NFL picks, predictions, odds for Week 2: Ravens send Bengals to 0-2

Week 1 of the 2023 NFL season is in the books, and we learned a lot. The new week is underway after the Philadelphia Eagles beat the Minnesota Vikings on Thursday Night Football, so let’s now get to the rest our NFL Week 2 picks, predictions, and odds series.

In the opening week of the NFL season, we got a lot of surprises. It started with the Detroit Lions' upset of the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs. On Sunday, we got surprise (good) performances from the Los Angeles Rams, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and (bad) Cincinnati Bengals, and the choke job we’ve come to expect from the Los Angeles Chargers.

Monday was the real kicker, though. That’s when the Aaron Rodgers Era with the New York Jets ended after four plays, and the team still rallied to beat the Buffalo Bills thanks to future Jets Ring of Honor inductee Josh Allen.

As mentioned, Week 1 is the hardest slate to predict in an NFL season. And as such, in this space last week, we went 6-10 against the spread (but a respectable 9-7 straight up). With a little information at hand now, though, it gets a little easier.

Previous NFL Picks & Predictions: Week 1

So, let’s get right to the NFL Week 2 picks, predictions, and odds.

Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the NFL odds.

NFL Week 2 Picks, Predictions, Odds

Minnesota Vikings at Philadelphia Eagles (-6.5)

Full Vikings-Eagles betting preview

The Eagles got a solid win on Sunday against the Patriots, while the Vikings suffered a shocking loss to the Buccaneers. Despite the two very different finishes in Week 1, these were two playoff teams last year, and the Eagles are dealing with some defensive injuries. With this Vikings-Eagles pick, I still think Philadelphia should take this one at home, but it should be closer than a touchdown game.

Pick: Eagles 24-20

Update: The Eagles held on to beat the Vikings, but Minnesota hit the backdoor cover with a late touchdown for a 34-28 final score.

Green Bay Packers at Atlanta Falcons (-1.5)

Full Packers-Falcons betting preview

The Jordan Love Era got off to a great start as the Packers destroyed the Bears in Week 1. On the NFL Week 2 slate, Green Bay again gets a run-heavy team and should implement the same game plan of forcing the opposing quarterback to beat them through the air. If this game comes down to Desmond Ridder, the Packers win, though they are dealing with injuries to Aaron Jones and Christian Watson that will make things a bit more difficult.

Pick: Packers 17-14

Chicago Bears at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (-2.5)

Full Bears-Buccaneers betting preview

Everyone in Tampa Bay is flying high after the Week 1 win, but we’ve seen this Baker Mayfield movie before. If the QB played like he played last week every game, the 2018 No. 1 overall pick wouldn’t be on his fourth team in 2023. The Packers throttled the Bears at Soldier Field in their opener, but what’s new about that? There was some optimism about this offense in the preseason, and in Week 2, they’ll finally show that off a bit and win straight up.

Pick: Bears 21-20

Seattle Seahawks at Detroit Lions (-4.5)

Full Seahawks-Lions betting preview

Beware teams that got blown out by 10 or more points in the opening week of the season. Historically, these teams pull it together a bit in the second stanza and play a much closer game, if not win outright. The Lions showed they are legit contenders by beating the Chiefs, and that still rings true, but this line seems like an overreaction to the first Sunday results.

Pick: Lions 27-24

Las Vegas Raiders at Buffalo Bills (-8.5)

Full Raiders-Bills betting preview

The glass-half-full take on the Bills' stunning overtime loss to Zach Wilson and the Jets is that Josh Allen and the Bills were so bad that it was a wake-up call more than a death knell for the 2023 season. Plus, the Raiders are coming across the country to play an early game, and they barely beat the Broncos, who may not be that good. Yes, there is a chance Josh Jacobs goes full Breece Hall and gashes the Bills’ defense, but for now, I’ll take the optimistic view of Buffalo.

Pick: Bills 31-20

Los Angeles Chargers (-2.5) at Tennessee Titans

Full Chargers-Titans betting preview

The Chargers and Dolphins played the game of the Week on Sunday, even though LA fans might not feel that way after coughing up yet another lead. Miami looks like one of the best teams in the AFC right now, though, so the Chargers should be able to take care of a mid-level team like the Titans with relative ease, even without Austin Ekeler. If they don’t, it’s officially panic time for Justin Herbert and company.

Pick: Chargers 30-19

Baltimore Ravens at Cincinnati Bengals (-3)

Full Ravens-Bengals betting preview

The real truth of the matter is, that neither the Ravens nor the Bengals played all that well in Week 1. Baltimore came away with the win because they played rookie QB CJ Stroud and the Texans, while the Browns took advantage of Joe Burrow’s failures. That said, the Bengals did not look good in the rain on Sunday, and historically, the team has started slow the last few seasons. Look for Lamar Jackson to get back on track first, but that doesn’t mean the Bengals still won’t be there in the end.

