Week 7
NFL GameDay Predictions

Week 6 has come and gone, and it turned out to be the NFL upset special week. Will Week 7 be any different?

Referees played a role in some games again, allowing their team of choice to win (What a weak call against Detroit for pass interference and Matt Schaub was tucking in the ball and not throwing it forward... very weak). Atlanta is looking pretty good at home, Matt Ryan is leading the team in a the right direction. The Birds need to be strong on the road. Indy found an offensive and a defense, and Carolina couldn't find either last Sunday. And what is up with Washington? Wow, I guess they believed everything that the Internet and Sports shows said about them and thought they didn't have to show up against the Rams! What a pathetic performance. Dallas is vulnerable, Phily found some offensive, and the Bolts wanted it more than the Pats. I thought the Pats had 21 other great players that could carry the team forward to a strong year again. What a joke Sunday was for them. Finally, the Giants had a dawg on their ankle that bit them on the ankle and caused them to fall.

Last week was a hard week to predict, as many of my predictions went sour, either at the end of the game, or the team never showed up. And a 5-9 record last week was by far the worst week that I have had this season. I did have one bright spot, I predicted the Cardinals beating Dallas, but I was severely off with predictions for Baltimore and Washington, among many other games.

So now Week 7. First, the teams that have a BYE week for Week 7: Atlanta Falcons, Philadelphia Eagles, Arizona Cardinals, and Jacksonville Jaguars. The premier matchups for week 7 include San Diego at Buffalo and New Orleans at Carolina. The Indy at Green Bay is an important game for the Colts to get back on track, but it isn't a crucial conference game like the Saints/Panthers game. The Bills need to determine if they are a contender or pretender, and the Bolts need to prove to the world that they are still a contender instead of a pretender. So, lets cut the chit-chat and get to the predictions.

San Diego Chargers at Buffalo Bills:
The Bolts need this one to prove that they belong, and to help turn the corner and start a winning streak. They had a strong performance at home against the Pats, but they have not been strong on the road. Buffalo is coming off a bye week, and has had two weeks to let the sour flavor of their first lost motivate them to improve. One thing that isn't being compared by the experts is that West coast teams do not do well on the East Coast early game schedule. The Bolts lost to the Dolphins playing in the 1:00 EST time slot a couple of weeks ago. I believe the Bolts will stumble again. Week 7 Game of the Week #1
Bills 28 Bolts17

Minnesota Vikings at Chicago Bears
The Vikings win thanks to a cheating, weak referee. There is no other way to describe it. If that was pass interference, then football has truly become a pansy sport. Chicago better avenge their 11 second screw up, and there is almost no other team better to beat up on than the Vikings. Yeah, I know, Adrian Peterson ran wild last year, but there are two factors working against their famed running back: 1) He isn't a rookie anymore, so the Bears, and the rest of the NFL have been keying on him, and 2) what other offensive weapon do the Vikes have? None.
Bears 35 Vikings 13

Pittsburgh Steelers at Cincinnati Bengals
The Steelers are coming off a Bye week, while the Bengals continue to lose. Easy conference win for the Steelers.
Steelers 31 Bengals 17

Tennessee Titans at Kansas City Chiefs
Both teams are coming off a bye week, and this makes it interesting. KC has pulled the upset string before, and Tennessee became the only undefeated team in the NFL this week when the Giants went down in a blaze of glory to the Browns. The logic should be that the Titans will stomp the Chiefs and go 6-0. But logic doesn't always make sense in the NFL. I am predicting that the Titans will underestimate the Chiefs, and go down in a blaze of glory... Week 7 Upset of the week.
Chiefs 27 Titans 21

Dallas Cowboys at St. Louis Rams
The 'Boys are banged up, and the Rams are coming off their first victory, a huge upset over the Redskins. Romo may play or he may not, and the Cowboys punter is out with an injury. Pacman is out for 4 weeks thanks to the defenders of the Shield, and justifiably so. The problem is, the 'Boys have more talent than the Rams, and this week the Cowboys are focused this week after a huge loss last week. The 'Boys will rebound for this week, winning a game that needs to be won; because if they lose to the Rams, it will have devastating effects for them at the end of the year.
Cowboys 24 Rams 10

