Week 5 NFL Picks Against The Spread
Week 5 Picks Against Spread
This was the week that I finally broke through with the picks. After sticking around the .500 mark on the season for the first three weeks, Week 4 was very good to your author.
In Week 5, the NFL made it much harder. Some of the matchups seem like they could be toss-ups. The spreads on other games make the picks even harder. I understand that this isn't supposed to be easy. If it was, then Las Vegas would be out of the sports betting game, and that doesn't seem to be happening anytime soon.
The bye weeks this week are the Pittsburgh Steelers, Minnesota Vikings, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Washington Redskins. Those are four teams that have been absolutely awful this season. The fact that they are out of the picks make it so much harder. How will we go on when we can't pick against Greg Schiano?
The schedule is a little off with one Thursday night game, eight 1 p.m. Sunday games, two 4 p.m. games, one 8:30 p.m. game, one 11:35 p.m. game (you are seeing that right), and one Monday night game. Theoretically, you could watch football on Sunday from 9 a.m. to 2:30 a.m. That would be 17.5 hours of non-stop football. It is a beautiful thing.
Let's start getting into this week's picks. As usual, use them at your own discretion. Although the roll for me has started, Vegas has an eye on everything and it could change in an instant. Beyond that, I'm predicting a perfect week.
Last week- 9-5
2013 season: 33-27-2
Nick Villano is the New Jersey Devils writer for Rant Sports. He also contributes to their NFL and MLB content. Follow him on Twitter for updates on everything in sports.
Buffalo Bills @ Cleveland Browns (-4.5)
This is a battle of two teams who, on paper, look like they should have no wins, but both have two. This might be one of those games that is so bad that it ends up being continuously exciting. There seems to be some bad football being played on Thursday nights, and expect no different here. E.J. Manuel will ice the game late and will have the world talking about how he is the next great QB, no matter how wrong they are. Buffalo 30 Cleveland 22
Kansas City Chiefs (-2.5) @ Tennessee Titans
The Tennessee Titans will have their first game after losing Jake Locker to injury. Ryan Fitzpatrick is more than capable as a backup, but the competition is too strong this week. The Kansas City Chiefs come to town and Andy Reid and company will leave same as they left -- undefeated. Kansas City 30 Tennessee 14
New Orleans Saints @ Chicago Bears (-1.5)
The New Orleans Saints face quite possibly their toughest test of the season so far. They will put their undefeated record on the line against Jay Cutler and the Chicago Bears. Drew Brees has been rolling in the last couple of weeks and shows no signs of slowing down. This game will be close, but Brees will be able to figure this defense out. New Orleans 27 Chicago 17
Detroit Lions @ Green Bay Packers (-7.5)
This line is intense. The Green Bay Packers come into this game with a 1-3 record. The Detroit Lions come in 3-1. How this line is so high is beyond me. Reggie Bush has given the Lions something they haven't had since Barry Sanders. Their defensive front may be one of the best in the league, as long as Ndamukong Suh can continue to be a civil citizen off the field. The Packers may win, but it won't be by more than one score. Detroit 24 Green Bay 30
Seattle Seahawks (-2.5) @ Indianapolis Colts
The Seattle Seahawks went down big last week before making a miraculous comeback to win by three on the road. The Indianapolis Colts had a bye week played the Jaguars. Andrew Luck is a much better quarterback than Matt Schaub at this point, and will not let the Seahawks back in if they go up big. As long as they keep the ball away from Richard Sherman, they will be fine. Seattle 17 Indianapolis 22
New England Patriots @ Cincinnati Bengals (-1.5)
This Cincinnati Bengals team looked like they were ready to take a stranglehold on the division. The big-wig Steelers and Ravens were going to have down years, so they were going to finally be the cream of the AFC North crop. Currently, they can't beat division rival Cleveland. They showed some serious question marks in their game. The New England Patriots were quite the contrary. They beat Matt Ryan at home, which is a noble feat in the NFL. The Patriots are starting to get rolling, and it could be scary for the rest of the AFC East. New England 30 Cincinnati 28
Philadelphia Eagles @ New York Giants (-2.5)
Write this down -- the NFC East is the worst division in the NFL. The Redskins could barely beat the Raiders with a backup quarterback. The Cowboys just look plain inconsistent. The New York Giants and Philadelphia Eagles have been disappointments in their own right. The Giants could be the biggest disappointment in the league in the last couple of years. They haven't showed that they can beat even mediocre teams, which is what the Eagles are. Philadelphia 41 New York 20
Jacksonville Jaguars @ St. Louis Rams (-11.5)
It is the Jacksonville Jaguars. They are the worst team in the NFL in a long time. There is no line that they won't be picked against. Jacksonville 10 St. Louis 31
Baltimore Ravens @ Miami Dolphins (-3.5)
The Baltimore Ravens have not looked like defending Super Bowl champions this year. Joe Flacco looks like a bottom-10 quarterback, especially last week. He threw his team right out of the game. The Miami Dolphins played the Saints on national television and were picked apart. Something has got to give here. From the way the season has gone, bet against the Ravens. Baltimore 24 Miami 31
Carolina Panthers (-2.5) @ Arizona Cardinals
The home underdogs are just something that is too enticing to give up, especially with a matchup that seems as close as this one. Carson Palmer has been inconsistent this year and is a scary play, but coming off a bye, the Carolina Panthers are going to be surprised with a new offensive scheme from the Arizona Cardinals. Bruce Arians sounds annoyed with how the teams have played, and it sounds like changes are coming. That is a good thing. Carolina 17 Arizona 22
Denver Broncos (-7.5) @ Dallas Cowboys
Bet on Peyton Manning. Every time. Bet against Tony Romo. Next.Denver 45 Dallas 31
Houston Texans @ San Francisco 49ers (-7.5)
This is one of those games where half of a point can sway the perception of the spread. The San Francisco 49ers are coming home after a throttling of the Rams. They have extra time to prepare for a Houston Texans team that blew a golden opportunity last week. This one will not be close. Expect the 49ers to remind everyone why they were on the bandwagon in the first place. Houston 13 San Francisco 31
San Diego Chargers (-4.5) @ Oakland Raiders
Due to the Oakland Athletics playing a playoff game on Sunday, this game had been moved to 11:35 p.m. If you stay up for this game, expect to see a lot of Philip Rivers. The Oakland Raiders welcome back Terrelle Pryor, but that won't be enough. The San Diego Chargers will play back to a winning record. San Diego 35 Oakland 17
New York Jets @ Atlanta Falcons (-9.5)
The New York Jets are a hard team to read. Were they lucky those first couple of weeks? Is their defense strong enough to carry them this season? Can Geno Smith fix his turnover problem? The same questions can be applied on the opposite side of the spectrum for the Atlanta Falcons. Can they turn it around? This will be step one. New York 17 Atlanta 27
