Week 6 & LCS Picks

I refuse to do power rankings at least for another few weeks, since the craziness of the NFL season so far has pretty much rendered them useless. Instead, straight to the picks.

@Chicago over Seattle
As I said, Seattle on the road = the worst team in the NFL. The Bears will be 5-1. Still not that great.

@Green Bay over Miami
How the Packers didn't score 40 points against the Redskins last week is amazing. They pretty much marched up and down the field on them, but came away with no points several times. Things aren't looking great in Green Bay with several injuries, including a banged up Aaron Rodgers. I still think they should be able to handle the Dolphins at home.

San Diego over @St. Louis
The Rams bandwagon blew up in flames after being pummelled 44-6 to the Lions. The Chargers had an equally bad week, losing to the Raiders. No idea what to expect from the Chargers, but I have to pick them here.

Baltimore over @New England
A tough game to pick. I think the Patriots will miss Moss more than they think. Even if he wasn't cathing passes, he was the number one attention grabber of the defense for the entire game. And I don't think the return of Deion Branch is going to help too much. It'll take time for the Patriots to figure out their new offense, and the Ravens aren't a good team to do that against.

@ NY Giants over Detroit
I hate to say it, but the Giants have looked like the best team in the NFC over the last two weeks, probably even the NFL. Of course, they looked awful for the first three weeks. The Lions have looked solid every week, but only have one win to show for it. This'll probably be a high scoring game, but the Giants are just better.

@Philadelphia over Atlanta
Atlanta is 4-1, but they haven't exactly wowed anyone. I'm not too scared of Matt Ryan against the Eagles defense, but Michael Turner is definitely worth worrying about. If the Eagles can keep him just somewhere around the 100 yard range, and if Kevin Kolb doesn' t get killed with King Dunlap as his left tackle, then the Eagles should be able to pull this one out.

@Pittsburgh over Cleveland
The return of my main man, everyone's favorite bro, Mr. No Means Yes, Big Ben. Of course, he's payed his dues to the NFL, is a changed man, and everything else we will surely hear about him this weekend. It's gonna be great if he leads the Steelers to the Super Bowl, and everyone talks about what a great story it is, and how Big Ben is redeemed. Can't wait for that.

New Orleans over @Tampa Bay
Amazing that the Saints lost to the Cardinals last weekend because of three non-offensive TDs. They have no wake up one of these weeks, right? And the Bucs can't be 4-1 good, right?

@Houston over Kansas City
KC's defense put up a valiant effort against the Colts last week, but the offense didn't show up. Houston looked miserable against the Giants last week. I have to figure it will be a bounce back game for the Texans, and another tough road loss for the Chiefs.

NY Jets over @Denver
A tough game to pick, because I just get the feeling it will be one of those strange 4 o'clock games that Jim Nantz and Phil Simms will call where the home team always wins. But I can't pick against the Jets right now with their offense playing as well as it is.

@San Francisco over Oakland
The 49ers and Alex Smith looked great at some points last Sunday night against the Eagles, particularly in the beginning and end of the game. The rest of the game, they looked awful. Smith almost got benched for David Carr. Yes, that David Carr. Still, I can't pick the Raiders on the road.

@Minnesota over Dallas
Easily the most interesting game of the weekend, and the teams are a combined 2-6. The team that loses will be in serious trouble, and the coach's job will most likely be in jeopardy. These were the two NFC favorites going into the season, and the loser will probably miss the playoffs. There's a ton of talent on both teams, but their defenses have been shaky, their QBs are gunslingers, and their coaches often have very confused looks on their faces. I give Minnesota the edge because I think Moss will have a huge game.

Indianapolis over @Washington
Give the Redskins credit, they keep winning, although they have had no right to in the last two games. An ugly win counts as much as a pretty win though. I don't think they'll have the same kind of luck against the Peytons on Sunday night though.

Tennessee over @Jacksonville
This is the Monday night game? Really?

Last week: 7-7
Overall: 47-29

And now, baseball

Yankees over Rangers in 6 games
The Rangers surprised me by beating the Rays. They didn't even hit like they usually do; it was their pitching that carried them. I knew Cliff Lee would get it done, but I didn't think they would get much after him. Same can be said about the Yankees. Sabathia was actually their worse pitcher in their series agains the Twins. The Rangers can certainly beat the Yankees, but you kinda get the feeling like the Rangers are just happy to have made it this far. Unfortunately, the Yankees know how to do this.

Phillies over Giants in 6 games
The Phillies swept the Reds, but it's not all good news. They should have lost game 2, and really 99 times out of 100 they would have. The bats didn't look good all series after scoring four runs early in game 1. Halladay and Hamels were obviously brilliant; Oswalt had a rough start but I'm not too concerned about him. The Giants got fortunate against the Braves as well, using errors and a questionable call in game 1 to win that series. But their pitchers have been (almost) as good as the Phillies. How could you pick against the Phillies though? The only edge the Giants can claim to have is in the bullpen, and they got beat around by the Braves, whlie the Phillies bullpen was great in game 2 against the Reds after Oswalt struggled. The Phillies still have a slight edge in starting pitching, even taking into account Blanton vs Bumgardner, and their lineup is head and shoulders above the Giants. Put in the home field advantage as well, and this should be another Phillies victory.