Gridiron Experts

Buffalo @ New England

To say this game will prove to be a difficult match up for the Bills is putting it mildly.  The Patriots are highly motivated this season with the return of Tom Brady, who has proven on the practice field and in preseason that he is ready to go and has shaken off any rust that may have accumulated over his time off. The addition of Fred Taylor to an already plentiful platoon of running backs should keep the Bills defence’s hands full and vulnerable to the passing game. To make things tougher for the Bills, the Patriots have bolstered their much disciplined defence this year with the additions of Derrick Burgess, Shawn Springs, and Leigh Bodden.  The Patriots defence may be older, but this is typically not a problem on opening week.

Trent Edwards and the Bills offence are not going to have it easy in this one.  The suspension of Marshawn Lynch (weeks 1-3) is sure to hurt the team, even though Fred Jackson and Dominic Rhodes have proven to be adequate backups. Everyone in Buffalo has been itching to ask one question, is your popcorn ready? We all know that T.O. has his kernels popped, but are they going to be used for anything? That’s something we shall have to wait and see, but it is unlikely that he will be a deciding factor in this game. The dismissal of the Bills’ Offensive Coordinator just days before the regular season is a good indicator that the Bills are not as Dr. Scholl’s might say “gellin’”.

San Diego @ Oakland

Struggling with inconsistency last season, San Diego will be coming out looking to impress. Luckily they have a great opportunity to do that against the Raiders.  Antonio Gates, LaDainian Tomlinson, Darren Sproles, Vincent Jackson, and Chris Chambers are all extremely explosive players that will be very difficult to contain.

The Raiders secondary received a significant blow with the injury of Nnamdi Asomugha; if he plays in week 1 he will be wearing a cast which will surely impair his tremendous coverage abilities, making things easier in turn for QB Philip Rivers.

Jamarcus Russell’s work is cut out for him going up against one of the NFL’s fastest and most talented defences to start off the season. Oakland drafted speedy WR Darius Heyward-Bey to give Jamarcus a new target on the outside, but it would be unlikely to see him have a big game; look for Antonio Cromartie and Quentin Jammer to have him jammed up at the line (no pun intended).

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