NFL 2023 Week 5 Prequel
Thursday, October 5, 2023, 8pm
Chicago Bears at Washington Commanders (-6 1/2) — The Commanders fought the Eagles hard and nearly knocked them from the ranks of the defeated. The Bears blew a 21 point lead at home to previously winless Denver. The Bears are a mess at every level. Commanders cover
Sunday, October 8, 9:30am
Jacksonville Jaguars at Buffalo Bills (-5 1/2) — Although this is listed as a road game for the Jaguars, they are in their second hime of London for the second straight week. The Bills just beat the daylights out of high-flying Miami. The Bills are the far better team but the spread is high given that it really is a Jaguars home away from home game. Bills win but fail to cover
1pm
Tennessee Titans at Indianapolis Colts (-1) — Both of these teams are up and down. The Titans can run the ball and play defense. Anthony Richardson will grow, but he is not there yet. Mike Vrabel’s defense will punish him. Upset special, Titans win outright
New Orleans Saints at New England Patriots (-1 1/2) — It’s hard to trust a Patriots team that lost by 35 points last week, but the Saints looked dreadful in a home loss to Tampa Bay. Go with the home field and Raimondre Stevenson running the ball. Patriots cover
Baltimore Ravens (-4 1/2) at Pittsburgh Steelers — The Ravens are the better team, but these teams tend to play very close games. Home field rarely matters. In a tight one, trust Justin Tucker. Ravens win but fail to cover
Houston Texans at Atlanta Falcons (-1 1/2) — The Texans have won consecutive games against Jacksonville and Pittsburgh by convincing margins. Demeco Ryans has a seriously good defense. Upset special, Texans win outright
Carolina Panthers at Detroit Lions (-9) — The Lions are very good. Their only loss came in overtime. The Panthers are winless. As big as the talent gap is, the spread is too high for a Lions team coming off an emotional win at Green Bay. Lions win but fail to cover
New York Giants at Miami Dolphins (-11) — The Giants are awful. The Dolphins suffered a humiliating beatdown at Buffalo and will be angry. The Dolphins have too much speed for the Giants to handle. Daniel Jones keeps fumbling the ball. The Dolphin will not put up 70 points like they did against Denver, but they should win easily. Dolphins cover
4pm
Cincinnati Bengals (-3) at Arizona Cardinals — Both teams are 1-3 but the Bengals were supposed to be good. Joe Burrow is not healthy. After watching what Arizona did to Dallas a couple weeks ago in the desert, trust the Cardinals at home against a struggling team. Upset special, Cardinals win outright
Philadelphia Eagles (-4 1/2) at Los Angeles Rams —The Eagles are unbeaten, but they are winning close games rather than blowing teams out. The Rams play hard for Sean McVay. On the road, expect the Eagles to have a tougher time than necessary. Eagles win but fail to cover
New York Jets at Denver Broncos (-2) — The Jets showed a lot of heart in nearly knocking off Kansas City, while the Broncos rebounded from a humiliating loss where they gave up 70 points. They fell behind by 21 points but came back. To be fair, Chicago is horrendous. In a battle of embattled Wilsons, go with Russ over Zach. Broncos cover
Kansas City Chiefs (-5) at Minnesota Vikings — The Vikings found a team worse than them, getting their first win of the season last week at Carolina. Kansas City has so many weapons. Yet the Chiefs are winning closer than in past years. They barely survived the Jets. Kirk Cousins is no scrub. Chiefs win but fail to cover
8pm
Dallas Cowboys at San Francisco 49ers (-4) — For decades, these teams played meaningful games with everything on the line. They were often equally good. Yet the loss at Arizona two weeks ago showed the Cowboys to be more pretenders than contenders. The 49ers are for real. They have a nasty defense. The 49ers beat Dallas in the playoffs last year and the gap has not closed. Dak Prescott has yet to show he can win a big game. 49ers cover
Monday, October 6, 8pm
Green Bay Packers (-2) at Las Vegas Raiders — The Raiders offense has been dreadful, their defense has been dreadful and their coaching has been dreadful. The Packers were humiliated at home by Detroit. The Packers are not what they were in past seasons, but the Raiders are the same old Raiders. Love should shred their never-improving secondary. Packers cover