Week 6 NFL Picks

1. I was at the gym yesterday, and on a treadmill. It was a row of 8 treadmills, and all of them were unoccupied. I was on #7, because the TV with ESPN on it had an obstructed view from #8. Then here comes middle-aged balding guy, and he gets on #8. When #s 1-6 are all wide open. What makes people do things like this? This is the same kind of guy who takes the middle urinal. Or the person who stands waaaaay to close to you in a line, or anywhere really. Is it just a complete and total lack of regard for other people, or just completely missing a sense of personal space? Either way, freakin' knock it off people. It's really irritating.

And then a guy in front of me starts running, but he doesn't move his arms at all. AT ALL. It is one of the weirdest things I've ever seen. For real.

2. If you haven't been following the comments section at the bottom of this post, it's interesting to say the least. Sioux fans vs. Gopher fans, and they aren't very polite about it. No kids allowed.

3. Somehow, Northwestern is only a 6.5 point favorite at home against the Gophers. I suggest you jump on that.

4. On to the NFL picks, but I should mention, just to remind everyone how awesome I am, my baseball playoff picks were 3-1, even though I picked all underdogs. Last week, for NFL, was a solidly mediocre 7-5-2.

Bengals -3 @ Chiefs: I just can't bring myself to believe in the Chiefs, no matter who is QB Huard or Croyle. Or maybe it's more that I can't believe the Bengals are really that bad. Their losses are @ Cleveland (better than we thought), @ Seattle (I think overrated, but still a contender), and vs. New England. So that's three losses, but not a bad loss in the group. This would have to be where Carson and company turn it around and get back to winning, or they're done.

Houston +6.5 @ Jacksonville: Two pretty evenly matched teams. Why would home team have to give 6.5? I don't get it. Both teams have beaten who they should, and the only questionable loss is Houston @ Atlanta. Now, the Jags could win by 7, sure. But so could Houston.

Browns -4.5 vs. Miami: Miami could be the only team in history with a 0-16 season to go along with the undefeated team of 76 or whenever. With Trent Green out, they have to turn to Cleo Lemon, who, sadly, would be the best QB on the Vikings. That doesn't mean he's any good though. And I'm still a believer in the Browns, or at least that they're a lot better at Miami when they're at home.

Bears -5 vs. Vikings: It sounds like Tarvaris is starting again. Against the Bears defense. Holcomb didn't exactly set the world on fire and spark the team or anything, but putting Jackson in against the Bears has disaster written all over it. The final here will be about 21-7, with the Bears getting two defensive TDs and one punt return TD, and the Vikings with one score on defense.

Eagles -3.5 @ NY Jets: This one was tough. On the one hand, the Eagles have looked awful except for the Lions game. On the other, the Jets have looked awful, except they are at home, where they have their only win over the horrid Dolphins. The difference will end up being the complete and total lack of a pass rush by the Jets (they have only 3 sacks in 5 games), giving McNabb all the time he needs to pick them apart just like he did the Lions.

Rams +9.5 @ Ravens: I'm guessing I've probably picked for the Rams and against the Ravens every single week. It's worked out well on the Ravens, and not so well on the Rams. I think the Ravens defense will have a very nice day against the Rams, but I don't think they'll be a whole lot of points scored in this game, so it should stay fairly tight.

Tampa -3 vs. Tennessee: Two teams that have surprisingly put themselves towards the top of the league this season. Neither team with a signature win, or anything to distinguish one over the other. In this kind of case, I'll take the home team.

Redskins +3 @ Packers: This would be where it all starts to fall apart for the Packers. They really just aren't that good. Not a bad team at all, but not elite, and after the meltdown against the Bears, they won't be the same team the rest of the year. Whereas the Skins are getting things done, somehow.

Cardinals -4.5 vs. Panthers: So the Panthers are either starting a banged up David Carr, or a 74 year old Vinny Testeverde. And the Cardinals only have to outscore them by five for me to win money. Easiest pick of the week. Which makes me nervous.

Patriots -5.5 @ Cowboys: Sorry Cowboys, you aren't anywhere near the Patriots class. I actually wish the Cowboys would have played better against the Bills, so this line would be a little smaller. Patriots have the firepower to put up points on anybody, and the defense to stop anybody. As much as I hate it, Bill Simmons is right, this team has a shot at 16-0, and it's not going to come close to stopping here.

Chargers -9.5 vs. Raiders: Yep, they're back. After getting it together last week and destroying the Broncos, I fully expect the Chargers to start ripping off wins left and right. Against teams like the Raiders, look for the same results as that Broncos game.

Saints +6.5 @ Seahawks: I still think the Saints are a good team waiting to figure it out, even with the worst feature back in the league. And I still think the Seahawks are a mirage, shown by the complete lack of competitiveness against the Steelers last week.

Falcons +3.5 vs. Giants: Monday night home underdog. I don't have any stats, because then I'd have to look them up, but it feels like these kind of guys cover most of the time. Plus, any Monday game is a Big Game, and I wouldn't trust Eli Manning in a Big Game. I guess it's Harrington on the other side, but at least he's at home.

LAST WEEK: 7-5-2
SEASON TO DATE: 37-32-7