After a shaky first week in the world of Blogger Deathsport, I made a bit of a comeback in Week 2 and evened up my season record at 15-15-1.  Which means that if I was taking these picks to Vegas, I'd be even money.

Then again, that's probably not true, either, because the first rule of gambling is "If Gonzo puts money on a sporting event, its outcome will be the direct opposite of what he's predicting."  Basically, if I was putting real money on these games, my record would probably be closer to about 4-26-1 or something like that, and I'd be trying to get a job washing dishes at the Rio.  But I'm NOT putting money on these. . .to your knowledge. . .this is all in fun.  So, with that, and armed with the lines supplied to me by the folks at the Blogger Deathsport head offices in Coos Bay, Oregon. . .here are my picks for this week.

Kansas City at Atlanta (-5.5)
--Gonzo's Take:  Kansas City lost last week.  To the Raiders.  At home.  By 15 points.  And now it's the Tyler Thigpen show heading into the Georgia Dome on Sunday.  Why would I take Kansas City here again?
 
Cleveland at Baltimore (-2)
--Gonzo's Take:  After an unscheduled bye week, the former Browns host the current Browns in Baltimore.  The former Browns may or may not be a very good team. . .but they're better than the current Browns at the moment.
 
Oakland at Buffalo (-9.5)
--Gonzo's Take:  Who was on the Bills' bandwagon before the season started?  *points*  *to*  *self*  This guy, that's who.  They push their record to 3-0 against the Raiders, who may or may not fire Lane Kiffin after this game.  Or before this game.  Or during this game.  Hell, it's Al Davis, you try to figure him out.
 
Tampa Bay at Chicago (-3)
--Gonzo's Take:  Devin Hester is hobbled for the Bears, and the team as a whole has to be reeling after their loss to Carolina last week in a game they were in control of.  Take the Bucs for the road upset here.
 
Dallas (-3) at Green Bay
--Gonzo's Take:  Dallas is the best team in the NFC.  Green Bay is not.  End of rational discussion of anything Packer-related for this week.
 
New Orleans at Denver (-5.5)
--Gonzo's Take:  This should be quite the interesting ball game between two outstanding offensive football teams.  I think Denver is going to win the football game, but I think that the Saints can stay within a touchdown.
 
Jacksonville at Indianapolis (-5.5)
--Gonzo's Take:  The Colts get Jeff Saturday and Dallas Clark back this week, but they've lost Bob Sanders.  Fortunately for them, they're facing a Jacksonville team that's locked in an early battle with San Diego, Cleveland, and Minnesota for the title of "most overrated team in football going into the season."  I don't think that changes this week. . .Colts by a TD.
 
Carolina at Minnesota (-3.5)
--Gonzo's Take:  Hey, don't be angry. . .the Vikings have given me zero indication that they can win this game.  Believe me, I'd love to be wrong on this one and stuff, but. . .well, damn.
 
Miami at New England (-12.5)
--Gonzo's Take:  Man, that's a whole lot of points, particularly for a Matt Cassel-led Patriots team, to be giving to an improving Miami squad.  Yes, I know that the Patriots looked pretty good last week against the Jets, but they still only won by 9 and didn't look nearly as explosive.  I can't see the Dolphins losing by 2 TDs here.
 
Cincinnati at New York Giants (-13.5)
--Gonzo's Take:  Now, allow me to totally contradict what I said in the previous paragraph.  I can see this many points being given in this case, because the Bengals are absolutely terrible.  Seriously, what in the heck has happened to Carson Palmer?  Giants roll forth on their quest for respect.

Pittsburgh at Philadelphia (-3)
--Gonzo's Take:  What a great game this is going to be.  I know that the Eagles are a great team and they're at home this week and stuff, but they're coming off of a draining Monday night pinball game with the Cowboys, and the Steelers are still, in my opinion, the class of the AFC right now.  I'll take the Steelers in a close one.
 
Detroit at San Francisco (-4)
--Gonzo's Take:  Detroit has been awful on the road for. . .oh. . .roughly the last 10 years.  The Niners, on the other hand, are riding high after knocking off the Seahawks last weekend.  Mike Martz's current team should be able to beat his former team by a TD.
 
St. Louis at Seattle (-9.5)
--Gonzo's Take:  Why is an 0-2 team favored by this many points over anybody?  Oh, right. . .they're playing the Rams.  And hey, Koren Robinson is back with the Seahawks, so if nothing else, the afterparty for this one should be bitchin'.  (Yes, I used the word "bitchin'."  Why?  Shut up, that's why.)
 
Houston at Tennessee (-5)
--Gonzo's Take:  Tennessee's defense is really, really good.  But you knew this already.  Even with the Vince Young saga going on, the Titans should still be good enough to handle a Texans team that's likely in a bit of disarray at the moment.
 
Arizona at Washington (-3)
--Gonzo's Take:  Another pretty intriguing matchup, as the high-powered Arizona offense, led by 206-year old Kurt Warner, heads to DC.  I think that the Cardinals can step up in this one and pull off what would be considered a mild upset over the 'Skins.

New York Jets at San Diego (-9)
--Gonzo's Take:  Why is an 0-2 team favored by this many points over anybody, Part II.  Yes, I know that the Chargers lost both of their games in the last minutes and all that. . .that doesn't tell me that they're good enough to lay a double-digit beating on the I-N-T-S Jets Jets Jets just yet.  Final score prediction for this one (for tie-breaker purposes). . .I think I'll go Chargers 23, Jets 20.  Bolts win, Jets cover.