There you have ‘em, my week 12 picks! Here are this week’s ESPN Expert Picks as well. Now, discuss!

Away	Home	Comments	Pick	Result
Last week: 10-4 (71.4%), Season total: 97-47 (67.4%)
Jets (6-3)	Patriots (6-3)	I think the Jets are starting to fire on all cylinders… still, this will probably be very close.
Eagles (5-4)	Bengals (1-8)	Eagles. Period.
Titans (9-0)	Jaguars (4-5)	The Jags have disappointed this season, and I can’t pick against an unbeaten this late in the season.
Lions (0-9)	Panthers (7-2)	Is there any doubt?
Broncos (5-4)	Falcons (6-3)	The Falcons have been pretty good at home so far, and the Broncos are another team that has really taken a step back this season.
Raiders (2-7)	Dolphins (5-4)	Week 11 and the Dolphins are still in playoff contention. Impressive for a team that finished 1-15 last year.
Texans (3-6)	Colts (5-4)	The Colts look like they’re back on track. Houston still isn’t there.
Saints (4-5)	Chiefs (1-8)	The Saint usually don’t work out for me, but the Chiefs aren’t a safe bet either.
Bears (5-4)	Packers (4-5)	Must win for Green Bay.
Vikings (5-4)	Buccaneers (6-3)	This might be tight, but I’ll go with Tampa.
Ravens (6-3)	Giants (8-1)	This should be a great game in which the Giants have the edge.
Rams (2-7)	49ers (2-7)	They almost beat the Cardinals last week, which makes me think the 49ers might have enough to top the Rams.
Cardinals (6-3)	Seahawks (2-7)	I don’t think Matt Hasselbeck can save the Seahawks season.
Chargers (4-5)	Steelers (6-3)	San Diego just doesn’t play consistently enough to make me pick them against the Steelers.
Cowboys (5-4)	Redskins (6-3)	With Tony Romo back, the ‘Boys are a much better team than they are without him.
Browns (3-6)	Bills (5-4)	The Bills have regressed recently but a loss to the Browns would make things a lot worse by putting a playoff spot almost out of reach.

The bye weeks are over, which means there’s no way that I’ll finish 9-5 this week… hopefully the additional games will both be wins. See also: ESPN’s Expert Picks.

This week brings us our first game on Thursday night with the Denver Broncos visiting the Browns in Cleveland. Unfortunately for the NFL Network, this game is a lot less interesting than it looked like it would be back when the schedule was originally announced. Really, the only drama surrounding this game is that it will be the first career start for Brady Quinn. I guess that should provide some relief for all those Comcast subscribers who don’t have access to the NFL Network.

Now that we’re at the half-way point of the 2008 regular season, some of the races are starting to get very hot. The NFC North and South look as though they’ll both go right down to the wire this season, as does the AFC East. Either way, it’s been a very interesting first half and hopefully the second half will be just as enjoyable. Here are my picks for week 10:

Away	Home	Comments	Pick	Result
Note: the Bengals, Buccaneers, Cowboys, and Redskins have a bye this week.
Last week: 9-5 (64.3%), Season total: 87-43 (66.9%)
Broncos (4-4)	Browns (3-5)	The Brady Quinn era officially starts against the faltering Denver Broncos.
Titans (8-0)	Bears (5-3)	Green Bay showed the Bears a formula for relative success against the Titans, but the Bears don’t have the offense that the Packers do.
Rams (2-6)	Jets (5-3)	When the now-in-first-place Jets can beat a good Bills team without much of a contribution from Brett Favre, that’s a good sign.
Packers (4-4)	Vikings (4-4)	Even though they lost to the Titans, the Packers looked like one of the better NFC teams last week — they need this win though.
Ravens (5-3)	Texans (3-5)	Maybe a risky pick here, but Sage Rosenfels has actually outplayed Matt Schaub as the starting QB for the Texans so far this season.
Jaguars (3-5)	Lions (0-8)	As much as the Jaguars have been sliding this season, I still can’t pick the Lions. What an embarrassment that would be for Jacksonville if they lose.
Seahawks (2-6)	Dolphins (4-4)	The Seahawks are 0-3 so far this season when playing in the Eastern Time Zone.
Bills (5-3)	Patriots (5-3)	They looked like the best in the East a couple of weeks ago, but the Bills are regressing and New England isn’t an easy place for struggling teams to get back on track.
Saints (4-4)	Falcons (5-3)	If the Saints want to keep any hope of making the playoffs alive, they need to win this divisional match.
Panthers (6-2)	Raiders (2-6)	It’s Oakland. Let’s move on, OK?
Chiefs (1-7)	Chargers (3-5)	In a weak AFC West, the Chargers are still right in the mix. KC? not so much.
Colts (4-4)	Steelers (6-2)	After last week, I think the Colts are now ready to start playing for real.
Giants (7-1)	Eagles (5-3)	Game of the week! In this heavy-weight fight, I like the Giants.
49ers (2-6)	Cardinals (5-3)	Arizona can take a commanding lead in the NFC West with a win.

