ESPN Week 4 Picks

[SVN]

NFL Picks and Predictions for Week 4 - National Football League - ESPN

only two go with the pats.

on the other hand peter king has picked the pats..

 

[NENGFAN]

NFL Picks and Predictions for Week 4 - National Football League - ESPN

only two go with the pats.

on the other hand peter king has picked the pats..

And none have picked the Jets!

NYJ @ NO
Sun 4:05PM Saints New Orleans Saints New Orleans Saints New Orleans Saints New Orleans Saints New Orleans Saints New Orleans Saints New Orleans Saints New Orleans Saints New Orleans Saints New Orleans

 

[dtbrks]

I believe most of those "experts" also picked the Falcons last week.

hmmmmm....

 

[Kontradiction]

Good. Let them pick against us. I was tired of the team being considered the top dog by the media year in and year out. Though, it is a little concerning that Peter King is pick us.

 

[jmt57]

Actually most of their crew picked the Pats last week. Mike Ditka, Eric Allen, Mike Golic and Bill Simmons were the only espn'ers to pick Atlanta.

http://www.patsfans.com/new-england...75234-week-three-falcons-patriots-page10.html

 

[SeymourTrophies]

Good lord. Someone picked the Lions over the Bears?

Did the Lions have Jason Campbell traded to the Bears this week?

 

[jmt57]

CBS: take the Ravens and the points

Predicting against the spread - Pats by 1.5 points - five out of six at CBS Sports went with the Ravens to cover. Only Pete Prisco went with the Pats while Harmon Forecast, Clark Judge, Greg Urbano, Peter Madden and Dave Richard went with the Ravens plus the points. In their fan vote it's evenly split, 51% going with the Pats and 49% with Baltimore.

Pete Prisco predicts the Pats win 31-28.
We thought we'd be talking about that vaunted New England offense against that great Ravens defense, but the Patriots haven't lived up to the hype. Two years ago, the Ravens should have defeated the Patriots, only to lose on a questionable call. Those were different teams. I think this one will be a shootout for both teams. Tom Brady will hit some big throws, but so will Joe Flacco to keep it close.

Harmon Forecast predicts the Pats win 20-19.
This should be a great defensive game. The Ravens' defense has dominated every running back it has faced this season. Meanwhile, the Patriots' defense took away the Falcons' rushing attack last week. Patriots QB Tom Brady is looking sharper, but he still hasn't hit his stride yet.

 

[jmt57]

Sporting News: 6 out of 7 pick the Ravens to win

Vinnie Iyer of the Sporting News picks the Ravens by two.

AFC Game of the Week

Baltimore Ravens at New England Patriots. For the second consecutive game, the Patriots host an undefeated team led by a second-year quarterback. Few teams in the league, however, are playing better all-around football than the Ravens.

Their offense has scored in the 30s in every game, with Joe Flacco's fine passing boosting their powerful rushing attack. Defensively, although the signature big plays haven't been there, they haven't been necessary. When you can put up that many points, your "D" just needs to be steady.

The defense still excels at shutting down the run and rendering offenses one-dimensional. When the Patriots haven't run well, it has allowed teams to get pressure in Tom Brady's face. The Ravens have defenders who can both rush him and take advantage of any mistakes he makes. It will be tough, but Flacco and John Harbaugh will get the first big road win of their short careers.
Ravens 23, Patriots 21

Here's the rest of the Sporting News picks:
Pats 28, Ravens 20 - Steve Greenberg
Ravens 32, Pats 27 - Clifton Brown
Ravens 20, Pats 17 - Albert Breer
Ravens 20, Pats 16 - Real Scouts
Ravens 17, Pats 13 - Russ Lande
Ravens 16, Pats 14 - Dennis Dillon

 

[jmt57]

PFT picks the Pats by a field goal

NBC Sports/Pro Football Talk goes with the Pats by three.

For the second straight week, Tom Brady faces a hotshot second-year quarterback. And for the second straight week, an argument could be made that Brady is playing inferior football to his counterpart.

Brady missed more throws than Matt Ryan last Sunday, but it didn’t matter because Brady’s teammates played their best game of the season. Randy Moss dominated despite a back injury, the offensive line pushed Atlanta around, and the defense was flawless in the second half.

The entire squad will have to repeat that effort to beat Joe Flacco and a complete Ravens squad that is barely an underdog in Foxborough. (We can’t remember the last time a road team was nearly favored against a Brady-led Patriots team.)

Flacco and Baltimore’s aggressive offense, which plays out of the shotgun more than ever, will be difficult for the Patriots to contain. But the Ravens' secondary isn’t quite as good as it once was, and the Patriots are still the best at finding a weakness and exposing it.

