The Fifth week of the 2014 NFL season is officially a wrap, looking ahead to Week 6, we could once again be experiencing a bevy of games that feature plenty of hold-your-breath moments. With pivotal divisional contests and other matchups that could shift the league's balance of power, we're certainly in for some very compelling football on the horizon.
Rather than reflect on the Cleveland Browns emerging victorious after overcoming a 25-point deficit to the Tennessee Titans, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers forcing overtime against the New Orleans Saints or Kyle Orton's Buffalo Bills defeating the Detroit Lions, let's just go ahead and look ahead to Week 6.
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Beginning with a Thursday Night Football contest between the Indianapolis Colts and Houston Texans that will determine supremacy in the AFC South, there is a very intriguing slate of games looming large. Let's make some very early predictions for each contest, followed by analyzing a few marquee matchups.
| NFL Week 6 Matchups and Picks | ||
| Home | Away | Pick |
| Houston Texans | Indianapolis Colts | Colts |
| Buffalo Bills | New England Patriots | Patriots |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | Baltimore Ravens | Ravens |
| Cleveland Browns | Pittsburgh Steelers | Browns |
| Cincinnati Bengals | Carolina Panthers | Bengals |
| New York Jets | Denver Broncos | Broncos |
| Minnesota Vikings | Detroit Lions | Lions |
| Miami Dolphins | Green Bay Packers | Packers |
| Tennessee Titans | Jacksonville Jaguars | Jaguars |
| Oakland Raiders | San Diego Chargers | Chargers |
| Atlanta Falcons | Chicago Bears | Bears |
| Seattle Seahawks | Dallas Cowboys | Seahawks |
| Arizona Cardinals | Washington Redskins | Cardinals |
| Philadelphia Eagles | New York Giants | Giants |
| St. Louis Rams | San Francisco 49ers | 49ers |
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10 Power Rankings
1. San Diego Chargers (4-1) | Previous Rank: 3
Beating the Jets barely counts at this point but the Chargers remained on a roll with their fourth straight win.
2. Seattle Seahawks (3-1) | Previous Rank: 4
Russell Wilson benefits from the Seahawks’ running game and defense. But there’s little doubt he has become an elite QB. He demonstrated that again Monday night against the Redskins.
3. Denver Broncos (3-1) | Previous Rank: 5
Peyton Manning surpassed 500 TD passes, and it only seemed like all of them came Sunday. He’s five away from Brett Favre’s NFL record of 508. The Broncos returned from their bye week and rebounded nicely from their pre-bye loss at Seattle.
4. Indianapolis Colts (3-2) | Previous Rank: 8
The Colts won a grind-it-out game against the Ravens despite QB Andrew Luck being sacked seven times and throwing two interceptions. He’d totaled eight TD passes in the previous two games but had only one against Baltimore. Pass protection remains an issue.
5. Green Bay Packers (3-2) | Previous Rank: 9
They’ve won two straight games and are beginning, following a 1-2 start, to resemble the team they were expected to be all season.
6. Dallas Cowboys (4-1) | Previous Rank: 10
How long will this prosperity last? Few would have expected a 4-1 start but the Cowboys are sticking to their formula of playing better-than-expected defense, running DeMarco Murray behind an outstanding offensive line and getting contributions from QB Tony Romo when needed.
7. San Francisco 49ers (3-2) | Previous Rank: 11
The speculation that Coach Jim Harbaugh has lost the locker room and will part ways with the organization at season’s end simply isn’t going away. He and the 49ers had better resign themselves to the fact that this will be a season-long melodrama. As long as the Niners play as well as they did the past two weeks, with wins at home over the Eagles and Chiefs, all will be fine. But now they must go on the road for their next two games, at St. Louis and Denver, and the issues potentially become more divisive if the 49ers stop winning.
8. Philadelphia Eagles (4-1) | Previous Rank: 12
It stood to reason when the season began that a 4-1 start would have provided the Eagles with an early cushion atop the NFC East. They’ve done their part but, instead, they’re tied with the Cowboys and have the Giants right on their heels. The Eagles have room to improve if they can find a way to get their would-be starting offensive line back on the field and get their running game going.
9. Arizona Cardinals (3-1) | Previous Rank: 2
This is a solid, extremely well-coached team. But no team can overcome being down to its third QB four games into a season. Rookie Logan Thomas had a nice moment against the Broncos with his 81-yard TD pass but his 1-for-8 passing performance showed he isn’t ready to play. Drew Stanton now is subject to the league’s concussion protocol and the Cardinals continue to wait for Carson Palmer’s ailing right shoulder to heal with the necessary nerve response.
10. New England Patriots (3-2) | Previous Rank: 15
So which is the real Tom Brady in 2014? The efficient QB of Sunday nightagainst the Bengals or the one who looked like a shadow of his former self six days earlier? The answer probably is something in between. Brady spent years elevating Patriots’ offenses with less-than-overwhelming talent around him. He probably can’t do that any more at age 37, at least not on a consistent basis. But he still can play well, especially when he receives the sort of help he received against Cincinnati. One can only guess that the Patriots by now are on to Buffalo.
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