Week 7 Picks

After a nice 8-3-2 week, I'm ready to keep things rolling. Let's get right to it.

HOUSTON +1.5 over Tennessee. Vince Young abused Houston, his hometown, last year. This year, and this week in particular, will be different, as VY is nursing a quad injury. He'll lose his elusiveness, and if he plays, his arm doesn't scare me in the least. Tennessee's run defense has been great, ranked number 1 in the league, but I like Houston's defense to do most of the damage in this AFC South battle.

DETROIT -3 over Tampa Bay. Rod Marinelli has his former employer coming to town. Coming off their bye week, I've got to believe the Lions will be ready. While Jeff Garcia and Joey Galloway will connect for some solid gains, I think Jon Kitna and his group will be ready to do more damage. The Lions also get Kevin Jones back in the lineup as a starter.

New England -16.5 over MIAMI. Miami always gives the Patriots trouble, especially at home, but I just can't see it going down this year. The Pats just have too much going for them, and the Dolphins can't beat anyone. Bill Belichick will key on Ronnie Brown, and with the Chris Chambers trade going down, the Fins are without their only receiving threat. Stick with the Pats until they lose.

NEW ORLEANS -9 over Atlanta. Brees and Bush finally got it together last week, and they did it in a place that's not easy to win in, Qwest Field. I was all about the Seahawks, but New Orleans made some defensive plays early, and Bush looked like his old, versatile self. Coming home this week, they'll keep things rolling against a horrible Atlanta team that gives Byron Leftwich a shot. I like Norwood to finally take control of that backfield, and I believe he's got another home run in him this weekend.

NEW YORK -9 over San Francisco. The Giants are hot right now. Eli is playing well, as is their defense. San Francisco is looking just one morsel better than the Dolphins. All Giants are looking solid for fantasy.

Baltimore -3 over BUFFALO. The dolla' dolla' Bills y'all ain't nothing. Ray Ray and the rest of the defense will dominate.

WASHINGTON -8.5 over Arizona. Washington is catching Arizona without their Dynamic Duo at quarterback. Not that they would have dominated the 'Skins secondary, but their chances would have been better than Tim Rattay's. Washington at home should utilize Portis, Betts and Cooley, and maybe even Santana Moss.

Kansas City +2.5 over OAKLAND. Larry Johnson to get 35 carries and control the clock, while KC's underrated defense shuts down Daunte's Inferno.

CINCINNATI -6.5 over NY JETS. The Bengals have got to get it right at some point, don't they? What happened to the team that looked so great on Week 1, with the defense blitzing and making plays, forcing fumbles, etc.? Carson gets off this weekend. Chad will get back on track.

Chicago +5.5 over Philadelphia. Philly wasn't so impressive last week against the Jets that they should be giving five and the hook to the defending NFC Champs.

SEATTLE -9.5 over St. Louis. The Rams aren't going to be the Rams until Action Jackson is back. Seattle's offense should control the clock with Shaun, and the scoreboard at home this week (unlike they did last week).

Minnesota +9.5 over DALLAS. The Vikings are so one dimensional that it might actually make them two dimensional. Or something like that. Dallas is going to have to throw everybody in the box to stop All Day Peterson, and their secondary (Roy Williams) isn't good enough to shut down anybody. I like Dallas at home, the Vikings are obviously not the Pats, but this is just too much spread for me.

Pittsburgh -3.5 over DENVER. Denver hasn't stopped the run all year, they just don't have the personnel for it. Fast Willie will dominate this game, and the Blitzburgh D will be all over Cutler, who is without Javon Walker for another two weeks. I don't see Hines Ward and Co. making much noise against the Denver secondary, but if Fast Willie has a big first quarter, a Pittsburgh receiver will score on a play action pass in the second.

Indianapolis -3 over JACKSONVILLE. This should be a great Monday night game, let's get that out there. Jacksonville has found their running game, MoJo and Fred looked great last weekend. Their run defense is also top notch. And the Colts are the Colts. Everyone, save David Garrard, is worth starting this week. I need Reggie Wayne to catch two for fantasy reasons, so I'm a Colts fan this week.