The marquee matchup of the 2016 NFL Week 7 schedule just lost one of its main headliners with the loss of Ben Roethlisberger in the much-anticipated clash between the New England Patriots and Pittsburgh Steelers. But don’t despair, for there are still a few things to look forward to in Week 7, namely, the second England game of the season as well as two quarterback homecomings in Philadelphia and Denver.
Read on below for our picks and predictions for all 15 Week 7 games.
NFL News and Previews
- Washington Redskins vs. Kansas City Chiefs Preview - October 2, 2017
- Oakland Raiders vs. Denver Broncos Preview - October 1, 2017
- Carolina Panthers vs. New England Patriots Preview - October 1, 2017
- 2017 NFL Week 4 Picks and Predictions
2016 NFL Week 7 Picks and Predictions
Thursday, Oct. 20
Chicago Bears (+8) vs. Green Bay Packers (-8) – 8:25 PM ET
The Packers have legit problems, particularly on offense. Aaron Rodgers just hasn’t played like an MVP-caliber player, not for a full game, anyway. The 1-5 Bears are definitely a few notches below Green Bay, but it’s still a division game, and they will not be short of motivation to inflict more misery on their bitter NFC North foes.
Writer’s Prediction: The Bears (+8) keep it close and cover in Lambeau.
Sunday, Oct. 23
New York Giants (-3) vs. Los Angeles Rams (+3) – 8:25 AM ET
Case Keenum probably isn’t going 27-of-32 for 321 yards and three touchdowns – or anything close – two weeks in a row. And even with that outstanding performance, the Rams still couldn’t beat the Lions, who took advantage of the absence of Robert Quinn in the Rams pass rush to torch the L.A. secondary.
Now, the Rams go to England to face the Giants and Odell Beckham Jr., who has finally gotten going after a slow start to the season. OBJ went for a career-high 222 yards and two touchdowns in the Giants’ 27-23 win over the Ravens, and will have his eye toward extending his fine run across the pond.
Writer’s Prediction: The Giants (-3) outgun the Rams and get the 28-14 win in Twickenham.
New Orleans Saints (+6) vs. Kansas City Chiefs (-6) – 1:00 PM ET
On paper, the Chiefs match up quite well with the Saints. New Orleans has the type of porous defense which Kansas City can exploit to play their preferred possession-style offense and burn as much clock as possible.
Meanwhile, the Chiefs pass defense is capable of at least slowing the Saints’ explosive attack down. They limited the Raiders’ prolific passing attack to just 225 yards in a 26-10 road win. They also had close to 37 minutes of possession thanks to 183 rushing yards.
But this Saints offense is just tough to keep quiet for all 60 minutes. Drew Brees and co. have too many offensive weapons who can go off at any time. The Saints have also been quite feisty on the road, going 3-1 (4-0 ATS) in their last four away from the Superdome.
Writer’s Prediction: The Saints (+6) don’t quite have enough to get the win, but they keep it close against the Chiefs, and cover in a 28-21 defeat.
Indianapolis Colts (+3) vs. Tennessee Titans (-3) – 1:00 PM ET
The Colts just aren’t good. They couldn’t even hold a two-score lead with just three minutes left in regulation against a struggling Texans team! Even more trouble could be in store for this struggling team on the road in Tennessee.
The Titans offense led by a resurgent Marcus Mariota has been running much more smoothly over the past few weeks, which has seen them win back-to-back wins. You might say they’ve beaten up on some subpar teams in the Dolphins and Browns, but that’s exactly the type of team the Colts have been for much of the season, and it isn’t likely to change any time soon.
Writer’s Prediction: The Titans (-3) inflict more punishment on the Colts with a 31-28 home win.
Minnesota Vikings (-3) vs. Philadelphia Eagles (+3) – 1:00 PM ET
Carson Wentz and the Eagles offense are slowly getting found out. They’ve now dropped two games in a row, and the rookie had the worst game of his young career off a bye in a 27-20 loss to the Redskins. He went just 11-of-22 for 179 yards.
Meanwhile, the Vikings will be coming off a bye, and you better believe the Minnesota defense will be well-prepared to expose Wentz’s weaknesses. (Also, Sam Bradford revenge game!) The Vikings are 7-1 in their last eight road games and 9-0 ATS in their last nine.
Writer’s Prediction: The Vikings (-3) cruise to a 28-10 road win.
Cleveland Browns (+10) vs. Cincinnati Bengals (-10) – 1:00 PM ET
The Bengals are now just 2-4 after another road loss to the New England Patriots. However, they are still significantly better than the winless Cleveland Browns, who scored two consolation touchdowns to make their 28-26 loss to the Tennessee Titans much closer than it actually was.
The last time the Bengals faced a team of the Browns’ caliber at home, they romped the Dolphins 22-7 with A.J. Green exploding for 173 yards. Meanwhile, they’re 3-0 SU and ATS in their last three meetings against the Browns, with an average margin of victory of 28 points.
Writer’s Prediction: The Bengals (-10) beat up on the Browns, 35-21.
Washington Redskins (+1) vs. Detroit Lions (-1) – 1:00 PM ET
So, the Washington Redskins actually pretty good. They’ve now won four in a row after a 27-20 win over the Eagles, and have won back-to-back road games against two fairly decent teams in the Giants and Ravens.
The Detroit Lions are looking quite dangerous themselves, though. They’ve won their last two home games, with their passing offense finally rounding into shape. The Lions should still be able to throw against this so-so Redskins defense, and with home-field advantage, should have enough to edge a fairly high-scoring affair.
