It was yet another outstanding week for the NFL overall even without the reigning Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs on the schedule. With Week 6 in the books, we’re already on to Week 7 and as I was putting together this week’s NFL picks and score predictions, you won’t believe some of the incredible matchups in store.
This week is shaping up to be absolute peak football season with fall vibes creeping in all across the United States and matchups on the docket like Sean Payton heading back to New Orleans on Thursday night, a couple of “Game of the Week” candidates featuring NFC North powerhouses, and a Monday Night double-header which includes a possible Super Bowl matchup.
Buckle in for another wild week of NFL football, as well as another fun week of NFL score predictions and game picks.
Teams on Week 7 bye: Bears, Cowboys
Weekly NFL picks and score predictions for Week 7 games
Denver Broncos (3-3) @ New Orleans Saints (2-4)
Thursday, October 17, 8:15 PM ET
Thursday night marks the return of Sean Payton to New Orleans for the very first time since he stepped down as the team’s long-time head coach and one of the winningest head coaches in modern football history. Payton and his Denver Broncos now are coming off of a tough loss at home in Week 6 to the Los Angeles Chargers in which some of the same issues that have plagued them in other games reared their ugly heads.
The Broncos were inefficient offensively early in the game, and even when they did get some things going on that side of the ball, their best drives were wiped out with turnovers or penalties. They made a furious comeback late, but it was too late.
The Saints threw rookie quarterback Spencer Rattler into the fire against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and while Rattler showed some nice things out there in his first NFL start, the Saints allowed a whopping 51 points and got steamrolled.
This is basically a toss-up given the fact that New Orleans is playing at home, and neither of these teams has been consistent enough at this stage of the season to say definitively one way or the other what’s going to happen.
I think with the Denver defense having a bit of a clunker against the Chargers on Sunday, we could potentially see them come out against a rookie quarterback like Spencer Rattler and put the pressure on early and often. The question is, will this defense be okay without Pat Surtain II, who is potentially going to miss this game with a concussion? It’s not a great week to have a short week for either of these teams.
Prediction: Broncos win 23-17