Will this week bring another 9-5 record? I guess we’ll just have to wait and see. Here are this week’s ESPN Expert Picks.

Anyways, I wanted to get these finished today, so without further rambling, here are my picks for week 9:

Away	Home	Comments	Pick	Result
Note: the 49ers, Chargers, Panthers and Saints have a bye this week.
Last week: 9-5 (64.3%), Season total: 78-38 (67.2%)
Packers (4-3)	Titans (7-0)	If the Colts had knocked off the Titans last night, I may have picked the Packers in this one, but the Titans just look too good. I hope I’m wrong.
Jaguars (3-4)	Bengals (0-8)	Jacksonville seems to have taken a step back this season… but they are playing the Bengals this week.
Buccaneers (5-3)	Chiefs (1-6)	Disappointing loss for Tampa last week, but they should be able to get back in the win column against the Chiefs.
Cardinals (4-3)	Rams (2-5)	The recent bright spots the Rams have shown makes this a more difficult pick, but I’m staying with the Cards.
Texans (3-4)	Vikings (3-4)	Now that Houston’s offense is alive and well, they’re going to be tough for any defense to contain.
Ravens (4-3)	Browns (3-4)	This one’s a toss up… Ravens.
Lions (0-7)	Bears (4-3)	I probably won’t pick the Lions to beat anyone this year… just a heads up.
Jets (4-3)	Bills (5-2)	Are the Bills coming back down to earth? Perhaps, but they’ve been more consistent so far this season.
Dolphins (3-4)	Broncos (4-3)	If this was in Miami, I’d go with the Dolphins, but Denver is still a difficult place for road teams to win.
Falcons (4-3)	Raiders (2-5)	The Raiders aren’t as horrible as in years past… but they’re not a whole lot better either.
Cowboys (5-3)	Giants (6-1)	The Giants are still the team to beat in the NFC. Sorry Dallas fans.
Eagles (4-3)	Seahawks (2-5)	Good win by Seattle last week, but these are the Eagles, not the 49ers.
Patriots (5-2)	Colts (3-4)	I feel weird saying this, but this is my upset pick for this week.
Steelers (5-2)	Redskins (6-2)	The Redskins have played well against tough competition so far this year. I expect more of the same this week.

Finally, here are this week’s ESPN Expert Picks.

So what happened? Well, the Colts are suffering from several injuries and are just playing bad football, the Patriots lost Tom Brady in week 1, and the Cowboys are underachieving. The Packers are adjusting to life without Brett Favre, San Diego has (as is typical for them recently) started the season with a big helping of inconsistency, and even the Super Bowl champs inexplicibly lost to the then 1-3 Cleveland Browns. Each of these teams were expected to be better.

All of that adds up to a very unpredictable season so far, which unfortunately means that my predictions have been a little less than hoped for in recent weeks. This week might (and that’s a big might) provide a bit more stability though. Looking at the schedule for week 8 will show that in most games, there is a marginally clear favourite… and I’m hoping that translates well for my picks. Here they are:

