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Mayhem in Week 1. About 60 percent of many survivor pools were eliminated thanks to losses by the 49ers, Bengals, Titans, Broncos and a tie from the Colts. Imagine the damage if the Saints didn't score 17 points in the final 11 minutes including a 51-yard field goal with 19 seconds left. This carnage isn't usually seen in the first week, but with the schedule the way it was, lots of road favorites, some in division, it had the makings of this. Luckily, my top play was the Ravens. I did have the Niners as a second option though.
Week 2 is usually problematic because you're on the heels of overreactions all week. The Patriots are going to win six games, Trey Lance isn't any good and is holding the 49ers back, Kliff Kingsbury will get fired by Week 8... that's just some of what we're hearing. The only thing that is true, the Jets are the worst team in the league. They are a team to fade each week against the spread, and always a look in this pool, but perhaps not this week.
All season long I'll be bringing you weekly survivor pool columns on NFL teams to target and avoid each week. Survivor league strategy is a major part of winning your pools, and this article will help you through the 2022 NFL season.
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NFL Teams Favored by 6+ in Week 2
Lines are consensus via The Action Network: Rams -10.5 vs. Falcons, 49ers -10 vs. Seahawks, Broncos -10 vs. Texans, Bills -10 vs. Titans, Packers -9.5 vs. Bears, Bengals -8.5 at Cowboys.
If you're reading this article on Thursday or later, know that these lines are from Tuesday. Check the current spreads and see how the lines moved.
With gambling now legal for some of you, I'm going to be giving out my three top plays against the spread. They'll be at the bottom. I'll also be giving my predicted score for games written about.
Top Survivor Pool Picks to Target for Week 2
Packers -9.5 vs. Bears
Aaron Rodgers off a loss now returns home to face a team he's 22-5 against. And the game is on Sunday Night Football. The offense should improve. But the Packers defense is the dominating factor here. They have one of the top defenses. It didn't appear that way Sunday but Minnesota is one of the better options and it's only Week 1. The Bears offense averaged a putrid 3.6 yards per play. We'll look back at the Bears-Niners game and wonder how Chicago won.
Packers 38 - Bears 17
Bengals -8.5 at Cowboys
Dallas looks done. Dak Prescott out. The offensive line in shambles. And the team is still undisciplined as they racked up 10 penalties a year after being the most penalized team.
Cincinnati is off a brutal loss to Pittsburgh Sunday and should come out firing. This could get ugly in Big D.
Bengals 33 - Cowboys 17
Bills -10 vs. Titans
The Bills were hyped up to be the best team and in their first game they proved it. Tennessee, as predicted in this column last week, lost to the Giants. Buffalo should be saved for later in the season especially with solid options this week.
Bills 34 - Titans 20
Top Survivor Pool Picks to Avoid for Week 2
Rams -10.5 at Falcons
The pre-season notion was Atlanta will be the worst team in football. But they should have beat the Saints. Their offense was fine but they controlled the clock with a a four-minute edge in time of possession. The Falcons have the offense to hang with most teams with a running quarterback with Marcus Mariota (12 carries for 72 yards) and Corrdarrelle Patterson (22 carries for 120 yards, TD).
The Rams either looked old in the season opener or the Bills are a class above the rest. This will be a real tell. Matthew Stafford was under pressure all night getting sacked seven times. The Falcons got to Jameis Winston four times.
A good running game with pass rushers that can get after the quarterback is a recipe for disaster. I'd rather use the Rams in Week 5 at home against the Cowboys. We'll have a better idea on the Rams by then.
Rams 24 - Falcons 19
49ers -10 vs. Seahawks
More needs to be seen from Trey Lance before using my survivor play on the San Fran. This is a divisional game and the way Geno Smith looked Monday night, this game could come down to the last drive.
49ers 23 - Seahawks 20
Broncos -10 vs. Texans
I have similar sentiment with this game. Do the Broncos need more time to gel before using them in survivor? Houston looked good Sunday with a solid quarterback in Davis Mills and an improved defense.
Broncos 24 - Texans 22
Browns -5.5 vs. Jets
This is the gutsiest play of the week, but if it hits, you get the Browns out of the way when you probably won't have another chance to use them. I’m nervous of taking Jacoby Brissett and the Browns as a favorite because their offense isn’t reliable to score 21-24 points.
Browns 21 - Jets 20
NFL Best Bets for Week 2
- Patriots -1 at Steelers - This line doesn't make sense. Pittsburgh off a win in Cincy while New England looked like one of the worst teams.
- Falcons +10.5 at Rams
- Packers -9.5 vs. Bears
Running Totals
- 2022 season: 3-0
- 2021 season: 27-26-1
- 2020 season: 24-27
- 2019 season: 23-26-2
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