Week after week, the NFL never fails to surprise us with some unlikely upsets. Week 7 appears to be no different, as we have compiled five matchups where the underdogs against the spread have the necessary tools and trends to defy the odds stacked against them.
Read on as we get further into detail on these five games that could net you a pretty penny by wagering on the little guys. To round out your Week 7 betting experience, check out our complete predictions for the upcoming week of hard-hitting football action, as well as our in-depth look at the MNF showdown of Baltimore vs. Arizona.
[sc:Football ]Top 5 NFL Week 7 Sleepers Predictions
Seattle Seahawks at San Francisco 49ers (+4.5) (Thu, Oct. 22, 8:25 PM ET)
[sc:NFL240banner ]Why the 49ers will win: Colin Kaepernick is slowly developing his passing game for the better (343 passing yards on Sunday’s win against the Ravens – his second-best single game outing of his career), and the Seahawks are finding ways to shoot themselves in the foot in the fourth quarter of the past few games. Seattle has been outscored 40-3 in the final frame for the past three contests.
Why the 49ers will lose: The Seahawks have won three of the past four games against the Niners. Kaepernick has thrown a total of six picks in that span, leading to back-to-back seasons with a dismal passer rating of below 55.0 over the past two seasons against his archenemies from the NFC West.
Writer’s Prediction: San Francisco (+4.5) pulls of a stunning victory on Thursday night, 21-17.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (+3.5) at Washington Redskins (Sun, Oct. 25, 1:00 PM ET)
Why the Buccaneers will win: The Bucs are coming off a bye, which should have the team regrouped well enough for the tough road trip to the capital against hot-and-cold Washington. And in spite of its 2-4 record, Tampa Bay is actually sound against the passing game, allowing just 202.4 yards through the air per game (sixth in the NFL). The secondary could very well give turnover-prone ‘Skins QB Kirk Cousins a long afternoon.
Why the Buccaneers will lose: Washington is 12th in the league in rushing offense at 120 yards per game, and Tampa Bay is giving up just about as much as that number on a weekly basis with their 25th-best run defense. If the Redskins figure out that getting the ball to Alfred Morris or any of their running backs is a better option that Cousins chucking bombs downfield, the Bucs’ already rickety ship of a season could very well sink to new lows.
Writer’s Prediction: Tampa Bay (+3.5) with a solid win on the road, 19-14.
Minnesota Vikings at Detroit Lions (+2.5) (Sun, Oct. 25, 1:00 PM ET)
Why the Lions will win: The team finally got its first win of the season in Week 6 against the Chicago Bears this past Sunday, which should have the team geared up for the second game of a back-to-back homestand against an NFC North rival. Furthermore, the Lions prefer to settle their rivalries right in Ford Field, where they have won six of the past eight contests over any of their divisional foes.
Why the Lions will lose: Thanks to the return of dynamic Adrian Peterson, Minnesota is second in the league with 136.5 rushing yards per game. On the other hand, Detroit is 27th in the NFL against the rush (126.6 rushing yards allowed per contest). Even worse is that Vikes seem to be in good graces with the gambling gods, winning six of the past seven contests (6-2 ATS) where they were the favored to come out on top.
Writer’s Prediction: Detroit (+2.5) with a clutch 28-21 victory to make things a little more interesting out in the suddenly crowded NFC North.
Houston Texans (+5) at Miami Dolphins (Sun, Oct. 25, 1:00 PM ET)
Why the Texans will win: Wideout DeAndre Hopkins is on fire right now. His 148-yard outing in the win over the Jaguars on Sunday marked his third-consecutive 100-yard game, and has seen significant increases in his receptions and yardage in each of those games.
And while Houston is still horrible at taking care of the ball (the team has 10 turnovers for the year already), Miami is one of the worst teams in the league when it comes to takeaways with just three for the entire season, which should give Hopkins enough offensive snaps to continue to produce at a high level.
Why the Texans will lose: The recent firing of Joe Philbin turned out to be a blessing for the Fins, who put on a 38-10 drubbing of the Titans in Tennessee this Sunday under interim head coach Dan Campbell’s wing. Miami is also 4-1 SU/ATS against the AFC South for the past five contests, making back-to-back road wins against a mediocre club from the worst division in the league right now more likely than not.
Writer’s Prediction: The Dolphins still win, but the Texans (+5) do just enough to cover. Final score: 24-20.
Oakland Raiders (+5) at San Diego Chargers (Sun, Oct. 18, 4:05 PM ET)
Why the Raiders will win: Both Oakland and San Diego are coming off of two-game skids in games that were decided by a touchdown or less, but the Raiders are coming off of a bye a week after limiting the Denver Broncos to just 16 points. And while the team is just 1-4 in its last five games against the Chargers, it actually went 4-1 against the spread in that same stretch.
Why the Raiders will lose: We were just being kind to the Raiders in stating the recent 1-4 record against San Diego as mentioned above. Extend that to seven games, and Oakland is 1-6 straight-up against its SoCal rival. Also, Philip Rivers is going bananas with his throws downfield, leading his team to amass 318 passing yards per game – second-best in the NFL. Meanwhile, Oakland is the second-worst team against the pass, allowing a whopping 300 yards per contest.
Writer’s Prediction: Rivers with another field day in the air for the win, but the Raiders (+5) keep things close throughout the match and lose by just a field goal, 28-25.
Create a betting account now to cash in on any or all of these sleepers in Week 7 of the NFL’s exciting 2015 season.
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