2013 Week 1 Preview

The first Sunday night game of the season features the Dallas Cowboys
and the New York Giants. Photo from SNF on NBC's Facebook page.

Every week on Football Freaks, a production of The All-Sports Crew, my co-hosts and I predict every NFL game of the upcoming weekend. Yesterday I previewed Thursday’s night’s season opener, and now my co-hosts and I would like to preview some other key matchups of Week 1. In future weeks, this post will be published on Saturday.

First up is our new co-host, Sean Kennedy, with his game of the week.

San Francisco 49ers vs Green Bay Packers

The season kicks off as these two headed rivals clash for the first time since the NFC playoffs last year when Kaepernick demolished the pack 45-31. It will be interesting to see what San Francisco will do with newly acquired WR Anquan Boldin.

The Packers are looking to recover from their big loss with a strong receiving core and a tough-as-nails defense that forces a lot of turnovers. The running game looks a little shallow for the Pack, relying on rookie Eddie Lacy, but still has support from the strong passing game.

Kaepernick will try to follow up a Super Bowl loss strong with a strong receiving core and solid running game with RB Frank Gore. The defense should be able to help out enough to keep the time of possession in San Fran’s favor.

Expect a high scoring slugfest that will be entertaining until the last snap. Time of possession will be the key to winning this game.

Saswat Misra will provide previews when available, but is busy with grad school work this week, so I’m covering for his game of the week.

Chicago Bears vs Cincinnati Bengals

Sunday is Marc Trestman’s regular season debut as an NFL head coach. He has led the CFL’s Montreal Alouettes since 2008 and has plenty of experience in the NFL as an offensive coordinator and as a quarterbacks coach.

A strong offensive line will be the key to Chicago’s offense. Jay Cutler is a very proficient quarterback, but has been able to do little since he got to Chicago due to a crumby line. The defense is tight, and Matt Forte is an accomplished back, but this offense lives and dies with Jay Cutler.

Cincinnati’s defense showed consistent improvement throughout the 2012 season and helped Andy Dalton lead the Bengals to a second consecutive playoff appearance. They are widely regarded as the favorite to win the AFC North this year and have the tools to do so. The question in this game is whether two years is enough experience for Dalton to pick apart a very good secondary.

Next up is Eric Meyer’s game of the week.

New Orleans Saints vs Atlanta Falcons

We’re kicking off week 1 with one of the most heated, but often-overlooked, rivalries in the NFL.  The defending NFC South Champion Atlanta Falcons will face an early test as they square off with their rival, the New Orleans Saints.

With Sean Payton returning to the sidelines after a year-long suspension, and Rob Ryan running the Saints’ revamped 3-4 defense, the Saints figure to be a contender for the NFC South crown this year, but it won’t be easy to wrestle the crown away from the Falcons, who still have some of the best skill players in the NFL and a quarterback just entering his prime in Matt Ryan.

The Saints own an 11-3 record against the Falcons in the Sean Payton era, including a 6-1 record when playing at home.  It figures to be an interesting game, with two of the NFL’s best offenses going at it in an early test for both teams.

Up next is the Sunday night game, followed by Puff’s game of the week.

Dallas Cowboys vs New York Giants

For the second straight year these two teams open up against each other. Last year the Giants hosted the game as the defending Super Bowl champions and Tony Romo and Kevin Ogletree sent the G-Men packing. Robinson never really showed up again and Dallas faded to the point where they had to face the previously 3-6 Washington Redskins in a season finale that decided the division title.

This year I expect mediocrity from both teams, but this should still be an exciting game. Week 1 tends to be the best week for average teams, and the division rivalry only serves to add to it.

Romo has drawn much criticism for his late-season performances. Though this doesn’t qualify, he has to win the early games to have a chance to prove that he can win the big ones. Their defense could take a hit from Rob Ryan’s departure, but I still expect it to be good for this game with many pieces back that were injured last year.

The Giants are the Giants and they’ll show up or they won’t. Eli Manning has a couple new targets in Reuben Randle and Brandon Myers, and with Andre Brown’s broken leg, it will be a very capable David Wilson leading New York’s rushing attack.

Washington Redskins vs Philadelphia Eagles

I don’t know what compelled me to do it, but in my most recent predictions I vaulted the Eagles from the NFC’s doghouse to second place in the division. But it all rests on Michael Vick’s health and ball security. We all knew he was the better option when compared to Nick Foles. The question is whether Vick can protect the ball enough to use his explosiveness to carry the team. DeSean Jackson underwhelmed last year and Jeremy Maclin is out for the season, so they’ll need to use Chip Kelly’s up-tempo offense and the legs of Vick and LeSean McCoy to keep the offense on the field.

The Redskins announced that, barring some crazy setback, Robert Griffin III will start on Monday night. I expect a lot of pass plays with a strong corps of receivers and a healthy dose of Alfred Morris to keep RGIII from running too much. I can’t see him carrying the ball more than eight times in this one.

Be sure to listen as we dissect these games further this Friday on Football Freaks. Follow me on Twitter, @cpuffnfl, and like The All-Sports Crew on Facebook for links to all of our podcasts and live online shows.