The Crystal Ball

 

A much better showing this week after last week’s debacle, going 11 – 3 to get above average for the two-week period.  The season record is now 48 for 76 and back to over 60% on the season straight up.  A more pedestrian 7 – 6 – 1 against the spread puts me back close to average there, 35 – 36 – 5 versus the spread so far for the season.  A word here about the spread, it is the line as of Tuesday morning when I put these picks together, your mileage may vary.

 

For anyone new to this feature the please note the following disclaimer. These picks are for a pick’em league I participate in and are for amusement purposes only.  The choices here are preliminary for that league and I do make changes later in the week as more information comes in, particularly regarding injuries.  Because of the deadline for this column, those changes are not reflected in the weekly or the running totals. This is only my opinion, not the actual informed football judgment of anyone else here and I am solely to blame.  I do not bet football games (look at last week’s results and the season record against the spread to see why), if you use any of my predictions here in any wagering context you are an idiot.

 

Week 6

 

St Louis at Baltimore – The Rams are one of the more injury-depleted teams out there, their offense in particular has been hard hit.  The Ravens defense is still vulnerable over the top but the Rams will not be able to do enough to challenge them here, Ravens win 24 – 17.

 

Minnesota at Chicago – The Vikings are coming off their bye week, unfortunately their still a one-dimensional team.  Chicago had a big come from behind win and cannot afford a let down here, their defense is good enough, but their offense is still a question, Bears win 17 – 14.

 

Cincinnati at Kansas City – Kansas City has been up and down quite a bit and has a banged up quarterback.  Cincinnati is coming off their bye week but has been inconsistent and their defense generally atrocious, the rest should help them though, Bengals win 20 – 14.

 

Miami at Cleveland – Miami also has a quarterback injury to contend with and will be starting Cleo Lemon this week.  Cleveland has played well at home in their last few outings and should play well in this one too, Browns win 21 – 17.

 

Washington at Green Bay – Washington found an offense last week against Detroit and will need to take it with them on this trip.  Green Bay lost a division game at home last week, and while the mystique of Lambeau field is not what it once was, the Packers win 24 – 17.

 

Houston at Jacksonville – This game has a lot of potential for ugly; neither team is exactly looking like a juggernaut at this point.  Houston beat Jacksonville twice last season, keeping them out of the playoffs so no one should be looking past this game, Jaguars win 20 – 17.

 

Philadelphia at New York Jets – Philadelphia is coming off their bye week and should be reasonably healthy this week.  The Jets have not established a consistent running game and their defense has been uniformly bad in all respects, Eagles 24 – 14.

 

Tennessee at Tampa Bay – Tampa Bay has been one of the surprises of the season thus far but the offensive injuries continue to mount.  Tennessee has performed remarkably well given their general lack of offensive weapons but their defense has been solid, Titans win 20 – 17.

 

Carolina at Arizona – Yet another revolving quarterback game, Delhomme is officially out for the season and Carolina is a different team without him.  Arizona has Warner in reserve and is much better placed, they play well at home, Cardinals win 24 – 20.

 

New England at Dallas – This is a highly anticipated contest between unbeaten teams.  Dallas looked bad in their last second win.  New England has been crushing their opponents and can mount a confusing defense against Romo who still is lacking in experience, Patriots win 35 – 27.

 

New Orleans at Seattle – Seattle continues to play poorly on the road but find themselves back at home.  New Orleans is playing badly everywhere but are coming up with new ways to lose each week, their offensive line though has been the most consistent flaw, Seahawks win 28 – 14.

 

Oakland at San Diego – Oakland surged into the division lead with their bye week non-loss.  San Diego found their offense against Denver, much like everyone else has but finding their confidence may be the start of a turn around, Chargers win 28 – 20.

 

New York Giants at Atlanta – Atlanta is generating a quarterback controversy by pulling Harrington and anointing him as this week’s starter.  You have to believe that is a short leash and the Giants pass rush to keep that going, Giants win 24 – 14.

 

Dale “at” footballforecasters.com