From left: Sports Editor Karl Winter, Sports Assistant Editor Paxton Ritchey, Staff Writer Kyle McCabe, Photo Editor Ali Levens, Sports Assistant Justin Touhey and Staff Writer Austin Hall. This group of six made its first NFL picks of the season prior to Thursday’s first game of the season. Art by Madeline Duvall
The 2020 NFL season is set to kick off Thursday, with the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs taking the field for the first time since the Super Bowl — as the league canceled the entire preseason schedule. The season will bring something new across the board.
The Rams, Chargers and Raiders all have sparkling new stadiums, with the Raiders franchise relocating cities for the third time in the past four decades. The Rams will be sporting new uniforms and logos, which have proven not to be a fan favorite. The team from Washington changed its name to — wait for it — nothing. The Bengals, Bucs and Patriots, among others, boast new quarterbacks. The reigning MVP, Patrick Mahomes, sports a new contract worth nearly $500 million.
The Dolphins, Colts, Jaguars, Chiefs and Cowboys plan to allow some fans to enter the building for their home openers. All other stadiums across the league will be empty.
At least one thing remains the same: America loves its football, and so does the sports desk at a school without a football team. Graphic Staff Writers Austin Hall and Kyle McCabe, Photo Editor Ali Levens, Assistant Sports Editor Paxton Ritchey, Sports Assistant Justin Touhey and Sports Editor Karl Winter have each committed to picking each and every NFL game in the 2020–2021 season.
Each of us have biases: Justin and Ali prefer the Giants, Karl likes the Bears, Kyle is a Broncos fan, Paxton is a member of the Seahawks’ 12th Man and Austin prefers college football. However, we all attempt to justify our picks with a bit of knowledge and a sprinkle of humor.
Without further ado, let the games begin.
Houston Texans at Kansas City Chiefs (Thursday, Sept. 10 at 5:20 p.m. PDT)
Justin: Chiefs
Paxton: Chiefs
Austin: Chiefs
Ali: Chiefs
Kyle: Texans
Karl: Chiefs
“I think that [Houston] will spoil the banner ceremony. I think the Chiefs are still chokers.” — Kyle
“I’m taking the Chiefs for two reasons: [Reigning Super Bowl MVP] Pat Mahomes and Bill O’Brien [who is the Texans head coach and general manager].” — Paxton
Philadelphia Eagles at Washington Football Team (Sunday, Sept. 13 at 10 a.m. PDT)
Justin: Eagles
Paxton: Eagles
Austin: Eagles
Ali: Football Team
Kyle: Eagles
Karl: Eagles
“I’m going to go against the grain.” — Ali
“The Washington mascot doesn’t have an identity. Neither does the offense. Also, this is probably one of the only games [Eagles quarterback] Carson Wentz will be healthy for.” — Austin
Miami Dolphins at New England Patriots (Sunday, Sept. 13 at 10 a.m. PDT)
Justin: Dolphins
Paxton: Patriots
Austin: Patriots
Ali: Dolphins
Kyle: Patriots
Karl: Patriots
“Without the experience that Tom Brady’s had for 20 years, it’s a whole new operating system, running around a quarterback [in Cam Newton] that is completely different than Brady. I think the Dolphins are a much improved team from last year. The last few games [of 2019-2020] they played really, really well. And so I think that they’re carrying the same momentum.” — Justin
“Anytime [Patriots head coach] Bill Belichick has six months to prepare for one opponent, you’re not going to do very well. I’m taking the Patriots at home.” — Paxton
Green Bay Packers at Minnesota Vikings (Sunday, Sept. 13 at 10 a.m. PDT)
Justin: Packers
Paxton: Vikings
Austin: Vikings
Ali: Vikings
Kyle: Vikings
Karl: Vikings
“[Packers quarterback] Aaron Rodgers has an absolutely massive chip on his shoulder after [Green Bay] tried to draft his replacement. […] I don’t think the Packers are any worse than they were last year; they just haven’t gotten better.” — Justin
“Aaron Rodgers is going to take all the criticism and all the quotes that he saw of him hating on his team and he’s going to take that negatively and just go through the motions in their first game. This is an AM game, not primetime, so that automatically means [Vikings quarterback] Kirk Cousins has a chance. […] The Vikings lost [wide receiver] Stefon Diggs but their first-round replacement, Justin Jefferson, is going to have at least 80 receiving yards and make that loss not as big as people think it is.” — Austin
Indianapolis Colts at Jacksonville Jaguars (Sunday, Sept. 13 at 10 a.m. PDT)
Justin: Colts
Paxton: Colts
Austin: Colts
Ali: Colts
Kyle: Jaguars
Karl: Colts
