2006 NFL Week 2 Picks

Last week the Sportscolumn crew went a combined 39-25, a win percentage of .609 compared to the ESPN “experts” 68-59 record (.535). If you want to win your office pool, you’re better off going with us. The top scorer among the four regulars was Vegas Vinny with 11 correct.

We’re also going to let the weekly winner of the Sportscolumn pickem contest pick the games as well. Week 1’s winner was Bamabird with 14 correct and his picks for this week are included below.

The featured games for week 2 are Buffalo @ Miami, NY Giants @ Philadelphia, Washington @ Dallas, and Pittsburgh @ Jacksonville. You can download the NFL Weekly Picks podcast directly (running time 38 mins) or subscribe to the feed.

If you use iTunes, just click here and then click subscribe and iTunes will take care of the rest.

NFL Week 2 Picks

**The weekly winner from the Sportscolumn Weekly Pickem Contest will be featured as the fifth prognosticator.

Locks of the Week Sponsored by:

[Editor's Note: This year, we're making the Locks of the Week a little more interesting as we have a side bet amongst the four experts. The person with the most money at the end of the year in Locks betting takes home all the money. Disclaimer: The amounts discussed are for illustrative and entertainment purposes only. Gambling may be illegal in your locale.]

Vegas Vinny: Last year the Broncos went to Miami and played horribly dropping the game 34-10 to the Dolphins. They rebounded the following week at home to beat the Chargers 20-17. This year the Broncos started the season on the road and played horribly against the Rams. You see where I’m going with this. There shouldn’t be any question whether the Broncos will win this game with Damon Huard at the helm for the Chiefs. However, the 10.5 point spread will scare away a lot of bettors. Don’t worry about that though. In the last 10 games between the Chiefs and the Broncos, the home team has gone 8-1-1 against the spread. Look for the Broncos (-10.5) to whoop up on the Chiefs and win big. I’m putting $55 to win $50 on this game. (Balance = $1,050)

BostonMac: There are few sure things in life. We have death, taxes, and Britney Spears’ two children turning out to be white trash ho-bags and/or wannabe gangsters. Another one, however, is that Tom Brady and the Patriots always sack up and kick ass the week after a mediocre win or a loss. Rarely do the Patriots ever play two subpar games in a row. After Notre Dame eked out a win at Georgia Tech in the college season, Bill Belichick told Charlie Weis that he got the perfect result: the team won, but they played sloppily enough that you can get the players’ attention in practice. The same was true for the Patriots this past week. I can guarantee that Belichick has a game plan ready that will make Eric Mangini want to go back to his office and devour a dozen more doughnuts. The Jets surprised us with a win last week (including a solid game from Chad Pennington) but there is no way they are going to stop the impending New England juggernaut, coming off a mediocre 19-17 win over Buffalo. As if this rivalry needed any more juice, the Pats filed tampering charges against the Jets in the Deion Branch fiasco. Mangini, in his first game at the Meadowlands, is going to lay an egg when facing his mentor across the sidelines. $55 to win $50 on New England (-6) over the NY Jets. (Balance = $945)

Trevor F: I’m taking the 49ers this week but it is not because I’m a shameless homer. Them getting three points at home against the Rams is ridiculous. The 49ers beat the Rams in both matchups last year plus the Rams are 2-6 in their last 8 games on grass and 1-5 on grass after winning the week before. The Broncos were moving the football against the Rams on the ground. Their problem was that Jake Plummer kept throwing bad interceptions. The 49ers will move the ball on the ground with Frank Gore and control time of possession. Gore is a must-start this week as he could easily go 150 yards. 49ers make a statement and win 27-17 at home. $55 to win $50 on the Niners (+3) over the Rams. (Balance = $1,050)

RJ Warner:
I’m going with the Saints (-2.5) for my Lock of the Week. It’s tough to pick them to win on the road two weeks in a row, but this is more of an anti-Packer pick. If Devin Hester of the Bears can scorch them on punt returns, what is Reggie Bush going to do? Also, the Saints defense played well against Cleveland last week and they might have an easier time against the Packers. Also, Green Bay whipped New Orleans 52-3 last year so I like the Saints to get some revenge. Look for the Saints to be 2-0 going into the big Superdome re-opener next Monday night. I’m licking my wounds with the $110 loss last week, so I’m going to start chipping away with a $50 bet. (Balance = $890)