I'm going to hijack this thread and get back to the original topic for just a moment, since I don't know where else to put this and it doesn't warrant it's own thread.
Fox Sports is split 3-3 on this game.
Alex Marvez, John Czarnecki, and Peter Schrager are going with the Pats.
Jay Glazer, Adam Schein, and Adam Caplan think the Ravens will win.
Weekly expert NFL picks - NFL News - FOX Sports on MSN
NFL Week 6 picks: Playoff rematches - NFL - Sporting News
Vinnie Iyer of Sporting News says "
The odds against the Pats winning this playoff rematch aren't as long as Brady's hair. But the Ravens are just better all-around, thanks to a deep running game and swarming defense. Ravens 23, Patriots 20."
Insiders' Picks - Showtime Sports
From Showtime's
Inside The NFL, Cris Collinsworth goes with the Pats and Warren Sapp picks the Ravens - just the opposite of what I would have guessed they would do - while Phil Simms abstains.
Just for the record, here's espn's picks:
NFL Picks and Predictions for Week 6 - National Football League - ESPN
Ravens: Allen, Golic, Hoge, Jaworski, Mortensen, Schlereth, 'Pick'em'
Pats: Schefter, Wickersham, Accuscore (22.3-21.7, 52%-47%)
Sunday Countdown: Your weekly NFL guide - ESPN
Ravens: Mike Ditka and Cris Carter
Pats: Keyshawn Johnson and Tom Jackson
Video Games - EA Sports Simulations - ESPN
Madden sim: Ravens 33, Pats 23
(In another Madden sim, they have Favre throwing 3 picks Sunday)
NFL Week 6 predictions by Peter King - Peter King - SI.com
Peter King: "
Lost in the kerfuffle of the rout of the Dolphins and the Randy Moss trade and the very serious discussion of Tom Brady's hair: New England's defense isn't fixed, and I don't see the Patriots either covering Anquan Boldin or stopping Ray Rice. Ravens 31, Patriots 23"
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/writers/kerry_byrne/10/15/gotw.ravens.patriots/index.html?
Kerry Byrne:
Baltimore's struggling offense will find a cushy reception from New England's poor defense (24.0 PPG, 26th).
But otherwise, the Patriots appear to matchup well this time around against Baltimore: New England has the best Offensive Hogs in the business at a time when Baltimore's Defensive Hogs have played below their usual standards.
New England rarely makes mistakes in the passing game (five sacks, two INT) at a time when the Baltimore defense is having trouble forcing mistakes in the passing game (five sacks, one INT).
But most importantly, the Patriots have been making big plays on defense in special teams. It's helped make New England the highest-scoring team in football (32.8 PPG), as well as the most efficient scoring machine in football, too (No. 1 on our Scoreability Index).
New England will ride one of those big plays to a narrow victory.
New England 21, Baltimore 20
WalterFootball.com: NFL Picks Against the Spread - Week 6, 2010
"
Overrated NFL Teams:
A good handicapper is always aware of which teams are overrated and underrated by the public. I'll attempt to list the teams I think are the most overrated and underrated each week. Keep in mind that even if a team is listed here, that doesn't mean that I think lowly of them; they are simply overrated in Vegas' eyes. These are the squads that Vegas can boost the spread on.
New England Patriots -
This Patriots defense has been awful this year, and now the offense loses firepower in the wake of the Randy Moss trade. New England isn't good anymore, yet this point spread says that they and Baltimore are equals.
NEW ENGLAND OFFENSE: It's hard to believe that Randy Moss was shipped off that quickly. Deion Branch has been brought in to replace him. Branch is injury-prone and mediocre, but he's familiar with the offense and will have an entire week of practice with Tom Brady, so there won't be any sort of confusion like the Vikings had with Moss on Monday night.
Having said that, Brady has a daunting task ahead of him. Like the Broncos last week, the Patriots' one-dimensional attack will make it difficult for them to sustain drives.
The Ravens are third against the pass, having limited all but one opponent (Kyle Orton in garbage time) to 167 passing yards or fewer. Without Moss as a big-play threat, New England's offense could be bogged down.
BALTIMORE OFFENSE: We all saw what the Ravens did to the Patriots in the playoffs back in January. Ray Rice ran all over them, allowing a hobbled Joe Flacco to do virtually nothing.
History will likely repeat itself. Missing Ty Warren and Richard Seymour, the Patriots are 25th against the rush, surrendering 4.7 yards per carry. Ray Rice, who is finally getting goal-line work, seems poised for a monster game.
Unlike last January, Flacco is healthy and playing really well. The Patriots are also 25th versus the pass; each opponent they've faced has thrown for at least 220 yards, including Ryan Fitzpatrick. If New England couldn't contain Fitzpatrick, how are they going to deal with these Ravens?
RECAP: This Patriots defense has been awful this year, and now the offense loses firepower in the wake of the Randy Moss trade. New England isn't good anymore, yet this point spread says that they and Baltimore are equals. I don't agree with that.
The one edge the Patriots have is that Bill Belichick has had two weeks to prepare for the Ravens. The last time Belichick has lost coming off a bye was in 2002. However, looking closely at the opponents he's battled with a week off since, you'll see that none of them were very good:
2003 - Dallas (10-6; led by Quincy Carter, team sucked)
2004 - Buffalo (9-7; was 0-2 in that matchup, began the year 0-4)
2005 - Buffalo (5-11; only a five-point victory)
2006 - Buffalo (7-9; what's with the Bills always being scheduled after New England's bye?)
2007 - Buffalo (7-9; poor Bills)
2008 - San Francisco (7-9)
2009 - Miami (7-9; didn't cover an 11-point spread)
See what I mean? And unlike in years past, Belichick doesn't have a good team. I don't think he has the horses to beat the high-powered Ravens - even with a week off.
After all that I figured Walter would take Baltimore in a rout; instead his prediction is the Ravens 27, Pats 24.