Washington at Miami – Remember when these two teams met in the Super Bowl, twice? I was not yet born for the first meeting, but I remember them playing in Super Bowl XVII, which was only the second Super Bowl game that I remember watching. But neither of these teams can hold a candle to those championship-level teams. The Dolphins have seemed to grow worse and worse with each passing decade. They were one of the powerhouse teams in the 1970’s, as legitimate title contenders seemingly every season, and the first to qualify for three straight Super Bowls. They also went undefeated. In the 1980’s, they were still a seriously good team, qualified twice for the big game, and were serious contenders throughout the first half of the decade. In the 1990’s, they had some good years here and there, and made the AFC title game twice, but did not get beyond that. In the 2000’s, they made the playoffs a few times, but began to be really bad in the latter half of the decade. And now, in the 2010’s, they seem to be just awful, one of the worst teams in the league. And this season might be when they absolutely bottom out. Not that Washington this season looks much better but they at least have shown signs of being a serious team here and there. This is not a guarantee, but that should be enough for them to win on the road in Miami. My pick: Washington
Carolina at Tampa Bay – The Bucs feel like they are better, or at least more dangerous, their 2-3 record makes them appear to be. But the Panthers look like they are really waking up right now, and seem like one of the hottest teams in the league all of a sudden. They also want revenge for the earlier season loss to Tampa at home, and would love to return the favor by beating the Bucs in Tampa. With their defense playing well in the last month or so, and with a spirit that seems to have this team truly fired up and ready to go each week, I like the Panthers to pull off a road win and keep the wins rolling, because getting swept by the Bucs would completely kill the momentum for them, and perhaps seriously jeopardize their playoff hopes. Hard to see that happening just yet. My pick: Carolina
Philadelphia at Minnesota – What a game this should be! These two teams met in the NFC Championship Game about a year and a half ago, with the Eagles crushing the Vikings. But now, they head off on the road for a rematch, and the Vikings are unbeaten at home, and coming off an impressive road win against the Giants. This one should be tough for both teams, and it could go either way. The Eagles are hot right now, with two straight wins. But the Vikings have been impressive all season, even in their two losses, where they played tough defensively. That is why I like them to pull off their biggest win of the season so far, and get some measure of revenge for that NFC Championship Game blowout loss a couple of years ago. My pick: Minnesota
Cincinnati at Baltimore – The Ravens have been quite inconsistent so far this season. They appear like an elite team for a while, and then seem like an inept team a little bit later. But they won a big game at Pittsburgh last week, and with every other team in the AFC North losing Baltimore is back alone atop the AFC North. Meanwhile, the Bengals have shown more consistency, although it is not the kind of consistency that they want. Yes, Cincy has been bad all season long, but this year might have hit a new low with a home loss to the previously winless Cardinals. Maybe that loss was embarrassing enough that it will fire up the Bengals, and they pt together their best game. But even if that is the case, I am not entirely sure that would even be enough. The Ravens are the better team, they have momentum with that win last week, and plus, they are at home. All of those things are in their favor, and it is hard to see any reason why the Bengals could realistically win this one. My pick: Baltimore
Seattle at Cleveland – Well, the Browns just got exposed and humiliated in San Francisco. I already saw some people comparing Baker Mayfield to Johnny “Football” Manziel. Now, I am not quite ready to write him off that fast, simply because he had a bad day by the Bay. But they definitely need to do something, and in a hurry, to improve. Unfortunately for the Browns, this will not be an easy game to get back on track, because the Seahawks are hot, and look like they are for real. That does not mean that they are unbeatable, however. Their defense is good, but not like the old days, when they were real Super Bowl contenders every year. Their offense is solid and productive, but not the most explosive unit in the league, either. So, the Browns can pull this one off, and they need to, because another loss might just send their season into tailspin. I do not know how mature Mayfield is, but as a Giants fan, I am familiar with the staggering levels of immaturity and selfishness of their new star wide receiver, Odell Beckham, and he can hurt the Browns as much as he hurt the Giants. Yes, he is very talented, but his off the field antics were very frustrating, and did not help New York. If things go bad, and Beckham begins to show that side again, it will be to the detriment of the Browns franchise. Let us hope that he has grown up a little bit, because if he focuses on his enormous talent, the Browns can remain as competitive as they appeared up until that embarrassing result in San Francisco. If Mayfield and Odell respond with focus, determination and maturity, they should be able to pull this one off, If not, watch for the Browns to begin to implode on what started off as a very promising season. My pick: Cleveland
New Orleans at Jacksonville – The Saints have looked fantastic, even with Drew Brees out. They had hoped to go .500 in his absence, but they might do much, much better than that. This is not to say that New Orleans are necessarily favorites to reach the Super Bowl, but let’s just say that this phenomenal stretch where they seem to keep winning tough games, without their star quarterback. That said, the Jaguars present a unique challenge, because they also have been playing much better than expected without their star quarterback. Gardner Minshew has been playing extremely well in place of the injured Nick Foles who, like the Saints’ Drew Brees, is a former Super Bowl MVP. Granted, they lost last weekend, but many expected Jax to be out of the playoff picture by now, and they are not. They should be especially tough at home, but it seems that the Saints are specializing in that lately. This is one of those games where I would not be surprised no matter who wins or loses, but I still will go with who I believe is the better, more complete team overall. My pick: New Orleans
