NFL: Week Six preview – Copybet
Upsets were prevalent in Week 5 as the last two undefeated teams saw their perfect records wrecked and the biggest underdogs of the season secured a huge road win on Thursday night.
With four teams returning from their bye weeks, it’s the turn of the Minnesota Vikings and Houston Texans to put their feet up in Week 6, which features another London game, a heavyweight clash at Arrowhead, and a Monday night double-header.
Here are our best bets for Week 6.
New York Giants vs Philadelphia Eagles
Thursday Night Football opens the weekly schedule with an NFC East clash between two teams reeling from Week 5 losses.
The Eagles collapsed in the fourth quarter against Denver, blowing a 17-3 lead. Jalen Hurts will be eager to respond, especially against a Giants team that turned the ball over five times last week.
New York’s offensive line remains a liability, which has made things doubly tough for rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart.
He coughed up an inexplicable first-half fumble and added two hurried interceptions in the second half of their late implosion against the New Orleans Saints.
The Eagles have lost only one of their last eight against the Giants, who fell 28-3 at home to their rivals last year, and can cover a -7.5 point handicap with ease.
New York Jets vs Denver Broncos
London hosts its second international game of the season as the 3-2 Broncos face the 0-5 Jets.
Denver looked down and out when Hurts connected with Saquon Barkley for a 47-yard touchdown to put the Eagles 17-3 up in the third quarter last week.
But the Broncos reached the end zone on back-to-back possessions with Bo Nix hitting Troy Franklin for the two-point conversion as the visitors took an 18-17 lead at Lincoln Financial Field and held on with some superb defence in the closing moments.
Denver’s pass rush sacked Hurts six times and they will be out to exploit a porous Jets’ offensive line that constantly collapsed in the face of some clever stunts from the Cowboys last Sunday.
New York have a respectable run game, but they are often forced to abandon it when playing from behind and that happened all too quickly in their 37-20 home loss to Dallas.
That could spell trouble against an opportunistic Broncos’ secondary which, unlike the New York defense, has been able to force turrnovers this year.
Kansas City Chiefs vs Detroit Lions
Sunday Night Football comes from Arrowhead Stadium, where the 2-3 Chiefs will be looking to put down a marker for a potential end-of-season Super Bowl clash with the 4-1 Lions.
Detroit are the hottest team in the NFL, riding a four-game win streak and boasting the top scoring offense. David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs have formed a dynamic backfield, while Aidan Hutchinson leads a ferocious Lions pass rush.
Kansas City appear to have lost some of their winning edge after suffering a shock home defeat to the Jacksonville Jaguars last week.
This matchup has shootout potential, with both teams capable of explosive plays. The over has hit in three of Detroit’s last four games, and each of Kansas City’s last two.
Buffalo Bills vs Atlanta Falcons
The Bills’ 14-match home unbeaten streak was halted by a Stefon Diggs-inspired New England Patriots last Sunday and they will be out to restore their winning momentum when they head south to face the Atlanta Falcons.
Josh Allen, who passed for two touchdowns, called Buffalo’s three-turnover display “sloppy”.
They committed a season-high 11 penalties and missed three good chances to score when inside the Patriots’ half.
The Falcons are about as inconsistent as anything the parity-driven NFL has produced this year.
One week after laying an egg in a 30-0 loss to the Carolina Panthers, they roared back to beat the Washington Commanders 34-27 in Week 4.
How they fare after their bye week is anyone’s guess, but the Falcons are not without a shot of winning given they currently boast the NFL’s top-ranked defence and a very good rush attack that could exploit a Buffalo weakness against the run.