“The absolute senior citizen [Colts quarterback] Philip Rivers has no shot against the young buck [Jaguars quarterback] Gardner Minshew in this game. Minshew is going to put up a 50 piece on the Colts.” — Kyle
“The Colts are a better overall team. I think they have a better running game and a better defense. I don’t think Gardner Minshew is going to be crazy coming out of the gate. […] It’s not like the Jaguars have a reputation for playing insanely well at home, with or without fans.” — Karl
Chicago Bears at Detroit Lions (Sunday, Sept. 13 at 10 a.m. PDT)
Justin: Lions
Paxton: Lions
Austin: Lions
Ali: Lions
Kyle: Lions
Karl: Bears
“[The Bears’] defense had a bad year last year, and I think they’ll bounce back and force some turnovers. […] They play well against the Lions, and regardless of which quarterback takes the field, I think [the Bears] can win this game.” – Karl
“There is no better quarterback than [Lions quarterback] Matthew Stafford in the first four games of a season. […] I think the Bears are too dysfunctional.” — Justin
Las Vegas Raiders at Carolina Panthers (Sunday, Sept. 13 at 10 a.m. PDT)
Justin: Raiders
Paxton: Panthers
Austin: Raiders
Ali: Raiders
Kyle: Panthers
Karl: Raiders
“With a new team, they’re all jazzed about it, I think that will lead to very high morale [for the Raiders]. […] The Panthers weren’t great last year and now they don’t have basically any notable players.” — Ali
“I think because they have a new coach [Matt Rhule] and a new quarterback [Teddy Bridgewater] — especially with the coach coming from the college game — a whole new offensive system; we usually see a lot of early success with those teams and then defenses adjust. So I think that there’s going to be some early success for Carolina, they’re going to win in Week 1, but I don’t think either of these two teams are going to amount to much at the end of the year.” — Paxton
New York Jets at Buffalo Bills (Sunday, Sept. 13 at 10 a.m. PDT)
Justin: Bills
Paxton: Bills
Austin: Bills
Ali: Bills
Kyle: Bills
Karl: Bills
“His mono is behind him, but [Jets quarterback] Sam Darnold seeing ghosts is very much alive. […] Bills by 10 plus.” — Austin
Cleveland Browns at Baltimore Ravens (Sunday, Sept. 13 at 10 a.m. PDT)
Justin: Ravens
Paxton: Ravens
Austin: Ravens
Ali: Ravens
Kyle: Ravens
Karl: Ravens
“The Browns will be better this year […] after the overhype of last year, but I just don’t think that they’re going to get it done in this first game. The Ravens lost Marshal Yanda, who was their best [offensive] lineman, but they do have [J.K.] Dobbins now in the backfield [and] they have good receivers. I think they’re going to come out firing and play well right off the bat.” — Karl
Seattle Seahawks at Atlanta Falcons (Sunday, Sept. 13 at 10 a.m. PDT)
Justin: Seahawks
Paxton: Seahawks
Austin: Seahawks
Ali: Falcons
Kyle: Seahawks
Karl: Seahawks
“I agree with everyone that it’s going to be a close game. Sometimes it goes in the way of the worse team.” — Ali
“With this being a Week 1, East Coast, early game, it’s not the Seahawks’ favorite game in the world. But really, these Week 1 games with no preseason are going to be about defense, and the Seahawks have a better defense than the Falcons. It also wouldn’t be a Seahawks season without us beating a terrible team by one or two points in Week 1. So I’m taking the Seattle Seahawks in like a 10–9 or 14–12 victory.” — Paxton
Los Angeles Chargers at Cincinnati Bengals (Sunday, Sept. 13 at 1:05 p.m. PDT)
Justin: Chargers
Paxton: Bengals
Austin: Chargers
Ali: Bengals
Kyle: Bengals
Karl: Bengals
“I think it’s going to be a little bit of an adjustment period [for Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow]. I wouldn’t be shocked if he has an extremely similar career to [former Bengals quarterback] Carson Palmer. […] [Chargers quarterback] Tyrod Taylor is a career backup for a reason. I don’t think he’s going to do anything glamorous by any stretch, but the Chargers, top to bottom, have one of the better rosters in the AFC. I think the Bengals are still closer to a dumpster fire than any team in the NFL right now. So I’m going to go Chargers.” — Austin
“Cincinnati has a track record of doing well in Week 1; they’ve traditionally been pretty prepared, and the Chargers haven’t been. Tyrod Taylor is going to feel a lot of pressure that he is robbing the American public of a Burrow versus [Chargers rookie Justin] Herbert Week 1 game, and he’s not going to play well. The Chargers will probably just miss a couple field goals just to put sprinkles on top. I think Cincinnati wins narrowly, and then still sucks overall.” — Paxton
Arizona Cardinals at San Francisco 49ers (Sunday, Sept. 13 at 1:25 p.m. PDT)
