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Outrageous predictions for Week 3 of the NFL season
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Outrageous predictions for Week 3 of the NFL season

Week 2 of the NFL season might have been one of the most surprising in recent history. In a slate of games that culminated in the New York Jets knocking off Andrew Luck and the Colts in Indianapolis on Monday Night Football, there were a ton of upsets around the football world.

The Washington Redskins handed the St. Louis Rams a loss after the latter took out the defending NFC champion Seattle Seahawks in the season opener. Meanwhile, Seattle fell to 0-2 on the season after losing to the Green Bay Packers.

That wasn't even the extent of it. Tampa Bay, Oakland and Jacksonville also pulled off rather big upsets against superior teams.

Heading into Week 3, there promises to be even more surprises around the NFL. In what will continue to be a weekly article, we give you our five-most outrageous predictions for the upcoming week of NFL action.

1. Mark Sanchez will get snaps under center in return to New Jersey

The way Sam Bradford is playing quarterback, this actually might not be an outrageous prediction. Midway through the third quarter of Philadelphia's loss to the Dallas Cowboys last week, its offense had put up less total yards (34) than the Cowboys had run plays (44). That's one of the most sobering statistics from the Eagles' early-season struggles.

Through two games, Bradford has led his team to an average of 17 points per outing while throwing two touchdowns compared to four interceptions. Needless to say, he's been a hot mess thus far.

The interesting dynamic here is that Eagles head coach Chip Kelly seems to still be all aboard the Bradford hype train.

It remains to be seen whether that will continue throughout the game on Sunday. Philadelphia is posed with the difficult test of traveling to New Jersey to take on a New York Jets team that's riding high after opening the season with two consecutive wins.

Bradford himself will be going up against a Jets defense that has forced eight turnovers from the quarterback position in two games. The simple math tells us that he's on pace to turn it over at least that amount of times against an elite-level defense.

Enter into the equation a quarterback in Mark Sanchez who was jettisoned from the Jets quicker than Tim Tebow prayer beads. Wouldn't it be pretty hilarious if he actually returned to The Meadowlands playing field before former Jets head coach Rex Ryan, who still resides in the AFC East with the Buffalo Bills?

The reality of the situation here is that Philadelphia needs to get in the win column after two bad performances. If it means benching Bradford for Sanchez, then so be it.

2. Chicago Bears will keep game against Seattle Seahawks close for the first half

The whole idea of Jimmy Clausen making his first road start since 2010 against Seattle in CenturyLink is beyond comical. Not even seen as a decent backup quarterback, the former second-round pick will now have to take on an angry Seahawks team that has lost two straight to open the season. He will have to do so with Kam Chancellor returning from a hold out.

This game has all the makings of what could be an eye-opening beat-down of a bad Bears team. Though, there is some precedence of less-than-stellar squads going into the Pacific Northwest in recent seasons and playing a competitive football game.

Back in 2013, a Tampa Bay Buccaneers team that finished with just four wins under Greg Schiano ventured in the land of the 12's and forced overtime before the eventual Super Bowl champions came out on top. Then last season, riding a 14-game losing streak, the Oakland Raiders nearly overcame a 24-3 halftime deficit to lose by just six points.

What would make this prediction even more outrageous is if I actually pick the Bears to win. Sorry fans in Chicago, the idea of actually keeping this job sounds too good.

3. Alex Smith will throw a touchdown pass to a wide receiver

Smith has attempted nearly 600 passes since the last time he threw a touchdown pass to a wide receiver in a regular season game. His last such pass came against the Washington Redskins back in December of 2013.

Kansas City is going to have to score some points of its going to hang with the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field on Monday night. While its defense is among the best in the business, the idea of anyone containing Aaron Rodgers is laughable. That means that Smith will likely be given more opportunities to actually throw a touchdown to someone other than a running back or a tight end. My money is on Jeremy Maclin here.

4. The St. Louis Rams will upset the Pittsburgh Steelers at home

If you have been reading my Rams takes over the first couple weeks of the season, you know full well that I have been harping on the inconsistency of this team.

It came out in full force last year when Jeff Fisher's squad defeated the Seattle Seahawks, Denver Broncos and San Francisco 49ers for half of their six wins.

It was also represented to a T in the first two weeks of the 2015 campaign, as St. Louis defeated Seattle at home in the opener before falling to the Washington Redskins last week.

The talent is most definitely here for St. Louis to do some damage against Pittsburgh on Sunday. With the likes of Aaron Donald, Robert Quinn and Chris Long representing one of the best defensive line trios in the NFL, Ben Roethlisberger could have himself a rather long day inside the Edward Jones Dome. In reality, it's all about figuring out what Rams team is going to show up.

5. Carson Palmer and Colin Kaepernick will combine for 600-plus yards and six touchdowns

The vast majority of NFC West games have been defensive battles over the past few seasons. That took flight when pretty much every team within the division improved following a disastrous 2010 season, starting with the San Francisco 49ers in 2011. And while we are likely going to see more defensive battles moving forward in 2015, this won't be one of them.

Through two games, the Arizona Cardinals rank first in the NFL at 39.5 points per outing. Led by Carson Palmer, who is playing the best football of his career, Arizona is also putting up 23 first downs and 364 total yards per outing. It will be going up against a San Francisco defense that was absolutely torched by Pittsburgh last week, mainly through the air. With seven touchdowns and one interception on the season, Palmer is likely going to continue his hot play Sunday.

On the other end, Colin Kaepernick is leading a vastly improved 49ers offensive under first-year coordinator Geep Chryst. After putting up nearly 400 total yards and two touchdowns last week against Pittsburgh, the fifth-year signal caller appears to be on the verge of turning the corner. He heads an offense that is averaging over 400 total yards and 26 first downs per game this year. Prior to this year, San Francisco had tallied those numbers just once over the past 11 seasons. And while Arizona has the looks of one of the top teams in the NFL, its defense is giving up 372 yards per game. This should be a shootout in the desert.

Check out Vincent's other work on eDraft.com and follow him on Twitter @VincentFrankNFL

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