Away	Home	Comments	Pick	Result
Note: the Bears, Broncos, Packers and Vikings have a bye this week.
Last week: 9-5 (64.3%), Season total: 69-33 (67.6%)
Falcons (4-2)	Eagles (3-3)	With the Cowboys regressing as of late, the time is now for the Eagles to move up in the NFC East.
Cardinals (4-2)	Panthers (5-2)	The Cardinals have played well this year, but I have to take the Panthers at home in what I think will be a high-scoring game.
Bills (5-1)	Dolphins (2-4)	The Bills have been consistent so far this season and as I said at the beginning of the year, Buffalo finally has a solid #1 QB in Trent Edwards.
Buccaneers (5-2)	Cowboys (4-3)	The Cowboys have some big issues now and the injuries are really piling up.
Raiders (2-4)	Ravens (3-3)	The Ravens should be able to handle the Raiders at home this week.
Redskins (5-2)	Lions (0-6)	As long as the ‘Skins don’t overlook the Lions like they did the Rams two weeks ago, they should win easily.
Rams (2-4)	Patriots (4-2)	Matt Cassel just removed the doubt in my mind, and even though he still holds onto the ball too long, the Patriots looked scary last night.
Chiefs (1-5)	Jets (3-3)	Plain and simple: the Jets need this win to stay in the hunt, especially if the Pats can keep it going.
Browns (2-4)	Jaguars (3-3)	I still think the Browns win over the Giants in week 6 was a fluke. Take the Jaguars.
Bengals (0-7)	Texans (2-4)	Seriously, what is Cincinnati doing?
Seahawks (1-5)	49ers (2-5)	With injuries and a defense you can carve through with a putty knife, the Seahawks won’t be winning too many games this season — which is sad for Mike Holmgren’s swan song.
Giants (5-1)	Steelers (5-1)	I think the Giants should give Plaxico Burress the “Jeremy Shockey” treatment — they’re better off without him.
Chargers (3-4)	Saints (3-4)	Drew Brees is having one of the best seasons in his career, but without Reggie Bush this offense lacks 1 or 2 game-changing plays per game, and that might be the biggest difference for the Saints.
Colts (3-3)	Titans (6-0)	These are not the same Colts as we’ve been seeing for the past few years. Coincidentally, these aren’t the same Titans either.

And there you go… my picks for week 8! Check out ESPN’s Expert Picks, and let me know what you think!

Other highlights (lowlights?) included the Falcons beating the Bears at the very last second, the Cardinals dusting off the Cowboys in overtime and the defending champion New York Giants laying an egg in Cleveland. No matter how you look at it though, there were some exciting finishes and loads of drama.

Week 7 brings a bunch of matches that are pretty difficult to pick, but hopefully things will work out in my favour. Here are my picks for week 7:

Away	Home	Comments	Pick	Result
Note: the Cardinals, Eagles, Falcons and Jaguars have a bye this week.
Last week: 9-5 (64.3%), Season total: 60-28 (68.2%)
Ravens (2-3)	Dolphins (2-3)	I love the creativity of the Dolphins offense this year.
Cowboys (4-2)	Rams (1-4)	With all the injuries plaguing Dallas, and the way they’ve played over the last few weeks, this is actually a difficult pick… fingers crossed.
Chargers (3-3)	Bills (4-1)	A well rested Bills team should be able to get the job done at home.
Saints (3-3)	Panthers (4-2)	Both of these teams seem to struggle with consistency, but I like New Orleans to edge out the Panthers.
49ers (2-4)	Giants (4-1)	Do you think maybe the Giants overlooked the Browns? The can’t make the same mistake against the ‘Niners.
Titans (5-0)	Chiefs (1-4)	Tennessee’s defense will probably be enough to win this game on its own. Any offense is just a bonus.
Vikings (3-3)	Bears (3-3)	If the Bears 5th ranked run defense can keep Adrian Peterson relatively in check, I like their chances.
Steelers (4-1)	Bengals (0-6)	The Bengals season is a lost cause and at 0-6, I can’t pick them against (pretty much) anyone.
Lions (0-5)	Texans (1-4)	The Texans offense is starting to come alive, and that should have teams paying a little extra attention to Houston.
Colts (3-2)	Packers (3-3)	Homer alert! I’m worried that Peyton Manning will pick apart a depleted Green Bay defense… but I have to go with my team.
Browns (2-3)	Redskins (4-2)	Just like the Giants, I think the Redskins were guilty of overlooking a poor opponent last week.
Jets (3-2)	Raiders (1-4)	Anyone else remember the last time Brett Favre played in Oakland? Classic.
Seahawks (1-4)	Buccaneers (4-2)	With Matt Hasselbeck out again this week, the Seahawks season is slowly slipping away.
Broncos (4-2)	Patriots (3-2)	Neither defense is playing well, and Matt Cassel hasn’t convinced me he’s capable of winning in an offensive showdown yet.

