Weekly Picks with Spreads on all games (brought to you by The Football Juice)

Thanks for the continued support guys.  Here is my write-up on the Saints-Chiefs game.  All other write-ups and picks are available at www.thefootballjuice.com

Erik - esprague@thefootballjuice.com

@New Orleans Saints -9 vs. Kansas City Chiefs
There’s no reason to overreact to two weeks of football. And, more importantly, there’s no reason to start picking under-dogs in spots that don’t warrant it simply because perennial powers like New Orleans are under-performing. Speaking of New Orleans, I absolutely love them this week at home vs KC. Assuming Drew Brees and company don’t want to submarine their playoff aspirations by Week 3 – very few teams have made the playoffs after an 0-3 start and there have been none since 2000 – the Saints will win this game. The question is: by how much? Vegas currently has the line in the ballpark of 10 points. Based on what I’ve seen from Kansas City the first two weeks, as well as last year, that’s too low. This is undoubtedly a two-touchdown spread. Sure, New Orleans’ defense is struggling, but, as we know, several key players on defense weren’t even allowed to participate in the preseason due to Bounty Gate. So, while they currently rank dead last in total yards allowed, you should anticipate at least a slight up-tick in performance in the coming weeks, as the defense begins to gel as a unit. For their part, Kansas City ranks 31st in total defense. The Saints can point to Bounty Gate, but what’s Kansas City’s excuse? They don’t have one; they’re really that bad. Both quarterbacks, Brees for the Saints and Matt Cassel for the Chiefs, are turning the football over early in the season, but the key here is that Brees has a consistent track record of protecting the ball. Cassel, on the other hand, does not. So, while Cassel might put up some points, he also should provide the Saints defense an opportunity to return to their ball-hawking ways and secure a couple of turnovers here. Likewise, Brees has one of his biggest opportunities of the season to put up some gaudy numbers, especially on that track in the dome. Take the Saints and enjoy the blowout.

My other write-up was on the Lions.  Check out all the other write-ups and picks at www.thefootballjuice.com:

Detroit Lions -3.5 vs. @Tennessee Titans
Continuing the strategy of sticking with whom I know is the significantly better team, give me the Lions. Tennessee is a mess right now, and even a shoddy Lions secondary isn’t enough to cure what woes the Titans have. Chris Johnson has lost total confidence in both his offensive line and himself. He is a complete shell of the fantasy stud who was drafted either number one or two overall going into last year’s fantasy drafts. And, Jake Locker is still not ready for prime-time. Really, though, will he ever be? If all that wasn’t bad enough, what the heck happened to the Titans’ defense? They are getting gashed up and down the field, both in the air and on the ground, to the tune of 403 yards per game. They can’t move the ball on offense and they can’t stop the ball on defense, yet they’re only a 3.5 point under-dog to an offensive juggernaut like the Lions? I mean, who the heck in that secondary is going to cover Calvin Johnson? Talk about a nightmare for the Titans. I really think this spread should be seven-plus points. And, I would not be surprised if the Lions win this game by over two touchdowns. Take the Lions. It’d be embarrassing not to.

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Evan - ekendall@thefootballjuice.com - @Evan_TFJ

@Cleveland Browns +3 vs. Buffalo Bills
It’s hard to say this without chuckling a bit, but the Browns are really not all that bad. They lost a game to the Eagles Week 1 that they could have easily won, and they lost last week on the road by one score to the Bengals. In last week’s showing, they put up an impressive 27 points on the board, behind the emergence of both Brandon Weeden and Trent Richardson. I imagine these two guys will surprise a lot of people this season, at least in the games with easy match-ups like this. Plus, the Bills are really not that great. Yes, they’re sitting at 1-1 right now, but they got stomped on Week 1 in a 20 point loss against the Jets, and their only win was against the Chiefs last week at home. Now, their second road game will be against an angry Browns team in the Dog House? Yeah, not a chance. Cleveland wins, and, finally, sports fans in Cleveland are given some happiness, even if only for a day.

Evan - ekendall@thefootballjuice.com - @Evan_TFJPhiladelphia Eagles -3.5 vs. @Arizona Cardinals

I’m a little bit shocked that this spread is so low, but based on what we’ve seen so far this year, it isn’t unexpected. I know, I know, the Eagles only won each of their two games by 1 point, but so what? They played Cleveland, who, as I said above, is a little better than most people think, and it was on the road, and they beat the Ravens in a turnover-filled shootout. I also know that last year, the Cardinals handed the Eagles a major loss in Week 10, and that game was in Philadelphia. But, let’s just look at the teams for a second: the self-proclaimed “Dream Team” of last year against Korn on the Kolb. It is what it is, people, and the Eagles are more than 4 points better than this team. Be happy that you get this game at less than a touchdown, and laugh at everyone who believed that the Cardinals’ 2-0 start was even remotely legitimate.

Jared - jbissonnette@thefootballjuice.com - @Jared_TFJ

New England Patriots +3 vs. @Baltimore Ravens
For starters, my picks so far have been nothing short of atrocious. I will not make excuses, but what I will do if I have another bad week is have my cat make all my picks for me. Can’t get any worse, right? Moving right along, I have found a lock. The Patriots are actually getting points, and it’s amazing. They are playing in Baltimore, but I refuse to believe these teams are evenly matched. The Patriots struggled against the Cardinals when Aaron Hernandez went down to an ankle injury. He happened to be a bigger part of the Patriots offense than anyone could have imagined, but Bill Belichick is an adjustment master. Deion Branch is also back, and he does not need any extra time getting on the same page with Tom Brady and Josh McDaniels. The Ravens’ offense is much improved, but so is the Patriots’ defense. The key to the game will be watching how the Ravens offensive line holds up to the Patriots’ young pass rushers. I think they will struggle, and ultimately give New England the edge.