DTTWSB Week 3 NFL Picks

Unfortunately for me, last week I had a rougher time with my picks than I did in the first week of the season. By the end of Week 2, I limped all the way to a 9-7 record putting my record for the season at 19-13. It's not a terrible record but I think I can do better. This week, the games are a bit tricky. I'm also giving you the reader a special treat, there will be two upset specials this week! I'm looking to go 16-0 on my picks this week. Watch it happen. Here are the picks.

Falcons at Saints: Saints

I expect the Saints to win this game especially when they're at home behind that raucous crowd known as the Who Dat Nation. The Falcons defense is too leaky to go on the road and contain an offense like this. Although the Saints have a high-powered offense, they can have ball ran all over them and the Falcons are a good running team. Ultimately I like quarterback Drew Brees to shred that Falcons secondary all afternoon and cruise to a 3-0 start.

Steelers at Buccaneers: Steelers

During most weeks, this game would not be one of the marquee matchups, but I had to make it one since both teams have gotten off to 2-0 starts. The matchup I'll be watching is Bucs quarterback Josh Freeman against Steelers defensive coordinator Dick Lebeau's 3-4 zone blitz scheme. All quarterback struggle against Lebeau and his defense during their first go around. I don't expect a lot of points to be scored in this game, but I do expect the Steelers to have enough "know how" to win this game.

Jets at Dolphins: Dolphins

This is one of the more interesting matchups of the week. The Dolphins are a very good football team that doesn't beat themselves. When they win it doesn't look pretty but it gets the job done. I actually think the Jets are a better football team but with game being played in South Beach at night, I like the Dolphins. That crowd will be fired up and ready to go. I also think this will be the game that the Jets will miss nose tackle Kris Jenkins the most because the Dolphins have an excellent running game.

***Upset Specials***
Cowboys at Texans: Cowboys

This is the first of my upset specials this week. I think the 0-2 Dallas Cowboys will travel across the state of Texas and beat the 2-0 Houston Texans. I think the Cowboys will bounce back nicely after having the entire sports world laugh at them. They were put in this situation last December when they had to play the then undefeated Saitns and they won in a hostile environment. Texans left tackle Duane Brown also got a four-game suspension so that should allow DeMarcus Ware to be in the backfield quite a bit. Look for a Cowboys team coming into the game with something to prove against an in-state rival.

Packers at Bears: Bears

The second of my upset specials this week is the Bears will beat the Packers this Monday. After watching the Bears the past two weeks, I've been very impressed with their defense. Their rush defense has been phenomenal and they've always been great against the pass. I think Aaron Rodgers will stuggle in this game because the Packers offensive line won't be able to contain a Julius Peppers-led pass rusher. Bears offensive coordinator Mike Martz has quarterback Jay Cutler playing like a top 10 talent again. The pieces in Chicago are falling together quite nicely and I expect that to be on display on Monday Night Football.

The rest of the weeks picks:

49ers at Chiefs: 49ers
Lions at Vikings: Vikings
Bills at Patriots: Patriots
Titans at Giants: Titans
Bengals at Panthers: Bengals
Browns at Ravens: Ravens
Redskins at Rams: Redskins
Eagles at Jaguars: Eagles
Colts at Broncos: Colts
Raiders at Cardinals: Cardinals
Chargers at Seahawks: Chargers