So there they are, my fearless somewhat timid predictions for week 7. Don’t forget to take a look at ESPN’s Expert Picks.

Also, for as much as I dislike the CFL, you have to admit, watching them have so much fun with TD celebrations makes me wish the NFL would lighten up their rules on this a little. Check out what the Winnipeg Blue Bombers have been doing lately (the celebrations are at the 22 second & 38 second marks). This is also on the heels of the Bombers Duck-Duck-Goose celebration a couple weeks back. Good stuff!

Among the major highlights from last week is the great run that the Washington Redskins have been on. They’ve proven me wrong a couple of time already this season, and I’m done casting doubt on that team. Jim Zorn—who many questioned the hiring of (myself included)—has the ‘Skins playing extremely well, and they could be a scary force in the NFC this year. They’ve already played all of their division foes on the road (and beaten 2 of them), and with the Rams, Browns and Lions as their next 3 opponents, they could easily find themselves with a 7-1 record at the half-way point of their season.

A few more thoughts from last week: The Saints could have easily won last night on MNF, but they missed too many opportunities and shot themselves in the foot by giving up the ball 4 times. Minnesota was out-played for most of the game, and the Saints wasted another opportunity.

The Packers defense really needs to fix itself quickly, or they could find themselves in 3rd place in the NFC North very soon. Already the Chicago Bears have passed them to take the lead, and with Minnesota’s win in New Orleans last night, they’re currently sharing 2nd place.

Finally, the Pittsburgh Steelers offense has figured things out, and that’s going to make the Steelers one of the favourites in the AFC this season. Ben Roethlisberger has played through a lot of pain and is really embracing his leadership role for the Steelers — and that’s been translating to wins.

Anyways, here are my picks for week 6:

Away	Home	Comments	Pick	Result
Note: the Bills, Chiefs, Steelers and Titans have a bye this week.
Last week: 8-6 (57.1%), Season total: 51-23 (68.9%)
Bengals (0-5)	Jets (2-2)	The Bengals are just a mess. I expect the Jets offense will continue to improve, especially coming off their bye week.
Bears (3-2)	Falcons (3-2)	The Falcons are undefeated at home so far, but I think the Bears took a big step last week and should be able to get a win in Hotlanta.
Ravens (2-2)	Colts (2-2)	It’s been a real struggle so far for the Colts, but they look like they’re on their way back.
Rams (0-4)	Redskins (4-1)	Jim Zorn has the Redskins playing very good football this season and they could be pushing the Cowboys for the NFC East title come December.
Panthers (4-1)	Buccaneers (3-2)	The Panthers offense is really rolling these days, and that might be the difference here.
Lions (0-4)	Vikings (2-3)	After a tough Monday night win, the Vikings get to host Detroit, which should allow them to get another W and stay in the hunt in the NFC North.
Dolphins (2-2)	Texans (0-4)	Sure, the Dolphins have knocked off the Patriots and the Chargers… but something’s got to give in Houston, and last week’s performance against the Colts was enough to prove to me that they’re poised for their first win.
Raiders (1-3)	Saints (2-3)	If the Saints can’t count on their kicker, that’s going to be a major concern for the rest of the season. They should be able to take the Raiders though.
Jaguars (2-3)	Broncos (4-1)	Normally I’d take the Broncos at home… but against the Jags, the Bronco defense makes me hesitant.
Packers (2-3)	Seahawks (1-3)	The biggest concern right now for the Packers is their leaky defense… luckily for them, the ‘Hawks defense is just as bad. The Pack’s O gets the edge in this one.
Cowboys (4-1)	Cardinals (3-2)	The Cardinals are looking solid on offense, but I think their defense leaves them at a big disadvantage in this match. Shootout in the desert? It could be.
Eagles (2-3)	49ers (2-3)	The Eagles need to win these kinds of games if they want to compete in the NFC East.
Patriots (3-1)	Chargers (2-3)	The Chargers have to start playing better football. This week at home is the perfect time to start. LT says this is a “must win” for the Chargers, and I tend to agree.
Giants (4-0)	Browns (1-3)	Well, after seeing the first 5 weeks, the Giants may actually be better than last year’s Super Bowl team.

