Week 6 NFL Preview

The five featured games for the most part lived up to what I thought they could be. The Bengals and Ravens played a tough AFC North style game that came down to the wire. The Bengals proved with another win against a top team that they just might for real this year and may be close to the form they had in 2005 when they won the division. The Ravens have now lost two games and have an undefeated Minnesota on tap. The Falcons rebounded quite nicely after a loss in New England before their bye while the 49ers looked lost and confused. This was a big step back for an improving team. Talking about games coming down to the wire, the Broncos needed a late 4th quarter drive led by QB Kyle Orton to tie the game then they were able to get a big win in OT over the Patriots. This was definitely an important win for the Broncos as they continue to prove doubters wrong about how good they might be. Being 5-0 and having victories over a good Patriots team and a better than expected Bengals team definitely have to show for something. On Sunday night, the Colts looked like a 5-0 team while the Titans looked like an 0-5. While on Monday night, it was another great game as the Jets and Dolphins turned the 4th quarter into a game of back and forth scoring with the Dolphins getting the last score to win the game. The Dolphins found holes in the Jets' defense and exploited them with the Wildcat.

Not all the games were good as some of those. The Browns and Bills might have had the worst game of the year while the Raiders, Rams, and Jaguars looked like they were barely playing a regular season game. While the Redskins again provided a win for a winless team and have another winless team ahead this week.

All and all, I went 9-5 last week and brings my total to 57-19 after five weeks.

Now for Week 6:

Games of the Week:
Ravens at Vikings: The Ravens have been struggling a bit and after starting 3-0 have loss 2 straight. It isn't panic mode yet, but they definitely don't want to let another game fall in the loss column especially with Pittsburgh and Cincinnati both playing well. The Vikings are 5-0 and Brett Favre has looked very good thus far and is on fire while HB Adrian Peterson keeps going at a steady pace on the ground. This game will feature Favre on one side of the ball and MLB Ray Lewis of the Ravens on the other side of the ball. You usually don't get that type of instant hall of famer matchup. The Vikings seem to be streaking right now and the game will come down to how well the Ravens' defense slow down the Vikings' offense. Tough to think of the Ravens dropping three straight. Pick: Vikings

Giants at Saints: This is premiere matchup of the week. It features the 5-0 Giants at the 4-0 Saints. Both teams have looked like the best team in the NFL thus far. This game ultimately will come down to the winner of the matchup of the Saints' offense vs the Giants' defense. The Saints have been winning games with all facets of their team, but will need the offense to pick up the pace to keep the Giants' on their toes. The Giants have not had to play in a shootout game as they have been going through a series of easy opponents and that could allow for a slow start if the Saints get going. This game could turn into a back and forth battle between two of the better QBs in the NFL. The Saints look like the more complete team thus far. Pick: Saints

Sunday Night: Bears at Falcons: The Bears have been playing very well after their opening game loss while the Falcons are coming off a big win over a good 49ers team that followed a big loss. This is matchup of pretty close teams, two good QBs who have a lot of years ahead of them, and two of the best HBs. This one could come down which QB/HB have better games. Also TE Tony Gonzalez will be big for the Falcons and could be the big x-factor as it looks like know one on the Bears can match up with him. Pick: Falcons

Monday Night: Broncos at Chargers: These two teams don't really like each other. Last year, their two games were two of the most talked about games as the first one had a questionable call that gave the Broncos a win and the second one featured the Chargers grabbing the AFC West from the Broncos and eliminating them from playoff contention. QB Kyle Orton has been better than expected as had the Broncos as a whole. WR Brandon Marshall has put behind him the offseason drama and is starting to pick up his play. The Chargers are facing an almost must win game as they don't want to fall 3 games behind the Broncos and lose a tie breaker down the road. This one could get heated and will be another test for the Broncos, but expect QB Phillip Rivers and the Chargers to bring everything. Pick: Broncos

Rest of the pack:

