Last Week: 12-4

New York Jets (1-0) at New England Patriots (1-0)

Tell ya what? The Jets were actually kinda decent last week. Though the result, to be honest, was more a story of Tampa Bay being disappointing. It was only a late penalty that saved them. Geno Smith will get the start again this week against a Patriots team struggling for receivers and coming off of a narrow, late win against Buffalo. The Brady/Belichick combo has made something out of nothing before, and with Amendola and Gronk both probably out, and Vereen definitely out, it’ll need to happen again. Luckily the Jets will probably implode in a rabble of turnovers, so they should edge this one nonetheless.

Wildcard’s Pick: Patriots by 6

St Louis Rams (1-0) at Atlanta Falcons (0-1)

Sam Bradford, ladies and gentlemen. He showed he’s got what it takes, directing his team to a close win against a curiously favoured Arizona team. Not that they’ll win this game, Atlanta are playing catch up after dropping a close one to New Orleans, but it’s a good sign for their season. I stand by my generous preseason pick. The rushing situation needs to improve though.

Wildcard’s Pick: Atlanta by 6

Carolina Panthers (0-1) at Buffalo Bills (0-1)

The rush game is set for Carolina, and on both sides of the ball. But the passing stuff needs to get better. You can’t berate them too much after losing a tight one to Seattle – the Seahawks are a very strong side – yet Carolina have a lot of tools in place and they need to produce. In that regard, Buffalo is a nice side to come up against at this time. They pushed the Pats close, but that was a rusty Pats side. Carolina’s schedule is murder in the second half, but an early push and they could be 5-2 when they come up against Atlanta, San Fran and New England back to back to back. Steal a win from those three, and maybe they’re a playoff dark horse…

Wildcard’s Pick: Carolina edge it by 5

Minnesota Vikings (0-1) at Chicago Bears (1-0)

Adrian Peterson picked up where he left off last season, taking his first carry 78 yards for a score, but he was disturbingly quiet the rest of the game, only managing 15 more yards on 17 carries. Teams can afford to throw most of their defensive options into stopping Peterson, since Christian Ponder is playing QB, and this is where Minnesota falls apart. They lack balance, and if Peterson is injured, suddenly this is a 5 win team at best. Chicago looked OK in winning their opener, but they’re a long way from being a playoff team as is. What this one boils down to is: Stop Adrian, stop Minnesota.

Wildcard’s Pick: The fellas from The Windy City can do it. Bears by 7

Miami Dolphins (1-0) at Indianapolis Colts (1-0)

Miami justified some of the hype by winning their opener. Their defence looks great, and Tannehill continues to improve. Mike Wallace was very quiet, only making one catch, but his presence even on a down day like that one means he draws defenders away from other targets, opening up the field for Tannehill. The Colts are due to regress in 2013, but Andy Luck was so impressive against Oakland (18/23 passes for 178 yards and 2 TDs for a 127.9 quarterback rating), that I believe he can carry this team to another win here. Luck has 8 game-winning drives in the fourth quarter or overtime, in just 17 career games. That’s insane.

Wildcard’s Pick: Luckless Dolphins go down by 4 to Andy’s Colts

Washington Redskins (0-1) at Green Bay Packers (0-1)

It’s becoming clear that RGIII’s ‘Skins overachieved last year. As the dust settles from week one, and considering they face a pretty impressive Green Bay side that were unlucky to lose to Kap’s ‘Niners, you realise what a stretch it will be to repeat. They were a losing team until a late rally in the back half of last season. They could easily have finished 7-9, and I think they may be lucky to avoid that fate this year. It’s only been a week, sure, but I think The Cowboys and Eagles are favourites now in the NFC East. Washington will be starting with a 0-2 handicap.

Wildcard’s Pick: Green Bay wins it comfortably; RGIII gets intercepted a couple times trying to force it. Packers by 10

Dallas Cowboys (1-0) at Kansas City Chiefs (1-0)

Now here are a couple teams made big statements opening week. Monte Kiffin’s new D in Dallas looks mighty fine, and the Andy Reid reign in Kansas City got off to a less eventful, yet much more comfortable winning start themselves. Dallas is stacked with talent, but has often lacked the attitude. This really needs to be the year for Tony Romo’s lads. This’ll be a tough one in KC, but the ‘Boys have taken care of both Alex Smith and Andy Reid in recent years. They have more options, and should come away 2-0. With the Rams and Chargers to follow, Dallas could be playing this season from well in front (which is crucial, since they have a tendency to always lose in December).

Wildcard’s Pick: Cowboys by 4

Cleveland Browns (0-1) at Baltimore Ravens (0-1)

Brandon Weeden will be a welcome sight in Baltimore after Peyton Manning gutted them last Thursday. Questions will linger on a while yet about Baltimore and their new defence, not to mention Joe Flacco, but they should do the business here, especially at home.

Wildcard’s Pick: Baltimore by 7

Tennessee Titans (1-0) at Houston Texans (1-0)

Ooh boy. This could get messy. Tennessee was pretty good against Pittsburgh, but they won’t get the same leg-up here. Houston should have won a lot more comfortably against San Diego and they’ll be raring to go. Matt Schaub was very impressive last week, bouncing back from an interception first pass of the year, to lead his team back from 21 points down (with help from Phil Rivers, naturally). That’s the kind of QB Houston need Schaub to be to make a title run. Arian Foster will have a much bigger role to play this time out as well, having had another week of recovery.

