The NFL Oracle has traditionally done pretty well in week 6 of the NFL season, the only “losing record” occurring in 2012, when NFL Oracle went a dismal 4-10. In the three years after that, it turned things around, going a combined 30-14 during that span. However, this year was a slight setback, with NFL Oracle going 7-8.
So, in last week’s edition, we deemed the (3) Pittsburgh Steelers and (31) Miami Dolphins game to be a blowout waiting to happen, giving Pittsburgh the overwhelming odds of 85%. Well, turns out the missing 15% of NFL Oracle’s prediction was the deciding factor in this game, as the Dolphins usurped the Steelers 30-15. That just goes to show you that, no matter how certain you may be, anyone can win in sports.
Our nail-biter from last week was just that: the (27) Jacksonville Jaguars won by a narrow margin over the (26) Chicago Bears, 17-16. NFL Oracle was only 52% certain the Bears would win, but the fact that this game was decided by one point goes to show that the game could have gone either way. But hey, somebody had to win.
Two other notable games picked incorrectly involved the (11) Philadelphia Eagles against the (13) Washington Redskins, as well as the (29) Carolina Panthers versus the (30) New Orleans Saints. NFL Oracle favored the Eagles with 71% odds, yet the Redskins were in sync, pulling off a win of 27-20. With the confidence level as high as it was, one would have expected the game to be somewhat closer, perhaps being decided by a field goal, as opposed to a touchdown, given the fact that the Redskins defied the odds. On paper, the Panthers-Saints game was a close on, with the Saints only winning by a field goal. In line with our thinking for the Eagles-Redskins game, New Orleans’ upset makes sense, as Carolina was favored to win with 68% confidence. However, New Orleans dominated this game from the beginning, so, while the final score shows a game that came down to the wire, looks can be deceiving.
One of the biggest jumps of this week was the Dolphins who moved up 8 spots after beating the Steelers. While the Dolphins jumped out of the water this week the Eagles took a nose dive and fell 7 spots. Both of these were games moved these teams in the rankings but what will the NFL Oracle have to say about these teams and their match-ups next week?
| Rank | Team | Record | Trending |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Minnesota Vikings | (5-0) | -- |
| 2 | Dallas Cowboys | (5-1) | ▲ 2 |
| 3 | New England Patriots | (5-1) | ▲ 4 |
| 4 | Buffalo Bills | (4-2) | ▲ 4 |
| 5 | Pittsburgh Steelers | (4-2) | ▼ 2 |
| 6 | Atlanta Falcons | (4-2) | ▼ 4 |
| 7 | Oakland Raiders | (4-2) | ▼ 2 |
| 8 | Washington Redskins | (4-2) | ▲ 5 |
| 9 | Houston Texans | (4-2) | ▲ 3 |
| 10 | Seattle Seahawks | (4-1) | ▲ 5 |
| 11 | Denver Broncos | (4-2) | ▼ 5 |
| 12 | New York Giants | (3-3) | ▲ 6 |
| 13 | Los Angeles Rams | (3-3) | ▼ 4 |
| 14 | Green Bay Packers | (3-2) | ▼ 4 |
| 15 | Detroit Lions | (3-3) | ▲ 1 |
| 16 | Kansas City Chiefs | (3-2) | ▲ 5 |
| 17 | Baltimore Ravens | (3-3) | ▼ 3 |
| 18 | Philadelphia Eagles | (3-2) | ▼ 7 |
| 19 | Tennessee Titans | (3-3) | ▲ 1 |
| 20 | Arizona Cardinals | (3-3) | ▼ 1 |
| 21 | San Diego Chargers | (2-4) | ▲ 7 |
| 22 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | (2-3) | ▼ 5 |
| 23 | Miami Dolphins | (2-4) | ▲ 8 |
| 24 | Indianapolis Colts | (2-4) | ▼ 1 |
| 25 | Cincinnati Bengals | (2-4) | ▼ 3 |
| 26 | New Orleans Saints | (2-3) | ▲ 4 |
| 27 | Jacksonville Jaguars | (2-3) | -- |
| 28 | New York Jets | (1-5) | ▼ 4 |
| 29 | San Francisco 49ers | (1-5) | ▼ 4 |
| 30 | Chicago Bears | (1-5) | ▼ 4 |
| 31 | Carolina Panthers | (1-5) | ▼ 2 |
| 32 | Cleveland Browns | (0-6) | -- |
Blowout: The best odds NFL Oracle is rewarding this week is 72% to the (25) Cincinnati Bengals over the (32) Cleveland Browns. However, two other games received odds surpassing 70%: the (16) Kansas City Chiefs over the (26) New Orleans Saints and the (4) Buffalo Bills over the Dolphins.