This week I’m hoping for some consistency and hopefully that will get me back on track and back up over the 70% mark. Here are this week’s ESPN Expert Picks. Who are you picking this week? Let me know in the comments!

So let’s move on to this week then! Here are my picks for week 5:

Away	Home	Comments	Pick	Result
Note: the Browns, Jets, Raiders and Rams have a bye this week.
Last week: 8-5 (61.5%), Season total: 43-17 (71.7%)
Titans (4-0)	Ravens (2-1)	This game may be a tight one as 2 of the NFL’s best defenses square off. On offense though, I give the Titans the edge.
Chargers (2-2)	Dolphins (1-2)	Now that the Chargers are on track, this should be an easy win.
Bears (2-2)	Lions (0-3)	Firing Matt Millen won’t change the fact that his stamp is all over the 2008 Detroit Lions.
Falcons (2-2)	Packers (2-2)	The Packers need to figure out their offensive woes, or it could be a very long, disappointing season.
Chiefs (1-3)	Panthers (3-1)	I don’t think KC’s win last week was much more than a fluke, but I could be wrong.
Seahawks (1-2)	Giants (3-0)	After Dallas lost to the Redskins last week, the Giants may have moved into the “team to beat” spot in the NFC.
Redskins (3-1)	Eagles (2-2)	Last week’s win over the Cowboys in Dallas was pretty impressive, but it’s not enough to get me to pick them to beat the Eagles in Philly.
Colts (1-2)	Texans (0-3)	What was supposed to be a good year for the Texans hasn’t started out very well. Indy should be able to get another win on Sunday.
Buccaneers (3-1)	Broncos (3-1)	Last week’s loss to the Chiefs was embarrassing, but I think the Broncos will get back on track this week.
Bills (4-0)	Cardinals (2-2)	After starting the season with so much promise, the Cardinals have quickly come back down to earth, and now they have to play a very good Bills team.
Patriots (2-1)	49ers (2-2)	Coming of their bye week last week, I fully expect the Patriots to have worked out some of their offensive kinks by now… at least enough to get them a win over the Niners.
Bengals (0-4)	Cowboys (3-1)	In a world where Lane Kiffin gets fired, how much longer will Marvin Lewis hold onto his job while the Bengals chronically underachieve?
Steelers (3-1)	Jaguars (2-2)	Costly win for the Steelers last week. This week they’re in tough against the Jags and I don’t think their offense will be able to score enough to knock of Jacksonville.
Vikings (1-3)	Saints (2-2)	The Saints always play well at home, and I say that continues this week.

Also, here are this week’s ESPN Expert Picks. Who are your picks for week 5?

So what happened in New England anyways? Well, so far their defense has been the unit that’s keeping the Pats in games, something I mentioned in last week’s post. The offense under Matt Cassel just isn’t the same, and that’s OK - you can’t replace a Tom Brady. Under Brady though, the Pats had a lot of “big play potential” that just isn’t there in the Cassel version of the Patriot offense, so they just aren’t built for big comeback victories any more.

Give Miami credit though, they jumped out to an early lead and didn’t allow New England to score a touchdown until half way through the 3rd quarter. By that time, the Dolphins were up 21-3, and didn’t look back. Unfortunately, New England’s defense just didn’t play well and their offense, which is still adjusting to life without Brady, couldn’t generate enough points to keep it close. I thought the growing pains would happen, but I just didn’t think we’d see them against Miami. Also, it was awfully weird seeing people leaving Gillette Stadium early… that just doesn’t happen.

