Previewing Week 7

Last week's predictions: 8/14
Season tally: 55/91, 60%

Tennessee Titans @ Buffalo Bills (-3.5)
This is the best kind of football game: when the two worst defenses in the NFL have at it. Hopefully the final score will be 55-51 or something.
The pick: Bills.

Arizona Cardinals @ Minnesota Vikings (-6.5)
The Cardinals have once again gone from Kevin Kolb to John Skelton at quarterback, and no one's ever really sure if that's an upgrade or downgrade. More pressingly, Skelton's patchwork offensive line has to fend off Jared Allen against a Vikings team that will probably have the lead for most of the game. So good luck with that.
The pick: Vikings.

Cleveland Browns @ Indianapolis Colts (-2.5)
Andrew Luck and the Colts have been significantly better at home (they beat the Packers!) than on the road (crushed by the Jets!). Meanwhile, the Browns have been pretty bad regardless of location. Ergo...
The pick: Colts.

Baltimore Ravens @ Houston Texans (-7)
These are the only two over-.500 teams in the AFC, and there is absolutely no way that the Texans should be favored by a full touchdown. Their five wins were against the Dolphins, Jaguars, Broncos, Titans, and Jets; they were crushed by their best opponent, the Packers last week. The Texans are not THIS good. Yet on the flip side: Joe Flacco is playing on the road and the Ravens defense is incredibly banged-up. So pick your poison.
The pick: Texans. The AFC is a terrible conference.

Green Bay Packers (-5.5) @ St. Louis Rams
Really can't see any route to victory for the Rams because that would require Sam Bradford outscoring Aaron Rodgers while having no offensive linemen or wide receivers to speak of.
The pick: Packers.

Dallas Cowboys (-2.5) @ Carolina Panthers
Depending on the outcome of this game, SportsCenter will spend all of next week discussing either Cam Newton's big slump or Tony Romo's failures as a quarterback and all-around human being. Can't wait, guys!!!
The pick: Cowboys.

Washington Redskins @ New York Giants (-6)
This feels like the perfect time for that typical deflating Giants loss. It would make too much sense: they're at home, coming off a monumental win in San Francisco against the 49ers, and getting healthier. The Giants always have a few totally unexpected losses every year that make everyone hastily jump off their bandwagon. Danger: this might be one of those times.
The pick: Giants...precariously.

New Orleans Saints (-2) @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Pretty much a must-win game for the Bucs if they want to stay at least somewhat relevant, or as relevant as a Tampa Bay sports franchise can possibly be. The Saints are coming off a bye...not sure if the home team can pull off the mini-upset.
The pick: Saints.

New York Jets @ New England Patriots (-10.5)
The Jets are getting 10-and-a-half points despite having the same record as their opponent (3-3). That tells you all you need to know about confidence in this football team. The Patriots haven't been able to hold onto late leads this season but in all likelihood they won't have to worry about Mark Sanchez storming back in the fourth quarter, because that's a hypothetical that even my imagination can't quite picture.
The pick: Patriots.

Jacksonville Jaguars @ Oakland Raiders (-6)
Who cares? (outside of 50,000 bloodthirsty Oakland residents, that is.) Carson Palmer and Blaine Gabbert locked in an epic War of Punts isn't something that deserves to be televised in people's homes.
The pick: Raiders.

Pittsburgh Steelers (-1) @ Cincinnati Bengals
The Titans and Browns have combined for three wins this year; two of them came against the Steelers and Bengals. These are overrated football teams. A.J. Green is the only reason to watch this game because he's terribly exciting and, just 20-odd games into his career, he might already be the best wide receiver in football not named Calvin.
The pick: Steelers.

Detroit Lions @ Chicago Bears (-6.5)
The Lions never lead in football games. They either lose badly, or win via frantic comeback and last-second field goal. This will play right into Chicago's hands on Monday night: with an excellent pass defense and running game, the Bears are built to play from ahead.
The pick: Bears.