Week 6, and the NFL is already heading for halftime: The firecracker rises on Sunday evening when the New England Patriots receive the Kansas City Chiefs. But also on Sunday there is a lot to see with Bengals vs. Steelers, Raiders vs. Seahawks and the Rams in Denver. SPOX takes a quick look at all games of the upcoming matchday – including the forecast by NFL editor Adrian Franke, the Sunday games are as usual in the RedZone conference live on DAZN.
Bye-Week: Detroit Lions, New Orleans Saints.
Slowly the Eagles also have to find their form, two concrete problems characterize this team so far 2018: The vulnerabilities in the secondary as well as suddenly holes in the offensive line. The latter should be correctable, the pass defense is a more difficult case. But there’s the question: Can the Giants even take advantage of that? Manning became aggressive downfield against the Panthers during the game, but also had a horrendous pick. Even with their weaknesses, the Eagle are the more complete team, I expect a strong dose of Run Game against a vulnerable Giants front even without the injured Jay Ajayi. Besides, Philly should be able to control this game with his defensive front.
Tip: Giants vs. Eagles 20:23.
Completely different presentation of the jets last Sunday: Finally more courage downfield, more open formations, more empty sets for Sam Darnold. Now a Colts front awaits, which can cause problems for New York’s still fragile offensive line, all the more if Darnold holds the ball longer. And vice versa you can say more and more in Indianapolis: Andrew Luck is back! With the Thursday game and a few days of additional recovery, more parts of the actual Colts team should be on the field again. Are the Colts in the pass-rush against a beatable jets-line more successful than last time?
Tip: Jets vs. Colts 24:23.
Great duel in the north, all the more because the Steelers had their best match of the season against Atlanta. The Pass-Rush was much more dangerous, the Run Game worked and even Antonio Brown came back with several Big Plays. But for the Bengals the game is a huge chance, Cincinnati could already distance Pittsburgh clearly in the division. The Bengals-Offense is versatile and should cause big problems for the Steelers-Secondary, while Cincinnati’s Front for Pittsburgh’s Offensive Line is a completely different test than it was against the Falcons.
Tip: Bengals vs. Steelers 27:24.
As long as Joey Bosa is missing, this Chargers defense is beatable – without the lightning, L.A. simply gets too little pressure on the opposing quarterback, while at the same time the secondary plays well below its capabilities. Here Baker Mayfield, Jarvis Landry and Co. should offer themselves some possibilities. On the other side of the ball, the Browns are extremely aggressive and risky – against a Chargers team that currently has the best running back duo in passing, this could result in some long screen passes. L.A. expects a close game in Cleveland, which must be won over the own offense. Philip Rivers with a full arsenal of weapons is undoubtedly able to do this, but the advantage on both sides of the line of scrimmage could be Cleveland.
Tip: Browns vs. Chargers 28:31.
What do you do with this Bills team now? This much can be said in any case: this team plays with full commitment and stands behind coach Sean McDermott. However, Josh Allen is still incredibly raw, and if he doesn’t have a clear first read, often lost. The Texans should rarely give it to him, and with their front Allen cause huge problems. Conversely, the Bills will also be able to put pressure on Watson like any team in the NFL. Tre’Davious White versus DeAndre Hopkins could be a key duel.
Tip: Texans vs. Bills 23:13.
Miami’s Offense, and specifically Tannehill and the Passing Game, are starting to worry me. The Dolphins live from Big (or Trick) Plays, and when they don’t come, Miami doesn’t have any rhythm. Against the Bengals the pass protection collapsed completely in the course of the game, which doesn’t get any easier against the Bears. Exciting question: Which version of Mitch Trubisky do we see on the guests’ side? After a shaky start to the season and his 6-touchdown game against Tampa, Chicago now had its Bye-Week.
Tip: Dolphins vs. Bears 13:24.
Was the victory in Philadelphia the turnaround for Minnesota’s season? One thing is clear: Kirk Cousins is a top 5 quarterback of the season so far, and Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs are probably the best receiver duo of the NFL at the moment. Arizona should be able to cause Minnesota’s offensive line all kinds of problems, but the secondary behind it is put to a severe test against Thielen and Diggs. And vice versa? The offensive coaching of the Cardinals is and remains a big problem, Josh Rosen will rarely have time in his pocket behind the line against the Vikings Front; even if he should at least be able to attack the Vikes deeply.
