- Jets 23, Lions 20 (OT) - Both winners - Who'd have thought a missed PAT by Ndamukong Suh would have been so pivotal? A late Jets surge overcame a 10 point deficit in the last 3 minutes and sent the game to OT. After looking horrible at home the week before, the Jets managed to look horrible yet again, barely escaping from a Lions team that just hasn't learned how to finish games yet. Saving the Jets this week was the stink bomb New England put up.
- Falcons 27, Bucs 21 - Both winners - Falcons -9 seemed awfully large given the quality of play and confidence coming from the Bucs so far this season. Atlanta is starting to look automatic at home, and a Thursday night tilt against the Ravens at the Georgia Dome will showcase whether or not the Falcons are the goods in the NFC.
- Ravens 26, Dolphins 10 - Both losers - Speaking of the goods, that would be the Baltimore Ravens. With each passing week, Baltimore looks more and more confident on offense, which coupled with a stifling defense, could spell disaster for the rest of the league. After a couple weak efforts early in the season, my preseason Super Bowl pick has not disappointed. No, I'm not talking about the Dolphins.
- Browns 34, Patriots 14 - Both losers - If the Browns received ANY production out of their QB position in the first 5 weeks, this could be a team with playoff aspirations. A 3-5 record would be cause for optimism in the NFC (see: Vikings), but this is the AFC, where good teams make the playoffs. Cleveland dominated the Pats in every phase of the game, which this year usually means nothing, but dare I say it: on this day the better team won.
- Vikings 27, Cardinals 24 (OT) - Both winners - Look what a little "Brett Favre Magic" can do to erase some of the drama in Minnesota. Until the press conference that is. Chilly was a little er...chilly in his praise of the future hall of famer Favre. So the Vikings averted disaster for one more week to climb to 3-5. That looks great and all, but with two teams to climb over in their division, it looks like Minnesota is playing for a Wild Card berth. As for the Cardinals...who cares?
- Bears 22, Bills 19 - PUSH - Well, it looks like Dre can keep on picking the Bears. Question is: will he want to? More sadness for the Bills however, who lost their third consecutive three-point game. Something's gotta give this week: the Bills (o-4 at home) face the Lions (0-4 on the road). Prediction: Lions by 3.
- Chargers 29, Texans 23 - Both losers - The kings of the late season turnaround are back at it. So, too are the kings of the failure to live up to the preseason hype. Can you guess which team is which here? Hint: Chargers, then Texans.
- Saints 34, Panthers 3 - Dre winner, Jason loser - Looks like Dre DID pick the right time to jump off the Matt Moore bandwagon. He then drove it over me, with Drew Brees riding shotgun (Chris Henry wasn't riding in the back). This is the second impressive effort out of the Saints in a row. Could the NFC South produce three playoff teams? Food for thought.
- Giants 41, Seahawks 7 - Both winners - One little thing stopped me from picking Seattle this week. That would be Charlie Whitehurst. Charlie did manage a fine garbage time TD to a guy I never heard of though, so he had that going for him. So far the Giants look to be the only truly elite team in the NFC, with Atlanta and a deeply flawed Packer team looking to join that rank.
- Eagles 26, Colts 24 - Dre winner, Jason loser - I'd like to thank the horribly convoluted head shot rules the NFL is enforcing for sticking me with this loss. Two (count em: TWO) Colts touchdown drives were extended thanks to head-shot penalties that were marginal at best. The hit on Austin Collie was vicious yes, but the refs now are so spooked that I think they will throw a flag if the wind blows too hard. The winner though was the "blow to the head" call on 4th and 18 late in the game that extended a Colts TD drive to cover the three point margin. So this only blew a pick for me, but giving Peyton Manning undeserved chances to score will end up costing a team a win thanks to these new "rules" the NFL is trying to enforce. It will take a serious playoff screw job for anything to be done about it though, so I hope you're not a fan of the team that gets rear ended by these new guidelines.
- Raiders 23, Chiefs 20 - Jason winner, Dre loser - As is often the case, I watch one pick go south just as another comes home. The Raiders didn't let the fact that Tom Cable is their coach deter them, as Dre predicted, and Jacoby Ford put himself on the map in this one. Ford made highlight reel play after play, and the Raiders continued the Chiefs slow decline in the AFC race. Tom Cable also announced that Jason Campbell MIGHT be the starter this week. Um...maybe Dre is on to something here with Cable. Campbell has led this team to three straight impressive wins, and he "might" get the start? Ugh.
- Packers 45, Cowboys 7 - Both winners - All you need to know about this game was that, earlier in the week, Jerry Jones said his teams record was 1-7. They were 1-6 heading into the Sunday Night Massacre at Lambeau. The only thing more painful to watch than Wade Phillips constipated look is the pregame show featuring any segment with Dan Patrick, Tony Dungy, and Rodney Harrison. "Football Night in America" makes the Fox Sunday Pregame Show look inspired. Hell, even Faith Hill looks like she phoned in her lip sync of the SNF song. Maybe she's a Cowboys fan?
- Steelers 27, Bengals 21 - Both winners - Cincinnati really tried in this one, but even another monster game from TO couldn't pull this one out. The Steelers will get a lot of pub this week about their status as the best team in the AFC, but I think that will be more to do with the stinkers New England and the Jets put up.
Jason 7-6-1
Dre 8-5-1
Let the Thursday Night Ratings Grab Games begin!
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