NFL Picks Week 6: New York Giants & NFC East

Week 6 of the NFL features high-powered offenses and divisional rivals out of the NFC East.

The 2-2 Dallas Cowboys will travel to Gillette Stadium this Sunday to face the No. 1 offense in the 4-1 New England Patriots.

The 3-2 New York Giants will play host to the 4-1 Buffalo Bills, who are coming off of a strong win at home against the Philadelphia Eagles. 

The Philadelphia Eagles, coming off of a road loss that dropped their record to 1-4, will again hit the road in a divisional battle against the 3-1 Washington Redskins.

Here are the picks for the three NFC East games in Week 6.

Dallas at New England

The Cowboys will enter Gillette Stadium on Sunday with one thing in mind: stop Wes Welker. Welker, who went for 124 yards receiving last week against the arch-rival Jets, leads the league with 148 yards receiving a game in 2011.

The Brady-to-Welker combo has been unstoppable thus far this season, and the hard running of BenJarvus Green-Ellis has to worry Dallas defensive coordinator Rob Ryan.

The Dallas defense is only allowing 230 passing yards per game, while Tom Brady leads the league in passing with 375 passing yards a game and 14 touchdowns. And don't put too much stock into the fact that Brady currently has one more INT than Romo this season—we'll see who has the edge come Week 17.

So stingy pass defense vs. volatile passing offense. Who do you take?

Well, while the Cowboys will get both of their star receivers back in Miles Austin and Dez Bryant, Tony Romo and the Cowboys have had trouble closing out games this season.

Even though New England has surrendered the most passing yards this season, I'll still take the experience of Brady and Belichick over the inconsistent Romo.

New England over Dallas

Buffalo at NY Giants

The Giants are coming off of one of the worst losses in years, which saw Eli Manning and the Giant offense turn the ball over five times; that can't happen against a sneaky Buffalo defense, led by safety George Wilson and linebacker Nick Barnett.

The Bills, on the other hand, forced four Michael Vick interceptions in Week 5, cruising to a 31-24 victory.  QB Ryan Fitzpatrick has been solid this season, with 10 TDs and four INT. Fred Jackson is averaging just under 100 yards rushing per game, and has five TDs on the season.

Ahmad Bradshaw, who has been subpar this season, won't receive any help from fellow backfield mate Brandon Jacobs and center Chris Snee, who have both been ruled out for Week 6. The heart and soul of the G-Men defense Justin Tuck will also remain on the sidelines this week, as he battles a groin/neck issue.

With key members of the New York running game missing this week, extra pressure will be placed upon the shoulders of Manning, who was forced to throw 39 times last week in the loss to Seattle.

Bill's defenders have accumulated a league-high 16 takeaways this season. Given the carelessness with which Manning handles the football, I expect Buffalo to win this matchup.

Buffalo over New York

Philadelphia at Washington

The dream team has certainly dropped the ball this season.

Philadelphia leads the league with 15 giveaways, 13 of them coming from Michael Vick. Their inability to win games has shocked most, but they haven't had much trouble putting up points. The Eagles average 25 points per game, and rank third in the league in total offensive yards.

Washington, who comes off of a bye week, sports a stingy run defense, allowing only 84.5 yards per game. They'll need that defense to show up, as LeSean McCoy ranks fifth in the league in rushing, and Michael Vick ran wild last week against the Bills, rushing for 90 yards on just six carries.

Washington's defense may not give up many yards, but they also don't force many turnovers. The Redskins defense has only forced six TOs this season, while the offense has coughed the ball up seven times. Washington's QB Rex Grossman has six TDs and five INT this season, and they've had to rely heavily on RBs Tim Hightower and Ryan Torain.

Although Philly has looked dismal for most of the season, don't be surprised to see them break out of the slump this weekend. An offense complemented by speedsters DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin can only be held down for so long.

Philadelphia over Washington

(All stats compiled from ESPN)