NFL Predictions Week 5: Odds, Spread and Picks for Entire Schedule

We've reached Sunday of Week 5, which means another wonderful day of NFL action is upon us. There's no London game this week, but we still have a long day of football ahead. There are 12 games in total, culminating with the New York Giants vs. Green Bay Packers at 8:30 p.m. ET.

Monday night will see the Tampa Bay Buccaneers visit the Carolina Panthers.

If you're the wagering type, you've likely already had your fair share of surprises and disappointments this season. A quick look at some team records around the league conveys just how unpredictable this year has been.

The Philadelphia Eagles and their rookie quarterback are 3-0, for example. The defending NFC champion Panthers, meanwhile, are 1-3.

Sunday's slate is likely to bring a few surprises as well. We're here to help you get out in front of the action with the latest odds—courtesy of Odds Shark—and predictions for the remaining Week 5 games. We'll also examine some of the top matchups of the weekend.

Our predictions are based on factors such as past performances, matchup and health where applicable.

Away	Home	Line	Prediction
Tennessee Titans	Miami Dolphins	MIA -3.5	23-20 TEN
Washington Redskins	Baltimore Ravens	BAL -4	30-24 BAL
Chicago Bears	Indianapolis Colts	IND -4.5	31-27 IND
New York Jets	Pittsburgh Steelers	PIT -7.5	31-21 PIT
Houston Texans	Minnesota Vikings	MIN -7	24-16 MIN
New England Patriots	Cleveland Browns	NE -10.5	34-20 NE
Philadelphia Eagles	Detroit Lions	PHI -3.5	34-28 PHI
Atlanta Falcons	Denver Broncos	DEN -4.5	33-30 DEN
Buffalo Bills	Los Angeles Rams	LA -1	23-20 LA
San Diego Chargers	Oakland Raiders	OAK -3.5	38-34 OAK
Cincinnati Bengals	Dallas Cowboys	CIN -2	28-23 CIN
New York Giants	Green Bay Packers	GB -7	27-24 GB
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Carolina Panthers	CAR -4	31-26 CAR

Matchups to Watch

Philadelphia Eagles at Detroit Lions

The 3-0 Philadelphia Eagles are undefeated for two reasons. The first is the surprisingly strong play of rookie quarterback Carson Wentz.

If not for the season-ending injury of Minnesota Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater—and Philadelphia's subsequent trade of Sam Bradford—Wentz would probably be on the sideline right now. He has started all three games for the Eagles, though, and is rated third overall among all quarterbacks by Pro Football Focus.

The second factor in Philadelphia's hot start is the defense fielded by coordinator Jim Schwartz. That unit is ranked third in yards allowed (an average of just 274.3 per game) and first in points allowed (9.0 per game).

The Eagles head into Detroit this week to take on the 1-3 Lions. Detroit has a quality offense (ranked eighth in total yards, 376.0 per game), but the defense is sorely lacking.

The Lions are giving up an average of 25.5 points per game (20th in the NFL) and are rated dead last in overall defense by Pro Football Focus.

Yes, the Lions are at home, but this isn't looking like a particularly strong matchup for them. Unless Wentz decides Week 5 is the right time to hit the rookie wall, the Eagles should win and cover Sunday.

New England Patriots at Cleveland Browns

Though it isn't expected to be a particularly competitive game, the matchup between the New England Patriots and Cleveland Browns is one that a lot of people are going to watch. The game, of course, marks the official return of Patriots quarterback Tom Brady from suspension.

"

Patriots activate Tom Brady, Rob Ninkovich from exempt commissioner permission list

— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) October 8, 2016"

The addition of Brady and a healthier Rob Gronkowski to an already scary Patriots team likely means a long day for the Browns defense. Cleveland, by the way, is ranked a lowly 21st in overall defense by Pro Football Focus.

This game has the largest spread of the entire week, and still few people are backing the Browns here. Working in favor of Cleveland are home-field advantage and the fact that Brady could come out a bit rusty.

Patriots head coach Bill Belichick explained, per Mike Reiss of ESPN.com:

"

I think we benefit from practice reps. I think we benefit from game reps. I think not having those is not beneficial. It doesn't mean it can't be overcome; it doesn't mean you can't have a good performance; it just means if that was the best way to prepare for the game, then that's what we would do. I just don't happen to believe that.

"

Given that the Browns are a young, inexperienced and rebuilding team, the Patriots can do enough to cover by the end of the game. Don't be surprised, however, if Cleveland makes a contest out of it early.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Carolina Panthers

Scott Cunningham/Getty Images

At the beginning of the 2016 season, a Monday night matchup between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Carolina Panthers looked rather enticing. The Buccaneers had a hot young quarterback in Jameis Winston with which to challenge a strong Panthers defense.

A month in, though, and this matchup appears much less appealing. The defense for the Panthers—rated 13th overall by Pro Football Focus—has been a disappointment. The defense for the Buccaneers is just plain bad.

Tampa is rated 30th overall by Pro Football Focus.

Both teams are sitting at 1-3, and on top of that, the Panthers will be without quarterback Cam Newton for the game. As NFL Media's Ian Rapoport pointed out, Newton isn't the only key Carolina player who won't suit up, either:

Considering the Panthers defense is in a decline and Derek Anderson is set to start at quarterback, the underdog Buccaneers could actually challenge here. However, they won't do enough to win outright.

For one, we shouldn't expect there to be a notable drop-off in offensive production with Anderson under center. He is experienced in Carolina's system and capable of leading the attack against a weak Tampa defense.

"You can call your game and feel confident he can make all the throws," Panthers offensive coordinator Mike Shula said of Anderson, per David Newton of ESPN.com. "He’s going to get guys lined up quickly. He changed a play [Sunday] that we sent in and got us into a better play because he recognized coverage."

The Panthers are also at home and fighting to stay in the AFC South divisional race. Both of these teams would like to be in it, of course, but after back-to-back playoff years for the Panthers, Carolina should be motivated to avoid a 1-4 start.