NFL Pro Football 2007 Week 5 Picks early games

NFL Pro Football 2007 Week 5 Picks

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Fearless Rick's NFL Week 5 Picks - Early Games

Rick Gagliano | Oct. 7 - 8

All times Eastern - Click here for late Sunday and Monday night games.

Sunday, October 7

Arizona (-3 1/2, 41) at St. Louis 1:00 pm - The Rams have decided to bench QB Marc Bulger and replace him with Gus Frerote. Unfortunately, that's not going to improve the Rams' defense, which is allowing 25.8 ppg. The offense is pretty ugly, though, ranking dead last in the league. Whomever gets the ball for Arizona, be it Matt Leinart or veteran Kurt Warner, they should find the secondary to be pretty easy pickings. The Cards are actually looking at a playoff spot this season in the weak NFC West. Arizona's two losses have both been by 3 points and both were on the road. Different result expected here.

Prediction: Cardinals 30 Rams 17

Atlanta at Tennessee (-8 1/2, 40 1/2) 1:00 pm - Atlanta got their first win of the season over a banged up Houston squad last week, but the winning streak looks like it's about to end at 1. The Titans are 2-1 and coming off a bye week, so they're rested and ready to get back to smash-mouth football. Nobody in the league has an answer for Vince Young, and the 2nd year QB will lead the Titans to an easy win.

Prediction: Titans 27 Falcons 16

Carolina at New Orleans (-3, 44 1/2) 1:00 pm - Jake Delhomme is still sidelined for Carolina, so David Carr will get the ball again this week. The question is when is New Orleans going to find last year's offense. The answer is maybe when Deuce McAllister comes back - next season. As good as the Saints were last year, they're pretty bad this time around. Carolina is just OK, but they'll look great against a defense allowing nearly 35 points per outing.

Prediction: Panthers 28 Saints 10

Cleveland at New England (-16 1/2, 48 1/2) 1:00 pm - It's not really fair to have New England in the same league as teams like the Browns. Cleveland is a good team, but the Pats are simply lights out. The Browns should be able to hang in for a while, but their defense leaves much to be desired. New England rolls along.

Prediction: Patriots 34 Browns 14

Detroit at Washington (-3 1/2, 46 1/2) 1:00 pm - A great matchup here, pitting 2-1 Washington against upstart 3-1 Detroit. The big disparity here is on defense where the Lions are allowing 30 points per game, and the Redskins only 16. Having the game in their own stadium makes the 'Skins the choice here.

Prediction: Redskins 33 Lions 26

Jacksonville (-2, 36) at Kansas City 1:00 pm - One of the toughest calls of the week and one of just a few road favorites on the board. KC has surprised everyone thus far with a solid defense. Likewise, the Jags are 2nd in points allowed, checking in at 12.3 per game. A slugfest should emerge, as the Jags surely want revenge for last year's season finale, in which the Chiefs knocked them out of the playoffs with a 35-30 win. Same result here, just a much lower score.

Prediction: Chiefs 16 Jaguars 13

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Miami at Houston (-5 1/2, 43 1/2) 1:00 pm - Well, Miami has nothing, and Rickey Williams wants to be reinstated. Did he promise not to smoke any more crooked cigarettes? No. Bye-bye Rickey. Maybe he can visit M. Vick in jail. The Texans are clearly the better team here. Miami has no run defense, giving up 199.3 yards per game. They also don't score much. Nobody really likes them. They suck, huh?

Prediction: Texans 27 Dolphins 13

N.Y. Jets at N.Y. Giants (-3 1/2, 41) 1:00 pm - The Jets proved how bad they were by heading up to Orchard Park and losing to the Bills, while the Giants put on a tremendous defensive display against a depleted Philadelphia team, registering 12 sacks. The choice is clear here. New York will win. Ha-ha. I mean the real New Yorkers, the GIANTS!

Prediction: Giants 37 Jets 17

Seattle at Pittsburgh (-5 1/2, 39) 1:00 pm - I've said all along that the Steelers were overrated and last week the Arizona Cardinals proved me right. Pittsburgh has recorded wins over Cleveland, Buffalo and San Fran. The first time they play a meaningful game, bonk, they get beat. Seattle also has a loss to Arizona, but it was on the road and they're a divisional opponent, so it was no surprise. Seattle's in pretty good shape health-wise and if they play their game, they should win this. Revenge for the 2005 season's Super Bowl? Why not.

Prediction: Seahawks 28 Steelers 24

All times Eastern - Click here for late Sunday and Monday night games

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