Week 1 -- jetsjetsjets Crystal Ball

After seven long months, the 2008 NFL Season is finally upon us.  The Crystal Ball is extremely excited to give you his weekly picks as he did in 2007.  Hopefully, the Ball will be up to the challenge of a potentially unpredictable 2008 season.  I hope all of you at the new ownersboxsports.com site will enjoy this weekly feature throughout the entire year.  As for now...let's get on with the Week 1 selections!

Game of the Week -- Two double-digit win teams from last season will battle it out in Cleveland's "Dawg Pound".  The Dallas Cowboys, the consensus NFC favorites, travel to Ohio to battle the Browns in what should be an extremely entertaining affair.  The Crystal Ball predicts a lot of passing & scoring from two prolific offenses.  The difference in this game is that Dallas has the edge on defense.  We do believe the normally stout Dallas D will have some problems with Anderson, Edwards, Winslow & Co.  However, the Cowboys will have enough firepower to outscore the home team in this one.  -- Dallas 31  Cleveland 27

Rout of the Week -- Herman Edwards brings his rebuilding project to New England in Week 1.  This will be quite a difficult test for an inexperienced Kansas City Chief squad.  We look for Brodie Croyle to have all kinds of problems in the hostile environment of the defending AFC Champions.  Meanwhile, Tom Brady will play through his injury as New England gets the 2008 season off to a great start.  This game could get ugly really fast.  -- New England 34  Kansas City 6

Upset of the Week -- The Crystal Ball was extremely proficient in picking upsets in 2007.  Let's hope the trend continues this season.  The first week is always the toughest, so we will start with a mild upset.  The Green Bay Packers are favored by a field goal at home vs. Minnesota.  The Packers had their way with the Vikings in 2007.  We believe it will be a different story in Lambeau Field this season.  There will be enormous pressure on QB Aaron Rodgers to perform at a high-level in front of his skeptical fans.  Plus, Minnesota upgraded their team with the addition of Jared Allen on the defensive line.  The Crystal Ball likes the Vikings to pull off the mild upset as they begin their quest for an NFC North Title.  --  Minnesota 20  Green Bay 17.

Fantasy Stud of the Week -- Brian Westbrook, Philadelphia Eagles.   Mr. Westbrook will start 2008 in the same manner he performed throughout 2007.  Philly is at home vs. a St. Louis squad with many question marks.  They have one proven WR in Torry Holt who will be blanketed by the newly acquired Asante Samuel.   The Crystal Ball isn't sure the Rams will have a "Plan B" in the passing attack.  Plus, Marc Bulger has looked shaky in the preseason.  We look for Philly to have many offensive possesions...and we believe Brian Westbrook will get many touches throughout the day.  The result will be a huge beginning for Westbrook and the Eagles --  180 combined yds. & 2 TDs.

Fantasy Dud of the Week -- Jay Cutler, Denver Broncos.  The Crystal Ball loves Cutler's potential & he believes that the Denver QB will have a successful 2008 campaign.  However, Cutler will be in a difficult situation in Week 1 vs. Oakland.  He will be playing a talented Oakland secondary without the services of his #1 target Brandon Marshall.  Marshall will be serving his one-game suspension for off-the-field issues.  The Crystal Ball forecasts a low scoring affair in which Cutler will struggle to put up any numbers.  Cutler will be a #1 Fantasy QB option for most of the season...just not this week --160 yds. passing, O TDs, 1 INT.

Fantasy Sleeper of the Week -- Laurence Maroney, New England Patriots.  There is a big range of opinion on the fantasy value of this Patriot RB.  Last year, he struggled with injuries, Sammy Morris, and a playbook which greatly featured the passing game.  It's hard to say what will be in store for Laurence Maroney owners in the 2008 season.  However, the Crystal Ball feels that everything is in place for Maroney to get off to a very fast start.  His team plays the woeful Chiefs at home while Tom Brady is nursing a mysterious foot injury.  We look for the Patriots to run early & often as they utilize Maroney as they did in the 2008 Playoffs.  New England should be ahead from the start as they feature their running game extensively & protect Tom Brady.  Brady needs to be at full-strength for next weeks' huge AFC East matchup with the Jets.  All of this means that Maroney puts together #1-RB type numbers in Week 1 -- 130 combined yards & 2 TDs.

The Crystal Ball is excited that football season is finally here.  As always, we hope everyone enjoys the games!   We'll see you again next week for our Week 2 selections.

Joe McElhone (a.k.a jetsjetsjets) & his Crystal Ball