Ah, with the first week of the NFL season behind us, it's time for gross overreactions on the part of fans, media, and yes even Vegas. The truth is, we don't know much more about any given team then we did last week (with the exception of teams who suffered serious injuries). Thus, basing a line, or a pick, off one week's worth of results is a bad idea. Stick with your preseason opinions until they're proven wrong. Last week, the Sportszilla crew had a decent week: everyone was at least .500, though none of us set the world on fire. We'll see if that changes this week, when there are quite a few big spreads to wade through.

Standard Disclaimer: All picks are against the spread, and home teams are bolded.

Editor's Note: John sent his picks to an e-mail address I rarely check, but they were sent Saturday night...no shady business here.

This Week

Ben: 6-9-1
David: 8-7-1
John: 6-9-1
Zach: 8-7-1

Jaguars -10 vs. Falcons

Ben: Jaguars. You can give me 30 points and I still wouldn't take Joey Heistman. This Jags D is better than the Vikings; expect slaughter. By the way, with the Louisville Cardinals defense melting down Saturday night, you think Brian Brohm is wishing he might have come out last year? He'd likely be playing this game for the Falcons if he had. Wrong.
David: Falcons. I still maintain that Joey Harrington's isn't as sucky as most of the world believes. DJ Shockley and Casey Bramlet can't be as good. Tim Couch, on the other hand... In any event, I respect the Jags, but this spread is way too big for such an awful QB situation, road dog or not. Right.
John: Jaguars. No way Jax loses 2 straight at home, especially against Joey Harrington. Wrong.
Zach: Jaguars. Yes, they looked bad in a loss to the Titans. And yes, their defense was gouged by the less-than-immortal Chris Brown. On the other hand, Atlanta was godawful against Minnesota, and I can't honestly see them scoring more than a touchdown. I like the Jags to get back on track this week. Wrong.

Steelers -10 vs. Bills

Ben: Steelers. I'd love to take the Bills with this line, but their defense took a trip last week to the doctors office. Most were then shipped to the IR. On the road, with half their personnel, I don't like them keeping this close. Right.
David: Steelers. "Picking JP Losman on the road" is the new "visiting a Bed-Stuy whorehouse". Right.
John: Bills. This spread is a classic overreaction to a big week one Pitt performance. They aren't that good. Wrong.
Zach: Steelers. Lost in all the (understandable) concern about Kevin Everett, I didn't see anyone mention that the Bills lost three starters on defense last week. I like Pittsburgh to have another big offensive day. Right.

Browns +7 vs. Bengals

Ben: Bengals. Kudos to Zach for getting one last "Wiggles" joke out of Charlie Frye. Now, for at least one more Matrix joke. Mr. Anderson is the One for Sunday, but how long he lasts before being unplugged is anybody's guess. The over/under? Four drives. The Browns secondary is underrated but it won't matter if their offense doesn't move the football. Wrong.
David: Bengals. I'm sure Derek Anderson is a decent person. He's a better quarterback than at least 99.9% of the world's population. However, he has no business starting at QB for an
NFL team. Wrong.
John: Bengals. The Browns are awful, and the Bengals can run up the score with the best of them. The Cowboys get the Browns 1st round pick next year, so lose away!! Wrong.
Zach: Bengals. Picking all these big favorites is abnormal for me, but I just hate all the big underdogs this week. Cleveland traded their opening day quarterback after one week, and that's only the beginning of their problems. Cincinnati wasn't exactly dominant last week against Baltimore, but they will be this week. Wrong.

Giants -2.5 vs. Packers

Ben: Packers. Why does this game have a line? No one knows who is starting for the Giants! Has Eli sunk that far that Vegas sees no discernible difference between him and Jared Lorenzan? Bigger issue- a battle of the defenses. The Packers are solid and the Giants are old and beat up. I smell 0-2 and Tom Coughlin's head on a platter. The camera lens is not wide enough to encompass the smile of Tiki Barber's face these days. Who doesn't like to be proven right? Right.
David: Packers. Jared Lorenzen and Derrick Ward notwithstanding, I can't see the Giants offense getting anything done against a tough Green Bay D. I still don't like Brett Favre. Right.
John: Packers. The Pack defense is really good, and Eli is all banged up. The Giants D is so bad right now even Green Bay will score on them. Right.
Zach: Packers. Early in the season is a great chance to pick up some picks with the Packers, before Vegas realizes just how good that defense is. They'll throttle whoever the Giants put at quarterback, and even Brett Favre can pick apart that swiss cheese secondary. Right.

