Buccaneers at Bears

The Buccaneers have looked increasingly better but still have yet to face a legitimate threat. The Bears were the same through three games and when they faced a decent team they couldn’t win. The difference between the Buccaneers and the Bears is that the Buccaneers have been able to beat their opponents pretty handily whereas the Bears have struggled in pretty much every game. Even with the injuries the Buccaneers have gone through, they seem like a better team than the Bears and should come away from this game with a win.

Expert Prediction: Buccaneers 27, Bears 20

Analytics-Based Prediction: Buccaneers 31, Bears 17

Jaguars at Texans

The Texans have been really bad through the first four weeks and now are playing with a new coach, but it is worth noting that they had arguably the hardest schedule to start a season in recent memory. The Jaguars, on the other hand, have looked better than expected through four weeks but have still been pretty bad. The Texans have a much better quarterback and an overall more talented roster, however their coaching situation is completely unknown. It is hard to see Houston dropping a fifth game in a row when playing a bad team, so they should walk away with their first win of the season.

Expert Prediction: Texans 35, Jaguars 27

Analytics-Based Prediction: Texans 33, Jaguars 25

Bengals at Ravens

The Bengals have been better than expected so far this season, but the Ravens appeared to return to form last week after having a bad performance against the Chiefs. Baltimore will once again be one of the best teams in the NFL and the Bengals won’t be able to do much to stop them. Lamar Jackson should have a massive game once again and Cincinnati will struggle to put up points. Expect an easy win for the Ravens.

Expert Prediction: Ravens 34, Bengals 17

Analytics-Based Prediction: Ravens 37, Bengals 20

Panthers at Falcons

The Panthers have looked surprisingly good this season, especially without Christian Mccaffrey. The Falcons are loaded on offense but have a ton of injuries on the defensive side of the ball, giving them arguably the worst defense in the NFL. The Panthers should be able to move the ball up and down the field against this Falcons defense, but the same can be said for the Falcons offense. This will likely be a shootout, but at the end of the day the Panthers have looked better than the Falcons this year, so they seem slightly more likely to come away with a win.

Expert Prediction: Panthers 38, Falcons 35

Analytics-Based Prediction: Panthers 25, Falcons 29

Raiders at Chiefs

The Raiders have looked solid this year, but they don’t have a chance of beating the Chiefs. The only teams capable of beating Kansas City need elite defenses. You simply won’t beat the Chiefs in a shootout. Oakland has a solid defense, but they aren’t good enough to play the Chiefs like the Patriots did last week. Oakland will try to run the ball with Josh Jacobs, but they will fall behind early and be forced to give up on the ground game. After that, Kansas City will pull away and this game will be over by the fourth quarter.

Expert Prediction: Chiefs 33, Raiders 24

Analytics-Based Prediction: Chiefs 40, Raiders 9

Cardinals at Jets

The Cardinals have dropped off since starting the season hot, but now they play the worst team in the NFL. The Jets have been awful this year thanks to a horrendous coaching staff and below-average roster. Sam Darnold has shown flashes of his potential but isn’t nearly polished enough to be a good quarterback due to the poor situation he has been placed in. He could have been a superstar on another team. The Cardinals will come out and put a ton of points on the board early and then proceed to run the clock.

Expert Prediction: Cardinals 35, Jets 14

Analytics-Based Prediction: Jets 37, Cardinals 27

Eagles at Steelers

The Eagles have been horrible this year and the Steelers have looked great so far, albeit they haven’t played any legitimate threats. The Eagles have been one of the sloppiest teams this year after looking like they could be in for a rebound year and really have no chance of winning this game. Carson Wentz has been horrendous and constantly turns the ball over. Their only bright spot has been Miles Sanders, and he can only do so much. The Steelers defense will generate multiple turnovers and completely shut this offense down and on the other side of the ball the Steelers will be able to score against this mediocre defense. Expect the Steelers to win with ease.

Expert Prediction: Steelers 28, Eagles 13

Analytics-Based Prediction: Steelers 25, Eagles 20

Rams at Washington

The Rams have started the season well, as they have been able to beat three NFC East teams and came close to upsetting the Bills. Washington has been better than expected but is still not a very good team. The Rams will be looking to become contenders, on the other hand, so this game will get out of hand pretty quickly. The Rams should be able to move the ball well and can keep the Washington offense in check with Kyle Allen under center. Expect this game to be over by the fourth quarter and possibly even sooner.

