The Week 4 Picks

Match-up: San Francisco (+5.0) @ New Orleans
Breakdown: The Saints will be without Jeremy Shockey, but should feel confident after a close call in Denver last week.
Straight up: New Orleans
Against the Spread: New Orleans

Match-up: Arizona (+1.5) @ New York Jets
Breakdown: Brett Favre's ankle injury appears minor enough that he should play.
Straight up: Arizona
Against the Spread: Arizona

Match-up: Green Bay (+1.0) @ Tampa Bay
Breakdown: Brian Griese attempted 67 passes in Tampa's OT win in Chicago. That's not a good game plan against Green Bay, even with Al "P.I." Harris on the shelf.
Straight up: Green Bay
Against the Spread: Green Bay

Match-up: Atlanta (+7.0) @ Carolina
Breakdown: Rookie quarterback on the road against a decent defense...not exactly a recipe for success.
Straight up: Carolina
Against the Spread: Carolina

Match-up: Cleveland (+3.5) @ Cincinnati
Breakdown: Romeo Crennel calling out Derek Anderson by giving Brady Quinn reps with the first team will accomplish one of two things. Either Anderson feels the pressure and plays like he did the first half of the '07 season, or he feels the pressure and gags like he's done so far in '08.
Straight up: Cleveland
Against the Spread: Cleveland

Match-up: Houston (+7.0) @ Jacksonville
Breakdown: Hey, somebody's got to win, right?
Straight up: Jacksonville
Against the Spread: Jacksonville

Match-up: Minnesota (+3.0) @ Tennessee
Breakdown: When the schedule came out, this looked like a 3-0 contender against a 1-2 team trying to keep its head above water. And it is, just not the way you may have expected. The Titans are perhaps the most underrated team in the league.
Straight up: Tennessee
Against the Spread: Tennessee

Match-up: Denver (-9.0) @ Kansas City
Breakdown: Still not completely sold on this Denver team. They should squeak out another close victory.
Straight up: Denver
Against the Spread: Kansas City

Match-up: San Diego (-7.5) @ Oakland
Breakdown: I know they're 1-2, but with the Patriots, Colts, and Jaguars reeling right now, are the Chargers the favorites in the AFC? One thing's for sure, they're the favorite this week.
Straight up: San Diego
Against the Spread: San Diego

Match-up: Buffalo (-8.0) @ St. Louis
Breakdown: Lots of dissension in the ranks in St. Louis. Marc Bulger is benched in favor of Trent Green. Steven Jackson isn't happy about that. And Scott Linehan is racing Oakland's Lane Kiffin to see which coach reaches the unemployment line first.
Straight up: Buffalo
Against the Spread: Buffalo

Match-up: Washington (+11.0) @ Dallas
Breakdown: You might think the Cowboys dominate this rivalry. Think again. Washington has actually won four of the last six in the series.
Straight up: Washington
Against the Spread: Washington

Match-up: Philadelphia (-3.0) @ Chicago
Breakdown: Remember last season when the Bears drove 97 yards in the last minute and a half with no timeouts to score the game-winning touchdown in Philly? I do, because I was there. Hopefully the Birds remember, too.
Straight up: Philadelphia
Against the Spread: Philadelphia

Match-up: Baltimore (+5.5) @ Pittsburgh
Breakdown: Pittsburgh's Willie Parker is out this week. Lucky for the Steelers, they've got a pretty good passing offense to fall back on.
Straight up: Pittsburgh
Against the Spread: Pittsburgh

Bye: Detroit; Indianapolis; Miami; New England; New York Giants; Seattle

Week 3: 10-6-0 (.625); 5-11-0 (.313)
2008-09 Season: 26-21-0 (.553); 22-24-1 (.478)
Lifetime: 992-590-1 (.627); 784-768-31 (.505)