record - 11-5
SEASON RECORD - 11-5
Lock of the Week Record - 1-0
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