Week 3 Premier Matchup

There are a number of good games this weekend that I'm looking forward to, like the Giants vs. Eagles,the Lions vs. Vikings, and the Bills vs. Patriots, but the game of the week is going to be the Houston Texans and the New Orleans Saints.

These are two of the most explosive offenses in the league and Wade Phillips seems to have that defense playing better, although they haven't been tested yet.  This will be their first true test in a hostile environment.  It's not easy to play in New Orleans so we will see how far along the defense has come.  They haven't missed a beat with Foster out, as Ben Tate has been a prolific runner in the first two weeks, rushing for over a hundred yards in each game.  Drew Brees is always dangerous though, and he has a lot of weapons to throw to.  I am picking the Saints by 6 in what should be a high scoring affair.

I'm also looking forward to seeing the Lions against the Vikings.  If the Lions can start the season off with a W in their division, it would be a great motivating factor before facing Green Bay and Chicago.  Stafford has looked very impressive in the first two games, and the Lions defense looks very good.  The Vikings offense has been pitiful.  McNabb's days appear to be done, as he's just over 300 yards with one TD and one interception on the season.  Mike Shanahan is a pretty smart coach, and for him to recognize that McNabb wasn't a solid option to start any longer, Leslie Frazier should have took note.  He may have a few decent games here and there, but there will be no consistency this season for the Vikings.

The Bills are off to a 2-0 start and Ryan Fitzpatrick looks great, throwing 7 touchdowns in the first two games of the season.  Their offensive line looks great, despite them all playing together for the first time this season.  They gave up a lot of points to the Raiders last week and had to come from behind in the fourth quarter to win.  They won't be able to pull that off this weekend.  They will be playing Belichick's Patriots, who are also 2-0 and are putting up record numbers.  With Green Bay's shaky performance against Carolina, I have the Pats as the top team in my power rankings going into this weekend.  The game is in Buffalo, so the Pats will have a tougher time winning this game, but I do see them winning by double digits.