Pick 'Em: Week 7

Last Week: 7-6-1
On The Season: 44-41-4

1:00 Kickoff

Cincinnati @ Atlanta The Falcons may have been exposed in Philadelphia last week. After roughing up Arizona and then escaping struggling New Orleans, San Francisco, and Cleveland with close wins, Matt Ryan and the Falcons were throttled 31-17 in Philly. Their defense gave up well over 300 yards passing as Kevin Kolb completed 23 of 29 passes. While the Bengals haven't looked great (2-3), their passing offense has looked sharp at times and the Falcons will possibly be without corner back Dunta Robinson. Take the Bengals +3.5

Washington @ Chicago Here's what I think about Bears offensive coordinator Mike Martz: As a Cowboys fan, I thought Jason Garrett's refusal to run the ball was frustrating, then you watch the Martz offense. A week after running back Matt Forte ripped off 166 yards on 22 carries at Carolina, Martz gives him the ball 8 times in a 23-20 home loss to Seattle. See a pattern?!?! I like to see running backs catching the ball out of the backfield too, but they're called running backs for an reason. Jay Cutler is a mess, 17 for 39?!? Take the Skins +3

St. Louis @ Tampa Bay As somebody who was ready to anoint Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco just two years ago, I've got to be impressed with Sam Bradford week in and week out. The Rams rookie quarterback is 3-3 with two losses by two points or less. With injuries at receiver, the Rams are still allowing the rookie quarterback to drop back and throw between 30 to 50 times a game. However, in the Rams win vs. San Diego last week they found the perfect dose of run and pass, watching running back Steven Jackson rush the ball twenty-nine times for just over 100 yards. How many more road dogs can I take?!? Rams +3

San Francisco @ Carolina The Jimmy Clausen era in Carolina has gone on hiatus for the winter. With quarterback Matt Moore resuming the starting role, the Panthers need to get off the mat this week. Receiver Steve Smith is coming back from injury and this 49ers team just isn't good. Just about the only place Carolina has played well this season is in the secondary. They've recorded 9 interceptions and allowed the 5th fewest yards in the passing game of any team in the league. For 'Niners quarterback Alex Smith, that's not a good thing. Smith is leading the league in interceptions thrown. Carolina +3

Buffalo @ Baltimore The Ravens have some convincing to do after their loss in New England last week. If you're going to be a championship contender, you have to put teams away when you have the chance. These Ravens let the Patriots off the hook. They're playing the Bills this week, a team who is for all intents and purposes trying to lose. Put it on 'em! Ravens -13

Philadelphia @ Tennessee So, now I understand what Andy Reid was thinking when he originally gave this starting quarterback job to Kolb. In his two starts since the Eagles loss to Washington, Kolb has completed over twenty passes in each start and over 550 yards passing total. He's has stayed away from interceptions, just one in the two games. More importantly, he's developed a report with receiver Jeremy Maclin, who in two weeks has hauled in 13 balls for 250 yards receiving. I need more Vick just like you do, but Kevin Kolb . .Well, he ain't as bad as I thought he'd be. Eagles +3

Jacksonville @ Kansas City In their two straight losses since starting out 3-0, the Chiefs have impressed me more than they did in the wins themselves. They played both Indianapolis and Houston very tough and it looked as though they'd pull it out in both games. While San Diego, Denver, and Oakland struggle, money should be on Kansas City to pull this thing out. Getting the Jaguars at home is a perfect way to bounce back after two straight losses. Expect K.C. to roll! Chiefs -9

Pittsburgh @ Miami With Roethlisberger now back under center, tell me where the Steelers look weak?!? More to it, he's going to attack this Miami team secondary. Their rushing attack has looked fantastic, their defense is second to err, no one. Looking at their schedule, show me the losses?!? Baltimore, New England, New Orleans, & the Jets remain, I'll take the Steelers the way they've looked over each one of those teams. Running back Rashard Mendenhall is the NFL's sixth leading rusher with 495 total rushing yards scoring five touchdowns. When the running game comes to Pittsburgh, they get scary good. Master Lock Of The Week: Steelers -3

Cleveland @ New Orleans Hey now New Orleans! We'd been waiting for the Saints to finally stop messing around and get going. Nothing does that better than getting an overachieving divisional team in Tampa Bay, welcoming you to their house. Drew Brees bounced back after their rough outing in Arizona and blew out the Bucs last week. Now they get Cleveland! However it wasn't just Brees, for the first week this season, the Saints got their rushing attack going with 1st year running back Chris Ivory. Ivory went for 158 yards and made the defense respect their ground game, enough for Brees to take to the air. Don't expect Cleveland to make much noise, the Superdome has yet to see New Orleans really play well this year. Saints -13

4:15 Kickoff

Arizona @ Seattle The NFC West is completely up in the air, completely. As bad as the Cardinals looked giving up 40 points to both Atlanta and San Diego, they've also won tough games against New Orleans, St. Louis, & Oakland. The Seahawks at 3-2 are playing okay, returning back home to Seattle after their win in Chicago. In a game that could decide the NFC West and give a playoff birth to an 8-8 team, this game is huge! Seattle plays well at home and will force Arizona to pass the ball, provided they give quarterback Max Hall enough time to do that. Seahawks -6

New England @ San Diego What?!?! Wait, why are the Patriots underdogs in this game?!?! San Diego has looked awful. If not for the Dallas Cowboys and their stunning 1-4 start, San Diego's 2-4 record out of the gate, with losses to Seattle, Oakland, and St. Louis, would be under the microscope. On the flip side, the Patriots have their swagger back, believe me. Beating Baltimore after going down 20-10, that's old school New England. They took what the defense gave them and waited out Baltimore, yes that's old school Patriots. Tom is on the west coast, he's back around his family, he'll come to play and play big. Patriots +2.5

Oakland @ Denver If Raiders quarterback Jason Campbell thought Washington was dysfunctional, I'm guessing he knows what really is dysfunctional now. I actually think Campbell can play well in this league, the quarterback has just gotten a raw deal here. For the Broncos, it's a strange team. They'll get Oakland and San Francisco coming up and with a couple wins here, they can rebound and get back to 4-4. This will be a close one though, the AFC West games usually are. Raiders +8.5

Sunday Night

Minnesota @ Green Bay The Packers have suffered a ton of injuries so far. Both Minnesota and Green Bay are taking a ton of sacks, if Clay Matthews plays, this one is going to be real close. Both Aaron Rodgers and Brett Favre are going to take some hits, it'll be which one can stay upright longer. I like the Packers here, especially if Favre is playing injured. E.J. Henderson played well against Dallas last week and can cause problems for the Packers offense. No run game means Green Bay is going to have to air it out, I'm not so sure that Viking defense plays as well against the pass as some thing. Rodgers pulls it out in Green Bay Packers -2.5

Monday Night

New York Giants @ Dallas I've had a week to sit on their 1-4 start, and I've changed my tune every day. The Cowboys need to relax right now. Look at their schedule and tell me they can't bounce back?!? The Giants twice in the next five games, that's the only defense they play. They get Green Bay, Detroit, and Jacksonville, all games the Cowboys can win, even if they are going on the road in two of them. The Dallas offense has looked very productive at times and if it weren't for the penalties and letting up massive plays like kick returns, this team would have won a game more or two. The Giants have been good lately, they've held the Texans to 10 points and and attacked the Bears holding them to three points. It doesn't feel good to pick against your team and judging by the way the Texas Rangers have come through, I'm sticking with the Texas till they're done Cowboys -3

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