NFL Week 5 Picks: Predictions for Vegas Odds Before Thursday Night

After a 1-2 start, the New England Patriots appeared to right themselves with an impressive and one-sided 38-10 victory over the Miami Dolphins in NFL Week 4.

If they have truly returned to form, they should be able to pick up where they left off Thursday night against Andrew Luck and the Indianapolis Colts.

While Tom Brady is the centerpiece of this franchise, a certain Hall of Famer and the creator of many brilliant moments, it does not start with his performance. The Patriots are no different from any football team at any level. They need a winning performance from their offensive line to move the ball, and their defensive line must control the line of scrimmage.

They were able to handle the Dolphins because both units were successful, and that's what they will need to handle the Colts. If they get that, Brady should have the ability to make big plays as Josh Gordon gets used to the New England playbook and Julian Edelman returns from his suspension.

Rookie running back Sony Michel is also key, as he is coming off a 112-yard, one-touchdown effort against Miami. The ability to move the ball on the ground could make a difficult assignment for the visiting Colts nearly impossible.

The Colts have Luck back in the fold, and while they are just 1-3, the 29-year-old has performed well. Luck has completed 125 of 186 passes for 1,126 yards with nine touchdowns and three interceptions. More than the numbers, he has shown off his arm strength, quick release and decisiveness in the pocket.

T.Y. Hilton remains the Colts' best receiver and has caught 21 passes for 294 yards and two touchdowns. He also has four receptions of 20 yards or more. Luck also depends on Ryan Grant and tight end Eric Ebron, and both have solid hands.

The Patriots are 10-point favorites in this game, according to OddsShark. While it should be fairly close into the third quarter, New England will stretch it out in the fourth and cover the spread.

Week 5 Point Spreads and Predictions

Indianapolis at New England (-10), New England

Jacksonville at Kansas City (-3), Kansas City

Tennessee (-3.5) at Buffalo, Tennessee

Atlanta at Pittsburgh (-3), Atlanta

Denver at N.Y. Jets (-1), Denver

Green Bay (-1) at Detroit, Detroit

Baltimore (-3) at Cleveland, Baltimore

N.Y. Giants at Carolina (-7), Carolina

Miami at Cincinnati (-6.5), Cincinnati

Oakland at L.A. Chargers (-5), Los Angeles

Arizona at San Francisco (-4.5), Arizona

L.A. Rams (-7) at Seattle, Los Angeles

Minnesota at Philadelphia (-3), Philadelphia

Dallas at Houston (-3), Houston

Washington at New Orleans (-7), Washington

All point spread information courtesy of OddsShark.

John Amis/Associated Press

Atlanta Falcons at Pittsburgh Steelers

The season has gotten off to painful starts for both teams.

The Falcons are coming off back-to-back explosive performances against the New Orleans Saints and the Cincinnati Bengals at home, but they somehow dropped both games.

The 1-3 Falcons fell to the New Orleans Saints by a 43-37 margin in overtime and then lost an even bigger heartbreaker when Andy Dalton threw a last-second TD pass to A.J. Green that gave the Bengals a 37-36 victory.

The Steelers are 1-2-1 after losing by double-digits at home to the Baltimore Ravens. Pittsburgh is missing holdout running back Le'Veon Bell, and the offense lacks some of the explosiveness it had a year ago as well as cohesiveness.

Despite the losing first quarter of the season, Matt Ryan is off to a brilliant statistical start. He has thrown for 1,316 yards while completing 68.3 percent of his passes with a 10-2 TD-interception ratio.

Julio Jones is still a huge threat because of his size, speed and skill, and Calvin Ridley has already caught six touchdown passes. The Steelers are going to have to make sure that neither Jones nor Ridley breaks loose for big gains.

Ben Roethlisberger should be able to have an impressive game against Atlanta's 28th-ranked defense. While it seems likely that Antonio Brown will have game-making plays against the Falcons secondary, Atlanta may not have any answers for JuJu Smith-Schuster or hard-charging tight end Vance McDonald.

Look for the Steelers to bounce back as they win by at least a touchdown and cover the three-point spread.

Minnesota Vikings at Philadelphia Eagles

While both teams are likely to be angry after suffering losses in Week 4, that emotion has a better chance of stirring the Eagles than it does the Vikings.

Philadelphia appeared to be in control on the road against the Tennessee Titans last week, but the team could not stop the Titans in the late stages of the fourth quarter. The Vikings suffered a brutal defeat against the Los Angeles Rams last week, and that came on the heels of their home loss to the Buffalo Bills.

The Vikings were looked at as favorites to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl this season, but their defense has unexpectedly fallen on hard times. Minnesota was hammered by the Eagles in the NFC championship in January.

So the Vikings may be angry and upset, but they have severe issues that head coach Mike Zimmer needs to address.

The Eagles have Carson Wentz back under center, and it should be just a matter of time before he comes all the way back from the ACL injury that knocked him out of action late last season. Wentz has thrown for 603 yards and three touchdowns in two games.

The Vikings are depending on Kirk Cousins to trigger their offense, and he has thrown for 1,387 yards with 10 touchdowns and two interceptions. Nevertheless, Cousins is feeling the heat and knows he must deliver a signature victory. The Vikings are three-point underdogs, and they could lose by double-digits here.