We are off and running in the 2026 regular season and are coming off an opening weekend where we escaped Week 1 with a stellar record on the whole. For the slate, I went 13-3 on straight-up picks and 9-7 ATS. That was good for the best among CBS Sports experts straight up and tied for second against the spread.
The only unfortunate aspect of my weekend was that some of the locks within my five Locks of the Week were faulty. I was 2-3 ATS on my five best bets, with the Jets' upset win in Nashville and Jacksonville's throttling of the Browns as the lone covers. The Houston Texans nearly swung the day for us as they had the Buffalo Bills on the ropes, but Josh Allen was simply too much to slay, so we'll look to keep the overall momentum rolling in Week 2 while cleaning things up with my locks.
As we turn our attention to the upcoming slate, we're somewhat going back to the well with a couple of teams, attacking the Browns and buying the Jets with the points. It seems like Cooper Rush is going to get another start for Atlanta, so we'll gladly fade him after a rough debut with the Falcons in Week 1. Out of every starting quarterback that took the field in Week 1, no one has a worse passer rating than Rush (54.9).
There was essentially no vertical passing game as Rush averaged just 3.5 air yards per attempt (31st among QBs). Despite that, he still had an off-target rate of 13.6% (22nd). So, while the Panthers' defense was pantsed by the Bears in Week 1 to the tune of 59 points allowed, they won't face nearly the firepower under center as they did when squaring up against Ben Johnson and Caleb Williams.
Meanwhile, lost in the Bears lighting it up, Bryce Young put together a strong effort, with his .29 per dropback ranking sixth-highest among all quarterbacks in Week 1. The Panthers QB also owns a 4-1 SU and ATS record when he starts against Atlanta. Projected score: Panthers 24, Falcons 20The pick: Panthers -1 Listen, this might be the last time in our lives that we'll be able to bet against Deshaun Watson, so we HAVE to take this opportunity while it's still there.
The Browns QB looked about as you'd expect him to look in the opening loss to Jacksonville. He didn't seem comfortable in the pocket at all, tossed an interception on his opening possession, and nearly had two more turnovers. Dating to before his Achilles injuries, Watson is 0-6 SU and 1-5 ATS over his last six starts.
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