NFL Predictions Week 7: Picks and Vital Viewing Information for Every Matchup

Week 7 of the 2014 NFL regular season kicks off with a marquee Thursday Night Football matchup, but there are several other games on the schedule that have the potential to make this an exciting week.

Divisional showdowns are beginning to become more frequent on the schedule, and the resulting battles are chippier and fiercer than earlier in the season. Football is just starting to heat up.

Here are the picks and vital viewing information for every game and the home teams guaranteed to win.

Thursday, Oct. 16	Time (ET)	Watch	Predicted Winner
Sunday, Oct. 19	Time (ET)	Matchup	Predicted Winner
Monday, Oct. 20	Time (ET)	Matchup	Predicted Winner
NY Jets at New England	8:25 p.m.	CBS/NFL	Patriots
Atlanta at Baltimore	1 p.m.	Fox	Ravens
Tennessee at Washington	1 p.m.	CBS	Redskins
Seattle at St. Louis	1 p.m.	Fox	Seahawks
Cleveland at Jacksonville	1 p.m.	CBS	Browns
Cincinnati at Indianapolis	1 p.m.	CBS	Colts
Minnesota at Buffalo	1 p.m.	Fox	Bills
Miami at Chicago	1 p.m.	CBS	Bears
New Orleans at Detroit	1 p.m.	Fox	Saints
Carolina at Green Bay	1 p.m.	Fox	Packers
Kansas City at San Diego	4:05 p.m.	CBS	Chargers
Arizona at Oakland	4:25 p.m.	Fox	Cardinals
NY Giants at Dallas	4:25 p.m.	Fox	Cowboys
San Francisco at Denver	8:30 p.m.	NBC	Broncos
Houston at Pittsburgh	8:30 p.m.	ESPN	Texans

Home Teams Guaranteed to Win

Dallas Cowboys

The Dallas Cowboys come into Sunday’s game with the New York Giants as one of the hottest teams in the league. Add playing in front of the home crowd, and it will be tough to stop Tony Romo and the boys.

Led by running back DeMarco Murray, Dallas leads the league with 160.3 rushing yards per game. Murray has at least 100 yards in each of the Cowboys' first five games and five total touchdowns as well. He's getting a hefty workload, as ESPN’s SportsCenter pointed out on Twitter:

After beating Seattle in Week 6, Dallas has the confidence and momentum to stifle New York in Week 7. After the season-ending knee injury to top receiver Victory Cruz, the underrated Cowboys defense should be able to force Eli Manning into making mistakes and shut down the Giants offense.

Expect Dallas to cruise to a 34-20 victory.

Denver Broncos

The story of the Denver Broncos' home game against the San Francisco 49ers is quarterback Peyton Manning’s assault on the record books. While Manning will be focused on the victory, he is three touchdowns away from Brett Favre’s all-time career TD mark.

When asked about how important breaking the record would be to him, Manning told The Associated Press, via the Daily Record:

"

I don’t know if any of them are big for me, necessarily, especially in the middle of the season. We’re trying to win football games. It’s tough. It’s a tough schedule. That’s all I’m thinking about, trying to find a way to win the game. If Ronnie (Hillman) wants to run for four touchdowns next week, I’m in favor of that.

"

One player who could be the ultimate difference-maker Sunday night is Denver running back Ronnie Hillman. If San Francisco middle linebacker Patrick Willis can’t play due to his toe injury, the Broncos rushing attack will have room to work. A reliable running game opens up the pass attack, and that’s a scary concept when Manning is the QB.

This will still be an intense battle between two playoff-caliber teams (the 49ers are second in the NFL allowing just 207.3 passing yards per game), but the Broncos defense led by DeMarcus Ware and Aqib Talib will be able to pressure Colin Kaepernick and capitalize on his mistakes.

Denver will take a close battle against San Fran, 30-24.

Buffalo Bills

One of the biggest surprises on the guaranteed winners list is the Buffalo Bills. Buffalo hasn’t been playing exceptionally well, but Minnesota has underperformed and will struggle on the road in Week 7.

The Vikings’ only strength at times this season has been the rushing game, but Minnesota is going up against arguably the toughest front seven in the NFL. The Bills have allowed the league's fewest rushing yards per game (67.5) and will stop both Matt Asiata and Jerick McKinnon Sunday.

The key for Buffalo will be its own rushing attack. Quarterback Kyle Orton is not going to win the game with his arm for the Bills, and the team will be leaning heavily on C.J. Spiller and Fred Jackson to depict the tempo of the game and keep Minnesota’s offense on the sideline.

If Spiller and Jackson can find a tempo against the Vikings’ 20th-ranked run defense (allowing 118.2 yards per game), Buffalo will earn the victory, 24-17.

*Stats via NFL.com.

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