NFL Power Rankings – Where Every Team Sits After Week 5
Week 5 is done and as per usual there were no shortage of story lines in the NFL. More teams fell from the undefeated ranks, some teams continue to shock and Jacksonville – they continue to be Jacksonville.
The undefeated No. 3 Clemson Tigers will host a Boston College Eagles squad at Death Valley on Saturday afternoon.
Boston College, who won their first two games of the year before losing at USC and at home against Florida State, bounced back with a 48-27 win over Army this past weekend, while the Tigers has one more game to win before it can go into its ACC Atlantic Division showdown with Florida State.
Heisman contender Jadeveon Clowney sat out of the No. 14 Gamecocks’ bout with Kentucky last week with sore ribs, but is expected to start on the road against the Arkansas Razorbacks on Saturday in a SEC college football showdown in Fayetteville.
The USC Trojans will enter a new era on Thursday night when they take on PAC-12 rival Arizona under the direction of new interim head coach Ed Orgeron, who takes over following the firing of Lane Kiffin after the Trojans 62-41 loss to Arizona State on Sept. 28.
A blowout is in the making when the Kentucky Wildcats and the Alabama Crimson Tide face off on Saturday in Lexington in a SEC college football battle.
The No. 17 ranked Florida Gators will aim to add to their current three-game win streak when they arrive in Baton Rouge to take on the No. 10 ranked LSU Tigers on Saturday in a SEC college football battle.
The New York Giants are still the most confounding team in the NFL right now…is it possible they are really the worst team in the league? This week they travel to Chicago to face a Bears team that is trying to break from a two game losing streak so maybe New York is just what the doctor ordered.
Sabres Look for Win #1 – Host Lightning Tuesday Night
The Buffalo Sabres have not exactly started out their season as hoped – three straight losses and the club’s worst start ever has them looking up at the rest of their division looking for an answer to their early season woes.
Despite a devastating overtime loss to the Seattle Seahawks last week, Texans wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins was named the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Month for September after catching 20 passes for 270 yards and a touchdown.
The Panthers will arrive in the desert on Sunday off a 38-0 shellacking of the New York Giants, and will face a Cardinals team that is beaming with confidence as it pulled to.500 on the year after a come-from-behind win over Tampa Bay last time out.
The Detroit Lions made a little history a couple weeks ago when they snapped a 21-game losing streak in Washington. Now Jim Schwartz’s team looks to snap another losing streak when they travel to Lambeau Field to take on the Green Bay Packers.
Many will be surprised to see these teams meet with a combined record of 7-1, but the Tennessee Titans and Kansas City Chiefs have been playing great football, and one will take a huge step towards a playoff berth with a win in this matchup.
The Jacksonville Jaguars will travel to the Edward Jones Dome on Sunday to take on the St. Louis Rams in a matchup between teams that can’t be happy with their starts to the year, combining for just a single win between them.
Kansas Speedway – Hollywood Casino 400 Predictions
The Chase to this year’s NASCAR Sprint Cup title should really start heating up with the running of this Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway in the fourth race of this 10-race playoff.
For the second week in a row the favorites carved out a slight edge by covering in nine of the 15 contests on Week 4’s slate. The total followed suit by going OVER in nine games as well. The good news is that I cashed-in on last week’s parlay with Seattle -1 against Houston and the OVER on the Eagles vs. Broncos game.
Looking ahead to Week 5, I have uncovered a couple of matchups that come together perfectly to form this Sunday’s NFL parlay of the week based on lines provided by [dfads params=’groups=63740&limit=1&return_javascript=0′].
Pointspread: Green Bay -7.5
Total Line: 53.5
ATS Matchup Stats | NFL Gambling Insight!
After a surprising 3-1 start both straight-up and against the spread, the Lions find themselves in first place in the NFC North. They took that lead after stunning Chicago 40-32 last Sunday as three-point favorites at home.
While there is no doubt that this offense can put points on the board behind Matthew Stafford and a passing game that is racking-up over 300 yards a game, the Lions’ defense remains suspect against both the pass and the run.
Green Bay comes into this division showdown well rested after an early bye week, but there are some major questions with this team after posting a 1-2 record SU and ATS in its first three games. The offense keeps churning right along with an average of 32 points a game.
Aaron Rodgers has thrown for 1,057 yards and eight touchdowns and the Packers have suddenly found a rushing attack with an average of 128 yards a game. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
The problem has been a defense that is ranked 27th in points allowed (29.3) which sets up perfectly for a play on the OVER 53.5 points in the front end of this week’s parlay.
Pointspread: Denver -8.5
Total Line: 56
ATS Matchup Stats | NFL Gambling Insight!
Denver is another team that has had no problem finding the end zone this season with a league-high 179 points in a perfect 4-0 SU (3-0-1 ATS) start. Peyton Manning is on pace to shatter a couple of single-season passing records with 1,470 yards and 16 touchdown throws while completing 75 percent of his attempts.
The Broncos have feasted on the NFC East this season with a 41-23 victory over New York in Week 2 and a 52-20 romp over Philadelphia this past Sunday.
Dallas is the early cream of the crop in the NFC East at 2-2. Behind Tony Romo, the offense is ranked 10th in the NFL in scoring with an average of 26 points a game.
The main reason it has lost as many games as it has won is a defense that is ranked 19th in total yards allowed and 27th against the pass, If Philip Rivers torched this secondary for 401 yards and three touchdowns is last week’s 30-21 loss to San Diego, what kind of numbers is Manning going to put up this Sunday?
The kind that will take this total well OVER and already elevated 56-point line to seal the back-end of this parlay.
Flacons Look To Rebound – Host Dysfunction Jets on Monday Night
Two surprising teams meet in the NFL Monday nighter in Week 5 of the NFL season – surprising for totally different reasons. For the New York Jets they sit at .500 early in the season and could be 3-1 if not for a near upset of the Patriots in Week 2 while the Falcons, viewed as one of the teams to beat in the NFL sit at 3-1 after their loss to New England on Sunday night.