Titans +7 vs. Colts

Ben: Colts. Peyton Manning against a Pac-Man Jones-less secondary. Go ahead and takes the points if you dare. Wrong.
David: Colts. Count me among those who think Indy has figured out something new and changed the way they defend the run. Thus, they'll be able to handle Tennessee's running game. Ergo, they'll handle Tennessee's offense. Wrong.
John: Titans. Look at this series last year, and how Tennessee played the Colts so well. Go with history and hope Indy lets down. Right.
Zach: Colts. What's gotten into me? Indy looked fantastic to open the season, and while I'm a bit wary of the extended layoff, I'm optimistic about their run defense. They certainly can't be worse than Jacksonville was last week, and unlike the Jags they can make Tennessee miss Pac-Man Jones. Wrong.

Panthers -6.5 vs. Texans

Ben: Panthers. Don't love the Panthers but I'm not sure how those Texans cover Steve Smith. I'm also not on the Matt Shaub bandwagon yet. Wrong.
David: Texans. The Panthers have begun their annual seduction. Don't give in. This will be a close one. Right.
John: Texans. I hated picking this game, so I went with my gut. Right.
Zach: Texans. This is a hunch, nothing else. This game could do something to show us if the perceived disparity between the AFC and NFC is as big as we've been led to believe. Right.

Buccaneers +3 vs. Saints

Ben: Saints. I think the NFC South will be the worst division in football. Yes even worse than the NFC North. Wrong.
David: Buccaneers. Am I the only one who's scared of the New Orleans offense, now? In a worst case scenario, Reggie Bush turns out to be "only" a hybrid of Larry Centers and Mel Gray. Marques Colston turns out to be too slow to carry the Number One Receiver tag. Deuce
McAllister starts sliding. I'll stop now. If I keep going, I'll realize I'm talking myself into picking Jeff Garcia. Oh. Right. Right.
John: Saints. Why is this spread so low? Wrong.
Zach: Saints. Tampa Bay looked awful last week, and while the Saints did too I'm sanguine about their chances, at least this week. Wrong.

Rams -3 vs. 49ers

Ben: 49ers. The Rams lost Orlando Pace for the season. For those of you who own Marc Bulger or Tory Holt, I feel for you. Most of all, I feel for Bulger himself, who's blindside is going to left unprotected so many times, he's going to lose count. That's a bad thing normally, but with the Rams likely to free fall, the less of this season remembered the better. Right.
David: Rams. The Rams were disappointing last week, and the Niners surprised me by frustrating the Arizona offense. But my comments from last week still stand. Unless Patrick
Willis and Nate Clements represent a major defensive improvement (still up in the air), the Niners are suspect and not to be trusted in any situation, let alone against a team with playmakers like the Rams. Wrong.
John: Rams. After a disappointing 1st week, at home, go with the Rams. The 49ers defense is good, but not good enough to stop St. Louis. Wrong.
Zach: 49ers. Offensive lineman are underrated. Even when they're as well-known as Orlando Pace, their impact is still underestimated. With Pace out for the year, St. Louis is in the running to be the worst team in the league. San Francisco will be the least impressive 2-0 team in the NFL come Sunday evening. Right.

Dolphins +3.5 vs. Cowboys

Ben: Cowboys. Wait, this isn't the line for how many pieces Trent Green will break into when he's invariably nailed by DeMarcus Ware in the first quarter? My mistake. Right.
David: Cowboys. The Dolphins put up a better fight than I expected last week. Still, Dallas just has too many offensive weapons for Miami to deal with, and Miami doesn't have enough offensive firepower to win a shootout against even this depleted Dallas defense. Right.
John: Cowboys. Even the Cowboys D can stop Miami, I don't think they are quite as bad as they played in week one against the Giants. Right.
Zach: Cowboys. Miami is awful, and they just don't have the weapons on offense to attack that shaky Dallas secondary. Right.

Lions -3 vs. Vikings

Ben: Lions. This is an awful matchup for the Vikings. Their defense is a very good unit, with one fundamental flaw, great passing attacks will carve them up. The Lions will not run the ball- that's not what Mike Martz does. So the Vikings greatest advantage is nullified. Now it's Tarvaris Jackson against the Lions offense. I don't like those odds for the men in purple. Push.
David: Lions. If Jon Kitna morphed into Warren Moon (circa 1991), this Lions offense would score 40 points per game. But since their QB is Jon Kitna, we're looking at only 30 points
per game, even though they can't really run the ball. The Vikes play the run well, but the Broncos are probably the only team in the league with a secondary that can handle Detroits receiving corps. Hey, Coach Martz! Throw it 50 times every game! Push.
John: Lions. The Vikings suck, and the Lions can score a little. Push.
Zach: Vikings. They're the Lions, they can't be any good. Just watch. Push.

