Week 7 NFL Picks: San Diego Chargers and 2 Other Teams on Upset Alert

In a week with what looks to be a lot of close matchups, being the favorite is no guarantee of success. These three teams will need to watch out for the underdogs in Week 7.

San Diego Chargers (at NY Jets)

San Diego has put up lots of impressive numbers this season, but the one that should worry Chargers fans is five. That’s the number of points by which San Diego eked out a win over the lowly Broncos in their last game (also on the road).

The Chargers’ gaudy offensive stats won’t mean much against a Jets defense that is, by a wide margin, the strongest they’ve faced this season. As long as the Jets can muster some kind of offense in front of the home fans (and ex-Charger LaDainian Tomlinson could be the man for the job), New York will create too many turnovers for San Diego to come out on top.

Cleveland Browns (vs. Seattle)

Seattle is a field goal away from coming into this meeting on a three-game winning streak. Marshawn Lynch, who finally seemed to wake up against the Giants with a 98-yard effort, should give the struggling Cleveland run defense fits.

The Browns, meanwhile, will be even more one-dimensional than usual against the Seahawks’ stout run-stoppers. Unless Colt McCoy (eight TDs in five games) plays a lot bigger than he’s been doing, Cleveland looks to be in for a long afternoon.

Miami Dolphins (vs. Denver)

Even as bad as the Broncos have been this season, they’ve managed to win a game and put some respectable numbers of points on the scoreboard. The same can’t be said of Miami, especially coming off their excruciating 24-6 loss to the Jets.

Obviously, Denver’s pass defense isn’t on the same level as Darrelle Revis and company, but Matt Moore is still going to be hard-pressed to look like an NFL QB. Tim Tebow (with top receiver Brandon Lloyd traded to the Rams) is no bargain either, but in a close contest the difference could come down to the fact that Tebow can make plays with his legs and Moore can’t.