NFL SEASON 2014: Week five picks

My stats

Me

Week four: 8-5

Season total: 36-25

Prisco:

Week four: 9-4

Season total: 40-21

Exact spread:

me

Week Four: 0/13

Season: 1/61

Prisco

Week four: 1/13

Season: 1/61

Exact score (game):

me

Week Four: 0/13

Season: 0/61

Prisco

Week Four: 0/13

Season: 0/61

Exact score (team):

me

Week Four: 3/26

Season: 6/122

Prisco

Week Four: 0/26

Season: 3/122

Correct upset specials:

me:

3/4

Prisco:

N/A

Oh so close. 24-16. That was the score I predicted for the Lions and the Jets. The result? Lions win 24-17. One point off. frustrating, but also encouraging. And let's not forget Chip Kelley, forgoing a sure field goal with three time outs left-- a field goal which would have made the score 26-24, the score I predicted. Maybe my luck will turn around this week.

There will be a lot of shoot outs this week... should be a good week for fantasy football enthusiasts.

Last week was a week of blowouts, with seven games decided by over 20 points, and two more by double digits. out of thirteen games last week, only four were competitive. This is an anomaly.

I did not correctly guess the spread of any games, but did choose three exact team scores (49ers, Lions, Falcons), doubling my season total, and double Pete Prisco up. Overall, I was 8-5 to his 9-4, straight up. Not bad. Let's see if I can do better this week.

Bye weeks: Dolphins, Raiders

Minnesota looked very good offensively in Bridgewater's debut. The Packers looked impressive on the road in Chicago. Neither of these teams has much of a defense. This game should be a high scoring shoot out.

Vikings 27 Packers 31

result:

Vikings 10 Packers 42

The Bears were humiliated at home. The Panthers defense has been atrocious the last two weeks, costing my fantasy team -8 points. Ouch. I see a lot of points here, but I like the Panthers at home because Newton is better at home than Cutler is on the road.

Bears 24 Panthers 30

result:

Bears 24 Panthers 31

The problem for the Rams has been the defense... not the offense. This is a surprise to everyone. The Eagles, were exposed last week, but, Chip Kelley is always exposed against physical teams. The Eagles get back on track here in yet another high scoring affair.

Rams 23 Eagles 28

result:

Rams 28 Eagles 34

Yanother match up of Jekyll and Hyde teams without any semblance of defense. The Falcons have some injuries on the offensive line but can still score a lot. The Giants seemed to have righted the ship. It's tough to win consecutive road games, especially without a defense. The Falcons fall short here.

Falcons 26 Giants 31

result:

Falcons 20 Giants 30

The Bucs stunned the Steelers last week, bouncing back from an awful win to win on the road. The Saints and all that Super Bowl talked should be squelched. A lack of defense and a blatant refusal to run makes this team way too one dimensional to be a serious contender. Two bad teams compete in a who cares match up.

Buccaneers 20 Saints 27

result:

Buccaneers 31 Saints 37

The battle of Texas features two surprising 3-1 ball clubs. The Texans have looked tremendous on defense but haven't mustered many points. The Cowboys have scored plenty, but have also played decent defense here. I think this one is close until the fourth quarter, and Dallas pulls it out.

Texans 17 Cowboys 24

result:

Texans 17 Cowboys 20

The Bills have fallen back to earth, but with Orton at the helm, that offense will be better. The Lions have the top defense in the NFL. That shows here and they get after the Bills in a big way.

Bills 14 Lions 27

Result:

Bills 17 Lions 14

The Ravens have shown an explosive offensive following a poor showing in week one. The Colts have looked more like my pre season Super Bowl pick with each passing week, despite the fact that they are missing their top pass rusher. In the battle of Baltimore's current team versus Baltimore's former team, I like the current team.

Ravens 20 Colts 28

Result:

Ravens 13 Colts 20

Coming off a stunning loss at home could spell doom to a team heading on the road. Luckily, the Steelers are playing Jacksonville, everyone's remedy for whatever ails them. Bortles gives the Jags some hope, but that hope is for the future.

Steelers 27 Jaguars 17

Result:

Steelers 17 Jaguars 9

Arizona was a trendy pick to win the Super Bowl this year, but I don't buy them. The defense is great but the offense isn't good enough. The Broncos are coming off of a bye, licking their wounds following a tough overtime loss. Home cooking always helps the healing process.

Cardinals 19 Broncos 26

Result:

Cardinals 20 Broncos 41

The Chiefs absolutely destroyed the Patriots, but this is not the Patriots of years ago. The 49ers defense looked dominant against the potent Eagles offense, but Kaepernick has to get better with his decision making if this team wants to contend this year. KC comes out flat and that makes the difference here. Oh yeah, Alex Smith faces the guy who was benched for.

Chiefs 17 49ers 20

Result:

Chiefs 17 49ers 22

The Jets have not looked good, even in their one win. They also bring the worst secondary in football on the road against a hot quarterback. The Chargers haven't been able to run traditionally, but the short game has created many opportunities while also chewing up the clock. I don't think one is going to be pretty if you're a Jets fan.

Jets 13 Chargers 26

Result:

Jets 0 Chargers 31

The Bengals look like a legit Super Bowl contender, but they're coming into Foxboro against a Patriots team that will surely be focused following a throttling in Kansas City. The Patriots look decidedly average and I think they'll have a hard time scoring points against a ferocious Bengal defense. It'll be close, but the better team wins this one.

Bengals 20 Patriots 17

Result:

Bengals 17 Patriots 43

Coming off a bye week following an emotional victory, I see Seattle suffering a bit of a let down here and coming out a little flat. The Redskins, though, were torched by a not good defense and now have to face the Legion of Boom. After a slow start, Seattle pulls away and wins comfortably.

Seahawks 31 Redskins 14

Result:

Seahawks 27 Redskins 17

Cleveland (1-2) at Tennessee (1-3)

On paper, this may not be considered an upset, since it's basically a pick 'em. But, I feel like the Browns have been pretty good on offense and now, with Ben Tate back, they can play more ball control, even with an average (at best) defense. The Titans are a mess at every position. They're home, so Vegas is giving them points, but I think the Browns take it.

Browns 23 Titans 17

Result:

Browns 29 Titans 28

Thanks for Reading

A FREELANCE WRITER, HONORS STUDENT AND GOVER PRIZE FINALIST, JUSTIN W. PRICE (AKA, PDXKARAOKEGUY)IS A POET, SHORT STORY, BIOGRAPHY AND HUMOR WRITER. HIS POETRY COLLECTION,DIGGING TO CHINA, WAS RELEASED FEBRUARY 2ND, 2013 BY SWEATSHOPPE PUBLICATIONS AND IS AVAILABLE ON AMAZON.COM, BARNES AND NOBLE AND THROUGH YOUR LOCAL BOOKSELLER.

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