Expect some teams who dominated last week to get an ugly reminder that it's too early to call themselves this year's Cinderella Team or think 16-0. Strap yourselves in, football fans!
- Houston Texans (1-0) at Carolina Panthers (1-0): CBS, 1pm EST - Two straight wins to open the season has never occurred in Texans history, and Carolina is looking to bring success back to their home turf where they haven't won a home opener since 2003 and were 4-4 last year. Panthers back-up QB David Carr was unceremoniously released by Houston during the off-season and probably won't see any action. But, if he does... EDDIE'S PICK - CAROLINA
- Cincinnati Bengals (1-0) at Cleveland Browns (0-1): CBS, 1pm EST - A dilapidated QB foundation, weak running attack, and porous defense are the only things wrong with Cleveland. The Bengals showed their prowess and fortitude in handling Baltimore at home last week. Nothing else to say. EDDIE'S PICK - CINCINNATI
- Indianapolis Colts (1-0) at Tennessee Titans (1-0): CBS, 1pm EST - Everyone talks about the invincibility of Indy...except Tennessee. The Titans have won four straight games vs. the Colts who swept New Orleans under the rug last week at home. Indy's defense must control the Titans ground game and defuse Vince Young who must keep the chains moving to keep Manning and Co. off the field. Emotions will be high at Adelphia Stadium where they can make a powerful statement by beating the world champions. EDDIE'S PICK - INDIANAPOLIS
- Buffalo Bills (0-1) at Pittsburgh Steelers (1-0): CBS, 1pm EST - It's been a turbulent week for Buffalo as they cope with TE Kevin Everett's tragic injury vs. Denver last week. Typically, you might be able to look at this type of incident to fuel a team's devotion to winning their next game, but Buffalo's defense was decimated with more serious injuries last Sunday and they already lost some serious talent in the off-season. Facing this Pitt offense that exploded vs. Cleveland last week is not a good time to recoup. EDDIE'S PICK - PITTSBURGH
- New Orleans Saints (0-1) at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-1): FOX, 1pm EST - Last week's loss showed the rustiness of the Saints so you can believe that coach Sean Payton has gone through many cans of WD-40 in the last ten days. QB Drew Brees has never lost to Tampa who is going to struggle running the ball which puts the pressure on Jeff Garcia to air it out. Bucs coach Jon Gruden's hot seat could get much warmer. EDDIE'S PICK - NEW ORLEANS
- San Francisco 49ers (1-0) at St. Louis Rams (0-1): FOX, 1pm EST - Both offenses got off to very slow starts last week as the Niners luckily escaped with a win and the Rams took it on the shin vs. Carolina at home. RB's Frank Gore and Steven Jackson will be facing defenses that struggles against the run last week so they should shake off last week's sluggish performances. The Niners have won 3 out of the last 4 meetings, and both teams are very hungry to get some momentum going in pursuing their high expectations this season. EDDIE'S PICK - ST. LOUIS
- Green Bay Packers (1-0) at NY Giants (0-1): FOX, 1pm EST - QB Brett Favre expects to score every time his offense gets the ball so you can imagine his frustrations during last week's win vs. Philly. Facing a Giants defense that gave up 45 points and almost 500 yards in total offense vs. Dallas last Sunday night just might be what the doctor ordered. The Pack have won three of the last four contests against NY who might have to go without Eli Manning. A win gives Favre the most wins by an NFL QB ever. EDDIE'S PICK - GREEN BAY
- Atlanta Falcons (0-1) at Jacksonville Jaguars (0-1): FOX, 1pm EST - Expect a heavy dose of Warrick Dunn and Jerious Norwood vs. a porous run defense in J-town after they gave up 282 yards vs. Tennessee. If this attack falters and QB Joey Harrington has to move the ball in the air vs. this top-ranked passing defense, Jacksonville will get their first win of the year at home. The Jags have won 2 of the last 3 meetings. EDDIE'S PICK - JACKSONVILLE
- Seattle Seahawks (1-0) at Arizona Cardinals (0-1): FOX, 4:05pm EST - Seattle's defense looked extremely well last week by only giving up six points and allowing 90 yards. They also allowed 190 yards passing with no TD's and racked up five sacks. They were also playing lowly Tampa. Arizona lost a squeaker in San Francisco last Monday night as their defense played very well while their offense was a bit shaky. Expect QB Matt Leinart to ride the crowd's emotions and knock Seattle off balance. EDDIE'S PICK - ARIZONA
