2012 NFL SEASON: WEEK 2

The reason why these picks are showing up on Thursday instead of Sunday is because the NFL decided to air games on Thursday Nights from September into December. It does make picking games and setting fantasy rosters very interesting.

WEEK 1:             11-5

TOTAL:               11-5

BREAKDOWN OF RECORD

	MONICA	NOON	3PM	NIGHT	HOME	AWAY	TV	≤ 8 PTS	OT
WK 1	10-6	8-1	0-3	3-1	7-3	4-2	4-3	4-5	1-0
TOTAL	10-6	8-1	0-3	3-1	7-3	4-2	4-3	4-5	1-0

For starters, I was SHOCKED that the Cowboys won their opener. I wasn’t the only one. Many prominent Dallas media members did not expect the Cowboys to win this game. Yeah, I was watching former President Bill Clinton’s keynote to the DNC, but I had the computer on the game.

Right now it appears that Dallas found their running game in DeMarco Murray whose 48-yard run in the third quarter kept a drive alive and set up a field goal to extend Dallas’ lead to 7 going into the fourth. Kevin Ogletree has emerged as the team’s third receiver catching 8 passes for 114 yards and two touchdowns. His big play was a 13-yard reception with 2:11 remaining that allowed the Cowboys to run out the clock and escape New York with a 24-17 victory.

And that secondary is vastly improved with Brandon Carr who was acquired via free agency and first round draft pick Morris Claiborne. In the two matchups last season, Eli Manning torched the Dallas secondary throwing for 746 yards and 5 touchdowns vs. 1 interception. In this recent game, Manning threw for 213 yards and a touchdown. After quarterback Tony Romo threw an interception that set the Giants up with goal-to-go in the first quarter, the defense held New York to a field goal.

It’s only the first game though. A lot can happen between now and December.

Both the Cowboys and Giants have 11 days off in between games. Will there be some rust when they play this coming Sunday? Perhaps. While the Giants first two games are at home, the Cowboys had to travel to New York for the NFL’s opener and then to Seattle for their Week 2 matchup.

One of the many stories about Week 1 was the record number of five rookie quarterbacks starting under center. Most did what you expected.

Andrew Luck of the Colts had to start against the Bears, which as expected he struggled. If there is some positive to come out of this, his stat line was similar to that of Peyton Manning’s first NFL start in 1998.

Ryan Tannehill, who played at Texas A&M in college, played his first NFL game in Houston as the starting quarterback of the Dolphins. Andrew Weeden was ugly in his Browns’ debut throwing for 118 yards and 4 interceptions, one of which clinched the game for the Eagles. Then again… it’s the Browns.

Robert Griffin III lead the Redskins to a 40-32 upset win on the road over the Saints and made many happy fantasy owners look like geniuses with his 320 yard, 2 touchdown performance.

However, I was impressed with Russell Wilson’s performance in Seattle’s loss at Arizona driving them down the field (and some help from the replacement refs) for what would have been the game winning score.

With all the mania surrounding Tim Tebow, the Jets destroyed the Bills. Houston, as expected, defeated Miami. Some people might point out that the Rams might not be the NFC’s doormat, but I was surprised at the Lions performance. Detroit’s quarterback Matthew Stafford threw 3 interceptions, but redeemed himself by driving Detroit for the game winning touchdown pass with less than 20 seconds remaining.

The 49ers did something they hadn’t done since the days of Joe Montana: win a game at Lambeau Field. San Francisco kicker David Akers is the fourth NFL kicker to make a 63 yard field goal.

It appears that the Packers haven’t shaken off that playoff loss to the Giants, but the Falcons did with their 40-point performance in Kansas City.

On Sunday Night, Peyton Manning made his regular season debut as a member of the Denver Broncos. Monica and I were 8-5 heading into the Sunday Night game and I needed this game to win this week and take the overall lead.

Peyton Manning was spectacular in his debut performance against the Steelers throwing for 253 yards and 2 touchdowns. Can you believe that the last time this guy played was January 2011?

Denver’s defense sealed the game with an interception from Tracy Porter that was returned 43-yards for a touchdown.

Wow… that sounds familiar…

In the Monday Night games, Baltimore showed that they won’t only be known for their defense in 2012, but their offense. Joe Flaaco and Ray Rice demolished the Cincinnati Bengals in their home opener for 430 offensive yards.

The capper, in usual Ravens fashion, was a pick-six by safety Ed Reed. Reed is now the NFL’s all-time leader in interception return yards with 1,497 and tied for 10^th in interceptions with 58 in his career. Seven have been returned for touchdowns. This was his 10^th interception against the Bengals tying the mark he has set picking off Cleveland quarterbacks.

I was impressed by San Diego’s defense in the late Monday Night game keeping the Raiders out of the end zone for 59:04.

Maybe San Diego will keep up in the AFC West. Besides, the Chargers were successful against Peyton Manning when he was quarterback of the Colts having derailed their attempt at perfection in 2005, a rare x-interception performance in their 2007 regular season matchup, and defeating the Colts in consecutive playoff games.

But here is one factor that could derail the Chargers: Norv Turner.

What will Week 2 bring? The NFL’s oldest rivalry continues with a Thursday Night showdown between the Bears and Packers. The early games feature a showdown between the Ravens and Eagles in Philadelphia, Andrew Luck has his first home start for the Colts against the Vikings, Houston goes on the road to Jacksonville, and the Giants look to rebound against Tampa. In the afternoon games, the Cowboys play in Seattle and the Steelers and Jets face off for the first time since the 2010 AFC Championship Game.

Sunday night has the Lions traveling to San Francisco. This game is not known for the 49ers win in Detroit last year, but what took place during after the game.

Monday night is the Falcons hosting the Broncos for the first matchup between Matt Ryan and Peyton Manning. I expect this to be an offensive shootout in the Georgia Dome.

Anyways, the picks for Week 2…

Kickoff Times are Central Time
Picks Indicated in BOLD
Sunday Day Games for the Dallas-Fort Worth Area are indicated with (DFW)

NFL 2012 Week 2 TV Distribution Map

THURSDAY NIGHT (9/13)

Chicago Bears at Green Bay Packers, 7:20 PM NFL

SUNDAY (9/16) CBS DOUBLEHEADER

NOON FOX

Arizona Cardinals at New England Patriots

Minnesota Vikings at Indianapolis Colts

New Orleans Saints at Carolina Panthers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at New York Giants

NOON CBS

Baltimore Ravens at Philadelphia Eagles (DFW)

Kansas City Chiefs at Buffalo Bills

Cleveland Browns at Cincinnati Bengals

Houston Texans at Jacksonville Jaguars

Oakland Raiders at Miami Dolphins

3PM FOX

Dallas Cowboys at Seattle Seahawks (DFW)
Washington Redskins at St. Louis Rams

3PM CBS

New York Jets at Pittsburgh Steelers (DFW)

Tennessee Titans at San Diego Chargers

SUNDAY NIGHT

Detroit Lions at San Francisco 49ers, NBC 7:20 PM

MONDAY NIGHT (9/17)

Denver Broncos at Atlanta Falcons, 7:30 PM ESPN