Expert Prediction: Rams 34, Washington 20

Analytics-Based Prediction: Rams 32, Washington 17

Dolphins at 49ers

The 49ers are simply not the same team with the number of injuries they currently have. They could see some of their starters return, so that will be a situation worth monitoring, but even if they bring some of their guys back, this should be a close game. The Dolphins may have three losses, but those were to the Patriots, Bills, and Seahawks, and all three of those games Miami had a chance going into the fourth quarter. The 49ers are not going to be at full strength even with a few guys coming back, as most of them will still be limited, so expect the Dolphins to hang with them. At the end of the day, the 49ers are too unpredictable to give the win given their injury situation, so Miami gets the slight edge.

Expert Prediction: Dolphins 24, 49ers 21

Analytics-Based Prediction: 49rs 37, Dolphins 20

Giants at Cowboys

The Cowboys have been disappointing so far, but the Giants have been one of the league’s worst teams this year. Daniel Jones is looking horrible without Saquon Barkley, and the team as a whole has suffered. This team had decent expectations going into the year and ended up flopping. The Cowboys have an incredibly talented offense, but their defense has been really bad. That won’t be an issue in this game, however, because the Giants offense is equally as bad. The Cowboys will put up a ton of points and hold the Giants in check, so expect a blowout here.

Expert Prediction: Cowboys 38, Giants 14

Analytics-Based Prediction: Cowboys 17, Giants 9

Colts at Browns

The Colts and the Browns have both looked solid this year, but neither of them have beaten anyone really good. Because of that, this seems like it will be a pretty evenly matched game. The Browns and the Colts will both try to dominate this game on the ground. Cleveland looked unstoppable even without Nick Chubb last week and shouldn’t miss a step with Kareem Hunt filling in for him. The Browns and the Colts both have good defenses as well, so expect an old-fashioned game around running the football and good defense. This should be a very close game, but the Browns seem more capable of consistently running the ball than the Colts and are at home, so they seem slightly more likely to come away with a win.

Expert Prediction: Browns 24, Colts 20

Analytics-Based Prediction: Colts 21, Browns 10

Vikings at Seahawks

The Seahawks have looked like one of the two best teams in the NFC so far and the Vikings have been very underwhelming this year. This game could be closer than expected because the Seahawks defense is very weak right now and the Vikings have the offensive weapons to move the ball, so expect a shootout. The Vikings will not be able to stop Russell Wilson, but if they can either slow him down or get a turnover they might have a chance of winning this game. Still, that doesn’t seem likely to happen and even if it does, Wilson should find a way to come back. Expect the Seahawks to come away with a win.

Expert Prediction: Seahawks 41, Vikings 35

Analytics-Based Prediction: Vikings 35, Seahawks 28

Chargers at Saints

The Saints will be hoping to build off of last week’s win, but they still didn’t look great. The Lions are not a good team and that game was somewhat close. The Chargers looked great early on against the Buccaneers, but they failed to close the game like they tend to do. This could be a pretty close game, but the Saints should be able to take over with Alvin Kamara and there is a chance Michael Thomas returns. If the Chargers are able to play the way they did early on against the Chiefs and the Buccaneers for the whole game, they will win, but that doesn’t seem likely to happen.

Expert Prediction: Saints 27, Chargers 21

Analytics-Based Prediction: Saints 35, Chargers 10

Bills at Titans

The Bills have looked really good through the first four games of the year, and while the Titans did start the season 3-0, they struggled against some pretty bad teams and now have to deal with Covid. Many Titans players will likely miss this game because of the virus, so they could look similar to how the Patriots did against the Chiefs. Even if the Titans were at full strength, the Bills have looked like a better team so far this year. Buffalo should win this game unless Derrick Henry is able to have a massive game, enabling the Titans to control the clock and keep Josh Allen off the field.

Expert Prediction: Bills 34, Titans 28

Analytics-Based Prediction: Titans 38, Bills 31