Pick: Patriots 31, Ravens 28

 

[eagle eye]

Unreal looking at them picks. I'm not at all confident about the Patriots this week but I think they are favourites at home. Very surprising that only two of them pick us.
But then again when you look at some of the other picks.

I notice they all except one of them pick the 0-3 Titans at Jacksonville which appears a lottery game to me.
And they all pick the Redskins to beat the Bucs. Now we all know that the Bucs are no great shakes but the Redskins offense is the most disorganised bunch I've seen this year.
And they all go for the Texans who are the worst team against the run to beat Oakland.

 

[jmt57]

Fox Sports picks the Ravens

Peter Schrager of Fox Sports is going with the Ravens by one.

Baltimore at New England: Talk about a colossal showdown. Baltimore's offense (430.3 yards per game) ranks No. 1 in the AFC and No. 2 in the NFL, while the defense (282.7) is fourth and seventh. New England ranks No. 3 in the AFC and No. 5 in the NFL in offense (395.0) and third in the conference and sixth in the league in defense (262.3). Crazy stat of the week? Both Joe Flacco and Tom Brady won 14 of their first 19 starts. Too soon to compare the two quarterbacks? I don't think so. Flacco is for real, folks. Give me the new-look, high-flyin', offensive-minded Ravens on the road in a tight one Sunday.
The pick: Ravens 27, Patriots 26

Adam Schein believes Flacco will outperform Brady this week.

In a game that features up to five future Hall of Famers, Flacco will be the star. You still have to game plan for the Ravens running attack first and foremost. But these are not your older brother's Ravens. Flacco, Derrick Mason, Todd Heap and the rest of the players in Cam Cameron's passing attack will pose problems for the New England defense. Do you realize the Ravens rank first in the AFC with 430 yards per game? Flacco has thrown for 839 yards this year and can exploit areas of weakness in the Pats defense.
And Tom Brady is still Tom Brady. But the Ravens defense is playing brilliantly right now. The Pats will be fine, but Brady, Randy Moss and the offense are just not totally there yet.

Fox's computer game-simulator, WhatIfSports projects a 60% chance of the Ravens winning and a 23-22 Pats loss to Baltimore. They have Randy Moss getting 100 yards receiving, both quarterbacks throwing one pick and both teams rushing for over 100 yards.

 

[The_Man]

Re: Sporting News: 6 out of 7 pick the Ravens to win

Vinnie Iyer of the Sporting News picks the Ravens by two.


AFC Game of the Week

Baltimore Ravens at New England Patriots. For the second consecutive game, the Patriots host an undefeated team led by a second-year quarterback. Few teams in the league, however, are playing better all-around football than the Ravens.

Their offense has scored in the 30s in every game, with Joe Flacco's fine passing boosting their powerful rushing attack. Defensively, although the signature big plays haven't been there, they haven't been necessary. When you can put up that many points, your "D" just needs to be steady.

The defense still excels at shutting down the run and rendering offenses one-dimensional. When the Patriots haven't run well, it has allowed teams to get pressure in Tom Brady's face. The Ravens have defenders who can both rush him and take advantage of any mistakes he makes. It will be tough, but Flacco and John Harbaugh will get the first big road win of their short careers. Ravens 23, Patriots 21

I thought the divisional playoff win at #1 seed Tennessee last year was a pretty big road win. Not to mention the Wild Card win at Miami, and even the prime time win to shut down Texas Stadium and hold on to the final playoff berth over the Pats.

 

[ALP]

Re: CBS: take the Ravens and the points

Predicting against the spread - Pats by 1.5 points - five out of six at CBS Sports went with the Ravens to cover. Only Pete Prisco went with the Pats while Harmon Forecast, Clark Judge, Greg Urbano, Peter Madden and Dave Richard went with the Ravens plus the points. In their fan vote it's evenly split, 51% going with the Pats and 49% with Baltimore.

Pete Prisco predicts the Pats win 31-28.
We thought we'd be talking about that vaunted New England offense against that great Ravens defense, but the Patriots haven't lived up to the hype. Two years ago, the Ravens should have defeated the Patriots, only to lose on a questionable call. Those were different teams. I think this one will be a shootout for both teams. Tom Brady will hit some big throws, but so will Joe Flacco to keep it close.

Harmon Forecast predicts the Pats win 20-19.
This should be a great defensive game. The Ravens' defense has dominated every running back it has faced this season. Meanwhile, the Patriots' defense took away the Falcons' rushing attack last week. Patriots QB Tom Brady is looking sharper, but he still hasn't hit his stride yet.

