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Last week, I made two prediction articles and broke it down into two articles. Well I am pretty sure I made both articles way too long, so I am breaking them down into 4 parts this week. Each article will have just 3 or 4 games to breakdown!
Last week, it was a pretty good week for your truly as I went 6-1-1 on the 1 pm games and 10-5-1 for the whole week. Not horrible, but I made a few bold calls that backfired, though. Oh well. Onto week 4 in the NFL and there's plenty of interesting matchups to choose from!
Week 4 -
Vikings at Texans
Both teams are entering week 4 as 0-3 teams and only one will be able to possibly score their first win of the season. Both teams have a lot in common, too. Both teams were leading at some point in the 3rd quarter of last week's game and both ended up losing. Both teams traded off a star reciever and both have struggled to replace their prodocution. I could go all day long on this! I think both teams are better than this, but they are both going through some growing pains at the moment.
Depsite being 0-3, I believe the Vikings have shown us something. They were competitive vs the Packers. But like in their other two losses, their offense went missing for a peroid of time and that put the game out of reach in a high scoring game. Week 2, they were just simply horrible. They were competitive again in week 3, but they couldn't slow down the Titans or score on the final drive. All-in-all, they have played two undefeated teams (Packers and Titans) and another one with a 2-1 record!
While the Vikings have had a really rough schedule, I think the Texans have had even tougher opponents. In week 1, they played Kansas City. They followed that up with games vs the Ravens and Steelers. Each one had it set of challenges. I think the biggest problem with the Texans is they aren't as good defensively as they were a few years ago and they don't know what kind of football team they are. In years' past, they knew they could beat you through the air with Hopkins. They can't depend on that nowadays. I love Will Fuller (Go Irish!), but he isn't close to being on Hopkins' level and has WR2 vibe written all over him. They can run the ball well vs the right defense, but I don't get the feeling that they are really committed to handing the ball off 25 or 30 times a game, either.
Prediction - Hard to say how this game will go, but I think the Texans has the better defense between the two. But I think the offensive advantage has to go to the Vikings. They know exactly who they are and that's the biggest difference for me. Texans can be effective, but I don't believe they can be special with what they have right now. The Vikings can if they make the Texans stop Davlin Cook. And long as Cousins doesn't commit bunch of stupid turnovers, I feel like they have te advantage in this game. I have Vikings by 3!
Saints at Lions
The Saints looked great in week 1, but lost Michael Thomas in the 4th Quarter. They went and lost on the road to a surprisingly really good Raiders team. Then last week, they lost a gut-wrenching game vs the Packers. They had the firepower to beat a bad Packers' defense, but the Packers only punted one time in 11 drives. And their lone turnover probably changed the game entirely. On top of that, they had a number of injuries from that game. Now, the Saints are looking to be in rough shape vs a Lions team coming off a big win vs the Cardinals.
I don't believe the Lions are anything special, as they are also pretty banged up as well. But they are mostly healthy on the offense side of the ball and that all that really matter for them. I don't think a healthy Lions defense would make that much of a difference. I am sure it would have some kind of impact, but not really enough for the game to be changed too much. Make no mistake though, this will not a blowout. The Saints will be competitive for 4 quarters, just as the Lions will be. The diference in this game might be: How effectiv will the Saints' star Kamara be? If he is awesome like he was last week, then advantage goes to the Saints. If Saints have a hard time getting him the ball, then I think you have give the edge to Stafford and the Lions!
Prediction - Look I really want to pick the Lions here because Saints are missing Thomas and Cook on offense, plus a number of defensive starters on defense. But I just don't believe that the Saints will lose three straight games. Brees and Peyton will find a way to win and this is the Lions that we are talking about now! I lived close enough to the state of Michigan my entire life to hear enough about the Lions and they usually find a way to turn their advantages into disavatnages. I going with the Saints on this one
Chargers vs Bucs
The Bucs had a rough week 1 vs the Saints, but responded really well in week 2 and 3. And now, they are sitting at 2-1 on the season. Of course, they played much lesser opponents in weeks 2 and 3, too. I believe week 4 will be a bigger challenge for them vs the Chargers. The Chargers has a promising rookie in Justin Herbert. This kid is the real deal, in case there was any doubt about his talent before the season. I know a lot of people are on the Tom Brady bandwagon this season, but the Chargers shouldn't be overlooked. This is a solid team with more upside as the season goes on.
Prediction - I believe that the Bucs will win this game, but it won't be a blowout in any regard. I am not as high on Brady and the Bucs as most people are. But I also realize that the Bucs have a really good defense and more than enough wepaons for Brady to take care of business vs a young Justin Herbert-led team. Bucs get the job done and go to 3-1 on the season!
Email - Garrybriggs265@gmail.com
Twitter - @Garryy12