Nail-biter: (3) New England Patriots face off against the Steelers, and NFL Oracle is only giving the Patriots a 50.16% chance of winning. However, it should be noted that the Steelers will be without their starting quarterback, Ben Roethlisberger, so don’t be surprised if New England wins by a favorable margin. The other toss-up game is between the (1) Minnesota Vikings and the Eagles. NFL Oracle is going with the underdog Eagles, giving them a 50.66% chance of winning.
Other games to keep an eye on include the (12) New York Giants against the (13) Los Angeles Rams, with the Rams being the favorites at 57%. However, the Monday Night Football matchup between the (9) Houston Texans and the (11) Denver Broncos should be very interesting, as Texans quarterback Brock Osweiler is not expected to conquer his former team, with NFL Oracle choosing Denver at 56%.
| Date | Games | Oracle_Picks | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thu Oct 20 2016 | (30) CHI @ (14) GB | (14) GB | 65.36% |
| Sun Oct 23 2016 | (12) NYG @ (13) LA | (13) LA | 57.46% |
| Sun Oct 23 2016 | (8) WAS @ (15) DET | (8) WAS | 58.21% |
| Sun Oct 23 2016 | (17) BAL @ (28) NYJ | (17) BAL | 55.21% |
| Sun Oct 23 2016 | (7) OAK @ (27) JAC | (7) OAK | 65.60% |
| Sun Oct 23 2016 | (32) CLE @ (25) CIN | (25) CIN | 72.11% |
| Sun Oct 23 2016 | (26) NO @ (16) KC | (16) KC | 71.19% |
| Sun Oct 23 2016 | (24) IND @ (19) TEN | (19) TEN | 55.69% |
| Sun Oct 23 2016 | (4) BUF @ (23) MIA | (4) BUF | 70.79% |
| Sun Oct 23 2016 | (1) MIN @ (18) PHI | (18) PHI | 50.66% |
| Sun Oct 23 2016 | (21) SD @ (6) ATL | (6) ATL | 57.01% |
| Sun Oct 23 2016 | (22) TB @ (29) SF | (29) SF | 56.56% |
| Sun Oct 23 2016 | (3) NE @ (5) PIT | (3) NE | 50.16% |
| Sun Oct 23 2016 | (10) SEA @ (20) ARI | (20) ARI | 57.96% |
| Mon Oct 24 2016 | (9) HOU @ (11) DEN | (11) DEN | 56.47% |
Here is a more in-depth look at the week 6 results:
[66.26%]: (6) Denver Broncos 13 @ (28) San Diego Chargers 21
[70.98%]: (11) Philadelphia Eagles 20 @ (13) Washington Redskins 27
[58.96%]: (14) Baltimore Ravens 23 @ (18) New York Giants 27
[63.75%]: (25) San Francisco 49ers 16 @ (8) Buffalo Bills 45
[57.26%]: (9) Los Angeles Rams 28 @ (16) Detroit Lions 31
[85.17%]: (3) Pittsburgh Steelers 15 @ (31) Miami Dolphins 30
[72.14%]: (22) Cincinnati Bengals 17 @ (7) New England Patriots 35
[51.90%]: (27) Jacksonville Jaguars 17 @ (26) Chicago Bears 16
[67.55%]: (29) Carolina Panthers 38 @ (30) New Orleans Saints 41
[71.75%]: (32) Cleveland Browns 26 @ (20) Tennessee Titans 28
[55.20%]: (21) Kansas City Chiefs 26 @ (5) Oakland Raiders 10
[63.31%]: (4) Dallas Cowboys 30 @ (10) Green Bay Packers 16
[58.26%]: (2) Atlanta Falcons 24 @ (15) Seattle Seahawks 26
[62.59%]: (23) Indianapolis Colts 23 @ (12) Houston Texans 26
[69.01%]: (24) New York Jets 3 @ (19) Arizona Cardinals 28
Written and published by Tyler Caldwell and Hilary Hoffman