Prisco forgets his history....dont blame the refs for a low tier coach calling a TO at the worst possible moment....

 

[mgteich]

I don't think that is unreasonable for our defense to give up 24-27 points to the current #1 offense in the AFC.

The open issue is how many points the patriots offense will score against the BALT defense.

 

[jmt57]

Walter Football: Ravens by 7

Walter Football joins the ranks of those picking the Ravens this week.

Line: Patriots by 2. Total: 44.5.
Walt's Projected Line (Before Week 3)atriots -3.
Walt's Projected Line (After Week 3): Patriots -3.

NEW ENGLAND OFFENSE: The Patriots put up 26 on the Falcons, but they did not look good in the process. Tom Brady once again was hesitant and misfired on some throws he normally would have converted. When Brady was on target, Joey Galloway was dropping a pass or Sam Aiken was running the wrong route. Brady was so frustrated that he yelled at Aiken, "How f***ing hard is that!?"

New England was able to win because the team established Fred Taylor on the ground. Taylor looked impressive, breaking numerous tackles en route to a 105-yard performance.

However, don't expect that again. The Falcons are horrendous versus the run, while the Ravens are ranked second against it. The Patriots will be forced to utilize a one-dimensional offense once again.

Baltimore's stop unit is too good and Brady is not himself. Brady had major problems against the Jets, so it doesn't bode well here because the Ravens run a similar style of defense.

BALTIMORE OFFENSE: The other problem for New England is its defense. With Richard Seymour gone and Jerod Mayo out, they're having major problems stopping the pass and getting to the quarterback. Their ability to defend the run is the best aspect of their stop unit, and they rank just 14th against it.

Joe Flacco is really coming into his own, and I really can't see the Patriots containing him. Stationed behind one of the best offensive lines in the league, Flacco will have tons of time to find his targets.

Flacco will also have the luxury of just handing the ball off to Ray Rice and Willis McGahee, who haven't been stopped yet this season. New England's defense doesn't have the manpower to make that happen.

RECAP: The wrong team is favored here. The Patriots did a great job bouncing back last week, but they managed to do so against an overrated Falcons squad that was playing out of its element on the road and in the rain.

Baltimore, on the other hand, has an outstanding and underrated offense to match its prolific defense. Brady has not been himself this year, and I'll be shocked if he doesn't struggle on Sunday.

Week 4 NFL Pick: Ravens 27, Patriots 20

 

[mayoclinic]

NFL Picks and Predictions for Week 4 - National Football League - ESPN

only two go with the pats.

on the other hand peter king has picked the pats..

Jaworski and Schefter are by far the sharpest 2 out of that group, and both pick the Pats. Merrill Hoge and Chris Mortenson ... gimme a break.

 

[SeymourTrophies]

Jaworski and Schefter are by far the sharpest 2 out of that group, and both pick the Pats. Merrill Hoge and Chris Mortenson ... gimme a break.

Mort's a muppet. Hoge picked against the pats? Shocking. That's never, ever happened before.

 

[patriots pam]

I think I'm finally starting to get into the Pats flying under everyone's radar. It's been a while, so I'd almost forgotten how sweet the stunned surprise is when they end up on top!


Also, I'm absolutely convinced that they pay some staffer every week just to remind Merrill Hoge that he can only pick the Steelers to win in the game they actually play, and not the other 15 as well. As consolation, they let him holler out "factor back" as many times as he can manage during his segments.

 

[jmt57]

USA Today: even 4-4 split btween Pats and Ravens

USA TODAY's weekly NFL picks for 2009 season - USATODAY.com

Jarrett Bell, Jim Corbett, Sean Leahy and Gary Mihoces predict a Pats win.
Nate Davis, Pete O'Brien, Tom Pedulla and Skip Wood went with the Ravens.

O'Brien, who has the highest correct percentage of the group through week three, also predicted the Ravens would win the Super Bowl in preseason. He says the Ravens will deny Patriots Sunday.

Baltimore (+2) at New England
Tom Brady is 11-0 at home since 2007 and the Ravens have never beaten the Patriots. But I don't particularly care. Remember, I was the guy picking Baltimore to win the Super Bowl before it was cool.
RAVENS, 34-27

 

[jmt57]

Yahoo picks the Ravens

On Yahoo two out of three of their 'experts' pick the Ravens to win, and 60% of their audience picked Baltimore as well. Charles Robinson and Jason Cole went with the Ravens, while Michael Silver - a columnist I've never thought much of for his football knowledge - picked the Pats to win.