Wildcard’s Pick: Houston by 10

San Diego Chargers (0-1) at Philadelphia Eagles (1-0)

No team made a more convincing step forward than the Eagles week one. Chip Kelly has worked wonders in flushing out the inset malaise of the Andy Reid era, and his dynamic offensive strategies are such a perfect fit for this team. Plus his play-cards are just brilliant. Suddenly Philadelphia are contenders in what now looks like the most closely fought division of all. I don’t see any team in the NFC getting more than 10 wins, nor anyone losing more than 6. San Diego might be able to challenge the latter on the basis of their last efforts, though. They had the game in the bag vs Houston, up 21 points in the final quarter, but Philip Rivers literally threw it away. As he usually does.

Wildcard’s Pick: Philly by 6 in a high scorer.

Detroit Lions (1-0) at Arizona Cardinals (0-1)

Larry Fitzgerald clearly loved having a QB in Carson Palmer that can actually throw in a straight line, but not even Larry is a match for Megatron in Detroit. Coming off of a very unlucky season last year, I think Detroit is primed to return to their 2011 form. Nndamukong Suh avoiding suspension is a bonus, and so was Reggie Bush’s 191 all-purpose yard performance week one. He’s the best running option Stafford has had, and takes a load of pressure off of his arm. Speaking of Matt Stafford, can you believe he’s only 25? Plus he’s a dead-set doppelganger for songwriter Jason Isbell. That is one talented gene-pool. Arizona has been fancied a bit, but they have a tough first half of the season, and I don’t think they’ll recover. 4-4 by their bye week will be a great effort.

Wildcard’s Pick: Lions maul. Detroit by 14

New Orleans Saints (1-0) at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-1)

I’ve clung to the bumper of the Josh Freeman bandwagon longer than most, but my fingers are starting to slip. Whether they had been able to snatch the Jets game week one or not, it was a very second-rate show. New Orleans, on the other hand, made a clear statement that with Sean Payton back on the sidelines, they mean business. If they can beat Atlanta, they can certainly beat the Buccs.

Wildcard’s Pick: Easy & Brees-ey. Saints by double figures.

Jacksonville Jaguars (0-1) at Oakland Raiders (0-1)

It’s only week two, but this matchup could effectively be the playoff for the first draft pick next year. Probably best to give this’un a miss.

Wildcard’s Pick: Oakland by 3

Denver Broncos (1-0) at New York Giants (0-1)

Peyton vs Eli. It’s the Manning Bowl! Football’s First Family of quarterbacks meet for the third time, Peyton winning both so far. Very contrasting lead-ins, too: Peyton’s Broncos brutalised the defending champs, with The Sheriff tossing 7 TDs (tying an NFL record in a match), while Eli’s G-Men lost in Dallas, giving up 6 turnovers (not that Eli is to blame there). The Giants running backs situation is so dire that they’ve issued the SOS to Brandon Jacobs (who was on their 2012 Superbowl roster). David Wilson fumbled twice, and Andre Brown is injured. Eli is capable of running a decent ‘pass first, run never’ offence, but that won’t get them in the playoffs. The Brothers threw over 900 yards between them week one, but this Denver D is one of the league’s best.

Wildcard’s Pick: Peyton 3 – Eli 0. Broncos by 10 in a fizzer.

San Francisco 49ers (1-0) at Seattle Seahawks (1-0)

This was already a great rivalry, but with both these teams playing at a standard as good as ever in recent years, this could be a thriller. The Niners gave us a beauty of a game against Green Bay last week, definitely the game of the round, and this one could be similar in its appeal, if not in its proceedings. Unlike the offensive shootout of GB vs SF, this will be a litmus test for the respective defences. A tight, low scorer. Seattle has a lot of fans right now. I’m not quite ready to hop that Superbowl ship yet, but they are damn near unbeatable at home. San Fran will be the biggest challenge to that home field advantage they face in 2013 though.

Wildcard’s Pick: Playin’ it safe, Seattle by 3.

Pittsburgh Steelers (0-1) at Cincinnati Bengals (0-1)

All four teams in the AFC North lost last week. On their respective results, I think Baltimore, even though they were beaten to a pulp, is actually in the best position. Cincinnati really should have beaten Chicago, and they desperately need to bounce back now to avoid an 0-2 hole. Meanwhile Pittsburgh has just been decimated by injuries. Losing their centre Pouncey is a damning blow to an already under fire offensive line. It’s only a matter of time till Ben Roethlisberger gets hurt, and without him, the Steelers are done for. Neither team can really afford to lose, which will make this Monday Night Football encounter a thriller. Maybe not for the quality of the play, but definitely for the desperation. Even as early as week two, there are seasons on the line here. Cincinnati play Green Bay and New England in their next three. A loss here and a 1-4 start is on the cards for a team expecting to make a playoff run. Meanwhile Pittsburgh has a much lighter schedule, but the rot is already setting in. Only way to beat it is to start winning.

Wildcard’s Pick: Cincinnati by 6

The Wildcard is a staff writer for The Niche Cache. Born and raised in the Southern Louisiana, he joined the army as a teen, discharged three years later under murky circumstances. The next few years were spent as a touring circus hand/travelling musician, but he settled down in his early forties, moving to New York to pursue a career in stand-up comedy. He has a regular show on NPR radio (‘Rock me, baby’: An hour long conversation about geological phenomenon and mineral resources), and writes sports blogs on the side.