Wellness

[gardenman]

And the first game up this week is Carolina at Chicago. I have to think the Bears defense will throw a lot at Cam Newton and the Bears will win.

Buffalo plays at Cincinnati. This could be a trap game for Buffalo after their big win against New England last week. Cincinnati's not a great team,but they aren't horrible either. I think Buffalo will win this one, but don't be surprised to see it be a close game.

Tennessee at Cleveland. Losing Kenny Britt will be a big blow to Tennessee. Playing in Cleveland with the dog pound is never easy either. I'm not sure who will win this game, but it should be a fairly close game. If I had to pick a winner, I'd go with Tennessee.

Detroit at Dallas. This will be a nice test for both teams. Detroit's defnitely improved and playing well. They also seem to be fairly healthy. Suh will be trying to get a lot of pressure on Romo and he is a disruptive defensive lineman. I'm leaning towards the Lions here. I just think they're healthier and playing better right now. The Cowboys had snap issues last week and somehow I don't think the snaps will be improved with Suh breathing fire in the face of the center.

Pittsburgh at Houston will be a very telling game. Houston will get a big test as will the Steelers. If I had to pick, I'd probably go with the home team here. This should be a close game though. The Steelers offensive line is still a bit suspect.

New Orleans plays Jacksonville in a game that's likely to be extremely one-sided in favor of New Orleans. Jacksonville is not a good team and the Saints are one of the elite teams in the NFL. There's potential for this to be a 49-7 type game.

Minnesota plays at Kansas City. Kansas City gives the appearance of being a team that's playing to either a: get the head coach fired, or b: get the first overall pick in the draft. Beating Minnesota won't help in either of those endeavours, so you can expect to see Minnesota pull out the win.

San Francisco plays at Philadelphia. I expect this to be a bounce back game for Philly. They've had two tough losses in a row and the players are not happy. The Eagles defense has moved an undersized, but out-performing linebacker in Rolle in to replace Casey Matthews who had a bit of a breakdown last week and who's been inconsistent. Last year's second round pick at safety Nate Allen is finally healthy enough from his knee surgery to reclaim his starting job, so the defense should be improved. Michael Vick will be playing and he's out to prove the many, vocal critics wrong about him. This should be a good, solid win for the Eagles.

Washington plays at St. Louis. The Rams are still a bit beat up, but playing in the dome isn't easy and while I think this game will be close, I think the Rams have the edge.

The New York Giants play the Cardinals in Arizona. The Giants are a good team, but Larry Fitzgerald is a great receiver and that Giant's secondary is really beat up. I expect this game to be close, but I think the Cardinal's will pull it out. Flying across the country takes a toll on teams and with the Giants already beat up and coming off a big win, they're apt to let down a bit and let Arizona steal the win.

In a battle of the birds, the Atlanta Falcons play the Seahawks in Seattle. I've got to give this game to the Falcons. The Seahawks made a huge mistake in not resigning Hasselbeck.

Denver plays at Green Bay and this is another one-sided mismatch. Green Bay should crush Denver.

The Patriots play in Oakland. Oakland's better than they were and play well at home, but New England is just too good. The Patriots should win this game.

Miami at San Diego. The Chargers should win this game, but the Chargers are a bit inconsistent.

The New York Jets play the Ravens in Baltimore on Sunday night. This will be a great game to watch. Those two defenses pride themselves on being the biggest, baddest defenses around. It should be a pretty fiesty game.

And the Monday night game is the Colts at Tampa Bay. The Colts are starting to rally a bit, but they've still got a long ways to go and the Bucs are a good team. I've got to give the edge to Tampa Bay this time around.