Last week, we hit on four of the five suggested picks so hopefully you took my advice and are still alive in your survivor pools.
My apologies if you chose Philadelphia over San Diego, I was sincerely shocked by that one.
In retrospect, we should have been wary of Philadelphia’s sketchy defence, but we figured Chip Kelly knew all the rules and how to manage the clock. Guess we were wrong there.
The good news, though, is that this week looks like a breeze compared to the first two.
I have been sweating out games over the first two weeks and hope we don’t have to continue the stress on Sunday.
Remember, let’s try and avoid the dreaded divisional matchup, road teams, and getting cute (like saving Seattle for later). Nothing is easy in this league; let’s get the wins while we can.
With that in mind, here are our top five survivor picks for Week 3:
1. Seattle Seahawks (home vs. Jacksonville Jaguars)
This is the true definition of a mismatch. If Jacksonville thought Kansas City and Oakland were tough, wait until they see the Seahawks at CenturyLink Field. Seattle completely shut down a very talented San Francisco offence last week and should dominate a Jags team that has averaged just five and a half points per game. Five! Pete Carroll’s squad rarely loses at home — their last loss came in December of 2011 — so it’s no surprise Seattle is favoured by 19.5 points.
2. Denver Broncos (home vs. Oakland Raiders)
Oakland has played above expectations so far but they could be in for an ugly game this week on Monday night. Peyton Manning and the Broncos have been in mid-season form and it’s hard to imagine how Oakland will be able to stop the Broncos’ passing attack. The Raiders are thin in the secondary and will have little chance of keeping up with Denver’s group of weapons. Raiders quarterback Terrelle Pryor isn’t the kind of player that’s built to play from behind. We like Denver to win big in this one.
3. New Orleans Saints (home vs. Arizona Cardinals)
You would have to be nuts not to pick Denver or Seattle, but in case you’re looking for a sneaky pick (we don’t recommend that approach!) New Orleans is a solid choice this week. Arizona may be better than you think but they don’t match up well against Drew Brees and the potent Saints offence. Arizona is struggling to rush the passer and have already allowed 577 yards and four touchdowns in two games. Just wait until Brees gets to them.
4. San Francisco 49ers (home vs. Indianapolis Colts)
You think San Francisco will be motivated this week? After getting embarrassed by their top rival on national TV, the 49ers will be looking for revenge in front of their home crowd. As much as Trent Richardson will help the Colts down the road, we don’t expect him to have a big debut against a stout 49ers front seven. Jim Harbaugh has never lost back-to-back games in his San Francisco tenure and the 49ers are well positioned to beat up a team that has trouble protecting the passer and stopping the run. This could get ugly for Andrew Luck.
5. New England Patriots (home vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
Hopefully you used New England last week and aren’t forced to use this pick with all the intriguing options listed above. The Pats will have 10 days to prepare for a Tampa Bay team that can’t seem to get out of their own way. The Bucs should be 2-0 at this point but they’ve managed to screw up both games. Although Tampa’s defence has improved, we can’t imagine Josh Freeman outduelling Tom Brady in Foxboro and that’s what this game will come down to. Hopefully Brady’s rookie receivers can actually catch the ball this week.
