NFL Week 6 Predictions

October 10, 2006, 5:30 PM | 3 Comments

Well, I had a great week of picks last week going 12-2 and bringing my overall record up to 50-24 (.676). Week 6 is an odd week because there are only 13 games with 6 teams on a bye week.

Last week featured a lot of lopsided victories and some really close games. It really was the best week of football so far this season. Hopefully my success from last week will continue this week.

Monday Night Wrap-Up:

Well, if you love defense, then Monday night’s game between the Broncos and Ravens was absolutely your cup of tea. Despite the lack of scoring, it really was an exciting game that kept me interested right until the end.

The Ravens really need to get consistent on offense if they expect to go deep into the playoffs because relying on a last-minute comeback every week is not the way to get wins in the postseason. Actually if the Ravens don’t figure out how to score consistently soon, they may not even make the postseason.

How much is Green Bay missing Javon Walker now? He’s may only be 21^st in the league in reception yards, but he’s averaging 19.6 yards per catch in Denver (3^rd best in the league to this point) and has had quite a few big plays over the past couple of weeks. As long as Jake Plummer can limit his poor decisions and interceptions, the Broncos will again be a huge playoff contender.

Week 6 Game of the Week: Bears at Cardinals.

The only reason I picked this game as my game of the week is because I like to see good offenses, and at least one of these teams is going to showcase theirs. I know the Bears defense is good, but their offense has been spectacular so far this year. The Bears are leading the league in both points scored and points allowed and could be the best team in the NFL right now. They’re certainly the best team in the NFC to this point.

If the Cardinals want to have any chance to win this game, they’ll have to put up a lot of points… and that won’t be easy against the Bears defense. If for some reason the Cardinals can figure out the Bears defense (and for some reason their offensive line actually figures out how to block someone) this could turn into a shootout, but I don’t expect that to happen. What I do expect is that Matt Leinart will be pressured a lot and could spend a lot of time on his back come Monday night.

On to this week’s predictions.

Away	Home	Comments	Pick	Result
Bills (2-4)	Lions (1-5)	Despite being 0-5, the Lions have scored a lot of points so far and I think this might be the week where they finally get a win. Buffalo has been better than expected this year, but I think the Lions are due.
Panthers (4-2)	Ravens (4-2)	The Panthers are going to be a very tough opponent for the Ravens, but I think Jake Delhomme will also have a tough time against that Raven’s defense. This could be another defensive game like Monday night, but I expect Baltimore to get the win.
Bengals (3-2)	Buccaneers (1-4)	After a week off, the Bengals will be ready to go down to Tampa and get win number 4.
Texans (1-4)	Cowboys (3-2)	Tough loss in Philadelphia last Sunday, but Dallas is still one of the better teams in the NFC. The Texans are starting to get some traction but Dallas will be a tough team to beat.
Giants (3-2)	Falcons (3-2)	Kind of a tough pick, but after the Giants held Washington to just 3 points last week, I think they’ll do pretty well against the Falcons.
Eagles (4-2)	Saints (5-1)	Donovan McNabb has been on fire so far this season. Congratulations to Reggie Bush on his first NFL touchdown. I think that he may get another one against the Eagles, but the birds should get the win.
Seahawks (4-1)	Rams (4-2)	After being embarrassed by the Bears in week 4, the Seahawks got a week off to let that loss ruminate. I think they’ll be pretty prepared when they get to St. Louis.
Titans (1-5)	Redskins (2-4)	Even though the Redskins only scored a field goal last week against the Giants, this is a Tennessee Titans team that hasn’t looked good at all this season. Last week against the Colts was surprising, but it’s probably not going to be the norm.
Chiefs (2-3)	Steelers (2-3)	The Steelers may not make the playoffs this season, but they will be in every single game they play until the final seconds.
Dolphins (1-5)	Jets (3-3)	Is anyone in Miami happy that they’re starting Joey Harrington? Culpepper hasn’t done well, but Harrington doesn’t seem like a much of an upgrade. The Jets got humiliated last week, so look for them to start quick at home this week.
Chargers (4-1)	49ers (2-4)	What a great performance from the Chargers on Sunday night! Everything seems to be going as planned in San Diego… except that one loss. The 49ers should be an easy win for the Chargers.
Raiders (0-5)	Broncos (4-1)	Jake Plummer didn’t look real good on Monday night against the Ravens (until the 4th quarter), but the Ravens can make any quarterback look bad. The Raiders can make any QB look good though, so take Denver and Mike Shanahan to get a win in his 200th game as head coach.
Bears (6-0)	Cardinals (1-5)	It was nice to see Matt Leinart do so well in his first NFL start. It gives the fans in Arizona a lot to look forward to. Unfortunately they lost the game, and unfortunately (for the Cardinals) they have to play the Bears this week.
Note: the Browns, Packers, Colts, Jaguars, Vikings and Patriots have a bye week this week.

Here are this week’s ESPN Expert Picks.

Also, feel free to post your thoughts on my predictions each week, whether you agree or disagree. Over the past several weeks there have been some good football discussions going on, and I’m really enjoying it. So keep ‘em coming and feel free to join in the discussion.

Update: 9-4 this week to bring my total after 6 weeks of action to 59-28. Week 6 was all about separating the good teams from the ‘middle of the pack’ teams. Good teams win the games that they should win. The ‘good teams’ I’m talking about? The Chargers, Panthers, Cowboys, Seahawks and Bears. The ‘middle of the pack’ teams (at least for this week) are the Eagles, Redskins and Bengals who all lost against teams they should’ve beaten. Either way, what an exciting finish on Monday Night to an exciting week 6!

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