Enough about that though, here are my picks for week 4:

Away	Home	Comments	Pick	Result
Note: the Colts, Dolphins, Giants, Lions, Patriots and Seahawks have a bye this week.
Last week: 13-3 (81.3%), Season total: 35-12 (74.5%)
49ers (2-1)	Saints (1-2)	Pushing Denver to the brink of defeat was enough to convince me that the Saints should be able to beat the 49ers this week.
Packers (2-1)	Buccaneers (2-1)	Tough loss for Green Bay last week, and losing Al Harris for the season could be even tougher… but I’ve gotta stick with the Pack.
Broncos (3-0)	Chiefs (0-3)	As long as Denver’s offense continues to put up a large point total, they’ll be tough to beat… and they’re playing the Chiefs this week.
Vikings (1-2)	Titans (3-0)	The Titans are the class of the AFC South? It may be true.
Texans (0-2)	Jaguars (1-2)	The Jaguars got right back on the horse last week by beating the Colts in Indianapolis. They need another win to keep pace with Tennessee.
Browns (0-3)	Bengals (0-3)	Finally the Bengals offense woke up last week in the loss to Philadelphia. Battle of Ohio round 1 should go to the cats as long as the offense plays well.
Falcons (2-1)	Panthers (2-1)	Tough loss for Carolina last week after 2 weeks of euphoria, but they should be able to get another W this week.
Cardinals (2-1)	Jets (1-2)	The Jets need to get better fast, on all sides of the ball.
Chargers (1-2)	Raiders (1-2)	The Chargers almost need to win this game as much as last night’s game against the Jets. If they get beaten by the lowly Raiders, the panic will return.
Bills (3-0)	Rams (0-3)	The Bills have a solid team this year and should be penciled into the playoffs already. The Rams? Not so much.
Redskins (2-1)	Cowboys (3-0)	Dallas is clearly the class of the NFC and as long as their defense keeps improving, they’ll be hard to pick against.
Eagles (3-0)	Bears (1-2)	Chicago’s defense is getting good at coughing up leads late in games. They may not have a lead to cough up this week though.
Ravens (2-0)	Steelers (2-1)	This game will not be as exciting as the last 2 MNF games… unless you love a good defensive bout. Pittsburgh by 3… maybe.

So far I’m doing quite well against the Expert Picks over at ESPN and hopfully I can continue that success this week. There really isn’t any one game in week 4 that I would consider a marquee matchup, but it should be exciting nonetheless. Who are you picking?

A number of games this week really have me scratching my head about who to pick, but I think this is the week that we’ll start to see things come into focus a little more. Good teams (San Diego, Minnesota, maybe Seattle) will start to show up and bad teams will probably look worse (St. Louis, Kansas City, Miami). Either that, or crazy things will happen and we’ll all be even more confused.

This week’s biggest game (in my view) is the Cowboys at Packers. It should be a great game worthy of the Sunday Night Football stage, and hopefully will be every bit as good as the Eagles/Cowboys match last night on MNF. If Aaron Rodgers continues the trend he’s set so far, this could be another high-octane shootout that may come down to which team has the ball last. It should be fun! Here are my picks for week 3:

Away	Home	Comments	Pick	Result
Last week: 11-4 (73.3%), Season total: 22-9 (71.0%)
Cardinals (2-0)	Redskins (1-1)	It’s great to finally see the Cardinals playing well, but it hasn’t exactly been against great teams.
Bengals (0-2)	Giants (2-0)	My statement about the Giants not making the playoffs might be way off… they’re playing every bit as good as they did in the playoffs last season..
Chiefs (0-2)	Falcons (1-1)	The Chiefs just don’t look good, so I’ll take the Falcons to stay undefeated at home.
Raiders (1-1)	Bills (2-0)	Buffalo looks solid on all fronts and Buffalonians (and I guess Torontonians) finally have a team to be excited about!
Buccaneers (1-1)	Bears (1-1)	Will Brian Griese come back to Chicago and make his former team look silly? I dunno, but I’m going to be like Jon Gruden and stick with what’s working.
Dolphins (0-2)	Patriots (2-0)	The Patriots offense doesn’t look great, but that defense will keep them in the game every week.
Texans (0-1)	Titans (2-0)	The Titans won’t have a whole lot of room for error in this one, but I think they’ll eek out a win and stay undefeated.
Panthers (2-0)	Vikings (0-2)	I think the Vikings are better than their 0-2 record indicates, and Carolina’s magic has to run out at some point.
Rams (0-2)	Seahawks (0-2)	The Seahawks just got some much needed help at WR, but if they lose at home to the Rams, their season could be a loooonnnnnnnnng one.
Lions (0-2)	49ers (1-1)	Is Mike Martz turning J.T. O’Sullivan into the next Kurt Warner?
Saints (1-1)	Broncos (2-0)	The Broncos probably won’t need a blown call to win this one, but it might be close.
Steelers (2-0)	Eagles (1-1)	I think it’s safe to say that Donovan McNabb is finally healthy, and that makes the Eagles very dangerous.
Jaguars (0-2)	Colts (1-1)	The only reason I’m going with the Colts is because they need to get a win at home. Jacksonville could very well take this one though.
Browns (0-2)	Ravens (1-0)	The Browns definitely seem like they’re regressing… they just haven’t looked good.
Cowboys (2-0)	Packers (2-0)	Maybe a bit of a “homer” pick, but I like the Packers offense against a Dallas secondary that couldn’t stop anything last week.
Jets (1-1)	Chargers (0-2)	If only Eric Mangini was as aggressive in calling his offense as Mike Shanahan, the Jets could have knocked off the Pats last week. Missed opportunity if you ask me.

