Week 5 NFL Picks

A little last-minute, but here are my picks for this week.

Last week: 12-4, 8-8 Against the Spread (ATS)

Season: 43-21, 28-31-5 ATS

Chiefs at Colts - Indianapolis has shown a lot of fight in the last two weeks, taking the Steelers and Buccaneers down to the wire.  This will be the week they finally get their first win.

Pick - Colts

ATS - Colts (-1.5)

Cardinals at Vikings - The Arizona fans think they got jobbed on the Victor Cruz call, but they should be mad at their defense for disappearing in the last five minutes.  Patrick Peterson impressed me, as he blanketed Hakeem Nicks whenever they matched up.

Pick - Cardinals

ATS - Cardinals (+3)

Eagles at Bills - Buffalo might have the biggest home field advantage of any team right now.  Those fans will be jacked up to put Philadelphia in an early hole, but I think the Eagles are too desperate to lose this one.

Pick - Eagles

ATS - Eagles (-3)

Raiders at Texans - This will be a solemn Sunday for Raider fans with the passing of Al Davis.  Houston has a good record, but they still seem allergic to success.  They dominated Pittsburgh last week, and only won by a touchdown.

Pick - Texans

ATS - Raiders (+5)

Saints at Panthers - The Patriots aren't the only team that's succeeded despite a shaky defense.  Cam Newton will get his first big upset today.

Pick - Panthers

ATS - Panthers (+6.5)

Bengals at Jaguars - Andy Dalton and Blaine Gabbert battle to decide who will come in second in the Rookie of the Year voting to Cam Newton.  Cincinnati's defense in surprisingly first in the league.

Pick - Bengals

ATS - Bengals (-2)

Titans at Steelers - Last week I warned that Pittsburgh's run defense was in trouble against the Texans.  Still, some weak opponents makes me believe the Titans aren't as good as their 3-1 record suggests.

Pick - Steelers

ATS - Titans (+3.5)

Seahawks at Giants - Five years ago, I was in the Qwest Field stands when Seattle took a 35-3 halftime lead against New York en route to a blowout victory.  In their two meetings since, the Giants outscored the Seahawks 85 to 13.

Pick - Giants

ATS - Giants (-10)

Buccaneers at 49ers - As was as surprised as anyone to see the usually pedestrian San Francisco offense come back against the Eagles.  The three teams Tampa Bay has beaten have a combined record of 2-10.

Pick - 49ers

ATS - 49ers (-2.5)

Jets at Patriots - Rex Ryan has won both of his early season matches against the Patriots, but his defense has looked shakier this year.  I can't see Mark Sanchez keeping up with Tom Brady right now.

Pick - Patriots

ATS - Patriots (-7.5)

Chargers at Broncos - They'll be undermanned, but San Diego still should take advantage of it's third easy matchup in a row.

Pick - Chargers

ATS - Chargers (-3.5)

Packers at Falcons - Atlanta's playoff loss motivated them to trade for Julio Jones in an effort to keep up with high-powered passing teams like the Packers.  But Matt Ryan is not on Aaron Rodgers' level.

Pick - Packers

ATS - Packers (-5.5)

Bears at Lions - Ford Field will be an electric atmosphere, as the Lions will play on Monday night for the first time in a decade.  The Detroit fans can hardly wait.

Pick - Lions

ATS - Lions (-5.5)

Odds courtesy of USA Today.