NFL Betting: Week 6 Betting Preview
Don’t panic. The sky is not falling on the NFL just because Super Bowl contenders like the Dallas Cowboys and Minnesota Vikings are struggling below .500. It’s only been five weeks since the regular season started. Things will change; at this time last year, the New York Giants were 5-0. They finished the season out of the playoffs at 8-8. The 2009 Green Bay Packers started 2-2 and ended up with a Wild Card berth at 11-5.
GET OUR WEEK 6 NFL EXPERT PREDICTIONS HERE —–>
Keep that in mind as you’re looking at the NFL betting lines for Week 6.
Baltimore at New England (1:00 p.m. ET, CBS)
The Randy Moss trade didn’t have any noticeable effect on the Week 5 betting odds. Now the Patriots (3-1 SU, 2-2 ATS) have reunited with wide receiver Deion Branch, after trading a fourth-round draft pick to the Seattle Seahawks on Monday night. Again, very little movement on the NFL lines as we go to press, with New England holding steady at –3 (+110). The switch from Moss to Branch is logical for a New England team that appears to be converting back to the West Coast-style offense that earned three Super Bowl rings – two with Branch in his first tour of duty there. Baltimore (4-1 SU, 3-2 ATS) leads the AFC North and has already picked up a pair of road upsets over the Jets (-1) and Steelers (-2).
Cleveland at Pittsburgh (1:00 p.m. ET, CBS)
A fresh receiver may not move the football lines, but a fresh two-time Super Bowl champion quarterback usually will. Ben Roethlisberger makes his season debut for the Steelers (3-1 SU and ATS) this week after serving his four-game suspension, and Pittsburgh is up on the board as a 14-point favorite (–105) over the Cleveland Browns. That’s up from Pittsburgh –2 in each of the last two games with Charlie Batch under center. The Browns (1-4 SU, 2-3 ATS) were getting some early-season love from the sharps until QBs Jake Delhomme and Seneca Wallace both suffered high ankle sprains. Former Texas Longhorns star Colt McCoy is expected to make his first NFL start against the Steel Curtain defense.
Dallas at Minnesota (4:15 p.m. ET, FOX)
One of these two teams will breathe a collective sigh of relief after this game is over. The Cowboys (1-3 SU and ATS) have been having some major problems on defense, their offensive line is a mess, and they’ve taken some dumb penalties along the way. This is a very public team with a very talented QB in Tony Romo (seven TDs, five INTs), a combination that should make the Cowboys a tasty fade option. But the Vikings (1-3 SU and ATS) are in much the same boat. Although Minnesota’s defense has been better than the one in Big D, Brett Favre (five TDs, seven INTs) is having more trouble operating than Romo – possibly due to tendinitis in his throwing elbow.
Indianapolis at Washington (8:20 p.m. ET, NBC)
This is the story of two very different 3-2 SU and ATS teams. The Colts are one of the best offensive teams in the league, led by 10-time Pro Bowl QB Peyton Manning (11 TDs, two INTs). The Redskins are getting decent play out of six-time Pro Bowler QB Donovan McNabb (four TDs, three INTs), but RB Clinton Portis (4.0 yards per carry) is out 4-6 weeks with a groin injury, and the pass defense needs to be much better. Looking at point differentials, Indianapolis is at +35 on the season while Washington is –3, winning each of its three games by less than a converted touchdown. The UNDER is 13-5 in Washington’s last 18 at home.
Monday: Tennessee at Jacksonville (8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN)
All four teams in the AFC South are tied at 3-2 SU and ATS. The Titans have the highest point differential in the division at +37; the Jaguars have the lowest differential at –30, thanks to some brutal defense in both passing and rushing situations. David Garrard (nine TDs, six INTs) has been hot and cold this year, but his last two starts were both hot, leading to a pair of Jag victories over the Colts and the winless Bills. Tennessee has alternated wins and losses SU and ATS from the beginning of the season; Week 6 will be a loss if the zigzag pattern holds, but at press time, it’s the Titans favored by three points at even juice.
