NFL Week 7 Predictions (2024)

 

Patrick Mahomes #15 of the Kansas City Chiefs throws a pass during an NFL football game against the San Francisco 49ers, Sunday, Oct 23, 2022, at Levi's Stadium, in Santa Clara, CA. The Chiefs won, 44-23. (Andrew Mather/Chiefs Photos)

Week 7 of the 2024 NFL season is on the horizon! There are a bunch of interesting and intriguing games on this week's slate, which includes a riveting AFC-NFC battle featuring two of the better young quarterbacks in the league (Texans-Packers), a huge NFC North matchup between the Lions and the undefeated Vikings, and the game that everybody has been waiting for since they last squared off in February; the Super Bowl rematch, as the undefeated Chiefs take on the 49ers in San Francisco.

With that being said, let's get straight to the picks, starting with a "Thursday Night Football" matchup between two teams looking to bounce back after losing last week.

Thursday Night:

Denver Broncos (3-3) @ New Orleans Saints (2-4): 8:15 p.m. EST (on Prime Video)

Both teams are reeling coming into this Thursday night matchup, as the Broncos fell at home to the division rival Chargers on Sunday and lost standout cornerback Patrick Surtain to a concussion during the game. Meanwhile, on the flip side, the Saints have badly regressed after their surprising white-hot start to the season, losing four straight games. New Orleans will play well at home, but with former longtime head coach Sean Payton making his return to the Big Easy and armed with a stout defence, look for Denver to steal a low-scoring game on the road and extend the Saints' losing streak to five games.

The pick: Broncos 20, Saints 17

Sunday Morning:

New England Patriots (1-5) @ Jacksonville Jaguars (1-5): 9:30 a.m. EST (on NFL Network)

This is a matchup between two teams that currently reside in the cellar dweller in the AFC as the Patriots and Jaguars square off in London. Rookie quarterback Drake Maye played a solid game last week during a loss to the Texans, and he will enjoy a matchup this week against a struggling Jaguars defence. The Jags got blown out by the Bears last week and overall, the vibes around this team are horrible right now. Maye will outplay Trevor Lawrence, lead the Pats to their second win of the season, and, by extension, make Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson's seat even warmer heading into Week 8.

The pick: Patriots 26, Jaguars 24

Sunday Afternoon:

Seattle Seahawks (3-3) @ Atlanta Falcons (4-2): 1:00 p.m. EST (on FOX)

This is shaping up to be a very interesting midseason showdown between two playoff-hopeful teams in the NFC. The Seahawks are reeling after losing three straight, as they have dealt with a lot of injuries on the defensive side of the ball. That development is not a good thing for first-year head coach Mike Macdonald's squad, as the Falcons' offence has been outstanding over the last two games, averaging 37 points and 486.5 yards of offence per game. It will be a shootout at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, with Kirk Cousins getting the best of Geno Smith in the end to help Atlanta improve their winning streak to four games.

The pick: Seahawks 30, Falcons 31

Tennessee Titans (1-4) @ Buffalo Bills (4-2): 1:00 p.m. EST (on CBS)

On paper, this game seems like a huge mismatch. Titans second-year quarterback Will Levis has really struggled so far this season and now, he will have to try to keep pace with Josh Allen, who is once again playing at an MVP level by carrying the Bills' offence. Regardless if whether Pro Bowl wide receiver Amari Cooper (whom the Bills traded for yesterday afternoon) can play this week or not, Tennessee's offence does not have the firepower to keep up with Allen and his propensity to make wild plays like this regularly. Bills will win big at home.

The pick: Titans 13, Bills 30

Cincinnati Bengals (2-4) @ Cleveland Browns (1-5): 1:00 p.m. EST (on CBS)

Both of these AFC North teams have been disappointing so far in 2024. The Bengals managed to beat the Giants last week, but it was far from easy. The defence played well though, which is definitely a great sign for this team moving forward, especially because they get a great chance to continue their upward momentum against a bad Browns offence that stubbornly continues to start Deshaun Watson at quarterback. Look for Joe Burrow to continue to play well as the Bengals win their second game in a row and notch their first win over an AFC team this season.

The pick: Bengals 24, Browns 14

Houston Texans (5-1) @ Green Bay Packers (4-2): 1:00 p.m. EST (on CBS)

This game could be a potential Super Bowl preview. Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud (1,577 passing yards, 10 touchdown passes) and Packers quarterback Jordan Love (1,131 passing yards, 12 touchdown passes in four games) have been playing at a great level to start the season. With this game being in Green Bay, combined with the Packers' defence being elite at taking away the football (Green Bay leads the league with 17 takeaways so far this season), look for the Packers to squeak out a win over the Texans to win their third straight game.

The pick: Texans 26, Packers 30 

Miami Dolphins (2-3) @ Indianapolis Colts (3-3): 1:00 p.m. EST (on FOX)

The Dolphins are coming off a much-needed bye week with all of the injuries that they've dealt with this season, while the Colts are coming off a clutch, close victory over the AFC South rival Titans. For the Colts, it looks like franchise quarterback Anthony Richardson will play, which is great news for them. Meanwhile, for the Dolphins, Tyler Huntley will continue to start at QB with Tua Tagovailoa recovering from another head injury. In what should be a close game between two well-coached teams, look for Richardson and the Colts to take home the win at home.

