Week 7 NFL Predictions

Well, the trade deadline came and went without so much of a sneeze from the league, short of one (potentially) playoff helpful trade between the Bengals and the Raiders. Holdout QB Carson Palmer was acquired by the Raiders for two first round picks. Bengals owner Mike Brown had been very adamant about not trading Palmer to another team, which adds a measure of surprise in this trade. It reminds me of that old favorite by Aaliyah " If at first you don't succeed, make a new deal and try again, you can offer picks and try again, try again". While I think the price was quite steep, especially if Carson continues to be plagued by his bum elbow, I love the move. Palmer was arguably the best available QB on the market, and when Oakland lost Jason Campbell, you just cannot turn the reigns over to Kyle Boller. I mean, I typically like quarterbacks who complete passes. *cough Tim Tebow*In any case, Oakland is 3-3 and still in the proverbial "hunt", which means they couldn't sacrifice the production from a good quarterback. Palmer made be a shadow of his former glory, but he'll win you some football games, something I'm not too confident about Kyle Boller doing.



Ouch. I had an infectious, festering wound of a pick set last week, as ESPN blew their lead wide open by going 11-2 to my 7-6. That brings me to 54-36 and them to 60-30. I'm going to move right along here and let my picks do the talking:


Cleveland vs. Seattle
ESPN Pick: Seattle 17 Cleveland 14
Committed Fan Pick: Cleveland 17 Seattle 14

Seattle has the momentum, the win streak, and the stingy run defence. But I believe in Colt McCoy and the Browns. To right the ship and end the losing streak, they'll have to bring their A game to their home fans and take care of business.


Atlanta vs Detroit
ESPN Pick: Detroit 27 Atlanta 20 
Committed Fan Pick: Detroit 31 Atlanta 20

I saw the loss coming for Detroit last week. It was inevitable that they would lose some momentum after the strong start to the season, but the NFL season is forgiving, and Atlanta is a shot at redemption. At home, against an awful Falcons pass defense, I could see Detroit getting back in the win column.


Tennessee vs. Houston
ESPN Pick: Tennessee 24 Houston 20
Committed Fan Pick: Tennessee 17  Houston 21

Houston is a good team, a tough team, but their strength is the run game, which Tennessee excels at stopping. If Matt Schaub is forced to throw a lot, he'll have to do it against one of the better secondaries in the NFL.  If Houston runs well, they could win, if not, they probably won't.

Denver vs. Miami
ESPN Pick: Denver 23 Miami 21
Committed Fan Pick: Denver 24 Miami 20

Denver needs a win to rationalize starting Tim Tebow, Miami needs a win to save Tony Sparano's job. Who wins? Miami looked quite poor coming out of a bye week against the Jets, scoring just 6 points. There are problems on this team that run much deeper than their awful record.

San Diego vs. New York (Jets)
ESPN Pick:San Diego 27 New York 20
Committed Fan Pick: New York 24 San Diego 21

If you thought you would make it through an entire week without hearing smack talk from the Jets, WHAT WERE YOU THINKING? Norv Turner and Rex Ryan have been trading jabs this week, and given the wonderful chemistry between the two, it'll be interesting who gets the last laugh in this one.


Chicago vs. Tampa Bay
ESPN Pick: Chicago 24 Tampa Bay 23
Committed Fan Pick: Chicago 21 Tampa Bay 17

A good matchup this week, as Chicago and electric back Matt Forte face the Tampa Bay defense, notoriously a tough nut to crack. On the other side of the ball, Tampa Bay has underachieved offensively, but could get the run game going strong against the Bears, who have been surprisingly soft stopping the run this year.


Washington vs. Carolina
ESPN Pick: Carolina 23 Washington 20
Committed Fan Pick: Washington 23 Carolina 20

Carolina seems to have picked up quite a dynamic crowd pleaser in QB Cam Newton, but there's only one problem; he's only won one game. Putting up the stats he has means nothing for the team if he isn't doing what they need to win. Washington was quite awful last week, and QB John Beck is getting his first start of the season. He has an excellent opportunity to win the starting position with a strong effort here.


Oakland vs. Kansas City
ESPN Pick: Oakland 28 Kansas City 21
Committed Fan Pick: Oakland 31 Kansas City 17

In what would appear to be Carson Palmer's first start for the Raider's, I would expect them to lean heavily on the run game, and why not? They feature Darren McFadden, the league leader in rushing yards, who s having a great season. Kansas City has struggled to consistently put out a team effort week in and week out this season, and will look to rebound against the Raiders.


Pittsburgh vs. Arizona
ESPN Pick: Pittsburgh 21 Arizona 17
Committed Fan Pick: Pittsburgh 24 Arizona 20

In this matchup, we see the surprisingly vulnerable Steelers facing off against the puzzling Cardinals, who, despite the talent they have, have been unable to win many games this season.  Look for the Steeler's to capitalize on the poor secondary of the Cardinals in this one.


Dallas vs, St. Louis
ESPN Pick: Dallas 27 St. Louis 17
Committed Fan Pick: Dallas 28 St. Louis 17

For as outspoken as his brother is, Bob Ryan keeps more to himself and his defense. The defensive Guru has his squad looking sharp and Dallas is looking to rebound against a frail Rams team after a crushing loss last week.


Green Bay vs. Minnesota
ESPN Pick: Green Bay 28 Minnesota 21
Committed Fan Pick: Green Bay 31 Minnesota 10

Christian Ponder makes his first NFL start on Sunday, ad I'm sure Green Bay will give him the warmest of welcomes to the NFL. This ain't Florida State, and Green Bay is a tough team to beat this year.


Indianapolis vs. New Orleans
ESPN Pick: New Orleans 31 Indianapolis 14 
Committed Fan Pick: New Orleans 34 Indianapolis 14

If Peyton Manning were healthy, this would be an excellent game to watch, as Drew Brees and Manning are two consensus Top-5 QB's in this league. Instead we get to watch Curtis Painter play catch up while Brees watches touchdown replays on the big screen all game.


Baltimore vs. Jacksonville
ESPN Pick: Baltimore 31 Jacksonville 13
Committed Fan Pick: Baltimore 34 Jacksonville 18

Despite playing the Steeler's rather close last week, Jacksonville has been less than impressive all season long. Rookie QB Blaine Gabbert may be the franchise guy though, and they are getting him valuable experience. Well here's a good one: the Ravens Defense. Good luck kid.



Week 6 Fantasy Pick-ups


QB Carson Palmer, Raiders: Yes, he just got traded here, and yes, he will have had about 3 days practice before starting on Sunday. However, Palmer knows coach Hue Jackson well, and Darren McFadden should go off on Sunday, leaving Palmer with a very simple and easy job; take advantage of the open spaces. As a bye week fill in for QB/ possible long term starter, I think you could do a lot worse than Palmer.

TE Greg Olsen, Panthers: A very good pass catching tight end, and one of Cam Newton's favorite targets. Should be a big factor in the passing game going forward.

WR Jason Hill, Jaguars: I'm not especially enthused by the matchup here, but its not like you can't throw against the Ravens. Hill has quickly become Blaine Gabbert's biggest target, and is likely to get a lot of looks this week.

RB Jackie Battle, Chiefs:  Battle is not the only back that will get looks in KC, but he has looked the most impressive, and will be the most likely one to assault the Raiders run defense, which has been in the middle of the pack this season.

QB Matt Cassel, Chiefs: If the Chiefs don't try to attack aggressively with battle, they'll throw it against Oakland's 28th ranked pass defense. Cassel could have a nice game here, as he certainly has the eapons at his disposal.