Texans at Bengals: The Bengals have been surging thus far and stand at 4-1, which is better than most expected to be at this point. They have taken control of the AFC North and now enter a game as a favorite with added pressure. The Texans haven't lived up to the expectations of being a better team this year, but this could be a game that they make a statement because when they are on; they can hang with a lot of team offensively. The Bengals have been winning close games and this one could turn into a battle in the 4th quarter. Pick: Bengals

Lions at Packers: Green Bay's offensive line hasn't been giving QB Aaron Rodgers much time this year and he has been pressured and sacked more than he would like at this point. The Lions continue to play hard and played the defending champions about as close as a team as good as Detroit would be expected to. It looks like that will be the case again this week as the Packers will look to get back in the win column. The Vikings and Bears have had strong starts and give the Packers that much more incentive to get a win. Pick: Packers

Browns at Steelers: Every team deserves to win a game. The Browns got it last week and probably owe the equally futile Bills a thank you note for coughing up the game late and allowing the Browns to get the game winning field goal. The Steelers look to have established a quality running game under HB Rashard Mendenhall. They should be able to continue the success they had against San Diego and Detroit in recent weeks. Pick: Steelers

Panthers at Buccaneers: The Panthers got a win last week, but still are not a very good team. They will have the benefit of playing another bad team that is worse off than them in the Buccaneers this week. The Bucs are still struggling on both sides, but can still win this game if they make enough big plays. Pick: Panthers

Chiefs at Redskins: The Redskins are Santa Claus for winless teams this year. They almost gave games away to the Rams and the Buccaneers and surrendered the first wins for the Lions and the Panthers. Will the Chiefs end up like the former two or the latter two? The Chiefs came extremely close to beating the Cowboys and it took overtime for the Cowboys to beat them. They are still not a very good team, but have the ability to capitalize on the mistakes on the field and the chaos off the field that Redskins seem to be immersed in. UPSET Pick: Chiefs

Rams at Jaguars: Both of these teams looked horrible last week. The Rams barely put points on the board in trash time and were not very efficient for most of the game. Plus, WR Donnie Avery celebrating a touchdown when you are down by multiple scores doesn't help. The Jaguars looked to be a wildcard team again this year after rebounding from the initial start, but they turned in a goose egg last week against the Seahawks. HB Maurice Jones-Drew was clearly embarrassed by the effort and for that reason he and his teammates will come out angry and make an example of out of the Rams. Pick: Jaguars

Cardinals at Seahawks: The Cardinals seem to be finding their groove in the passing game and will need to do so again this week against the Seahawks. It looks like QB Matt Hasselbeck is healthy enough and capable enough still to put a lot of points on the board and should be able to score on the Cardinals' defense that is surrendering over 20 points a game. This could turn into a bit of shootout with two very good QBs. The Cardinals almost gave a game away last week and might find themselves in a similar situation this week. Seattle is usually pretty tough at home. Pick: Seahawks

Eagles at Raiders: The Giants got the luxury of facing the Raiders last week, now the Eagles get their turn at one of the league's punching bags. QB Donovan McNabb and WR Jeremy Maclin looked like a strong duo last week and don't be surprised it they do a number on bad Raiders' defense. The offense will probably be lucky to put a touchdown on the board the way they have been playing. Picks: Eagles

Titans at Patriots: The Titans are 0-5 and look to be headed to 0-6. Injuries are starting to pile up and their defense is having trouble stopping anybody. Plus they have the worst pass defense. Did I mention they are facing the Patriots and QB Tom Brady? He might not be in his past MVP form, but he is still a top QB and will be able to right a lot of his and the offense's errors this week. The Titans are in free fall and its a bit sad after their great year last year. Pick: Patriots

Bills at Jets: The Jets looked like a Super Bowl team after 3 weeks, but after the last two they barely look like a playoff team. The rookie QB has struggled at times and the defense has lost a bit of unstoppable force appeal it had. They are still a good defense and Mark Sanchez is still a quality starter and both will look good again this week against a poor Bills team. Last week, the Bills easily could have won that field goal shootout with the Browns, but they need to look for something else on offense because the no huddle has only gotten than losses faster. Pick: Jets

Another slate of big games headlined by the Giants and Saints. Will some of bad teams step it up this week? We shall see.