NFL Week 5 predictions

Generally, I like to make my predictions earlier than Sunday morning before game time. Unfortunately this week, I found that there's something about a Friday evening spent with Busch Light and $2 Cabernet Sauvignon that completely destroys the ability to think clearly on a Saturday. So, waiting until the last minute, here are my picks for this week:

Bengals at Ravens: The Bengals have won some close ones this year and have already exceeded most people's expectations of sucess for the season. That said, Baltimore is the better team, and should win this one.

Browns at Bills: Tough one. Both of these teams are no good, but I'll stay with earlier assessment of the Browns being one of the worst clubs in football and take the Bills at home in this one.

Redskins at Panthers: You have to figure that with the talent at the running back position that both of these teams possess, they would eventually be able to work out a way to control a game. Yet, it hasn't happened yet for either one. I'll take Carolina here in what should be an error-filled game.

Steelers at Lions: I've been surprisingly encouraged by what I've seen so far this year out of Detroit, at least to the extent that I don't think they should be considered a gimme for losing each week. But I think the Steelers are still better this week and should get a victory here.

Cowboys at Chiefs: Dallas isn't really all that good this year (as evidenced by Emmitt Smith's preseason prediction of a 7-9 team), but I think the Chiefs continue to look more abyssmal each week. So the Cowboys should come out of this one with a W.

Raiders at Giants: Even with Eli slowed with a bum wheel, the Giants should take this game. The Raiders just don't seem motivated to move the ball offensively this season.

Buccaneers at Eagles: Top to bottom, I would say the Eagles are the better football team in this matchup. Tampa doesn't have much to boast about at any position on the field, and Philly should rally around the return of Donovan McNabb for an easy win.

Vikings at Rams: This is a lopsided game. Minnesota looks to be one of the most well-rounded teams in the league, while St. Louis is one-dimensional at best. The Vikings get the equivalent of a forfeit win this week.

Falcons at 49ers: These next two are kind of tough to pick this week. Atlanta and San Fran have both played really quality games so far this year and this one should be a thriller. If you like hard-nosed, grind-it-out kind of football that is. Anyway, I think that the Niners will put up a good fight defensively, but in they will be outmatched as far as offensive weapons are concerned with Atlanta. Falcons to win a close one.

Texans at Cardinals: It's hard to predict whether or not either one of these teams is going to show up ready to play from week to week. Both have looked really good, and really bad. This week, I'll take the home team in a high-scoring affair.

Patriots at Broncos: If it's possible, the Broncos are the worst undefeated team in the league. The first few games were against seemingly bad teams, and last week they beat the Cowboys in what I think was somewhat of a fluke. But the Patriots don't seem to lose a lot of fluke games. I'll take the Pats to win this one.

Jaguars at Seahawks: I thought that the Seahawks would be much better than they have been this year. Sure they've had more than their share of injuries already, but they don't seem to have the luster of a winning team. The Jags started out bad but seem to be building momentum. I'll take them to continue their roll and win on the road.

Colts at Titans: I said last week that I would just keep picking the Titans until they eventually won. Of course, I said that because I thought they would win. This week, I need to back off of that statement and pick Indy. The Colts just don't show much sign of slowing right now.

Jets at Dolphins: I expected that the loss of Chad Pennington would doom the Fins this season, but last week they still had a solid outing without him. Of course, it was against a poor Buffalo team. This week should be a little tougher. The Jets looked great up until last week when they met a better Saints club. I think they get back on track this week and do enough to beat Miami.

In summary, it seems like I've picked quite a few road teams this week. Always dangerous, so there could be some upsets if home teams can get the crowds behind them with some big plays early. We'll just have to watch and see.