NFL Week 4 Picks: Rounding Up Top Experts' Predictions

Many who pick games every week in the NFL are particularly interested in the point spread (we can’t imagine why), but picking the straight-up winners is difficult enough in this league.

After all, we are only entering Week 4 and there are a mere three undefeated teams remaining. It’s not the defending champion Seattle Seahawks, mighty Denver Broncos or star-studded Green Bay Packers that are checking in at 3-0 either.

The Cincinnati Bengals, Philadelphia Eagles and Arizona Cardinals are the league’s perfect teams. The Bengals and Eagles may have been somewhat predictable given the overall talent on those squads, but if you picked the Cardinals to be 3-0 at this point, give yourself a much-deserved pat on the back.

Perhaps arming yourself with knowledge from some experts will help you accurately predict the winners in Week 4. With that in mind, here is a look at the Week 4 picks from Bleacher Report's six national lead writers.

The complete list of Bleacher Report picks, and the reasoning behind them, can be found here.

Matchup	Matt Bowen	Mike Freeman	Matt Miller	Ty Schalter	Michael Schottey	Mike Tanier
New York Giants at Washington Redskins	NYG	WAS	WAS	WAS	WAS	WAS
Green Bay Packers at Chicago Bears	CHI	GB	CHI	CHI	CHI	CHI
Buffalo Bills at Houston Texans	BUF	BUF	HOU	BUF	HOU	BUF
Tennessee Titans at Indianapolis Colts	IND	IND	IND	IND	IND	IND
Carolina Panthers at Baltimore Ravens	BAL	BAL	BAL	BAL	BAL	BAL
Detroit Lions at New York Jets	DET	DET	DET	DET	DET	DET
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Pittsburgh Steelers	PIT	PIT	PIT	PIT	PIT	PIT
Miami Dolphins at Oakland Raiders	MIA	MIA	MIA	OAK	OAK	OAK
Jacksonville Jaguars at San Diego Chargers	SD	SD	SD	SD	SD	SD
Atlanta Falcons at Minnesota Vikings	ATL	ATL	ATL	ATL	ATL	MIN
Philadelphia Eagles at San Francisco 49ers	SF	SF	SF	SF	SF	SF
New Orleans Saints at Dallas Cowboys	NO	NO	NO	NO	DAL	NO
New England Patriots at Kansas City Chiefs	NE	NE	NE	NE	NE	NE

Straightforward Picks

Tennessee Titans an Indianapolis Colts

Rob Foldy/Getty Images

It may seem strange to say a matchup between two 1-2 teams is straightforward, but the Indianapolis Colts and Tennessee Titans have taken very different paths to reach those records.

Sure, the Titans shocked the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 1 by limiting Jamaal Charles, but since then they have lost decisively to the Dallas Cowboys and Cincinnati Bengals. To make matters worse, quarterback Jake Locker hurt his wrist against the Bengals and may not play Sunday.

That would leave backup Charlie Whitehurst, who hasn’t started since 2011, or rookie Zach Mettenberger to man the reins for the Titans. What’s more, tight ends Delanie Walker and Taylor Thompson are nursing injuries.

As for Indianapolis, the Colts lost in heartbreaking fashion to the Denver Broncos and Philadelphia Eagles, both of which appear to be among the NFL’s best. Those losses can certainly be forgiven over the course of a long season.

They looked much more like the team we expected when they destroyed the Jacksonville Jaguars behind Andrew Luck’s offensive brilliance (which undoubtedly brought smiles to the faces of fantasy football owners everywhere).

It’s not just Luck though, as running backs Ahmad Bradshaw and Trent Richardson have combined for 271 total yards the past two games. If Indianapolis begins to develop a multi-pronged offensive attack, nobody in the AFC South is going to beat it for the division title.

The Colts have won 10 of 11 in this series and will stretch that to 11 of 12 on Sunday. 

Prediction: Colts 38, Titans 17

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Pittsburgh Steelers

Grant Halverson/Getty Images

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers looked completely lost and outclassed against the Atlanta Falcons in their 56-14 loss in Week 3. It is not difficult to argue that the Bucs are the worst team in the NFL right now based on what we have seen on the field.

At least offensive lineman Demar Dotson seemed confident in comments before Tampa Bay’s showdown with the Pittsburgh Steelers, via Pat Yasinskas of ESPN.com:

“I don’t want to see 0-4. This football team doesn’t want to see 0-4. It’s going to be a big challenge for us to go out there. Can we beat Pittsburgh? Yeah, we can, but it starts today.” 

Grant Halverson/Getty Images

Perhaps quarterback Mike Glennon can turn things around, but there is little reason for hope when it comes to the Buccaneers entering Week 4. To make matters worse, they have to go against an AFC North team, which has not gone well for other divisions, as Ross Tucker of NBC Sports Network pointed out:

As for the Steelers, there is certainly reason to be worried about defensive injuries to Ike Taylor, Ryan Shazier and Jarvis Jones, but the offense looked excellent against the stingy defense of the Carolina Panthers Sunday. Imagine what it will do to Tampa Bay’s unit.

Antonio Brown, Le’Veon Bell (who leads the league with 461 yards from scrimmage), Ben Roethlisberger and even LeGarrette Blount have spearheaded an attack that ranks second in the AFC with 419.3 total yards per game. Roethlisberger is also 16-2 at home against NFC teams in his career.

That pattern won’t change in Week 4. 

Prediction: Steelers 31, Buccaneers 7

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