Bears -12 vs. Chiefs

Ben: Bears. 12 points and I'd give it if it were 20. It's conceivable the Chiefs don't score more than 3 points in this game. The Bears defense is overrated, but the Chiefs offense has less talent on it than some college teams. Poor Larry Johnson. No one deserves to be pounded on 31 times a game for a measly 3.2 YPC for a losing team. Wrong.
David: Bears. If Sexy Rexy can't light up this defense, then I think we'll have to re-evaluate his Sexiness. Wrong.
John: Bears. The could play this game 100 times, and in 90 of them the Bears win by two touchdowns. The Bears D will outscore the KC offense. Wrong.
Zach: Bears. Boy, the state of Missouri is going to be the exact geographic center of NFL suckage, at least this year. The Rams and Chiefs may not combine for more than 5 wins. While I don't like the Bears, they will utterly destroy Kansas City. Wrong.

Ravens -10 vs. Jets

Ben: Jets. On our football preview show by biggest fear with the Jets, and the reason I though they would not make the playoffs this year, was because after Chad Pennington went 16 games without injury last year, he was due to see time in the trainer's room this year. Week 1, guess what? The Kellen Clemens era begins. I'm not sure what to expect either. Clemens has the talent, but he couldn't put it together in college. Why would he as a pro? But hey, Kyle Boller is probably starting for the Ravens. Would you give up ten points with him as your starting QB? Right.
David: Jets. My lasting memory of Kellen Clemens is from when he was at Oregon, getting pulled in favor of Dennis Dixon. Also, just in case anyone forgot, Kyle Boller is still Kyle
Boller. This game has 6-3 potential. Right.
John: Ravens. A novice QB against this defense = disaster. Wrong.
Zach: Jets. I'm breaking a cardinal rule, picking a road dog to cover even though I don't think they'll win. But 10 points is a lot to give to Kyle Boller, even if New York is throwing Kellen Clemens into the fire. Still, Baltimore's defense isn't what it has been in past years (witness the Ray Lewis injury), and I think New York can stay within grasp. Right.

Cardinals +2.5 vs. Seahawks

Ben: Seahawks. Say it with me now: "same old Cardinals." All together now: "I will never pick the Cardinals to win the NFC West." It worked for me, and yes it can work for you too Pete Prisco. Wrong.
David: Seahawks. The Seahawks have no glaring weaknesses on defense. On offense, they have a very good running back (who needs to stay healthy), a very good quarterback, a very good group of receivers, and a solid line. Isn't that the profile of a conference champion? Wrong.
John: Cardinals. Arizona plays well at home, and Seattle doesn't on the road. Take the points. Right.
Zach: Seahawks. Arizona's defensive "improvement" is a mirage. The Seahawks will shred the Cardinals, and while that passing game worries me a bit the utter lack of a run game makes this a game I can't pick Arizona to win. Wrong.

Broncos -9.5 vs. Raiders

Ben: Broncos. Last Sunday is the last time I ever show faith in the silver and black again. Well not really, but it sounds cooler than just saying "I got burned worse than Oakland's secondary" right? Wrong.
David: Broncos. The only question is whether Sebastian Janikowski will drink Gatorade or vodka during the game. Wrong.
John: Raiders. Oakland isn't that bad anymore, and Culpepper is a competent qb. Right.
Zach: Raiders. I like Daunte Culpepper to pull himself off the scrap heap this year, and I like Oakland's defense to bounce back big time. Jay Cutler looked terrible last week, and that was against a vastly inferior Bills D. Right.

Patriots -3 vs. Chargers

Ben: Chargers. Wouldn't it be great if Tom Brady was sacked 7 times tomorrow because the Patriots line had no idea where the Chargers were blitzing from? Is there any non-Patriot fan who doesn't want to see this? Wrong.
David: Patriots. As much as I love the Chargers' chances of making the Super Bowl, playing in Foxboro against a loaded, well coached, team is just too much to overcome. Right.
John: Chargers. This game is personal for San Diego. Wrong.
Zach: Patriots. Cameras or no, the Patriots are the superior team, and with the upgraded wideouts they finally have the ability to attack the soft underbelly of the Chargers D, their secondary. Right.

Eagles -7 vs. Redskins

Ben: Redskins. The Eagles are better but the gulf isn't as wide as you think. Seriously - the difference between the best teams in the NFC and the non-Falcons worst teams is probably not 7 points on any given Sunday. Right.
David: Eagles. The Potomac Drainage Basin Indigenous Persons are perfect candidates for one of my harebrained schemes: They should sign Andray Blatche, or some other mediocre 7-foot NBA player, to perform several specialized functions. He'd be the designated field goal block specialist, and he'd go in for fade route jump balls in goal line situations. Wouldn't there be real value in a guy like that? Wrong.
John: Eagles. Philly bounces back big time. Wrong.
Zach: Eagles. By Week 8, that loss to Green Bay won't look nearly as bad. Philly is a good team, and while Washington is dangerous I like the Iggles on the bounce back. Wrong.

Last Week

Ben: 7-7-2
David: 9-5-2
John: 7-7-2
Zach: 9-5-2

Season Standings

David: 17-12-3
Zach: 17-12-3
John: 13-16-3
Ben: 13-16-3