After a 4-1 Week 1, I went 3-2 in Week 2. But it could’ve been worse had the New Orleans Saints not come back to beat the Cleveland Browns. The Saints were my “lock of the week” in Week 2, and because my weekly picks are now part of the PodcastOne SportsNet Challenge (check it out at PodcastoneSportsnet.com), the “lock of the week” pick is my most important one. That’s worth two points, while the other four picks are only worth one.
I enter Week 3 in a tie for third place. But I’m feeling a perfect week coming. If anything at all, I’m extremely confident that my “lock of the week” this week will be my “lock of the year.” Keep reading to find out who that is.
Here are my picks for Week 3, and keep in mind, this year, because of the PodcastOne contest, my picks are straight up winners:
CAROLINA PANTHERS over Cincinnati Bengals
-Don’t look now, but the Bengals are in first place in the AFC North with a perfect 2-0 record. And they beat two decent teams in the Indianapolis Colts and Baltimore Ravens. Oddly enough, the score of both of those wins for Cincinnati was 34-23. Strange. But regardless, the Bengals travel to Carolina Sunday at 1 p.m. to take on a 1-1 Panthers team that’s coming off a 31-24 loss to the Falcons in Atlanta. If this game was in Cincy, I’d probably stay away. But since it’s in Carolina, I’ll take the Panthers to bounce back and hand the Bengals their first loss of the season. Cincinnati might be good this year. But are they “3-0 to begin the season” good? Give me Carolina as a three-point favorite at home.
JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS over Tennessee Titans
-As I write this on Tuesday night, the game is off the board, mainly because of Marcus Mariota’s unknown status for Sunday at 1 in Jacksonville. Mariota missed last Sunday’s game with an elbow injury, but Blaine Gabbert and the Titans still found a way to defeat the Houston Texans. Gabbert could very well start again in Jacksonville, but even if it’s Mariota, I’m still taking the Jaguars to win the game and jump to 3-0. The Jaguars are coming off a huge win at home over the New England Patriots. They acted like it was their Super Bowl, so this one actually has “letdown game” written all over it. But credit where credit is due. Jacksonville looked great against the Patriots. If the Jags are really going to prove me wrong this year, then they can’t follow up that win by losing to Tennessee at home. I’ll take the Jaguars all day here.
HOUSTON TEXANS over New York Giants
-Both the Texans and Giants are looking for their first win of the season. This game is in Houston, and the Texans are a three-point favorite after losing in Tennessee last Sunday and losing in New England in Week 1. This will be the Texans’ home opener, against a Giants team that’s lost to Jacksonville and Dallas. Neither team has looked good so far this season, but I’d bet a lot of money that this Houston team turns it around before New York does. Deshaun Watson is too good to not start putting up the numbers he put up last year before he got hurt. Home field is the key in this one. So I’ll take the Texans to pick up their first win of the season.
NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS over Detroit Lions
-This game is in Detroit for Sunday Night Football on NBC. The 1-1 Patriots are coming off a loss in Jacksonville and are a six-and-a-half point favorite. They can’t possibly look as bad as they looked against the Jaguars last Sunday, even if the newly acquired Josh Gordon doesn’t play. The Lions are 0-2 and have lost to the New York Jets and San Francisco 49ers. Let’s just be honest here. After that loss in Jacksonville, are the Patriots really going to follow that up by losing to Matt Patricia? Come on now.
LOCK OF THE WEEK: MINNESOTA VIKINGS over Buffalo Bills
-All you need to know about the 0-2 Bills is that they had a player retire at halftime of last Sunday’s loss to the Los Angeles Chargers. Cornerback Vontae Davis called it a career at the half, but that says more about Buffalo than it does Davis, in my opinion. If Davis was on the Patriots, would he have retired? My guess would be “no.” In other bad news for the Bills, running back LeSean McCoy is dealing with broken ribs. He said he’s going to try and play through it, but let’s be serious here. It’s quite possible that Buffalo already has its sights set on the No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 draft. So I’ll take whoever they’re playing against as my “lock of the week,” especially the Vikings in Minnesota.
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