Tip: Vikings vs. Cardinals 27:14.
The Falcons are running out of time, Atlanta now starts a series with some weaker opponents – but the Falcons have to win all these games to stay in the playoff race. And that starts with the Bucs. Tampa is almost impossible to assess, after all Jameis Winston takes over now and you can expect the offense to become at least a little less vertical. This makes the situation exciting because the Bucs don’t have a run game and a desolate pass defense. Acute Shootout danger, since Atlantas Defense is known to be badly hit in the center.
Tip: Falcons vs. Buccaneers 34:24.
The first London game of the season is a duel between two teams that are difficult to read. The Raiders always have offensive moments in which they look dangerous – but then, especially in the person of Derek Carr, they too often stand in the way of each other. Does this also happen against a Seahawks defense, which is even more in upheaval without the injured Earl Thomas? Oaklands Defense, meanwhile, is one of the most vulnerable in the entire NFL, and Seattle seems to have taken another big step against the Rams towards Pete Carroll’s desired run identity.
Tip: Raiders vs. Seahawks 24:27.
Carolina – now back with Thomas Davis – should be able to limit Washington’s one-dimensional offense anyway: The Redskins work primarily over short passes and inside-runs over the middle, Carolina’s front is well equipped to counter this with its strong defensive line and excellent cover linebackers. And vice versa? Carolina’s Run Game about McCaffrey and Newton can decide games, but the passing game is not as efficient and aggressive as hoped.
Tip: Redskins vs. Panthers 20:23.
Denvers Run-Defense broke completely against the jets, also due to tactical inflexibility. The defense as a whole is far from at the hoped-for level – the same statement can easily be made with Quarterback Case Keenum. No good conditions against the most dangerous offense of the league. Denver should try behind his good offensive line, similar to Seattle last week against L.A., to score points over the run game and control the game flow. But at the moment it is hard to imagine how the Broncos will stop the offense of the rams often enough.
Tip: Broncos vs. Rams 17:27.
In itself, you could start any Jaguar prediction that way: What version of Blake Bortle’s are we seeing this week? Against a more than beatable Chiefs-Secondary it was the bad version, the top edition could definitely score against this Cowboys-Defense. But: Dallas will cause problems for Jacksonville’s offensive line and Leonard Fournette is missing again. Can the newly enlisted Jamaal help Charles yet? At the same time Dallas’ passing open, despite a little more creativity in play calling, is an extremely shaky construct and Jacksonville’s defense should be able to decide this game.
Tip: Cowboys vs. Jaguars 13:16.
The Eagles game seemed to be something of a breakthrough for Tennessee’s Offense after some strange Titans victories – followed by a complete debacle in Buffalo. Mariota and the passing game are far too inconstant, even the run game hasn’t started rolling yet. Now a very complex, difficult to play Ravens defense is waiting, which should cause Tennessee all sorts of problems. The same applies to a very good Titans defence with ex-Ravens coordinator Dean Pees; Baltimore’s Offense, however, is much stronger and more stable this season than the one in Tennessee.
Tip: Titans vs. Ravens 17:23.
Incredibly exciting matchup. Can New England’s front keep Patrick Mahomes in his pocket? In the Pass-Rush, New England should be clearly inferior to the Chiefs-Line, but a gap-controlling approach – which is better suited to this defense anyway – would be a good start. But Kansas City’s passing game against New England’s Secondary should also cause problems for the Pats, the big question being: How many points can the Patriots Open with Edelman, Gronk and Gordon accumulate against a Chiefs Secondary with more than a few holes? And how important is the factor that Belichick had three days more for the preparation?
Tip: Patriots vs. Chiefs 38:34.
Anyway, you can’t blame the Niners for not playing hard. But the possibilities also for a great play caller like Kyle Shanahan are limited with a (good) backup quarterback, C.J. Beathards reads are just too slow, just like his release. This leads to sacks and late interceptions. The Packers must win this game, and should be able to attack a quite beatable Niners Pass Defense – except Richard Sherman stresses -. Even though Green Bay’s offense has its own problems.
Tip: Packers vs. 49ers 30:17.