NFL Week 4 Picks: Matchups Guide, Advice and Early Score Predictions

Parity rules the NFL through three weeks, with just two undefeated teams (the Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Rams) and three winless teams (the Oakland Raiders, Houston Texans and Arizona Cardinals) left standing.

This may foreshadow an exciting playoff race where a large group of teams stay alive into December, or it could be much ado about nothing as a small pack of contenders separate themselves from pretenders.

We'll see how it all plays out, but until then, here's a look at some Week 4 picks alongside analysis on two of those aforementioned winless teams.

Week 4 NFL Picks

Minnesota Vikings at Los Angeles Rams: LAR 27, MIN 20

Buffalo Bills at Green Bay Packers: GB 28, BUF 20

Cincinnati Bengals at Atlanta Falcons: CIN 31, ATL 27

Detroit Lions at Dallas Cowboys: DET 20, DAL 17

Houston Texans at Indianapolis Colts: IND 24, HOU 17

Miami Dolphins at New England Patriots: NE 27, MIA 20

New York Jets at Jacksonville Jaguars: JAX 24, NYJ 10

Philadelphia Eagles at Tennessee Titans: PHI 20, TEN 14

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Chicago Bears: CHI 20, TB 14

Cleveland Browns at Oakland Raiders: CLE 21, OAK 20

Seattle Seahawks at Arizona Cardinals: SEA 17, ARI 10

New Orleans Saints at New York Giants: NYG 38, NO 30

San Francisco 49ers at Los Angeles Chargers: LAC 31, SF 10

Baltimore Ravens at Pittsburgh Steelers: PIT 20, BAL 16

Kansas City Chiefs at Denver Broncos: KC 31, DEN 24

Houston Texans at Indianapolis Colts

The Houston Texans' season is on the brink after starting 0-3. There was no shame in losing to the New England Patriots in Week 1, but they lost to a Tennessee Titans team missing their starting quarterback and offensive tackles in Week 2.

The Texans then followed that up with a uninspiring home performance against the previously winless New York Giants in Week 3, losing 27-22 in a game that wasn't as close as the score indicated (Houston scored a touchdown with one second left).

The reasons for Houston's sluggish start are numerous.

On offense, the Texans have allowed 10 sacks, which is the eighth-worst mark in the league. They've only completed 59.4 percent of their passes (fourth-worst mark in football).

On defense, if the Texans can't get to the quarterback, their secondary is exposed. Houston has allowed 7.4 yards per passing attempt, which is seventh-worst in the NFL. Of note, the Texans just allowed New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning to complete 25-of-29 passes for an 86.2 percent rate.

Houston now faces an Indianapolis Colts team that has defied expectations through three weeks. Indianapolis beat the Washington Redskins 21-9 in Week 2 and held fourth-quarter leads in Weeks 1 and 3 versus the Cincinnati Bengals and Philadelphia Eagles but couldn't hold on.

Still, aside from a 19-minute stretch when they allowed 24 points versus Cincinnati, the Colts have allowed just 29 points thanks to a surprisingly stellar defense led by breakout star Margus Hunt and rookie linebacker Darius Leonard.

With the Colts at home and the Texans reeling, the edge goes to Indianapolis.

Seattle Seahawks at Arizona Cardinals

Arizona Cardinals rookie quarterback Josh Rosen has been named the starter for Week 4 against the Seattle Seahawks. If his UCLA days are any indication, Rosen has the potential to be one of the best quarterbacks in the game. However, he's being thrown into the fire against one of the NFL's best defensive players in 'Hawks safety Earl Thomas.

The ninth-year pro is making his case to be named the Defensive Player of the Year thanks to three interceptions (tied for first in the league), four passes defended (tied for sixth) and 18 tackles. Partially because of his efforts, the Seahawks allow just 5.6 net yards per pass attempt, which ranks seventh in the league.

Seattle is more vulnerable on the ground, allowing 5.1 yards per attempt (fourth-worst in football), but it's hard seeing Arizona taking advantage, even with one of the best running backs in the league in David Johnson.

The fourth-year pro is a fantastic player, but he's gotten off to a rough start in a new regime following the retirement of Bruce Arians. Johnson is known as a great threat in the pass game (80 catches, 879 yards, four touchdowns in 2016), but he's not being utilized as much this year, with just six targets in his last two games (he did have nine in Week 1, but it only led to 30 yards).

A particularly confusing moment happened at the end of their 16-14 loss to the Chicago Bears. With the Cardinals down two late and facing a 3rd-and-2, Johnson was pulled for backup Chase Edmonds on a pivotal play.

Per Darren Urban of the Cardinals website, Johnson offered an explanation:

If the Cardinals are holding teaching moments late in the fourth quarter of one-score games with their star players, they may be destined for the No. 1 overall pick in next year's draft.

Arizona has scored just 20 points through three games. The edge goes to Seattle in a low-scoring victory.