Fraser's Favorites Week 1

Indianapolis at Chicago

It is amazing how the media would not stop with the Andrew Luck talk all throughout last season, and now here he is and all we hear about is RGIII and Tim Tebow. The number one draft pick looks to regain the spotlight with his first game in the NFL. Luck drew a tough matchup though as the Indianapolis Colts travel to Soldier Field to take on the Chicago Bears. The Bears perennially own one of the league’s top defenses and will continue to maintain that status as long as Brian Urlacher dresses in a Bears uniform. Offensively, Jay Cutler returns from a 2011 thumb injury and will now be paired with star wide receiver Brandon Marshall for the second time in their careers. A talented, veteran defense coupled with a revamped offense could vault the Bears to the top spot in the NFC North. Their road to a division championship begins this Sunday with a win over the Colts as Andrew Luck starts his career with two interceptions.

Chicago- 27

Indianapolis- 19

Philadelphia at Cleveland

Is there anything exciting about the Cleveland Browns? Awful uniforms. A 28 year old rookie quarterback. Relatively no big names on defense. A rookie runningback who is already haunted by injuries. 15 rookies on a 53 man roster. The Browns will be the worst team in the NFL this season. Their first loss comes in week 1 against the “Dream…”, actually let’s not get back into that again this year. The Philadelphia Eagles main goal in the regular season is obviously to make the playoffs, but their priority should be keeping Michael Vick healthy. The Eagles biggest questions though are on defense where defensive coordinator Juan Castillo struggled in his first season. While this first game should be a cakewalk facing a putrid Browns offense, Philadelphia has a tough road ahead in a difficult division.

Cleveland- 14

Philadelphia- 31

New England at Tennessee

Wes Welker has to be livid with himself for dropping that pass in the Superbowl. With just under four minutes left in the game, Welker dropped a wide open pass at the Giants 20 yard line that certainly would have locked up victory for the Patriots. Instead, the Giants got the ball back and the rest is history. Going into the 2012 season, expectations are equally as high for this Patriots team. They added Brandon Lloyd to an already explosive passing attack. Questions remain on the offensive line as Tom Brady was constantly under pressure during the pre-season. Fortunately for the Patriots offensive line, the Titans were 31^st in total sacks last year, bringing down the quarterback only 28 times in 2011. If Brady is given ample amounts of time, expect him to pick apart the Titans secondary.  Jake Locker, CJ2K, and the Titans offense will be incapable of keeping up with the Patriots offense.

Tennessee- 17

New England-  35

Atlanta at Kansas City

Very rarely are teams best acquisitions in the offseason coordinators. However, for the Atlanta Falcons, offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter and defensive coordinator Mike Nolan, will be their biggest additions. The aggressive nature of both coaches will undoubtedly make the Falcons a better team. Koetter will especially take advantage of the strengths of Matt Ryan which are his intelligence, abilities to adjust the play at the line of scrimmage, and his accuracy on timing routes. Defensively, Mike Nolan will use playmaker Sean Weatherspoon in a diverse way and utilize his talented cornerbacks in the nickel package. Kansas City, Atlanta’s week one opponent, will be without superstar outside linebacker Tamba Hali and cornerback Brandon Flowers. Without Hali and Flowers, Matt Ryan should have ample time in the pocket to find Julio Jones downfield, demonstrating the explosiveness of Koetter’s new offense.

Kansas City- 24

Atlanta- 33

Jacksonville at Minnesota

There is not much to like about either of these teams heading into week 1. Both teams have superstar runningbacks with serious issues, Adrian Peterson might not play because of knee injuries suffered last season. Maurice Jones-Drew just ended his holdout from training camp and according to Coach Mularkey will only be a third down runningback. There has been a lot of discussion about the improvements of sophomore quarterback Blaine Gabbert during the pre-season; but I will believe it when I see it. Until then, he is still the worst quarterback in the league in my opinion. Minnesota outlasts Jacksonville in a game of two irrelevant teams.

