Week 6 NFL picks

Not a bad week, but still lagging overall. Oh well, I guess there’s plenty of season to go.

Oakland (+7) at New Orleans
The Saints are extremely close to 5-0, but instead need a win to get to .500. Luckily, they have the Raiders coming to town. The circus which is Al Davis can’t be helping the Raiders and new coach Tom Cable. Look for New Orleans big.
New Orleans 31, Oakland 10

Baltimore (+4) at Indianapolis
The Colts pulled the ultimate Houdini act last week (thanks in large part to Sage Rosenfels), eliminating a 17-point deficit in the final five minutes to beat Houston. Will that give Indy enough momentum to win their first game at brand new Lucas Oil Stadium? I say yes, it’ll pull through in a low-scoring, ugly game.
Indianapolis 16, Baltimore 13

Cincinnati (+9) at N.Y. Jets
I have to admit, Cincy surprised me by hanging with the Cowboys. However, a loss is a loss and who knows what their mentality is after falling to 0-5. I think Brett Favre may still be throwing touchdown passes against the Cardinals. He’ll get a few against the Bengals too and without Carson Palmer, Cincy won’t be able to reply.
N.Y. Jets 27, Cincinnati 10

Carolina (+1.5) at Tampa Bay
The NFC South has quietly become a division to be reckoned with, thanks in large part to these two teams. Both the Panthers and Bucs are solid veteran squads, but the main difference to me is the steadiness of Jake Delhomme versus the volatility of Brian Griese. I’ll play it safe.
Carolina 23, Tampa Bay 17

Detroit (+13) at Minnesota
The Lions are planning on starting Dan Orlovsky in this game. Before you ask who, he was a fifth-round draft pick out of Connecticut in 2005. I think Lions fans would rather have Rip Hamilton at QB right now. The Vikes are flying high after a big Monday night win and will take this going away.
Minnesota 28, Detroit 3

Chicago (-3) at Atlanta
Whoever wins this game will move to 4-2. That’s pretty surprising, especially for a Falcons team led by a rookie quarterback. However, I think the Bears are just a little more solid all-around, as they’ll continue to lead the sad-sack NFC North after this game.
Chicago 24, Atlanta 17

Miami (+3) at Houston
This game is weird to me. The Dolphins have beaten two juggernauts in the Patriots and Chargers, but I don’t entirely trust them. However, Houston blew a 17-point lead against Indianapolis thanks to some pretty shoddy decision-making by Sage Rosenfels. I think that’ll have some hangover.
Miami 20, Houston 16

St. Louis (+13.5) at Washington
The Rams were arguably the worst team in the first four weeks of the NFL. The Redskins were arguably the second-best behind the Giants. Maybe Jim Haslett provides some sort of inspiration to St. Louis, but I’m not seeing it against the red-hot Skins.
Washington 28, St. Louis 13

Jacksonville (+3.5) at Denver
The Jaguars definitely have their backs to the wall, and Denver is never where a team like that wants to go. The Broncos’ offense has slowed down a bit after a torrid start, but the defense seems to have stabilized as well. I’ll take the home team here.
Denver 27, Jacksonville 21

Philadelphia (-4.5) at San Francisco
Another judgement day for a 2-3 team, as the Eagles have Donovan McNabb blogging and Brian Westbrook with broken ribs. Hey, at least the Phillies are winning right? It’ll be interesting to see how the Eagles react to the McNabb drama. I think they’ll be Ok, if only for this week.
Philadelphia 30, San Francisco 19

Dallas (-5) at Arizona
I must admit, my faith in the Cowboys has been shaken a bit lately, as Dallas lost to Washington and barely held off Cincinnati. Arizona, while the best team in a bad NFC West, has a hard time defending the pass (see Brett Favre, 6 TDs). I look for Dallas to win a shootout.
Dallas 37, Arizona 34

Green Bay (+1) at Seattle
This seems to be easy money right now. The Seahawks have been absolutely brutal and Matt Hasselbeck will be less than 100 percent – if he even plays at all. I know the Packers have had their issues, but they are much better than Seattle at this point.
Green Bay 27, Seattle 16

New England (+5) at San Diego
The Patriots fans that were threatening to jump off the ledge after the Miami loss are back after Matt Cassel showed some big-play ability last week in San Fran. The Chargers are 2-3 and need a win and although the Patriots have broken their hearts time and again, they’ll get it – but not by much.
San Diego 21, New England 17

N.Y. Giants (-7.5) at Cleveland
Is it me, or does it look like Eli Manning is a whole new quarterback. Winning that Super Bowl seems to have lifted some heavy weight off his shoulders, as Manning is simply dissecting teams. With an aggressive defense, a deep stable of running backs and Manning, the Giants are legit. The Browns, however, are not.
N.Y. Giants 24, Cleveland 12

Overall: 36-38. Against the spread: 35-38-1

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