NFL Week 7 Predictions: Initial Vegas Odds, Lines, Spreads and Projections

We're nearly through the sixth week of the 2016 NFL season, which will wrap up on Monday night with the Arizona Cardinals hosting the New York Jets. What we've learned so far this season is that nothing should actually be expected.

If you thought the Dallas Cowboys might only be pretenders with Dak Prescott under center, you were probably surprised to see Dallas waltz into Green Bay and thump the Packers 30-16. If you thought the Miami Dolphins were the worst team in the NFL, you were shocked when they trounced the Pittsburgh Steelers 30-15 at home.

The reality is that there are some good teams, some bad teams, some that fall somewhere in the spectrum and a whole lot of uncertainty this season. It's becoming increasingly difficult to predict the outcome of games, especially when spreads are concerned.

This, of course, rarely stops anyone from trying to predict which teams can win against the line. In fact, we're here to do exactly that.

We'll be examining the early lines for Week 7—courtesy of Odds Shark—and making our projections based on those. We will also take an in-depth look at some of the more interesting matchups of the upcoming slate.

Game	Early Line	Prediction
Chicago at Green Bay	GB -9	CHI
NY Giants at Los Angeles*	NYG -2.5	NYG
Oakland at Jacksonville	JAX -1.5	OAK
Buffalo at Miami	BUF -2	BUF
Indianapolis at Tennessee	TEN -1.5	IND
Washington at Detroit	DET -1	DET
New Orleans at Kansas City	KC -7	NO
Cleveland at Cincinnati	CIN -10.5	CLE
Minnesota at Philadelphia	MIN -1.5	MIN
Baltimore at NY Jets	Even	NYJ
Tampa Bay at San Francisco	Even	SF
San Diego at Atlanta	ATL -6	ATL
New England at Pittsburgh	NE -2	NE
Seattle at Arizona	ARI -2	ARI
Houston at Denver	DEN -6.5	DEN

Week 7 kicks off with a game that looks a whole lot more interesting than it might have a few days ago. The Green Bay Packers will host the Chicago Bears on Thursday night, and this is a game the Packers absolutely must have.

Hannah Foslien/Getty Images

Green Bay lost by two touchdowns at home to the upstart Cowboys on Sunday afternoon, a scenario that almost seems strange to say aloud. The offense simply could not find a rhythm, and Green Bay's vaunted run defense—previously ranked first in the league—was battered by Cowboys rookie back Ezekiel Elliott.

"Elliott was a tough back," Packers defensive end Mike Daniels said, per Rob Reischel of the Dallas Morning News. "We've had great battles with their offensive line in the past, where if [you] take away two plays each game and they don't have a lot of rushing yards. And, today, they got one on us today."

The loss drops the Packers to 3-2 and firmly behind the undefeated Minnesota Vikings, who were on bye over the weekend. A loss to Chicago could almost completely derail Green Bay's shot at an NFC North title.

The Bears may be sitting at 1-5, but that isn't going to affect their desire to knock off the Packers. The team will try to use rookie back Jordan Howard to attack the Packers the same way Dallas did.

Howard is averaging 5.0 yards per carry.

Hannah Foslien/Getty Images

The Vikings, meanwhile, will take on the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday. This is an important game for these two teams as well. Minnesota is sitting at 5-0 and would obviously like to keep its grip atop the division. The 3-2 Eagles are looking to stop a two-game slide and continue chasing Dallas over in the NFC East.

This game is in Philadelphia, but it's still a bit surprising to see that the Vikings only opened as 1.5-point favorites. After a hot 3-0 start, it seems the Eagles have begun to fade. Quarterback Carson Wentz (50 percent completions, five sacks) seemed to play like a rookie for the first time as a pro. The Eagles defense looked lost, especially against the run.

"We couldn't stop the run," Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins said, per Paul Domowitch of the Philadelphia Daily News. "We weren't staying in our gaps. We were missing tackles."

Minnesota might be the league's worst rushing team—averaging just 70.6 yards per game on the ground—but the team is still incredibly talented. The Vikings are rated third in passing and eighth in total defense by Pro Football Focus.

Minnesota will also be coming off a week of rest, which could play a huge role in this one.

Another important game with a small opening spread is the contest between the New England Patriots and the Pittsburgh Steelers.

New England has dominated in its two games since quarterback Tom Brady's return, beating the Cleveland Browns and Cincinnati Bengals by a combined 38 points. The Steelers, though, are a much tougher opponent—at least when healthy playing at home.

Pittsburgh has won its last two home games by a combined 47 points. The Steelers' last two road games, though, were blowout losses. If the team that played the Dolphins on Sunday—or one resembling it—takes the field, this could turn into an ugly game.

What makes things more difficult for Pittsburgh is the fact that quarterback Ben Roethlisberger suffered a torn meniscus and is expected to undergo surgery. According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, the surgery will only be a cleanup procedure, which means Roethlisberger may face a short recovery period.

Still, it will be Landry Jones starting against the Patriots. This means two important things: The Steelers could struggle to maintain their grip on the AFC North, and the line in this game is probably going to change significantly.

The final game of the week should also be quite entertaining. Quarterback Brock Osweiler returns to Denver on Monday night to lead his Houston Texans against the Broncos.

After mounting a big comeback win over the Indianapolis Colts, the Texans are 4-2, as are the Broncos. This is a critical game for each team and one that could eventually have playoff-seeding implications.

This is a game that also has implications in the AFC South and the AFC East. The Broncos are now tied with the Oakland Raiders at 4-2, and the Kansas City Chiefs are 3-2. The Texans, meanwhile, are a game ahead (with one head-to-head win) of the 3-3 Tennessee Titans.

The Titans will face off against the Colts on Sunday. A Tennessee win and a Houston loss would make things interesting in the AFC South moving forward.