The pick: Dolphins 20, Colts 23

Detroit Lions (4-1) @ Minnesota Vikings (5-0): 1:00 p.m. EST (on FOX)

This is a huge game that will determine who sits in first place in both the NFC North division and the NFC in general entering Week 8. The Lions have won three straight games, and their very talented offence (30.2 points per game, first in the NFL) is starting to click at an elite level. However, Detroit will now have to go through the rest of the season without their Pro Bowl edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson, who suffered a broken leg during their dominant victory over the Cowboys last week. Meanwhile, the Vikings are well rested as they come off from their bye week and have looked like the best team in the NFL for most of the season so far. It will be close, but Minnesota's stout defence will make enough plays late to seal the deal and push the Vikings to 6-0 for the first time since 2009.

The pick: Lions 23, Vikings 27

Philadelphia Eagles (3-2) @ New York Giants (2-4): 1:00 p.m. EST (on FOX)

The biggest storyline surrounding this game is All-Pro running back Saquon Barkley making his return to New York as the enemy. After spending his first six seasons in the NFL with the Giants, Barkley signed with the NFC East rival Eagles during free agency back in March. Barkley has enjoyed a solid season so far in Philly, totalling 574 yards and five touchdowns in five games. The Giants have been competitive in every game so far this season and that trend will continue here, but in the end, the Eagles' superior talent will win out, with Barkley showing out against his former team on the road.

The pick: Eagles 24, Giants 20

Las Vegas Raiders (2-4) @ Los Angeles Rams (1-4): 4:05 p.m. EST (on CBS)

Both the Raiders and Rams are struggling coming into this game. The Raiders just traded away All-Pro wide receiver Davante Adams, effectively waving the white flag on this season, The Rams are coming off a much-needed bye week and they might get All-Pro wideout Cooper Kupp back from an injury after he missed the team's last three games. Even if Kupp isn't able to return for this game, Matthew Stafford will enjoy a big game against a mediocre Raiders defence to help the Rams get back on track.

The pick: Raiders 17, Rams 27

Carolina Panthers (1-5) @ Washington Commanders (4-2): 4:05 p.m. EST (on CBS)

This game is shaping up to be a high-scoring one, with both the Panthers and the Commanders sporting below-average defences. The Commanders had their four-game losing streak snapped last week as they fell to the Ravens in what was a very entertaining game, but rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels played great in that game and he looks like an MVP candidate right now through the first six weeks of the season. With that being said, I think Daniels will continue to light it up under center for Washington and help the Commanders improve to 5-2 on the campaign.

The pick: Panthers 24, Commanders 33

Kansas City Chiefs (5-0) @ San Francisco 49ers (3-3): 4:25 p.m. EST (on FOX)

This is obviously a huge game for both teams with it being the Super Bowl rematch, but I think this is especially a big one for the 49ers. The reigning NFC champions have been very inconsistent to start the season, but a win over the Chiefs would certainly give this team a lot of momentum and confidence throughout the rest of the season. Meanwhile, although Patrick Mahomes hasn't played great (six touchdown passes to six interceptions), he has certainly done more than enough to help the Chiefs continue to win games. Mahomes is 4-0 in his career against the 49ers, with two of those wins coming in Super Bowls. But this time around, look for Brock Purdy to make a couple of clutch plays late to help the Niners get a small measure of revenge and hand K.C. their first loss of the season.

The pick: Chiefs 23, 49ers 30

Sunday Night:

New York Jets (2-4) @ Pittsburgh Steelers (4-2): 8:20 p.m. EST (on NBC/Peacock)

This is a big-time matchup in the AFC, as the Jets will try to snap their three-game losing streak with the help of new acquisition Davante Adams. Adams is a five-time Pro Bowl wide receiver who has great chemistry with quarterback Aaron Rodgers, which should help the Jets' offence immensely as they take on a very good Steelers defence. Justin Fields has been solid as Pittsburgh's signal-caller thus far, but it seems like Russell Wilson will get the start at quarterback this week, which quite frankly doesn't make sense to me considering Fields' steady level of play. Give me the Jets on the road in a low-scoring slugfest.

The pick: Jets 20, Steelers 17

Monday Night:

Baltimore Ravens (4-2) @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-2): 8:15 p.m. EST (on ESPN/ABC)

This interconference battle is gonna be a fun one to watch. Both the Ravens and the Buccaneers possess high-scoring offences, as the Ravens currently rank first in total offence while the Bucs have the ninth-ranked offence. Lamar Jackson and Baker Mayfield (two quarterbacks from the fabled 2018 draft class) have played very well this season, but the difference in this game will be Derrick Henry. The future Hall of Fame running back will continue his dominant start to the season and help Baltimore win their fifth straight game in a shootout on the road.

The pick: Ravens 34, Buccaneers 31

Los Angeles Chargers (3-2) @ Arizona Cardinals (2-4): 9:00 p.m. EST (ESPN+)

This should be an interesting game. The Chargers are playing on the road for the second straight week after beating the Broncos last week. The Cardinals impressed a couple weeks ago when they managed to go on the road and upset the 49ers. However, they suffered a big setback last week, as they got blown out by the Packers. With talented rookie wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. questionable to play after he suffered a concussion during the game against the Packers on Sunday, I don't think Kyler Murray will have enough at his disposal to score enough points against what has surprisingly been a good Chargers defence. Justin Herbert and the Chargers will win their second game in a row.

The pick: Chargers 24, Cardinals 17