NFL Survivor Pool - Week 5 Pick

We took a calculated risk last week taking New Orleans on the road but they beat Jacksonville easily as predicted.  So far, Arizona, Pittsburgh, San Diego, and New Orleans are off the board.

This week is another tough one.  There are a few picks for people who like to gamble but luckily there is also one pretty safe play.  Here's what I'm looking at for week 5...

• Oakland at Houston - I was surprised to see Houston as a 6 point favorite in this game with Andre Johnson sitting out with an injury.  In fact, I think the Texans are in for a bit of a surprise and will have a tough time with Oakland on both sides of the ball.  The Raiders D has improved a lot as has their passing game.  The running game, led by Darren McFadden who is the league's top RB right now, is still strong.  I think Oakland will pull out a win in this game on the road.  But I'm not betting my Survivor life on it...

• Patriots at home vs Jets - This was another surprising line - Pats by 9.5?!?!  Sure they're at home but against a division rival who's beaten them 3 out of 5 times since Rex Ryan took over as coach?  Bottom line is that the AFC East teams always play each other well.  Patriots will have last year's playoff loss on their minds as well as all the bulletin board material the big mouths on the Jets will give them to fuel their fire.  Jets are intent on stopping Brady and Welker which, if they can do so, could lead to problems for the Pats.  I think the Pats win this one with a balanced rushing attack (Ridley getting more action this week), and Brady hooking up with Welker, Branch, and Gronkowski.  They will score enough to make up for their defense getting shredded by Tomlinson (he will have a big game), Holmes, and I'm also expecting Burress to have a good game since he has a huge size advantage over the Pats meager secondary.  If you're a gambler, take the Pats.  I'll wait...

• Giants at home vs Seahawks - This is the cupcake for the week.  The Giants made mincemeat of the Eagles a few weeks back, then survived Arizona last week.  This week they're home against one of the worst teams in the league that will be traveling cross-country from the West to the East.  That's something we love in NFL Survivor.  Giants win easy.

The official pick is...

NFL Survivor Pool - week 4 pick

A week full of upsets last week but luckily our pick was a winner as the Chargers held off a late Chiefs rally for the victory.  I told you to stay away from the Pats, didn't I?

This week is another tough week.  We've won with Arizona, Pittsburgh, and San Diego so far so they are off the board.  Here's what games stand out to me:

• Tampa Bay at home vs Indy - The Bucs played great last week and were able to upset the Falcons.  This week, they get an ailing Colts team at home.  I like RB Blount against Indy's poor rushing D and I think TB Defense can keep the Colts offense off the field.

• Philly at home vs San Fran - San Fran is struggling this year.  Their offense is awful and once again Frank Gore has some injuries nagging him.  It's also clear that Alex Smith is not an elite NFL quarterback.  They will be traveling cross country to play the Eagles who are coming off of an embarrassing loss to the Giants.  Vick is questionable but will likely play.  Eagles take this one easily.

• New Orleans at Jacksonville - I usually try to stay away from road teams but this game is a lock.  The Jags have a rookie starting at QB and virtually no defense.  Other than Maurice Jones-Drew, there is no one on this team to score.  The Saints won at Houston in a barn burner last week and I expect them to dominate this week.  

• Green Bay at home vs Denver - The Broncos have injury woes at the RB and WR positions and have not looked like a team that can score at all this year.  The Packers, on the other hand, do nothing but score.  Their D is one of the league's best as well.  Green Bay is a strong home team and should win handily.

All that said, I'm torn about this week's pick.  I think all of them are locks.  That's usually not good.  I'm going to go against my "road team rule" this week as this is the easiest matchup this team will have all season.  The pick is...