NFL Picks Week 7: Analyzing Expert Predictions from Around the Web

With Week 7 of the NFL season on the horizon, there is no question that the landscape of the league is starting to take shape. That means it should be easier to pick games on a weekly basis. But the fact is that few things have occurred with any rhyme or reason in 2013. Because of that, it can be argued that it's even tougher to make picks now than it was in Week 1.

While that may be true, it hasn't stopped experts from across the Internet from taking a crack at predicting how things will play out. There are plenty of differing opinions, so while some may be way off the mark, others will inevitably come pretty close.

Here is a closer look at what some notable NFL experts are expecting to happen when the league's pivotal Week 7 slate kicks off.

Seahawks over Cardinals	Patriots over Jets	Chargers over Jaguars	Steelers over Ravens
Falcons over Buccaneers	Eagles over Cowboys	49ers over Titans	Broncos over Colts
Bengals over Lions	Bears over Redskins	Packers over Browns	Giants over Vikings
Bills over Dolphins	Panthers over Rams	Chiefs over Texans

People always listen when the animated Mike Golic speaks, so it's likely that plenty of people are drawn to the ESPN analyst's Week 7 picks. While several of his picks aren't particularly surprising, he did stray from the consensus on a few occasions.

Perhaps the biggest surprise was Golic taking the Buffalo Bills to beat the Miami Dolphins on the road. No other ESPN expert went in that direction, and that's probably because the Bills are currently eight-point underdogs, according to Vegas Insider, although they did open as 10-point 'dogs.

Buffalo may not be an elite team, but the Bills have been in every game this season. They are also one of two teams in the league, along with the Denver Broncos, to score at least 20 points in each of their contests. If quarterback Thad Lewis plays as well in Miami as he did against the Cincinnati Bengals last week, the Bills have a fighting chance.

Speaking of the Bengals, Golic picked them to win as road underdogs as well. The ESPN panel was heavy on the Detroit Lions, who are 2.5-point favorites at home over Cincinnati, but Golic was one of three to go with the Bengals.

Although Cincinnati struggled to put away Buffalo in Week 6, it has a portable roster that is capable of winning on the road. The main concern is whether or not the Bengals defense can slow down Matthew Stafford and Detroit's potent offensive attack. Look for the Bengals to pound the ball on offense with Gio Bernard and BenJarvus Green-Ellis in an effort to keep Stafford on the sidelines as much as possible.

Seahawks over Cardinals	Patriots over Jets	Chargers over Jaguars	Ravens over Steelers
Falcons over Buccaneers	Eagles over Cowboys	Titans over 49ers	Broncos over Colts
Bengals over Lions	Bears over Redskins	Packers over Browns	Giants over Vikings
Bills over Dolphins	Panthers over Rams	Chiefs over Texans

If Golic went out on a limb with his selections, then Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports is hanging perilously off that same limb. In addition to agreeing with Golic's picks of Buffalo and Cincinnati, La Canfora went off the beaten path in a couple of other games as well. His most controversial pick has to be taking the Tennessee Titans outright over the San Francisco 49ers. The Titans may be at home, but the Niners are four-point favorites, and they've been rolling over the past couple weeks.

There is no doubt that Tennessee has the ability to keep things close, as its defense has been great this year, but the big question marks relate to its offense. With Jake Locker injured, and Ryan Fitzpatrick under center, the Titans have lost much of their explosiveness. Running back Chris Johnson has yet to truly have a breakout game this season, but he could potentially put the Titans on his back against a worse-than-expected San Francisco run defense.

Also, La Canfora went with a minor upset by predicting that the Baltimore Ravens will defeat the Pittsburgh Steelers in an AFC North clash. The records may suggest that Baltimore should have the upper hand, as it is 3-3 while Pittsburgh is just 1-4, but the Steelers seem to be hitting their stride after winning in Week 6. This promises to be a hard-hitting affair regardless, and it will almost certainly come down to the wire—as most of their games tend to do.

Seahawks over Cardinals	Patriots over Jets	Chargers over Jaguars	Ravens over Steelers
Falcons over Buccaneers	Cowboys over Eagles	49ers over Titans	Broncos over Colts
Lions over Bengals	Bears over Redskins	Packers over Browns	Giants over Vikings
Dolphins over Bills	Rams over Panthers	Chiefs over Texans

Unlike La Canfora, Les Carpenter of Yahoo! Sports took a more conservative approach to his Week 7 picks. In fact, almost all of his selections are favorites, although he did deviate in a couple of instances. Carpenter also took the Ravens, and he went with the Chicago Bears over the Washington Redskins in what has become a pick 'em game, according to Vegas Insider.

Carpenter's biggest shocker, however, was taking the St. Louis Rams to beat the Carolina Panthers. Although the Panthers are wildly inconsistent, they are firmly entrenched as six-point favorites against at home against the Rams. Both teams are coming off dominant performances, as the Rams blew out the Houston Texans 38-13 on the road and the Panthers made easy work of the Minnesota Vikings with a score of 35-10.

Based on how well Panthers quarterback Cam Newton played last week, though, he appears to be back in business. The Rams are surrendering 258 yards per game through the air, and they have also been gashed on the ground to the tune of more than 130 yards per contest. That bodes well for the Panthers' well-balanced offense.

Also, Carolina's defense is among the league's top seven against the pass and the run, so it's pretty difficult to see where Carpenter was coming from with this pick.

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