Houston at Kansas City – The Chiefs lost their first game of the season against a tough, physical, grinding AFC South team. Now, they will face another one, who are hungry not only for a win to keep up with the Colts literally, but also to show that they can do what the Colts managed to do last weekend. The Texans have a tough defense, and they have the tools to beat the Chiefs, who left a lot of unanswered questions with that loss. But KC cannot afford to lose two straight games at home, because they will then lose a ton of momentum, and the swagger of being one of the presumed favorites to reach the Super Bowl. They clearly want to right the ship and get back to winning, and they are at home, where they are very tough to beat. This will be a tough game, but as I am making picks, it is just a little too hard to go against the Chiefs at home, despite their rather questionable performances in the last two or three games, where they have appeared more vulnerable than previously thought. Have to go with the home team here. My pick: Kansas City
San Francisco at L.A. Rams – This is a big showdown! The 49ers are red-hot, one of only two undefeated teams left, and the last remaining unbeaten NFC team. Meanwhile, the defending NFC champion Rams have dropped two straight now, and are in desperate need of a win. They fought hard, but lost at Seattle, just one week after a shocking upset home loss to Tampa Bay. Quite frankly, they cannot afford to lose another one, which would make three in a row. But how troubled are they, and how much confidence and momentum did they lose with those two straight losses? For that matter, how good is San Francisco really, at 4-0? Granted, this is their best start since 1990, but they have not beaten anyone who has a winning record yet, or even one that was in the playoffs last season. So, this is their first real test, and it is on the road, in Los Angeles, against a team that is absolutely desperate and surely motivated to pull off a big divisional win. The Niners might have dominated the Browns in San Fran, but this will be an entirely different situation. My own suspicion is that the Rams offense finally gets in gear, and they do enough to finally hand San Francisco their first loss of the season. My prediction: L.A. Rams
Atlanta at Arizona – Well, the Falcons should finally have a chance for a win again here. The Cardinals are a weak team, despite their winning last week in Cincy. But Atlanta should be a playoff contender, even though they are only 1-4. Frankly, the Falcons should be way, way better than they are. They never really got past that humiliating collapse in the Super Bowl against the Pats a few years ago. But their season is not quite done, I do not think. Not yet, anyway. They have to be feeling the desperation of being this close to the abyss of another lost season. Again, though, they should be better, and I suspect that they will show how good they can be when they go out to the desert in Arizona. Look for Matt Ryan and the offense to finally explode a bit, and for the defense to really try and make some kind of a statement, after being humiliated in Houston last week. My prediction: Atlanta
Tennessee at Denver – The Broncos finally earned a solid win last week at the Chargers, and now they head back into the thin air of the Rocky Mountains to take on the Titans. Tennessee looked great in week one at Cleveland, but have not looked nearly as good since. Still, I suspect that they are better than their 2-3 record suggests, and something keeps urging me to pick them in this one for a road win. But Denver really did look fantastic and fired up last week, and they surely would love to follow that up by winning their first home game to reward their fans. This is the kind of game that could go either way, and although something insists that the Titans will find a way to win, my logic tells me that the Broncos should be able to produce the home win, so that is what I am going with. My pick: Denver
Dallas at N.Y. Jets – Okay, well, the Cowboys have dropped two straight games, and are perhaps not quite as dominant as some were billing them to be earlier this season, when they looked great. But they are heading to a stadium that they are very familiar with, which they visit every season. Granted, they are not overly familiar with the Jets, specifically. But let’s be honest: do they really have to be to win this game? The Jets are the kind of team that struggling teams dream to play next, the kind of team that you can straighten out some issues and at least get a solid win against. Yes, Gang Green is a hot mess right now. Their offense looked incredibly bad last week against in Philly, and despite home field advantage in this one, I doubt that they will look much better against Dallas. Plus, they will not be able to stop a fairly loaded Cowboys offense from reaching the end zone, probably fairly often. Hardly feels like I am taking much of a risk to go with the road team on this one, does it? My pick: Dallas
Sunday Night Football – Pittsburgh at L.A. Chargers – Well, neither of these teams are where they expected, much less wanted, to be at this point. Pittsburgh lost their second string quarterback last week, who may or may not be in the lineup Meanwhile, the Chargers lost against last week, making it three losses in their last four games. This definitely does not seem like the same Chargers team that looked like an AFC powerhouse last year. That said, it does not appear that they need to be a powerhouse to get the better of the Steelers, who are really hurting in so many ways right now. Both of these teams desperately need a win, and although I can see either team winning this one (and the flip side, is either team could completely screw this game up), but I will go with the home team to pull off a narrow win. My prediction: L.A. Chargers
Monday Night Football – Detroit at Green Bay – A big NFC North showdown on Monday night, as the Lions visit Lambeau Field and take on the Packers. These Lions do not have the same seeming curse of not being able to beat the Pack in Green Bay any longer, but this is also a different Packers team than it has been in recent years. This Green Bay team has a serious defense, and they still have Aaron Rodgers at the helm. The Lions may be an improved team, but that just seems like a little too much to ask of them, especially on the road. My pick: Green Bay
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