NFL Picks Week 6: Oakland Raiders and 4 Teams Guaranteed To Defend Home

The Oakland Raiders, Detroit Lions, New England Patriots and Chicago Bears will all defend their home field. Playing at home in the NFL does have its advantages. The home team doesn't have to spend time traveling, they are in familiar territory and have the crowd to create noise. Each of these teams has a rabid fan base, who will be out to support their team.

The black hole is one of the best football atmospheres in the entire NFL. The Oakland fans love to put on their Raiders costumes and support the team. They really make it difficult for the opposing team to hear the snap count.

When the Raiders are playing well, this is one of the toughest places to play. The Raiders play a type of hard-nosed football that embodies their fan base. They work to intimidate with their physical play and rabid fan base. Today, the Raiders will give the Cleveland Browns a heavy dose of Darren McFadden. I don't see the Browns stopping this rushing attack, while also struggling to score points.

We all might still be a little shocked over the Lions' 5-0 start, but this team is for real. The city of Detroit is ready to embrace this Lions team, giving them a great home field advantage. Today's game against the San Francisco 49ers will not be an easy win. Jim Harbaugh has the 49ers playing great football, featuring a good running game and strong defense.

The 49ers will slow down the pace of the game, but I expect the Lions to have a few big strikes.  Ultimately, the 49ers won't score enough points to stick with Detroit.

New England is still trying to erase the memory of the Boston Red Sox's epic collapse. The best way to forget is to support the New England Patriots. New England has jumped out to another fast start, featuring a very strong offense. The Patriots are always tough to face at home, because Tom Brady is able to run his no huddle attack. While on the road, the no-huddle is less effective because of the crowd noise.

Today, the Patriots are hosting the Dallas Cowboys, who are in need of a big win. However, I see Tony Romo making more than a few mistakes.

The Chicago Bears are in must-win mode, as another divisional loss would really hurt their playoff chances. Tonight's game against the Minnesota Vikings will be a very tough matchup. The Vikings don't have an impressive record, but have played some decent football.

Chicago can expect to see a heavy dose of Adrian Peterson. The Bears' defense has not done a good job stopping the run. Shutting down Adrian Peterson will be the key to the Bears victory. I think we will see a motivated and Bears defense, looking to rebound from a disappointing performance.