ESL Blogs

Ninety years ago, the biggest college football star in the country, Red Grange, went on a 17-game barnstorming tour to help George Halas promote his young football team. The gained instant pub, as did the still-fresh-out-of-the-box NFL. That football train trip played a huge part in why we are all here today, wondering who is going to win in Week 1 and, ultimately, who will end up in the San Francisco Bay Area for 50.While Grange provided the NFL with a rush of popularity, the league has never been more prominent than it is today, as evidenced by the wall-to-wall coverage of this past offseason's biggest stories: from the trade to the draft in Chicago to, of course, Deflategate.Yet, now the games are the story, and man, that's a good thing.Speaking of good things ... Shoutout to Rand Getlin, my colleague on "NFL HQ," who joined our media team this summer. More welcome additions: Cole Wright, Maurice Jones-Drew and Ike Taylor. (Taylor can be seen wearing Marc-Edouard Vlasic Women Jersey smedium shirts around the office often.) and I recently argued about the current NFL pecking order, yet neither of us could nudge the out of . Even without in the fold, it's hard to believe Seattle will lose in St. Louis -- -- . But I'm getting ahead of myself here, tipping my picks in the intro. Take a look below, and feel free to share your take: is the place.Now, let's get to it!Elliot Harrison went 181-85-1 on his predictions last season. How will he fare in the 2015 campaign? His picks for Week 1 are below. Green Bay can't be stopped -- well, at least not in Week 1. The ' defense will come around at some point in 2015, but the unit will suffer early growing pains, with a scheme change and a secondary that has much room to improve. Shrewd move by Ted Thompson to go grab , by the way. Now watch him go catch 15 touchdowns, because, well, that's the law of Rodgers. Instead of being forced to rely on rookie as the WR3, the best quarterback in the league now has a receiver who can step right in and know the play calls. Don't underestimate established rapport between QB and WR. could have zero rapport with anybody, given all the injuries for Chicago at wideout. (I don't think rapport is really his deal, anyway.) must run for 100 yards for Chicago to compete. Thinking most fans will say Houston wins at home, so consider this a vote of confidence for and company. should help keep the Houston pa s rush at bay, even if he is not able to put up monster numbers at Reliant, er, NRG. Love the stadium naming-rights game. Or not. For the to win, either is going to have to make plays downfield or must run amok. Hoyer threw three touchdown pa ses and four picks on pa ses of 20-plus yards last season, while completing le s than half those attempts. As for Blue, well ... 's status is still a bit of a question mark, but K.C.'s front seven is healthier overall than it was for most of last season, when . By day's end, Houston's RB might be Alfred Black-and-Blue. Don't forget to tip your waiter, folks. defense dominates at home. The front seven should be too much for a Cleveland running game that doesn't scare anyone Brent Burns Men Jersey -- at least not yet, anyway. can be scary ... for fans. Cleveland's offense is going to get as strong a test as it will get all season, opening up against Todd Bowles' defense. On the flip side, there hasn't been too much chatter about and this preseason, with delivering the football. Not expecting jaw-dropping production or anything against the ' secondary, but ... Sorry. I couldn't stop myself. Again, tip your waiters! Maybe the coolest matchup of Week 1. Can't wait to see this high-powered offense, with driving the bus and newcomers and along for the ride. Except maybe Luck should be the kind of bus driver that Bill Parcells used to refer to -- a game manager, in Tuna-speak. Luck has thrown many interceptions in his young career, but that high volume of turnovers has been the result of a high volume of pa s attempts. Buffalo's pa s rush will be champing at the bit to force Luck into mistakes. And make no mistake, the front seven is a mismatch for Indy's offensive line. Gore earns his paycheck this week. By the way, is he too old yet? (No.) Miami takes care of busine s in its quest for its first playoff berth -- and first winning season -- since 2008. Chad Pennington was the ' quarterback then -- a solid player who, due to shoulder injuries, never became an elite player. looks to vault into that latter category this season. If he does, it starts opening day, with