NFL Week 7 Predictions

October 16, 2007, 6:44 PM | 9 Comments

We’re 6 weeks through this NFL season and there have been a lot of interesting moments, stories and developments. Each team is now about one third through their schedule and some are looking either really good, or really bad right now.

Last week held a number of upsets and I only managed to correctly pick 8 games out of the 13 on the schedule. At this point though I think I’m about ready to start writing off some teams. Cincinnati is one that comes to mind right away because after losing to the Chiefs, the Bengals are really in a hole in the AFC North. Yes, anything could happen, but this team just doesn’t appear to have the character to really get it together in time to make a difference.

Another team that I didn’t think would be so far out of it at this point in the season is the New York Jets. Unfortunately, things just aren’t going the right way for them and Eric Mangini’s biggest achievement this season may have been to help uncover the Patriots videotaping scandal. It’s sad for a team that showed so much promise last season and really was a nice “feel good story” for the 2006 season. Any great team will tell you though, last year doesn’t matter anymore.

I’m not totally ready to do it yet, but I’m very much on the cusp of writing off the 2007 edition of the Chicago Bears. After beating Green Bay in week 5, they really spoiled an opportunity to get back in the hunt in the NFC North, and really the NFC Wild Card race as well. The once dominant Bears defense has been decimated by injuries, and they’re letting teams (and Adrian Peterson) run all over them. It’s tough to really predict this type of thing at this point in the year, but for the Bears, another loss could essentially end their playoff hopes.

Game of the Week: Colts at Jaguars

OK, the Colts are 5-0 and have started their season by looking every bit as strong as they were last season. So what else is new? As I usually do with most teams that are on a huge tear like this, I won’t be picking against the Colts at all this year until they either lose their first game, or until they play the Patriots, who are also undefeated (but I still haven’t decided on that game yet). This week’s game though is going to be a very tough one for Peyton Manning and the Colts because Jacksonville has been playing very well lately and always makes it tough on Indy.

The Colts are actually playing some surprisingly good defense so far this year, so this is going to be a big test against the Jaguars to see where they’re really at as a unit. Jacksonville’s strong run D also presents a problem… for Jacksonville. Why? Because it puts the ball in Peyton Manning’s right hand and forces him to use that “laser-rocket arm” a little more than usual.

Either way, I think this game is going to be a very tight match and I’m glad ESPN is actually getting some good games for the next couple of weeks on Monday Night Football.

Enough talk, here are my picks for week 7!

Away	Home	Comments	Pick	Result
Titans (4-2)	Texans (3-4)	Without Vince Young at QB the Titans are definitely not as frightening, but they’re still a pretty good team. Houston has gotten off to a fairly decent start so far this season and this game really could go either way. I’ll take Tennessee though.
Vikings (2-4)	Cowboys (6-1)	The Boys made it interesting for 3 quarters against the Patriots last week, but that was as far as it went. This week, they face a Vikings team that will feed them a steady diet of Adrian Peterson. They can’t take the Vikings lightly, otherwise they’ll be 5-2 when this one’s over.
Buccaneers (4-3)	Lions (4-2)	The Acquisition of Michael Bennett is very good news for the Buccaneers. He may not make a big impact right away, but his veteran abilities will definitely be able to help the Bucs down the stretch. The Lions haven’t played very well on defense this season, and Jeff Garcia should be able to exploit that to lead the Bucs to a W.
Ravens (4-3)	Bills (2-4)	After losing a heart breaker to Dallas on Monday Night Football 2 weeks ago, the Bills had the entire bye week to get over it and prepare for the Ravens. I was going to pick Baltimore for this game, but I really think that the Bills could pull this one off. Upset of the week.
Falcons (1-6)	Saints (2-4)	The Saints finally won a game! I’m not ready to count them back into the playoff picture yet, but they could take another step in the right direction this week with a win over the Falcons.
Cardinals (3-4)	Redskins (4-2)	Losing Kurt Warner for any amount of time is yet another setback for Arizona, but even with him under centre the Redskins would be a tough team to beat, especially in Washington.
Patriots (7-0)	Dolphins (0-7)	I was about to pick this one as my upset of the week. Well, not really, but the Dolphins usually play well against the Patriots and have given Tom Brady fits in years past. Not this year though… even though it would be kinda funny.
49ers (2-4)	Giants (5-2)	New York is still on a roll and I think they should be able to win their 5th straight game this week against the 49ers. While San Francisco is definitely a team that’s improving, I still don’t think they’re at the level that the Giants have been playing at over the past 4 weeks.
Jets (1-6)	Bengals (2-4)	Seriously… the Bengals have to win this one… don’t they?
Chiefs (4-3)	Raiders (2-4)	The Chiefs were able to beat the Bengals last week in fairly impressive fashion. If they keep playing the way they have been, they could really push for a division title this season in an unexpectedly weak AFC West.
Rams (0-7)	Seahawks (4-3)	Alright. so one week Seattle looks like they’ve got it figured out, and then the next week they get beat by a team they should not be losing to. Granted, the Saints have a lot of talent, but they’ve been struggling a lot this year. So have the Rams. Seattle’s got to be better than what they showed last week, so I’m not giving up on them.
Bears (3-4)	Eagles (2-4)	If this game was in Chicago, I might give the Bears a second thought, but Philadelphia is one of the hardest places to be the visiting team in the NFL… heck, it’s one of the hardest places to be the home team in the NFL! Also, Westbrook is in, so I’ll take Philly for the win.
Steelers (4-2)	Broncos (3-3)	As disappointing as the Broncos have been so far this year, they’re still very much in the hunt in the AFC West. The Steelers are coming off a bye week though and will probably give the Broncos all they can handle. I think this one will be close, but I have to take the Steelers based on past performance so far this year.
Colts (6-0)	Jaguars (4-2)	I can’t pick against Indy, but I will say that I think this game will be won on the foot of Adam Vinatieri. Either that or the Colts will just blow the Jaguars out of the water, but I think that’s the lesser of the likely outcomes.
Note: the Browns (3-3), Chargers (3-3), Packers (5-1) and Panthers (4-2) have a bye week this week.

So far I’m doing pretty well up against the Experts at ESPN. Hopefully this week I’ll start to really get in a groove though. Check back after the games for more updates.

Update: I had a pretty good week this week going 11-3 with my picks. Even my shot-in-the-dark upset pick (Bills over Ravens) worked out! That brings my total record so far this season up to 70-33… not bad. Check back Tuesday for Week 8.

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