Fox Week 3 Pick'ems

It's that time of the week, time for another episode of Fox Pick'ems. I wasn't so hot with my picks lastweek, as I only picked half of the games correctly, a measley 8-8. But hey, you won't see me jumping off the Tobin Bridge in despair like Patriots fans after their team got shown up by the Cardinals. Anywho, on to the picks.

New York Giants @ Carolina Panthers
Eli had a game for the ages against the Bucs, 510 yards passing and 3 TDs (also 3 picks). However the Giants played very lax for the first 3 quarters. Their pass rush has been practically non-exsistent, allowing Tony Romo in week 1 and Josh Freeman in week 2 to settle in the pocket. The Carolina Panthers are coming off a big win against the Saints in New Orleans. Cam Newton will pass, run, and keep Eli sitting on the bench. My heart says Giants, I bleed blue, but common sense is making this pick.

Pick: Panthers

New York Jets @ Miami Dolphins
In years past, this match up had fireworks and pizzaz. But this time around, we get a broken down Jets offense who can't even find the end zone going against a Dolphins team who thrashed on the Raiders. We saw Reggie Bush explode for 172 yards on 26 carries and 2 touchdowns for Miami. Going up against a slipshod Jets defense without Darelle Revis for the second straight week, Bush will carry the Dolphins to 2-1.

Pick: Dolphins

Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ Dallas Cowboys
Dallas will be hungry to score their first home victory of the season against a Bucs team, who is still shell-shocked after their Week 2 choke against the Giants as well as distracted by their idiotic head coach's philosophy. Then again... the Cowboys are owned by the biggest dumbass in football. In case you didn't know...dumbass outranks idiot.

Pick: Buccaneers 

St. Louis Rams @ Chicago Bears
Sam Bradford was able to out duel the up-and-coming RG3 last week without the help of All-Pro Steven Jackson, showing why St. Louis had faith in him. Also worth mentioning, the Rams defense was able to limit the high-flying Redskins offense to a mere 7 points in the entire second half. Going against a porous Bears O-line, expect a big day for the Rams defense putting Jay Cutler constantly on his back.

Pick: Rams

San Francisco 49ers @ Minnesota Vikings
Another NFC North road opponent for the 49ers. They held the Packers, the NFL's top scoring team in 2011, to just 22 points in week 1. Then in the ESPN dubbed 'Handshake Bowl', they kept Megatron out of the end zone and defeated the Lions. Against the rebuilding Vikings, expect nothing more than another victory. Also, former Vikings and now current 49ers Randy Moss will have a monster game as well.

Pick: 49ers

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Detroit Lions @ Tennessee Titans
Detroit Lions have the superior receiving corp over the Titans and a marginally better ground attack as well. On defense, the Lions can easily stuff Titans Chris "Biggest Fantasy RB Dud Ever" Johnson and force everything onto Locker's shoulders. Then it's easy pickings.

Pick: Lions

Kansas City Chiefs @ New Orleans Saints
The old saying: "Don't bring a knife to a gun fight" applies here. Though the Chiefs have decent offensive firepower, it's way below the Saints' offensive fire power. Expect Saints QB Drew Brees to light things up in the air.

Pick: Saints

Cincinnati Bengals @ Washington Redskins
A much needed win for the Bengals last week, even if it was against the Browns. The injury bug hit two key starters on the defensive side of the Redskins. Both starting LB Brian Orakpo and DE Adam Carriker are now on IR, thus hampering the 'Skins defense. Expect the Bengals to rely on the law firm of BenJarvus Green-Ellis to help keep RG3 off the field.

Pick: Bengals

Buffalo Bills @ Cleveland Browns
Even Stevie Wonder can see what is going to happen in this one. Bills will continue to ride on the back of their red hot running back, C.J. Spiller. 

Pick: Bills

Jacksonville Jaguars @ Indianapolis Colts
Which team sucks less?  Here's a hint: They won last week. 

Pick: Colts

Philadelphia Eagles @ Arizona Cardinals
Eagles are 2-0 but in each win, they only one by 1 point. Not to mention that they committed league high of nine total turnovers in those games, including six interceptions from Michael Vick. With the Cardinals coming off a big victory over the Patriots last week, they'll be riding high and full of confidence while the Eagles will be dropping eggs all over the place.

Pick: Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons @ San Diego Chargers
The Chargers are getting Ryan Matthews and Antonio Gates back from injury, boosting up their offensive firepower significantly. Though the Chargers investment in their defense has paid off so far, they will be tested against the hurry-up style passing offense of the Falcons. The Falcons' running game, however, is really nothing to worry about and will be the Falcons' undoing in this one.

Pick: Chargers

Pittsburgh Steelers @ Oakland Raiders
Mike Wallace torched the Jets secondary for 74 yards and a touchdown on five catches, while his teammate Antonio Brown added 7 catches for 79 yards. Also, the Steelers defense was able to ground the Jets for a total of 219 yards. If the Raiders got crushed by the Dolphins, expect worse results in this match up for them.

Pick: Steelers

Houston Texans @ Denver Broncos
Peyton Manning looked a little out of rhythm against the Falcons defense in that MNF debacle of a game. This time around, he's going against the number one defense in the league. Not to mention that this Houston defense is all too familiar with his style of play. Oh, there's also that backfield tandem of Arian Foster and Brandon Tate the Broncos will need to worry about but won't be able to stop.

Pick: Texans 

New England Patriots @ Baltimore Ravens
1. Ray Rice > Chris Johnson and the Arizona backfield,
2. Baltimore's receiving group, including Ray Rice, can stretch out that Patriots defense with relative ease.
3. Patriots backup TE Aaron Hernadez will be out for some time, thus the Ravens defense can just focus on Gronk and Lloyd while crushing Brady.
4. Belidick will have WR Wes Welker ride the bench and then toss him away afterwards like he did with Randy Moss back in 2010. Why? Because it's the Patriot way.
5. You know that Baltimore home crowd will make things a living hell for the Patriots all night long. 

Pick: Ravens

Green Bay Packers @ Seattle Seahawks
Clay Matthews mauled the Bears last week and has 6.0 sacks so far this season. Not even the Seahawks' "12th Man" will be able to hinder his terror. And don't forget, the Packers still boast one of the top QBs in the game right now as well as one of the more explosive receiving corps as well.

Pick: Packers

That's it for this week's pick'ems. Just remember, if the picks don't fall your way. Don't get mad, just blame the replacement refs. It's what the cool kids are doing these days.

Last Week's Record: 8-8
Season Record: 18-14

-Ryan L. Fox