catching eight balls. Meanwhile, will fare much better than people think, but that O-line is at a disadvantage at just about every spot versus this front. Even mighty might struggle with . Miami, 1-0. This is the most difficult contest to pick (to watch?) in Week 1. Jacksonville's defense should finish better than last year's unit, which . Meanwhile, Carolina's offense certainly will be weaker, sans . So can pick up the slack in a Mike Shula attack that is cro sing its football fingers that rookie progre ses quickly? Speaking of rookies, could provide much relief to both and the aforementioned Jags defense if he gets it going early. This pick reflects confidence that the ' defense will pick up where it left off at the end of 2014 and force Bortles to try winning the Jannik Hansen Kids Jersey game with a sterling effort of his own. Remember ? The ' special teams won the game. Literally. Because the offense couldn't do jack. At least, that's what every shocked fan claimed after watching St. Louis Eric Fehr Women Jersey employ . Will Jeff Fisher and company pull a rope-a-dope with faking another runback? Seattle ran up 463 yards on offense (to the ' 275) -- and still lost. The key matchup: the -le s offensive line vs. the much-ballyhooed St. Louis defensive front. Everyone says the ' D-line will be able to control games this year. Let's see it. Predicting a low score, as the will be running the rock, and both offenses will be working out the kinks. On that note, was a Kinks song before . Oh, so you're not here for that kind of info? The trick to Arizona winning games is how Bruce Arians' club fares in the fourth quarter. Last year, the forced a staggering 14 fourth-quarter takeaways, posting a league-leading plus-10 turnover differential in the final stanza. New Orleans? Minus-five. Expect to throw le s pa ses late in games this year, with and friends involved more. With Arizona being at home, though, we're anticipating the Cards to force mistakes again in the late goings. And I a lot. Another difficult contest to predict ... The vote here is with the home Bolts -- specifically, little , who is going to have a big year in 2015. As for the , should also have a large impact on his team this season, . Writing this blurb while watching "Mi sing Rings: The Story of the 1981 ," it's not difficult to see the similarities between Dan Fouts and . Both men are true field generals. As Rivers begins Year 12, I anticipate he will again call many of the plays at the line -- as well as protections, to avoid Detroit can deliver. Can and deliver on the road? vs. -- seriously, what are the chances? In case you are wondering, this has never happened in NFL history, where the top two picks -- both quarterbacks -- face off in Week 1. Both will need their running games, and no one is quite sure if either player will get it. Tenne see is still looking for that breakout game from , whereas can be Tiki Barber 2.0 for the Bucs -- if he gets the blocking. We've seen it before with Martin. So I trust him more at this point, as well as the Tampa defense. 's a sault on 's Defensive Player of the Year award begins Sunday. This is not a stamp of disapproval regarding the ' 2015 prospects. The thought here is that the will get off to a fast start, while the - - triumvirate might take a few weeks to get rolling. As the talent level in Oakland rises, the rest of the AFC falls back to the pack. That said, Cincinnati carries as loaded a roster Aaron Dell Jersey as any club in the league. Speaking of one of those talented guys, will be able to run on Oakland's front. 1,350 yards this year? Am I too hot dogs and apple pie over Hill? ( ) has delivered a doozy in Denver before, but not seeing it this time. Baltimore -- despite being the defending champs -- due to a scheduling conflict with the Orioles. That contest turned into a fantasy bash, as lit up the ' secondary for seven touchdown pa ses. Not seeing that take place, either. Expect the to still try to hit the deep ball -- even if rookie speedster isn't in the lineup -- while utilizing 25 times to slow down that ferocious Denver pa s rush. Wade Phillips' defense will be top-five this year. Mark it down. You may or may not know that and have not met the most times among active quarterbacks. Believe it or not, that designation belongs to and , who will be facing each other for the 17th time as starters . (That's not counting Romo's first significant NFL game action, which came against the when he subbed in for a pat-pat-pat-the-ball Drew Bledsoe.) While Dallas swept las