NFL Predictions Week 5: 7 Teams That Must Win on Sunday

More than a few teams are off to surprisingly bad starts this season.

The self-proclaimed "Dream Team" in Philadelphia has won only one game. The Pittsburgh Steelers are an ugly 2-2. The New York Jets are on the verge of three-game losing streak. And the Minnesota Vikings apparently don't want to win football games.

All this has to change or these teams, among others, run the risk of missing the postseason.

Here are seven teams that must win in Week 5 of the NFL season.

Pittsburgh Steelers

The Steelers host the upstart 3-1 Tennessee Titans on Sunday. This team has surprisingly taken care of business since dropping its opener to the Jacksonville Jaguars and pose a real threat to the Steelers.

The Titans have one of the league's top defenses and also feature a veteran quarterback, Matt Hasselbeck, making the most out of his new opportunity.

The Steelers, meanwhile, cannot afford to lose another conference game like they did last week to the Texans. This team has yet to put it all together offensively, and quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is struggling behind their mediocre offensive line. They also look older and slower on defense, and teams have noticed.

Pittsburgh needs to figure things out in a hurry, or playoff aspirations will fade rather quickly.

A win on Sunday is a must.

Philadelphia Eagles

No team on this list needs a win more than the 1-3 Philadelphia Eagles. Their only win on the season came against the winless St. Louis Rams, and they do not look good on the field.

Quarterback Michael Vick needs to find a way to stay healthy and out of trouble, and the defense needs to stop the run.

This week, they'll take on the surprisingly tough Buffalo Bills in Buffalo.

The Bills lost their first game of the season last week to the Bengals, and they will be looking to regain the momentum they built up in the beginning of the year.

However, the Eagles cannot afford to drop to 1-4 with all the talent in rest of their division. If they get left behind, their season could end much sooner than any anticipated.

Minnesota Vikings

The Minnesota Vikings have blown three double-digit leads this season and are 0-4 because of it.

Donovan McNabb can't get this offense going, and Adrian Peterson hasn't been much better.

The only thing the Vikings can do right is stop the run. But teams throw the ball all over the field on them anyway, so it doesn't really matter.

This week, they'll take on the hapless Indianapolis Colts. One of these two teams has to get their first win of the year (wouldn't be shocking if they tied though to be honest), and it needs to be the Vikings.

The Colts at least have the excuse of Peyton Manning's injury. The Vikings have nothing to hang their 0-4 record on other than poor execution.

That needs to change this week and the Vikings need to get a win, or bigger changes are sure to come.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Bucs eeked out a victory over the Colts on Monday Night Football, but they didn't look great doing it.

Although they found a way to win, this team still has a lot growing to do. One big obstacle will be winning road games. Particularly road games out West.

This week, they travel to San Francisco to take on the 3-1, NFC West-leading 49ers.

While the NFC West is the league's worst division, the 49ers are playing decent football.

Tampa Bay doesn't have the luxury of losing any conference games. They play in the dreadfully tough NFC South, and they're fighting for a Wild Card berth just as much as they are the division title. A win over the 49ers is a must if the Bucs are to keep pace in the NFC.

New York Jets

Even the New York Jets and coach Rex Ryan can't honestly believe they are going to win the Super Bowl the way they are playing right now.

Gang Green is danger of dropping a third straight game and, to make matters worse, it is the Patriots they face this week.

Their rivals from New England have the league's most potent passing attack, and it will be a battle from the get-go.

The Jets need to straighten things out on both sides of the ball (they can't run and they can't stop the run) or their aspirations for the postseason will fade fast.

They always need to beat the Patriots, but more than anything, they just need a win.

Atlanta Falcons

Matt Ryan and the Atlanta Falcons were the last team to beat Aaron Rodgers. Unfortunately, that was last season when the Falcons were actually good and having their way with teams at will.

This season is a lot different. For whatever reason, their offense is far less explosive, and their defense has been exposed. They beat the Seahawks last week, but they did not look great doing so and could have just as easily lost the game.

This team needs to get itself under control and reassert the dominance they showed last year when they went 13-3. 

Winning the division is going to be extremely difficult this year, so every conference game is important.

Detroit Lions

The Lions don't play on Sunday, but they need a win as much as anybody on this list.

Not because they're struggling like the rest of the teams on this list, but because they need to show the world they are legitimate.

Most of us have only seen the Lions on highlights or score tickers.

They now have the opportunity to knock off the defending NFC North champions and introduce themselves to the world all in one shot.

If the Lions are here to stay, they need to prove it on Monday night.