Writer’s Prediction: The Lions (-1) squeak past the ‘Skins, 34-31.
Oakland Raiders (+1) vs. Jacksonville Jaguars (-1) – 1:00 PM ET
Don’t put too much stock into the Raiders’ loss to the Chiefs for two reasons: 1) They faced Andy Reid after a bye, and that’s just an automatic loss, and 2) Oakland is pretty unconvincing at home (0-6 ATS in its last six home games). The Raiders are much better on the road, though. They’re 5-1 in their last six and 8-1 ATS in their last nine road games.
The Jags are at home, but they’re just too inconsistent on offense to trust completely. They’ve failed to break 20 points in three of their five games this season.
Writer’s Prediction: The Raiders (+1) bounce back with a 31-27 road win over the Jags.
Buffalo Bills (-3) vs. Miami Dolphins (+3) – 1:00 PM ET
The absence of LeSean McCoy will be huge for the Bills. With Sammy Watkins already missing, Tyrod Taylor just hasn’t had any consistent weapons in the passing game. Mike Gillislee has been good in limited carries, but he’s no Shady.
Meanwhile, the Dolphins should be feeling much better about themselves after a big 30-15 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. McCoy’s absence will reduce the Bills offense’s dynamism, and give the Dolphins a much better shot at an upset.
Writer’s Prediction: The Dolphins (+3) win their second in a row as they beat the Bills, 21-17.
Baltimore Ravens (+2) vs. New York Jets (-2) – 1:00 PM ET
Exactly what do the Jets do well nowadays? They used to throw the ball fairly well, but Ryan Fitzpatrick has a 5-to-11 touchdown-to-interception ratio this season. Geno Smith is now set to get the start. They’re also supposedly great against the run, but David Johnson (111 rushing yards, 3 TDs) ran all over them on Monday night.
The Ravens – losers of three straight – don’t inspire much confidence, either, and the potential absence of Joe Flacco will hurt as well. But the Ravens have a much more well-rounded offense at this point, which should help them overcome that possible loss.
Writer’s Prediction: The Ravens (+2) snap their losing skid with a 17-14 win.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (-1.5) vs. San Francisco 49ers (+1.5) – 4:05 PM ET
Colin Kaepernick didn’t look particularly impressive in his first game back as the 49ers’ starting quarterback, but San Francisco has a lot more problems than him. Their defense just hasn’t been good, particularly against the run. They’ve just been steamrolled over for the past five games, and have lost all five in large part due to those big gains on the ground.
The Bucs showed a renewed commitment to running the ball, which helped them grab a big 17-14 road win over the Carolina Panthers prior to their bye. And with Jameis Winston and Mike Evans in the passing game, Tampa Bay just has more weapons on offense than the poor Niners.
Writer’s Prediction: The Bucs (-1) get a good road win, 27-21.
San Diego Chargers (+6) vs. Atlanta Falcons (-6) – 4:05 PM ET
The Falcons showed a lot of mettle in their close 26-24 road loss to Seattle. Matt Ryan’s late interception cost them dearly, but who knows what would’ve happened had that controversial pass interference call been rightly made against Richard Sherman. Meanwhile, the Atlanta pass defense impressed for the second straight week as it held Russell Wilson without a touchdown pass.
San Diego finally snapped its disastrous four-game skid at home against Denver, but there’s a reason the Chargers are still 0-3 on the road. Despite having a capable offense, they’re still a bit suspect defensively, and the Falcons have too many weapons for that unit to keep track of.
Writer’s Prediction: The Falcons (-6) soar to a 31-24 home win.
New England Patriots (-7.5) vs. Pittsburgh Steelers (+7.5) – 4:25 PM ET
The Pats offense with Tom Brady at the helm just looks downright scary. They’re averaging 34 points in the two games since Brady’s return, and have recorded two pretty comfortable three-score wins over the Browns and Bengals. With Brady and Gronk (271 yards in last two games) locked in, the Pats have enough to beat a full-strength Steelers team, how much more a team which will now be without the injured Ben Roethlisberger?
Writer’s Prediction: The Pats (-7.5) roll to a 31-17 road win.
Seattle Seahawks (+2) vs. Arizona Cardinals (-2) – 8:30 PM ET
It’s quickly looking as if the MVP-caliber Carson Palmer who led the Cardinals to a 39-32 win over the Seahawks at Seattle last season is gone. He hasn’t had a multiple-touchdown game since Week 2, and has struggled against teams which can pressure him in the pocket.
The Seahawks can certainly do that, and their front is stout enough to prevent David Johnson from dominating like he has been recently. The Seahawks held Johnson to 25 yards on 11 carries in last year’s Week 17 meeting in Arizona. Seattle is 3-0 SU and ATS in its last three visits to Arizona.
Writer’s Prediction: The Seahawks (+2) top the Cardinals, 24-17.
Monday, Oct. 24
Houston Texans (+8.5) vs. Denver Broncos (-8.5) – 8:30 PM ET
Brock Osweiler makes his much-awaited return to Denver on Monday night after leaving in less-than-amicable terms over the summer. But based on his horrific performance for the first three quarters on Sunday night against the Colts, his homecoming doesn’t figure to be a happy one.
The Broncos D has the potential to do some very bad things to a Texans offense which struggled to produce much of anything against a very bad Colts D. Meanwhile, the return of former Texans head coach Gary Kubiak after missing Thursday night’s loss to San Diego will be a godsend to a Broncos offense which looked pretty lost without his play-calling.
Writer’s Prediction: The Broncos (-8.5) beat up their old pal Brock, and cruise to a comfortable 27-6 home win.
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