Justin: 49ers
Paxton: 49ers
Austin: 49ers
Ali: 49ers
Kyle: 49ers
Karl: 49ers
“While [49ers head coach] Kyle Shanahan can’t hold a lead in the Super Bowl, he can certainly hold a lead in the first game of the season. […] I think [Cardinals quarterback] Kyler Murray is still trying to get his feet wet in the NFL, and I know he’s got a new weapon in [wide receiver] DeAndre Hopkins, but I think [49ers quarterback] Jimmy [Garoppolo] still has [tight end] George Kittle, still got a bunch of the weapons. The [San Francisco] defense is still really good and they were a phenomenal defense last year.” — Justin
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at New Orleans Saints (Sunday, Sept. 13 at 1:25 p.m. PDT)
Justin: Buccaneers
Paxton: Saints
Austin: Saints
Ali: Saints
Kyle: Saints
Karl: Saints
“Although [new Bucs quarterback] Tom Brady is on the decline in his career, he’s still less likely to throw interceptions than [new Saints backup quarterback and former Buccaneer] Jameis Winston is. Plus, the Bucs’ defense was very good last year, and they’ve added a bunch of new offensive weapons […] I think [Saints quarterback] Drew Brees is also on the decline.” — Justin
“[In 2019–2020] Jameis [Winston] threw eight more touchdowns than Tom Brady, had 1000 more yards than Tom Brady [and] even though he had all the interceptions, almost had an equal QBR than Tom Brady […] and he got sacked over 20 more times. Jameis is fairly mobile too. I think it’s going to be a huge learning curve for Brady. Everyone looks at the skill positions and they think ‘skill positions go 16–0.’ That’s not what happens — [The Buccaneers’] o-line is atrocious, defense was one of the bottom third in the NFL last year.” — Austin
Dallas Cowboys at Los Angeles Rams (Sunday, Sept. 13 at 5:20 p.m. PDT)
Justin: Cowboys
Paxton: Rams
Austin: Cowboys
Ali: Cowboys
Kyle: Rams
Karl: Cowboys
“[Rams owner] Stan Kroenke will find a way to make the Rams win this game. It’s a new stadium, news unis — there’s no shot the Cowboys are coming in and winning this game.” — Kyle
“I often think that [the Cowboys] are overhyped but I don’t think the Rams have gotten much better [since the previous season]. I think that the Cowboys are a better team; I think Mike McCarthy is a good coach — better than [former Cowboys head coach] Jason Garrett. And I hate the Rams new logo.” — Karl
Pittsburgh Steelers at New York Giants (Monday, Sept. 14 at 4:10 p.m. PDT)
Justin: Giants
Paxton: Steelers
Austin: Steelers
Ali: Giants
Kyle: Steelers
Karl: Steelers
“The Giants usually start off pretty well. Week 1, I think they have a chance. The Steelers probably aren’t going to be a powerhouse, so I’m going with the Giants just to give them the benefit of the doubt.” — Ali
“[The Steelers] went 8–8 [in 2019–2020] with Duck Hodges and with Mason Rudolph playing quarterback for them. They performed a robbery to get Minkah Fitzpatrick, who is looking like one of the best young safeties in the NFL right now. I don’t really trust [Giants running back] Saquon [Barkley] yet. I don’t think you can bounce outside the tackles every single play if you want to be a super successful running back in the NFL. I did see those pictures of [Giants quarterback] Daniel Jones; he does look kind of swole, […] but I think their defense is still pretty atrocious.” — Austin
Tennessee Titans at Denver Broncos (Monday, Sept. 14 at 7:20 p.m. PDT)
Justin: Broncos
Paxton: Titans
Austin: Broncos
Ali: Titans
Kyle: Broncos
Karl: Broncos
“[Titans quarterback] Ryan Tannehill is overpaid and [Titans running back] Derrick Henry probably won’t be very good in two or three years, but for right now, all Ryan Tannehill has to do to get paid like a king is hand off to Derrick Henry 30 times a game. I don’t know that the Broncos have a way to stop that. Also, [Broncos general manager] John Elway recently said that Drew Lock reminds him of himself and, given John Elway’s career as a GM, that’s the worst thing to happen to Drew Lock.” — Paxton
“The most important acquisition [for the Broncos] will be defensive lineman Jurrell Casey. We absolutely hoodwinked the Titans to get him over the offseason; gave them a 2020 seventh-round pick. He’s great. He is going to keep them from having any running game, and I don’t think that [Titans quarterback] Tannehill is going to be able to out-throw [Broncos quarterback] Drew Lock. Broncos by a million.” — Kyle
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Follow the Graphic on Twitter: @PeppGraphic
Contact Karl Winter via Twitter: @karlwinter23 or by email: karl.winter@pepperdine.edu