- Dallas Cowboys (1-0) at Miami Dolphins (0-1): FOX, 4:05pm EST - Both teams on both sides of the ball possess superior talent and ability, but look for the real battle to occur between opposing headsets. Miami head coach Cam Cameron and Dallas' Wade Phillips were San Diego's OC and DC respectively last year, and Dallas OC Jason Garrett was the Dolphins QB coach last year. Speaking of trying to steal signals. The southern Florida heat and humidity plus Miami's defense could be a huge factor, but Dallas has the momentum. EDDIE'S PICK - DALLAS
- Minnesota Vikings (1-0) at Detroit Lions (1-0): FOX, 4:05pm EST - While Atlanta has the ability to make any team look like a Super Bowl contender, you can't take away Minnesota's defensive showing last week in addition to the budding superstar in rookie RB Adrian Peterson. Meanwhile, Detroit lit up the skies with QB Jon Kitna making use of all his weapons in exploiting the Oakland secondary. The Vikings D will possess a bigger problem for Detroit not to mention Minnesota's recent domination winning 14 of the last 15 games. EDDIE'S PICK - MINNESOTA
- Oakland Raiders (0-1) at Denver Broncos (1-0): CBS, 4:15pm EST - Mile High fans lick their fingers in anticipation of Oakland's visit every year as they honestly can't stand them. This is a memorable divisional war that is always entertaining but this year could be a yawn-fest. The Raiders are still very shaky at QB as they will probably go with Daunte Culpepper vs. a Denver team that has won seven straight home openers and is 19-5 vs. Oakland with Mike Shanahan as coach. EDDIE'S PICK - DENVER
- Kansas City Chiefs (0-1) at Chicago Bears (0-1): CBS, 4:15pm EST - Last week, Chicago proved that a suffocating run defense usually always dominates a powerful running game after shutting out LaDainian Tomlinson for only 25 yards. Despite L.T.'s invincibility, Da Bears still lost but this week they welcome RB Larry Johnson who is still looking for a breakout game to announce that he has arrived in 2007. That has zero potential of happening on Soldier Field in Chicago's home opener as Kansas City's offense is already hearing TAPS. EDDIE'S PICK - CHICAGO
- NY Jets (0-1) at Baltimore Ravens (0-1): CBS, 4:15pm EST - I know this is going to shock all of you, but in case you didn't hear, Steve McNair and Chad Pennington got hurt last week. Neither one is expected to start which means that this battle very well could feature Kellen Clemens for NY vs. Baltimore's Kyle Boller. This favors Baltimore in a big way as the Jets will have to rely on the run vs. the Ravens solid run defense, and Boller should find success vs. the Jets questionable secondary. Baltimore has won four straight vs. NY. EDDIE'S PICK - BALTIMORE
- San Diego Chargers (1-0) at New England Patriots (1-0): NBC, 8:15pm EST - On January 14th in San Diego, the Patriots overcame an 8-point deficit in the fourth quarter to send the 14-2 Chargers home in the first round of the playoffs. After the game, many of the Patriots danced on the Chargers logo and LaDainian Tomlinson went ballistic. It was an act of disrespect, and L.T. attributed it to their coach Bill Belichick. How ironic that San Diego travels to New England on the heels of the Patriots disrespecting the NFL logo by using advanced methods to cheat which was ordered by Bill Belichick. But, Patriots fans don't care about Signalgate. They just want to see a sixth straight home opener victory which would snap the Chargers' streak of 11 straight regular season wins dating back to Week 8 of 2006. It's going to be a war between these two very well-balanced battalions. EDDIE'S PICK - NEW ENGLAND
- Washington Redskins (1-0) at Philadelphia Eagles (0-1): ESPN, 8:30pm EST - There's nothing like a classic NFL East rivalry matchup on national TV and this one leans towards being a slaughter. Eagles coach Andy Reid is 11-5 vs. Washington, and McNabb and Co. are not too happy with losing last week in Green Bay. Expect the taste of losing to still be rancid in Philly's mouth as they welcome the denizens of our nation's capitol. Washington, meanwhile, looked pretty sloppy vs. Miami last week but they did get their first win as QB Jason Campbell showed flashes of being the team's future, but is still in that learning phase. This Eagles defense and the malicious Philly crowd will be a great experience for him. EDDIE'S PICK- PHILADELPHIA
MY STANDINGS VS. OTHER NOTABLE NFL PERSONALITIES
Cris Collinsworth: 14-2
Bob Costas: 13-3
Dan Marino: 12-4
Cris Carter: 11-5
Joe Theismann: 11-5
Chris Mortenson: 10-6
Eddie Chinn: 10-6
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