Pick: Ravens 24-23

Indianapolis Colts at Houston Texans (-1)

Full Colts-Texans betting preview

I’d like to bet against all rookie quarterbacks in this NFL Week 2 picks, predictions, and odds column, but I can’t, as two are facing off on Sunday. This is a coin-flip game, so this is simply a guess based on the Week 1 eye test. Anthony Richardson looked like the more dangerous freshman signal-caller last week, so they’ll take the win in Houston with CJ Stroud a bit banged up.

Pick: Colts 15-13

Kansas City Chiefs (-3.5) at Jacksonville Jaguars

Full Chiefs-Jaguars betting preview

While the Jaguars took care of the Colts by 10, that was a much tighter game throughout than the final score indicated. This week, Patrick Mahomes gets Travis Kelce back, which changes the entire tenor of the Chiefs' normally explosive offense. These two teams are developing a nice little rivalry after last season’s playoff meeting, and Trevor Lawrence may get the better of Mahomes someday soon. That day just won’t be Sunday.

Pick: Chiefs 35-31

San Francisco 49ers (-7) at Los Angeles Rams

Full 49ers-Rams betting preview

Both these teams won on the road last week, and both teams scored 30 points. For the 49ers, that wasn’t shocking. For the Rams, it was a complete shock. Kyle Shanahan’s group has a huge talent advantage here, but his old buddy Sean McVay is always a tough matchup. Shanahan owns McVay in their head-to-head series, so that and the better players get the 49ers the win. However, the Rams are scrappier than expected with Matthew Stafford under center, so this game could be closer than the oddsmakers think.

Pick: 49ers 33-30

New York Giants (-4.5) at Arizona Cardinals

Full Giants-Cardinals betting preview

The Giants have to do something to save some face after the Cowboys absolutely decimated them, 40-0. Luckily, they have the Cardinals on the schedule, the team that may be the worst in the NFL this season when it’s all said and done. While Dallas did expose Brian Daboll, Daniel Jones, and the Giants' offensive line Sunday night, they are nowhere near as bad as they seemed. This will be a bounce-back game for Big Blue as they win the Isaiah Simmons Bowl with relative ease.

Pick: Giants 28-13

New York Jets at Dallas Cowboys (-8.5)

Full Jets-Cowboys betting preview

Another week, another New York team with a weak offensive line and a shaky quarterback. So goes the life of Micah Parsons and the Cowboys' defense. On Monday, the ghosts of the Meadowlands helped the Jets pull off a miraculous victory over the Bills. Once the adrenaline wears off, the Jets are left with a shoddy O-line and Zach Wilson against a defense that put up seven sacks and 12 QB hits the previous game. Dallas is giving up a lot of points, but I’m OK with that under the circumstances.

Pick: Cowboys 22-9

Washington Commanders at Denver Broncos (-3.5)

Full Commanders-Broncos betting preview

Sam Howell and the Commanders got a win over the Cardinals last week but didn’t look all that great doing it. The Broncos took at L to the Raiders in Week 1 but seemed improved from last season’s train wreck. This may be the hardest game on the NFL Week 2 picks, predictions, and odds slate to predict, as it seems like neither of these teams showed their true selves on Sunday. The difference here is that the Commanders’ pass rush stepped up late and helped win the game, while the Broncos' offense succumbed to the pass rush late to lose. That could be a game script we see here, so I’ll narrowly (and not all that confidently) take the road team.

Pick: Commanders 20-19

Miami Dolphins (-3) at New England Patriots

Full Dolphins-Patriots betting preview

The Patriots held their own against the defending NFC champs last week, while the Dolphins needed a late comeback to beat the Chargers. However, the Miami offense looked like one of (if not) the best and most dangerous unit in the league, and not even the great Bill Belichick will be able to slow down Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle. Dolphins win comfortably.

Pick: Dolphins 34-24

New Orleans Saints (-3) at Carolina Panthers

Full Saints-Panthers betting preview

This NFC South battle kicks off the Monday Night Football doubleheader, which is great because fans can then click over to the more interesting second game an hour later without missing much. The Saints are the better team with the better quarterback and the (slightly) better defense. Overall, this shouldn’t be that difficult for New Orleans or that compelling for America.

Pick: Saints 16-10

Cleveland Browns (-2.5) at Pittsburgh Steelers

The final contest in this NFL Week 2 picks, predictions, and odds piece is the second Monday night game, in which Cleveland travels to Pittsburgh and into a raucous sea of Terrible Towels. The Browns' offense should look even better this game as long as they don’t play in a rainstorm like last week. And the Steelers' offense should look the same until Kenny Pickett takes the next step and proves otherwise. That’s why the Browns will take this one.

Pick: Browns 23-20

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