PML Pick Ems’ is going to be a weekly segment featuring Greeny, Arod, Cammy, Burn, and I where we predict the winners for every PML game. We will also have excerpts each week from each of us, but these excerpts will feature different topics each week. This week we are focusing on each matchup and discussing around the league in the PML.
Week 1 Matchups and Season 1 Recap –
Greeny was the winner of Pick Ems’ for the first season of PML and we are back this cycle to see if we can crown a new winner. All of our guessors are back this season and ready to come out swinging.
Greeny –
Minnesota 35 – Washington 13
The first game for Joe Milton comes against one of the better front 7s in the league but i do not think that will matter in the outcome here. Minny will score two defensive touchdowns and do enough on offense to stimy Miles first game back in pml. Miles keeps it close early leaning on his defense and run game but rookie qb Drake Maye sails a drag that turns into a pick 6 and that leads to disaster.
Detroit 42 – New York Giants 17
Can the Giants score much with a free agent possibly 55- 62 overall qb ? Both Daniel Jones and Rookie draft pick Quinn Ewers are out with injuries and that would be a tall task for anyone. This again i think is a close game until a pick 6 starts to unravel the Gmen.
Dallas 31 – Tampa Bay 24
Most have this as a close game and the spread is Cowboys -2.5. I think this game goes the other way early while Cammy storms back late. I believe this could be one of the lower scoring games of the week and that gives the edge to Parsons and the Cowboys. Both of these teams have playoff aspirations and know this game is important come playoff time so expect to see a sweaty hard fought game here.
Burn –
Tennessee 24 – Buffalo 31
The Bills were one of the hottest teams last season, however, their season was cut short when they were sent packing in the playoffs. After this, they vowed to get younger and traded huge names from their team for picks. They got younger at the corner and defensive end, sending White to Dallas and Miller to New York. This move can be great if they can play well without their superstar players.
The Titans were very draft heavy after trading Henry midseason last season. They took some great players in the first round. Both the guys they took were very good and have a shot at rookie of the year. The team is young and will rely on youth this season.
This will be a close game, but Josh Allen is the difference here.
Cleveland 42 – Cincinnati 17
The Browns have a new coach after their old coach was thrown out on his behind for bad mouthing the league commissioner This new coach is known for being a very good user previously in the league. He inherits one of the better teams on paper. The only flaw for this team going into the offseason was the cap space. He was able to handle this perfectly.
The Bengals didn’t do much last season, and I hate to say it, but given the team they had and the users in the division, last season was their shot. They now have a coach who is almost guaranteed to win the division for the rest of the cycle. Mix this in with a terrible trade they made for their 8 overall pick and it wasn’t a good offseason in Cincinnati.
The spread is over 27 points, and it very well could be but I think the Browns get up three scores but put in their backups which keeps the game closer than what it really was.
Denver 27 – Atlanta 14
Both of these teams made trades midseason last season which resulted in their draft picks being traded for players and both teams in win now mode. Both teams didn’t make the playoffs which made the trades worse. The Falcons have one of the best offenses in the league and are a team with the most superstars in the league. They should in theory have a great season.
Denver got their quarterback of the future in Lance, however, with Lattimore regressing and losing his superstar status, it shows that moving a 1 and 3 for him was a bad move. They played better late last season and I think it continues in this game.
Both offenses will put on a performance, but Lance will out duel Ridder.
Baltimore 38 – Philadelphia 35:
This is going to be a great game to watch. Both teams have coaches who don’t like one another. They argue constantly and at one point a wager for league spots were made where the loser would leave the league. This wager game never happened, but now we get to see if it comes to fruition.
The Eagles have the best team in the league on paper and are a team with the most superstars in the league. They drafted a great rookie safety this offseason, which makes it so they don’t have any holes at all. This doesn’t mean a thing if HD cant come out with even a halfway defense.
Arod lost abilites with one of the best quarterbacks in the league and had the number 1 pick in the draft. He was able to get some good rookies out the draft but will that make a difference. The defense was that bad last year, the issue was the offense. He needs to get Lamar going in the run game. The best fix for a struggling offense is playing the Eagles defense.
I think Arod is going to be locked in for this game given the chat history and come out with the upset.
AROD –
Indianapolis – New England
The defending AFC champs come out the gate as 18 point favorites against the Colts. Could this be an upset? I wouldn’t bet on it, however the Colts may cover the spread at the very least. Nevertheless, this is one I am tuning into as both teams have some key young pieces making debuts, most notably Kool-Aid for the Colts, and the 13 rookies for the Patriots. I am interested to see in what capacity the Patriots will have them involved on both sides of the ball.
New Orleans – Carolina
Good ol’ divisional matchup to start off the campaign. I just don’t think the Panthers are on a level to compete in matchups like this, and I’ll even add a ‘just yet’. The roster still needs a lot of work while the Saints have a proven core intact that finished atop the conference last season. I have the Saints taking this confidently enough that they are my week 1 knockout selection.
Houston – Jacksonville
Should be one of the better week 1 matchups on the schedule. The two coaches are as competitive as ever to be the alpha male of the division and the pre and post game talk should even be better than the game itself. Keraun is locked in, and his roster is much improved compared to the Jaguars since the beginning of the cycle. I think the game will be a close one and even a low scoring one at that, but I got the Texans coming out on top and holding bragging rights until the two meet again later in the season.
Cammy –
Arizona 31 – Seattle 24 –
I know this is a shock to see Z and the Seahawks lose week 1 but it’s against a division rival with a very hot offense to start off the season. All the momentum is riding on this Cardinals offense and with the Seahawks starting the season with a new QB there could potentially be some growing pains. Look for the Cardinals to cause an upset.
Las Vegas 34 – Miami 17:
Raiders are back and better than ever with the newly acquired quarterback Jayden Daniels. There’s rumours that Garoppolo will start the game but I don’t think that changes the outcome this week as the Raiders offense already looks way better after this offseason. I think the Raiders will come out week 1 with a great win against this Dolphins team that has regressed a little.
Kansas City 35 – Pittsburgh 10:
Pittsburgh shocked a lot of people in the playoffs last year but then got exposed by the Patriots the next round. I think with Kansas city being completely healthy they have no shot losing this game against the steel curtain
Fallen –
Green Bay 21 – Chicago 17:
Jefe shocked the PML with his very impressive playoff run and although it came up short, he had one of the best off-seasons of any team in PML. HypeMike is one of the best coaches in PML, but I feel like his team took a step back in comparison to some of the other teams in the division. Nonetheless, in this game, he’s going to want to prove that he still has what it takes to be a champ and he’s going to want to get the sour taste of going one and done in the playoffs.
Los Angeles Chargers 20 – New York Jets 14:
Here is a tale of two teams that tried to develop their aging teams through the draft. The Chargers decided to trade away their aging players and though their team overall dropped, I think they have the assets on their team that fits their style of offense. Aaron Rodgers should still be the starter in New York, but Greeny is going to start the rookie and he is going to struggle.
Los Angeles Rams 35 – San Francisco 21:
Congratulations to Cookie for winning the season 1 Superbowl and I think he’s going to be a contender to go back to the Superbowl. If Brock Purdy is the starter in San Francisco, I think CEO is going to struggle against the better teams and coaches in PML.
