Chicago Bears (2-2) at Carolina Panthers (2-2)
Both of these teams lost in equally atrocious fashions last Sunday. The Bears defense allowed rival Aaron Rodgers to manhandle them in the passing game, and the Panthers lost pretty poorly to the Ravens and old friend Steve Smith.
I’m concerned about both of these teams’ defenses, because neither has shown the ability to stop anyone. If this game turns into a shootout, I’ll take the quarterback with the Twin Towers as his receivers.
Prediction: Chicago 34, Carolina 27
Houston Texans (3-1) at Dallas Cowboys (3-1)
Even when I picked the Cowboys to win the NFC East at the end of the season, I didn’t foresee them defeating New Orleans until last week, when I took them over the high flying Saints. With the Eagles loss last week, they’re now tied for the lead atop their division.
The Texans have the same record, but have barely edged by mediocre teams such as the Bills. Earlier in the season, Giants quarterback Eli Manning lit the Texans up. Tony Romo’s going to do the same.
Prediction: Dallas 37, Houston 23
Buffalo Bills (2-2) at Detroit Lions (3-1)
The Lions are easily one of the best teams in the league through the quartermark of their season. On the other hand, even though the Bills are technically atop the AFC East, they’ve lost two games in a row, and I see them taking a nosedive in the standings from here on out.
Calvin Johnson will play today, but even if he’s ineffective or not used often today, I still see Detroit’s dominating offense run the show.
Prediction: Detroit 27, Buffalo 13
Baltimore Ravens (3-1) at Indianapolis Colts (2-2)
Despite very few people talking about their successes this season, the Ravens are one win and a Cincinnati loss away from finding themselves at the pinnacle of the AFC North. After another dominating offensive performance this week, expect Joe Flacco to have another magnificent game against a sub-par defense.
The Colts, after losing two in a row to open their season, blew out division rivals Jacksonville and Tennessee in consecutive weeks. Andrew Luck and Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers look like the league’s two best through four weeks.
Prediction: Indianapolis 27, Baltimore 23
Pittsburgh Steelers (2-2) at Jacksonville Jaguars (0-4)
In recent times, Jacksonville has been a remedy to Washington’s cold start and Indianapolis’ win-less opening two weeks. The Steelers can get right back on track in this one.
Prediction: Pittsburgh 20, Jacksonville 13
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-3) at New Orleans Saints (1-3)
I knew that Mike Glennon would play better as Tampa Bay’s signal caller than Josh McCown, and this was evidenced by Glennon leading a comeback game winning drive in Pittsburgh last weekend.
The Saints look bad. Against supposedly a terrible defense last Sunday night, their offense could barely manage anything offensively until the latter stages of the game. With their only win coming at home against Minnesota, Saints fans have a lot to panic about.
Yet, it’s evident that one should never count out the Saints at the Superdome. They’re pretty much unbeatable there.
Prediction: New Orleans 41, Tampa Bay 20
Atlanta Falcons (2-2) at New York Giants (2-2)
The Falcons are clearly a different team away from the Georgia Dome. In their loss to the Vikings in Minnesota last Sunday, all the facets of their game were lacking.
Enter the Giants, who have won two games in a row. Eli has looked pretty good in the last two games, and I’m not sure that Atlanta’s defense can do anything about that.
Prediction: New York 27, Atlanta 20
St. Louis Rams (1-2) at Philadelphia Eagles (3-1)
Has Austin Davis been solid at quarterback? Yes. However, this isn’t a game that they should or will win. Going into Philly and playing one of the league’s most explosive offenses, I can’t see Davis keeping up with Foles and the Eagles on the scoreboard.
Prediction: Philadelphia 27, St. Louis 17
Cleveland Browns (1-2) at Tennessee Titans (1-3)
I don’t like either team in this game. However, Cleveland coming off of a bye looks a lot better to me than the Titans being throttled by the Colts on Sunday.
Brian Hoyer has done a magnificent job at the helm of the Cleveland offense, and I think he will continue dominating on Sunday.
Prediction: Cleveland 27, Tennessee 23
Arizona Cardinals (3-0) at Denver Broncos (2-1)
One of the biggest surprises in football this season have been the Arizona Cardinals. They’ve beaten quality opponents to get to the mark of 3-0, and they look strong offensively and defensively.
With that said, the Broncos are one of the best teams in football, and the Arizona offense isn’t going to be able to keep up with him. Their only chance? The Cardinals defense needs to limit Peyton to under 20 points, and when the Broncos are at home, their offense is quite easily the best in football.
Prediction: Denver 27, Arizona 20
New York Jets (1-3) at San Diego Chargers (3-1)
Through four weeks, Philip Rivers is my MVP. He has looked completely dominant, and I can’t see this Jets team stopping him.
The New York offense needs to get something going, and I would suggest starting Michael Vick at quarterback, or at least giving him substantially more playing time. He can’t play any worse than Geno Smith at this point, right?
Prediction: San Diego 30, New York 17
Kansas City Chiefs (2-2) at San Francisco 49ers (2-2)
I’ve been down on the Chiefs the entire season, but then they went off on the Patriots last Monday night, manhandling them both offensively and defensively.
The 49ers absolutely needed a win against the Eagles, and their defense delivered with a goalline stand where the Eagles could have taken the lead.
In Alex Smith’s revenge match, I’ll take the home team with the superior defense, but it might be closer than you’d expect.
Prediction: San Francisco 23, San Francisco 20
Cincinnati Bengals (3-0) at New England Patriots (2-2)
The Bengals? They’ve been the NFL’s most complete team to this point in the season. Their offense has been strong while their defense has shut down opposing offenses.
On the other sideline, the Patriots have been a shell of their former proverbial selves. Their offense has been hideous, their defense has been atrocious, and their coaching has been sub-par at best. Everyone at One Patriot Place is to blame here, from the head coach to the quarterback to the offensive line.
However, a win here keeps the Patriots in first place in their division. Rarely ever do I pick against the Patriots in Massachusetts. This isn’t one of those weeks.
Prediction: New England 24, Cincinnati 20
Seattle Seahawks (2-1) at Washington (1-3)
In my books, the Seahawks are still the best team in the NFL. Kirk Cousins has played spectacularly in the absence of Robert Griffin III, but does anyone really believe that he can put up major points on the Seattle defense?
Prediction: Seattle 31, Washington 17
Last Week: (8-5)
Season: (34-27)
Best: (10-6)
[Photo Credit: sportige.com]
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