NFL Week 6 Picks: Early Predictions for Every Game
October 8, 2018
Week 6 might mark the first time the two remaining undefeated teams in the NFL fall.
The Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Rams face difficult road tests in New England and Denver, respectively, but as we've witnessed so far in the 2018 season, they're both capable of passing any test that's thrown at them.
Week 6 begins with a matchup of NFC East rivals who are both in need of a victory, and it closes in Green Bay with what is expected to be a rout of San Francisco led by Aaron Rodgers.
The second weekend of October also features the first game in London, as the Seattle Seahawks and Oakland Raiders venture across the pond to play at Wembley Stadium.
Week 6 Schedule
All Times ET.
Thursday, October 11
Philadelphia at New York Giants (8:20 p.m., Fox/NFL Network)
Sunday, October 14
Pittsburgh at Cincinnati (1 p.m., CBS)
Los Angeles Chargers at Cleveland (1 p.m., CBS)
Indianapolis at New York Jets (1 p.m., CBS)
Buffalo at Houston (1 p.m., CBS)
Seattle vs. Oakland (1 p.m., Fox) (Game in London)
Chicago at Miami (1 p.m., Fox)
Tampa Bay at Atlanta (1 p.m., Fox)
Arizona at Minnesota (1 p.m., Fox)
Carolina at Washington (1 p.m., Fox)
Los Angeles Rams at Denver (4:05 p.m., Fox)
Jacksonville at Dallas (4:25 p.m., CBS)
Baltimore at Tennessee (4:25 p.m., CBS)
Kansas City at New England (8:20 p.m., NBC)
Monday, October 15
San Francisco at Green Bay (8:15 p.m., ESPN)
Predictions
Philadelphia 23, New York Giants 17
The NFC East is wide open, but the divisional race doesn't possess the same excitement of past years.
The Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants come into Thursday night's clash at MetLife Stadium off heartbreaking defeats, but the division title isn't out of reach for either team.
Even if the Washington Redskins move to 3-1 with a road win over the New Orleans Saints Monday, one win combined with a Washington loss could significantly alter the division standings.
The short week doesn't help either team, as they have a litany of issues on both sides of the ball to fix before the division and postseason slide out of the picture.
The Eagles suffered through offensive line woes in their 23-21 loss to Minnesota, and they ran the ball 17 times compared to the 35 passes thrown by Carson Wentz.
Even when Wentz dropped back, Minnesota's front seven was able to get a good push, and it produced a touchdown for defensive tackle Linval Joseph.
Philadelphia's secondary is also a mess, as it allowed 301 passing yards to Kirk Cousins at home Sunday.
The task doesn't get much easier for the Eagles, as Odell Beckham Jr. and Sterling Shepard will try to exploit the gaps in the defensive backfield.
Turnovers hurt the Giants in their 33-31 defeat to Carolina, with Eli Manning being intercepted on two occasions in the second half.
The Giants' defense gave up 350 total yards to the Panthers, which opens the door for the Eagles offense to improve on the fly in a key divisional matchup.
At 1-4, New York needs the win more than Philadelphia, but it won't be able to finish off a victory, as the Eagles offensive line puts things together in the fourth quarter to protect Wentz on a game-winning drive.
New England 26, Kansas City 24
The most electrifying young quarterback in the NFL meets one of the all-time greats at his position in Week 6's Sunday night game.
Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs passed their first major test in Week 5 by handling the Jacksonville Jaguars 30-14 at Arrowhead Stadium.
Now the Chiefs must head to Gillette Stadium for a clash with a Patriots team that received three extra days off after playing Thursday against Indianapolis.
Mahomes and Tom Brady combined for 26 touchdown passes in their first five games, which means a shootout is expected by most fans.
The matchup with the Patriots' offense could be difficult for the Kansas City defense since it ranks last in the NFL in yards conceded.
The Chiefs rank a bit higher in scoring defense, as they're 20th with 25.8 points conceded per game, while the Patriots are 10th in that category at 21.6 points given up per game.
Starting at tight end with Rob Gronkowski and Travis Kelce, there are plenty of mismatches for each offense to exploit.
Tyreek Hill is more than capable of burning the Patriots' secondary with his speed, while the route running of the New England receivers could carve up Kansas City's defensive backfield.
It's going to be hard for either offense to create much separation on the scoreboard, and like he has in countless games in the past, Brady will engineer a last-minute charge down the field to win the game and hand Kansas City its first defeat.
Other Predictions
Atlanta 36, Tampa Bay 21
Cincinnati 21, Pittsburgh 17
Los Angeles Chargers 45, Cleveland 27
Oakland 20, Seattle 13
Chicago 12, Miami 9
Minnesota 35, Arizona 12
Indianapolis 27, New York Jets 24
Carolina 37, Washington 24
Buffalo 20, Houston 16
Los Angeles Rams 23, Denver 21
Jacksonville 19, Dallas 12
Tennessee 31, Baltimore 21
Green Bay 49, San Francisco 17
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Statistics obtained from ESPN.com