First, the obvious: last year’s Lions had their bye during Week Nine. So, so much better than this year’s occurring in Week Five. Granted, we’re not fully healthy right now and could use the rest. But after this week it’s 13 straight weeks of games. The Lions will tell you until they’re Honolulu blue in the face that it’s “one week at a time”, and they’re being honest, but if we look at the big picture it seems as though securing the NFC’s one seed may prove critical to postseason success. But 13 weeks… that’s just a lot of football. One could imagine many different weeks that would be preferable for the bye. The Lions are a hearty bunch, but to make it through such a long gauntlet unscathed would be a minor miracle. So we’re a little salty about a Week Five bye. But we’ll take it. Getting Barnes, Branch, and (especially) Ragnow back from injury could be make-or-break when it comes to what will surely be tight games against our divisional foes. They say Frankie Rag has a partially torn pec — at least a multi-week injury — so there’s an argument to be made that this circumstance has at least somewhat fortunate timing.
Despite there being no Lions game to dissect, the NFL for some reason continues to exist and function this weekend, with a bevy of games like usual. Let’s pick a few, shall we?
WEEK FIVE PICKS: MIGHT AS WELL
Last Week: 4-1-0, Season: 12-8-0, Lifetime: 67-38-3
Ravens (-2.5) @ Bengals — The Bengals, Jaguars and Bears are my “When Is It Finally Gonna Click?” teams. I think the Bears are a complete toss-up and anybody who tells you, “This is the week Caleb Williams figures it out.” is bluffing. The Jaguars kind of have to get it done this week or their season’s starting to look lost. That leaves the Bengals. I want to take them here. They probably should’ve won that game against KC. Their season would feel totally different. They seem to relish their games against the big boys, and they’re home dogs. OK, I’ve talked myself into it. Gimme the Bengals. Skyline.
Packers (-3) @ Rams — One home dog I cannot talk myself into is the LA Rams. Stafford is almost completely devoid of weapons. And (historically) he’s had trouble with the Packers. There’s a teeny-tiny mental block there. It’s very small, but it exists. Also, I think we’re overdue for the Josh Jacobs game, and this is the defense against which he can break out. I think Jordan Love connects with the NFL’s most underrated receiver, Jayden Reed, and leads the Pack to a comfortable victory. Cheeseheads.
Giants (+7) @ Seahawks — The Lions played excellently last week. Like, really really good. They were a relentless barrage. And Seattle just kept on coming. It was a closer game than the 13-pt difference would suggest. What I’m saying is: the Seahawks have figured out how to play terrific offense, and against a slightly sub-par Giants unit I see them scoring at least 30. I don’t see a Danny Dimes offense getting over 21, so this is a math pick. Ken Walker, Geno-no-no, and his receiving corps are among the best skill position groups in the league. They’re still a little banged-up on deef but that’s not gonna matter at home against a Giants team making one of the longest road trips in the NFL at a 4:30 start. Seahawks big.
Cowboys (+2.5) @ Steelers — I’m still a Justin Fields believer. We’re getting more rare these days, but I still can envision that dude making fantastic plays and dominating, not just eking out wins as he has been thus far. In a Sunday Nighter that’ll have uniforms evoking images of the 1970s, I think the Steelers have the edge against a Dallas D minus Parsons and Lawrence. I like the anti-hook too much not to take it. Gimme the Steelers by a field goal.
Saints (+5.5) @ Chiefs — These Chiefs have been squeaking by during the first part of the season. Some would call them lucky. But they’re making their own luck. Their down big in the RB room but they’ve still got great skill on offense and Steve Spagnuolo calling the shots on deef. I think they flip the “they keep getting lucky” narrative on its head this week and put up a huge game against New Orleans. For several years these Chiefs have shown up bigger when the lights shine brightest. It’s the Monday Nighter, don’t overthink it. Chief time.
That’s it for the nice respite that is Week Five. I hope the Lions take full advantage of this rest, because now they have 3/4 of a season to go through with no breaks. I hope you Lions fans reading this have a good time at a fall festival or pumpkin patch this week. Auf Wiedersehen!
