Picks for Every Week 5 NFL Game against the Spread

Last week: 7-9.  Season totals: 38-24-2, Pct. .609.  Best Bets: 8-4, Pct. .667.

Home team in capital letters; point spreads (opening line) in parentheses after underdog team; and selections with point spreads in bold.

 SUNDAY  

N.Y. GIANTS 27, Seattle 7 (+10)—The Giants are slowly getting healthier on defense, and you can't give the Seahawks enough points on the road where they're 3-16 against the spread since 2009 and 12-30-1 dating back to 2006.    

NEW ENGLAND 38, N.Y. Jets 14 (+9 1/2)—Last year the Jets left Foxboro so demoralized after a blowout loss that they couldn't recover right away and lost at home to Miami the following week.  Well guess who the Jets are playing next week, and where?    

BUFFALO 23 (+3), Philadelphia 16—Time for the Eagles to can Fat Boy and bring in Bill Cowher, who actually played for them back in the day, albeit mainly on special teams.    

Tennessee 20 (+3 1/2), PITTSBURGH 14—Despite a slow start by Chris Johnson, the Titans are winning because their defense is playing superbly and Matt Hasselbeck wasn't washed up after all.  The Super Bowl Runner-Up Jinx is really doing a number on the Steelers, not only emotionally but physically as well.  

New Orleans 31, CAROLINA 27 (+7)—Until she finally broke through and won at Wimbledon, Virginia Wade was known as "The Queen of the Centre Court Choke."  Well Cam Newton is The King of the Garbage Time Cover.  He's done it twice already in just four NFL starts, and could do it again in this spot, which while it is a division game for the Saints, a much more crucial one awaits next them week in Tampa.  Looking ahead?

JACKSONVILLE 24, Cincinnati 17 (+1 1/2)—Just like a horse who knows where the wire is, the Jaguars seem to know where the cover is, at least when hosting Cincinnati, as in seven consecutive covers (and outright wins), two of them by a half-point and two by one point.  Blaine Gabbert had to be drafted ahead of Andy Dalton for a reason, and the Bengals are ripe for a letdown coming off a win over a team they had lost to 10 straight times.  

INDIANAPOLIS 23, Kansas City 13 (+1)—The Colts absolutely, positively have to stick with Curtis Painter at quarterback, and not only have the Chiefs never won at Indy (0-5 straight up and 1-4 against the spread) but they have lost 10 of their last 11 to the Colts regardless of where the games have been played (covering only twice), plus KC is 4-11-1 against the line in domes since 1998, including a 48-3 loss at Detroit three weeks ago.  

MINNESOTA 27, Arizona 21 (+3)—Just as the Chiefs have never beaten the Colts on the road since the latter moved from Baltimore, the Cardinals have never beaten the Vikings on the road since the latter moved into their present digs, albeit from across town in their case (0-6).  And at 0-4 by a grand total of 19 points, Minnesota is most definitely sitting on a win.    

HOUSTON 24, Oakland 14 (+7)—The Texans weathered the injury to Arian Foster pretty successfully, and will now have to do the same thing with Andre Johnson.  And while we're on the subject of weathering things, the weather forecast could hold the key to this one: A high of 86 degrees with a chance of thunderstorms, which could shut the retractable roof at Reliant Stadium and make Oakland's active eight-game indoor losing streak (1-7 against the spread) by a combined 127 points an issue, Houston's 5-1 record versus the Raiders both ways being applicable regardless.  

Tampa Bay 20 (+1 1/2), SAN FRANCISCO 10—With all due apologies to Willie Nelson, it's "On the Road Again" for Josh Freeman, where he's 12-2 against the spread lifetime.  Bucs won 21-0 at Frisco last year, but it will be a long time before they get tired of winning there when you consider that they had lost eight in a row and 11 of 12 at San Fran with the lone win by one point prior to that.

San Diego 27, DENVER 13 (+6)—If not for "Hochuligate" three years ago the Chargers would have won and covered their last five in Denver.  When will Tim Tebow get his shot—tell me, quando, quando, quando?  

Green Bay 31, ATLANTA 20 (+4 1/2)—The Falcons just don't look right, and Aaron Rodgers is 8-4-1 against the spread on artificial turf.    

MONDAY NIGHT    

DETROIT 37, Chicago 23 (+6)—True, the Bears have won six straight over the Lions, but even that won't get in the way of Detroit's highly-awaited prime-time unveiling.  

BEST BETS: JACKSONVILLE, INDIANAPOLIS, TAMPA BAY