Minnesota- 21

Jacksonville- 20

Washington at New Orleans

While Robert Griffin III has not yet played in an NFL game, we can only hope he plays poorly. All these commercials we see on t.v. with him need to end. A professional athlete that hurdles his way to Subway during workouts? Come on. This is someone who has not proven anything who has already made enough money in endorsements and bonuses to retire and live happily the rest of his life. Amazing. Griffin’s first opportunity to prove himself comes against a New Orleans Saints team who received a lot of negative attention this off-season with Bounty-Gate. While I do think the offseason turmoil will have an impact on the Saints, the Redskins are no match for the Saints. Defensive Coordinator Steve Spagnuolo will unleash a variety of different blitzes that will confuse RGIII into a multiple turnover game.

New Orleans- 28

Washington- 13

Buffalo at NY Jets

I would love to know how the New York Jets came to their decision about acquiring Tim Tebow. Yes, he was the quarterback when the Broncos beat the Steelers last year in the playoffs. Yes, he mastered a miraculous comeback against the Jets last year in the final two minutes. But how can he possibly help this football team? It should be particularly interesting to see what happens with the quarterback situation in New York if the Jets get off to a poor start. We could see Tebow starting halfway through the year. Week one will prove to be a challenge for the Jets. The Bills added All-Pro outside linebacker Mario Williams and their identity seemed to change this offseason with that addition. However, the Bills biggest weakness is the Jets best strength. The Jets secondary should be able to contain the poor receiving core of  Buffalo.  A low scoring game at Met Life Stadium won bydefense and fields goals.

New York Jets- 17

Buffalo- 13

St. Louis at Detroit

Can a head coach really make that big of a difference? Teams hunted for Jeff Fisher as though he has the solutions to all teams’ problems. I just don’t see it happening this year for the Rams. Their only real weapon is an aging runningback and Sam Bradford has nothing to work with in terms of wide receivers. They should look at their opponent in week 1 for an example toward creating a high-powered offense with the weapons to produce points. The word weapon is probably a poor choice of words when it comes to the Lions. Some of their players might take that too seriously… If the Lions expect to return to the playoffs, they need to beat teams like the Rams. They get that win week one.

Detroit- 34

St. Louis- 17

Miami at Houston

Watching the Miami Dolphins on HBO’s special Hard Knocks gave me a new appreciation for the rebuilding process a team goes through. The show also opened my eyes to the importance of the business aspect of an NFL team. First year coach Joe Philbin handled that business aspect with incredible poise and remained consistent no matter who the player was. His attitude and personality gives the Dolphins the perfect personality for development. However, Philbin will suffer a loss in his first game as a head coach. The Dolphins travel to Houston this week to take on a healthy and talented Texans team. Without quarterback Matt Schaub at the end of last season the Texans still managed to make the playoffs and almost pulled out a victory against the Bengals. The Matt Schaub to Andre Johnson connection returns in 2012 making the Texans a serious Superbowl contender.

Houston- 27

Miami- 20

San Francisco at Green Bay

What a way for these two 2011 playoff teams to start the 2012 season. Both teams got knocked out of the playoffs last year by the Superbowl champion Giants and both teams are looking forward to forgetting those losses. This should be an exciting game to watch for true football fans. The league’s best offense in the Green Bay Packers faces the league’s top defense in the 49ers. Those units are special. San Francisco’s 3-4 defense brings the perfect balance of the ability to stop both the run and the pass. Green Bay’s pass-happy offense has the best player in the NFL in Aaron Rodgers and will continue to improve if the personnel stays the same. When those two units are on the field, there should be some serious big plays in either direction. However, this game will therefore be determined by the 49ers offense and the Green Bay defense. I know Alex Smith had his breakout campaign in 2011, but I think he’s due for a letdown in week 1.

