Despite the fact that we had an average week of making the correct picks, we did hit our "Upset Special Pick of the Week" with the St. Louis Rams pick over the Seattle Seahawks in week four. A bunch of upsets happened last weekend but this week looks to be following more true to form with the slate of games coming up. Let's take a look and as usual, I'll 'pick & pan' the Ravens/Broncos game Sunday morning:
Colts over Chiefs: Surprised to see that by the end of the day, there will be no NFL teams remaining undefeated, as Kansas City will find out how tough the elite teams are when they go into Indianapolis and limp out with a loss.
Bengals over Buccaneers: If Tampa Bay can't beat the Steelers at home, then no way they go to Cincinnati and win on the road. None.
Falcons over Browns: Even though I'm not totally sold on Atlanta being a real contender, I am sold on Cleveland not being one, although an upset,.....nahhh, nevermind.
Jaguars over Bills: I'd love to see Buffalo pull the upset, but their run defense is atrocious and Jacksonville does have a guy whose initials are MJD who can run the rock pretty well.
Packers over Redskins: I was going to make this pick the other way, but I just cannot see Washington keeping pace with Green Bay, and expect McNabb to make enough mistakes to lose this game in the end.
Lions over Rams: I guess this can't be considered an "upset" but if Detroit can come that close to beating the Vikings last week, surely they can outscore a rookie QB, right? Right?
Panthers over Bears: Here we go with this week's "Upset Special Pick of the Week," as Carolina gets off the snide with a win over Chicago, who not only has pass protection issues but QB headaches as well.
Texans over Giants: This could actually be one of the best games of the weekend, as New York seemed to be getting back on track last week and Houston needs to prove its loss to Dallas last week was a fluke. Both QB's are solid but Schaub should be more of a threat with or without his big time WR Andre Johnson.
Saints over Cardinals: Wow, Kurt Warner really made a difference in Arizona, as they are now on their third QB (Leinhart, Anderson, Hall) in the year since he left, while New Orleans are only the defending Super Bowl champs.
Cowboys over Titans: Tennessee lost a heart-breaker last week while Dallas won a big game, andthat looks to be the trend that should continue in this game as Tony Romo and company outplays Vince Young and CJ.
Chargers over Raiders: While most of us outside of San Diego would love to see QB Phil Rivers lose andwhine about it, I can't see such ineptness that is Oakland making this the upset of the week.
49ers over Eagles (Sunday Night Football): This looks like a tough task for Philadelphia QB Kevin Kolb to start over the injured Michael Vick and play that good to beat a frustrated and angry San Francisco team that desperately needs a win.
Jets over Vikings (Monday Night Football): The addition of Randy Moss will not make a difference as Minnesota is not the team they were last year, although I'd love to see New York lose at home on MNF for the 2nd time this season. The Jets defense is too tough and their offense will be good enough to win this. At the same time, they are now the darlings of the NFL, otherwise why would they play two of the first five MNF games in 2010?
Last week: 8-6
Season record: 41-21