A huge thank you goes out to everyone who has been posting comments so far! It’s great to hear your thoughts and opinions, even when they differ from mine, and it makes this weekly picks even more interesting. Speaking of weekly picks, here are this week’s ESPN Expert Picks. What do you say?

Deb and I are ecstatic to to announce the birth of our daughter! Leah Soraya Eckmier was born on Wednesday, September 10, 2008 at 2:28 am; 6 lbs, 9 oz of pure beauty and grace. Mom & Baby are doing great, and we’re all excited to be home. We’re thanking God for Leah’s safe arrival and the incredible gift and blessing He has given us.

After 9 months of preparation, anticipation, appointments, ultrasounds and baby showers, it is amazing to finally come face to face with such a beautiful creation. Becoming a father is the most incredible feeling I have ever experienced, and every time this princess looks at me, I melt all over again.

Welcome to the world Leah, you are truly amazing!

Obviously, the biggest story from week one is the Patriots and their loss of Tom Brady for the year. Brady is so much a part of the Patriots formula for success, that it’s going to be very hard now that he’s out of the picture. With that said, if any team can move on from that kind of a loss, it would have to be the Patriots. Time will tell, but for now my condolences go out to Patriots fans everywhere, because it might be a bumpy ride.

I’m going to get right to the picks now and keep this post brief as there are some far more important things going on in my life this week. My wife and I are expecting the birth of our first child any day now! So, in the interest of catching some rest before life changes forever, here are my picks for week 2:

Away	Home	Comments	Pick	Result
Last week’s record: 11-5 (68.8%)
Bears (1-0)	Panthers (1-0)	Great showing by both of these teams last week, so this game should be close.
Titans (1-0)	Bengals (0-1)	I’m not sure if Vince Young being out for a few weeks is bad for the Titans or not.
Packers (1-0)	Lions (0-1)	Aaron Rodgers looked great in his first career start against a decent Minnesota defense.
Bills (1-0)	Jaguars (0-1)	Jacksonville lost 2 starting guards last week, so I’ll stick with what worked and take the Bills again.
Raiders (0-1)	Chiefs (0-1)	The Chiefs didn’t look great last week against the Patriots, but this week they’re at home against the Raiders and should do a little better. This one could go either way though.
Colts (0-1)	Vikings (0-1)	Peyton Manning should have an easier time against the Vikings pass defense this week than he did against Chicago last week, but he needs to be better.
Giants (1-0)	Rams (0-1)	Are the Rams this year’s leading candidate to go 0-16?
Saints (1-0)	Redskins (0-1)	Good start for New Orleans last week, let’s see how they do on the road now.
49ers (0-1)	Seahawks (0-1)	I’m very hesitant to pick the Seahawks after their showing last week, but I’ll go with them at home in a tight match.
Falcons (1-0)	Buccaneers (0-1)	Very surprising start for the Falcons last week, but the Bucs are a better team than the Lions.
Dolphins (0-1)	Cardinals (1-0)	With the injuries that Seattle is dealing with, the time is now for the Cardinals to make their move in the NFC West.
Chargers (0-1)	Broncos (1-0)	The Broncos looked awfully good last night and I have a feeling that Jay Cutler is going to have a big year.
Ravens (1-0)	Texans (0-1)	Rough start for Houston, but I think they’re much better than what they showed and I’ll take them to win a nail-biter.		PPD
Patriots (1-0)