NFL Preseason Picks

The NFL Preseason certainly feels different this year. More teams opted to play their starters in Week 1, as offenses looked disjointed and uncoordinated in Weeks 1 and 2 of the regular season last year. There have been a lot of injuries lately, including some long-term ones, so maybe coaches are taking a bit of a second and third look at who they actually want to send out there this week.

With news trickling in and some lines adjusting, let’s look at some top NFL Preseason Picks for Week 2. Also, be sure to look at our NFL Pro Picks page for the latest from our VSiN experts and on-air guests.

 

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Odds from DraftKings as of 6:00 p.m. ET on Thursday, August 15

Minnesota Vikings at Cleveland Browns (-3, 36)

Saturday, 4:25 p.m. ET

The Vikings got some really tough news early in the week with the announcement that J.J. McCarthy would miss the season with a torn meniscus. Now we have an open competition for the backup role between Nick Mullens and Jaren Hall. Perhaps the Vikings do add a more proven insurance policy – and maybe even one from the other sideline – but Mullens is a guy with a good bit of experience at the NFL level.

He’s got 803 pass attempts to his name and 34 TD with 31 INT. Hall got a start last season and didn’t show much as a passer, but I think he’ll be given every opportunity to show something here. Jordan Addison likely wasn’t going to be involved much anyway, but Kevin O’Connell has some wide receivers to evaluate.

The Browns took a lot of steam and didn’t play well in Week 1 of the preseason, but Tyler Huntley and Dorian Thompson-Robinson both had drives deep into Packers territory that stalled on fourth down. DTR gets the start here and Huntley will follow suit. Jameis Winston will not play. But, that means that the Browns will have two very mobile guys out there against Minnesota’s blitz-heavy defense under Brian Flores and I think that could lead to some chunk plays.

The reports of terrible offense from the joint practices between the two teams this week don’t necessarily bother me, especially because both defenses have been reportedly hitting rather hard, so the coaches are trying not to take any unnecessary risks.

Pick: Vikings/Browns Over 36

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Jacksonville Jaguars (-2.5, 37)

Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET

Sunshine State bragging rights are on the line in Duval County as the Buccaneers and Jaguars face off in Week 2 of the preseason. Both teams won their Week 1 affairs, with Tampa Bay victorious on the road over Cincinnati and Jacksonville toppled the Chiefs at home.

Neither Baker Mayfield nor Trevor Lawrence will play in this one, as both coaches seemed satisfied with how the starting QBs performed in joint practices. With that in mind, I give the edge to CJ Beathard and Mac Jones over Kyle Trask and John Wolford. Trask and Wolford had 254 yards on 24-of-38 passing last week with zero TD and a pick. Beathard and Jones were 16-of-25 for 223 yards and a touchdown. So, the numbers were fairly similar, but the Jags just strike me as having better depth, especially being able to go to somebody like D’Ernest Johnson out of the backfield.

The Jags also signed Tashaun Gipson this week, who will get plenty of reps with a six-game suspension looming for taking a banned substance. He’ll be a nice, veteran piece getting a lot of snaps in the second half. The Jags actually have some good veterans on the roster to finish out the game on defense. The Chiefs only managed a field goal in the second half and two Jones’ drives in the second half resulted in field goals, but they had the chance for more.

Pick: Jaguars -2.5

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