Green Bay- 30

San Francisco- 23

Seattle at Arizona

The energy that Head Coach Pete Carroll brings to the football field is contagious. He came to the Seattle Seahawks and instilled an attitude that has brought this team from 5 and 11 in 2009, to back to back 7 and 9 seasons and a playoff berth in 2010. While those records might not be what teams strive for, the improvements he has made in two years are incredible. The Seahawks boast one of the leagues toughest defenses and there is excitement surrounding rookie quarterback Russell Wilson. Wilson’s counterpart in this game John Skelton surprisingly stole the starting job from Kevin Kolb in the preseason. It seemed like no one on the Cardinals roster wanted to win that starting quarterback job.  This game will be determined by the team that can run the ball, control the line of scrimmage, and control the clock. Get the man his skittles, because Marshawn Lynch will eclipse 150 yards rushing, carrying the Seahawks to their first win of the season.

Arizona- 20

Seattle- 24

Carolina at Tampa Bay

The Carolina Panthers are another organization on the rise. They demonstrated that through the draft, a team can be rebuilt in a short period of time. It also helps when you draft the best rookie of all time. Cam Newton was ridiculous last year. There was no training camp to learn the offense and even head coach Ron Rivera said that he didn’t know all of the plays going into week 1 last year. Will he be able to repeat and improve upon that remarkable rookie season? We could find out in the first week of the regular season against the Buccaneers. I think rookie linebacker Luke Kuechly plays a huge part in the outcome of this game. The Panthers weakness last season was their poor linebacker play. Kuechly was a tackling machine at Boston College and continued to show that dominance in the pre-season. If the Panthers improve at all on defense, they could push for a wildcard spot in the playoffs.

Tampa Bay- 23

Carolina- 28

Pittsburgh at Denver

Watching Big Ben evade Eagles defenders in Week 2 of the preseason was reminiscent of watching George Costanza dodge cars with a Frogger machine in SeinFeld.  Unfortunately for Roethlisberger, his offensive line took a huge hit as rookie guard David DeCastro went down with a knee injury in the pre-season.  Despite these issues, Roethlisberger is well known for his abilities to get out of the pocket and make big plays. Big plays will be critical when the opponent is Peyton Manning. Recovering from a neck injury, Manning looks to return to his Hall of Fame level of play.  It should be interesting to see what kind of control Manning is given at the line of scrimmage on a new team. This is probably the most difficult game to figure out this week specifically because it is almost impossible to judge how well Manning will play in his return. The pressure the Broncos are able to put on opposing quarterbacks coupled with the lack of a rush offense for the Steelers could make it a long day for Roethlisberger.

Pittsburgh- 20

Denver- 26

Cincinnati at Baltimore

This is the year Joe Flacco has to prove himself. Some might argue he is on the cusp of being an elite quarterback, but he has yet to win the big game. He also must win now because the window is closing quickly on the Baltimore Ravens defense. There are rumors that this could be the last year future Hall of Famers Ray Lewis and Ed Reed play together. Without those two game-changers, this franchise changes drastically. In week 1, the Ravens will take on the up and coming Cincinnati Bengals. The sophomore connection of Andy Dalton and A.J. Green looks to improve upon an impressive rookie campaign and repeat their appearance in the playoffs. Helmets will be flying in a hard-hitting defensive game won by the team that forces the most turnovers. Ravens win.

Baltimore- 24

Cincinnati- 21

San Diego at Oakland

Carson Palmer needs to start playing like the quarterback we saw five years ago. Now. The Raiders gave up way too much to have a mediocre quarterback. It should help Palmer now that Darrius Hayward-Bey finally learned how to catch the ball. Carson Palmer’s opponent this week, Philip Rivers, also needs to return to his old form. Last year Rivers threw a career high in interceptions and failed to lead the Chargers into the playoffs. With the talent on this team and the lack of success since the 2009 season, it is amazing to me how Norv Turner is still the head coach. Turner’s team has to make a trip to the playoffs and get off to a fast start or this should definitely be his final season. The difference in this game will be the matchup nightmare that Antonio Gates is to defenses. His abilities to get open in the redzone should prevent Rivers from forcing the ball, limiting turnover opportunities.

San Diego- 31

Oakland- 28