Baltimore Ravens at Miami Dolphins
The Ravens didn't want to play ball last week, and I have lost a lot of confidence in them. No offense or defense, and no heart. The Dolphins played with a lot of heart, and lost a very close game thanks to the help of a referee making a horrible call. The Ravens will have no heart on the road again, and week 7 will begin the downfall of the Ravens.....
Dolphins 24 Ravens 16

San Francisco 49ers at New York Giants
The 49ers had the opportunity to chalk up a big win against a Phily team that was on the down and out. Then the Niners let the Eagles look like a dominant force, allowing the Eagles to go crazy. So a real NFC East powerhouse team coming off an embarrassing loss at Cleveland will step up and use the 49ers to show the NFL world that G-Men are still a power to be reckoned with.
G-Men 31 49ers 20

New Orleans Saints at Carolina Panthers
The Saints looked good against a weak Oakland team last week. The Panthers looked pathetic in a loss to Tampa Bay. So the question remains, "which team will show up this week?" Will Drew Brees be almost perfect against the Carolina Panthers like he was against Oakland? Doubt it. Will the Panthers find their offensive and defense and get back on track to dominance like they were earlier in the season? This is a very important game...... Week 7 Game of the Week # 2
Panthers 27 Saints 19

Detroit at Houston
The yawner of the week. Houston will win....... and then some. If the Texans win big in this game, it could be the start of an 8-8 season for them. A respectable year considering the hurricane mess they have been through..... Detroit is just a mess.....
Texans 28 Lions 13

New York Jets at Oakland Raiders
The Jets are gaining strength each week as Brett becomes more familiar with the offensive. The defense has looked really good this year, keeping the Jets in all of the games in the 4th quarter with the exception of the SD Chargers game. Oakland is experiencing too much drama for a team victory. This week will not be any different.
Jets 34 Raiders 20

Indianapolis Colts at Green Bay Packers
So are the Colts now in sync? They looked really good last week against the Ravens. Will Green Bay rise to the occasion and win one at the house? If Green Bay is going to make a strong stance to show everyone that they are for real, then it starts right here, right now. This is an important game for Indy as well, as they are on a two game winning streak and needs a strong win on the road. Good game to watch......
Colts 27 Pack 25

Cleveland Browns at Washington Redskins
The Browns woke up and dominated a NY Giant team that previously won either 11 or 12 games on the road. The Redskins had their heads full of the hot air that the media had pumped them up with and were deflated when the Rams rammed the 'Skins in the jaw. This game is focused solely on the Redskins. If the Skins can't win, then they will not have the confidence to be a stronghold team later in the year. If they do win, then last week was a fluke, and the Skins will still be something to reckon with. The Browns are trying to get something going, and coming off a strong win might be a good start. But the Browns don't play well on the road, and they won't again this week.....
Redskins 28 Browns 24

Seattle Seahawks at Tampa Bay
Although the time zone difference won't be a factor for the Seahawks, the Tampa Bay D will be. Not even close.......
Bucs 41 SeaSalts 16


Week 7 Monday Night Football
Denver Broncos at New England Patriots
Denver disappointed me last week. The Broncos were at home and lost a game they should have won. Now they travel to Foxborough and face a Pats team that lost in a blowout on the road at San Diego. While both teams are disappointing, I see the Pats being able to redeem themselves at home a lot easier than if the Broncos take a game on the road.
Pats 21 Broncos 17

Well there it is, Week 7 in a nutshell. The cream of the NFL hasn't risen to the top yet as we are closing in on the half way point of the season. Will Week 7 be a starting point for some teams or will it continue to have teams stay around the .500 average. Only two divisions have more than one team above a winning percentage of .667 or above. This could be a very dull year if the teams don't start playing consistantly with more heart.

Enjoy readers. Week 7 will be history shortly...... Until then, the beat goes on.......

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