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With five weeks of NFL picks under my belt, the overall record dipped into the red with last week’s 1-2 record. I fully expect to get back on track with this week’s top plays and after digging deep into all the matchups on this Sunday’s NFL slate, the following are my top three picks for Week 5 of the NFL season based on betting odds from BetOnline.

Sunday, Oct. 18

Arizona Cardinals at Pittsburgh Steelers (OVER 44)

The Oddsmakers are teasing us with such a low total line given that Arizona is ranked first in the NFL in scoring with 38 points a game. The Cardinals have almost reached this total on their own in three of its first five games including last Sunday’s 42-17 victory against Detroit. Pittsburgh’s potent offense is missing a big piece of the puzzle with Ben Roethlisberger out of the lineup, but with Michael Vick at the helm it was able to steal a 24-20 victory at San Diego this past Monday night.

The total has gone OVER in all five of Arizona’s games this season and it has gone OVER in four of its last six games on the road. Call me crazy for taking the bait, but I am going with the OVER in this game as well.

Carolina Panthers (+7) at Seattle Seahawks

The Panthers may not be getting the respect they deserve as one of six undefeated teams left in the NFL, but this is still a solid team on both sides of the ball. Carolina is ranked fourth in the league in rushing and its defense is ranked sixth in rushing yards allowed. Seattle is still trying to figure out how it blew a 17-point fourth quarter lead in a 27-24 loss to Cincinnati last Sunday and I think that the impact of that epic fail is going to spill over into this week’s game.

Carolina comes into the NFC tilt with a 3-1 record against the spread this season and it is 4-0-1 ATS in its last five games on the road. The Seahawks’ fabled home field advantage has not been good to bettors lately with a 1-3-1 record ATS in their last five home games. I am taking the seven points in this one as the Panthers earn some well-deserved respect this Sunday.

New England Patriots (-7.5) at Indianapolis Colts

The last time these two teams met was in the 2014 AFC Championship and all anyone can remember from that game was an issue with the air pressure in some of the footballs. I remember New England rolling to a 45-7 victory on its way to another Super Bowl title. The Patriots’ current form at 4-0 has it ranked as one of the top two teams in the league, while the 3-2 Colts are lucky to even be above .500. Andrew Luck should return to the lineup at quarterback, but Indy’s current problems run much deeper than that.

New England has won the last five meetings against the Colts SU and it is 4-1 ATS. You cannot help but get the feeling that the Patriots will be looking to make another statement on Sunday night after winning their first four games by a combined 73 points.

Despite how well a NFL franchise is doing in the current football season, or how well they are ranking coming into Week 6, fans will always see the teams a certain way. This is why ESPN.com had fans vote to see which was their favorite team and compare them against each other, as well as other sports franchises from around the nation; including MLB, NBA, and NHL. There were a total of 122 franchises that were voted on, so compare how each team did against each other, as well against the other sports.

With the top ranked NFL teams currently, some of them not even reaching positions under 50, there is certainly a large skew as to how fans view those teams. There could simply be more fans that voted than others, but all-in-all we see that the Washington Redskins are still universally voted as the worst franchise in the League. The only two other franchises that beat the Redskins as the worst are, New York Knicks (NBA), and Toronto Maple Leafs (NHL).

There are 12 NFL teams that ranked below 80 overall, so that is a good sign. The top voted teams are in that spot due to their appeal. For instance, the Seattle Seahawks were voted number 1 (5 overall) due to their repeated appearances in the Super Bowl, as well as winning it once. The coaches, as well as how much the overall team is worth also plays a big part. If the Seahawks don’t start to perform up to the football hype, they may get knocked down in next year’s votes.

The college football season presses on with a number of interesting matchups on this Saturday’s slate. The following is a quick look at my top three picks for the day based on betting odds from BetOnline.

Saturday, Oct. 17

Louisville Cardinals at Florida State Seminoles (-6.5)

Louisville has bounced back from a 0-3 straight-up start with back-to-back victories against Samford and North Carolina State, but I am still not sold on the idea that it can keep things all that close against Florida State following last week’s bye. There are still a number of question marks with an offense that is ranked 71^st in the nation in passing yards and 78^th running the ball.

The Seminoles have been a tough bet with a 2-3 record against the spread to go along with their perfect 5-0 SU start, but they continue to separate themselves as one of the top teams in the ACC this season. Florida State has a solid arm in quarterback Everett Golson and Dalvin Cook ran for 222 yards on 22 carries in this past Saturday’s 29-24 victory against Miami as a 6.5-point home favorite. Look for the Seminoles keep things rolling by covering this time around against Louisville.

Virginia Tech Hokies at Miami Hurricanes (-7)

Virginia Tech was able to snap a two-game skid with a 28-13 win against North Carolina State last Friday to even its record on the year to 3-3 both SU and ATS. Despite the convincing win, I am not convinced this Hokies’ offense will be able to hang with Miami in this matchup. It is averaging just 378.5 yards a game with 206.5 yards passing and another 172 yards a game on the ground.

The Hurricanes’ loss to Florida State was their second in a row after getting beat by Cincinnati 34-23 on Oct. 1 as 7.5-point road favorites. However, they now return home for this ACC tilt with a SU 15-3 record at home over their last 18 games. Miami is ranked 18^th in the nation in passing yards behind quarterback Brad Kaaya. He has already thrown for 1,499 yards and eight touchdowns and I see him primed for another big day in a win against the Hokies that covers the seven points.

Florida Gators at LSU Tigers (-6.5)

Florida continues to rise in the national rankings behind a SU 6-0 start and it has been good to bettors with a 5-1 record ATS. My concern in this matchup is the simple fact that the Gators have yet to be really tested by a true quality team. The lack of a potent running game poses an even greater concern in this particular matchup as I do not see Florida quarterback Will Grier beating LSU through the air.

LSU may have caught a break with a shift in venues against South Carolina in last Saturday’s 45-24 win as a 20.5-point home favorite, but the Tigers have pretty much taken care of business no matter where they play this year. Led by Heisman front-runner Leonard Fournette with 1,022 rushing yards on 119 carries, they are currently ranked third in the nation in rushing yards per game with 346.4. Look another heavy dose of Fournette this Saturday as the Tigers win and cover the 6.5 points.

With the first quarter of football games over with, we now move onto NFL Week 5 games and have seen a lot of teams shift up and down in the Power Rankings. With a lot of debate over the final game of the week between the Seattle Seahawks and Detroit Lions, we will see that other teams turned their losing streak upside down and were able to make some great upsets this week, which will probably help them climb up a few spots. The 2015 NFL Week 5 Power Rankings are:

There were quite a few upsets this past week, with a lot of underdog teams making it through and finally getting their first or second victory of the season, giving their fans a little bit of hope. Some of the upsets include:

• Ravens beating Steelers (23-20)
• Redskins beating Eagles (23-20)
• Bears beating Raiders (22-20)
• Rams beating Cardinals (24-22)

The most impressive victory would have to be on behalf of the St. Louis Rams, as they were up against the Arizona Cardinals who were 3-0, as well as playing at Home; which gave them huge advantage at any sportsbook. The Bears were finally able to get their first victory of the season, as they look more like an NFL team than they did at the beginning.

A big shout-out to all the Detroit Lions fans, as we hope that the terrible call, or rather non-call, on behalf of the back judge Greg Wilson, which ultimately gave the Seahawks the ball and the close victory, won’t haunt them forever; as they are the only NFL team without a win. We will probably see a lot more upsets this week, but as the Patriots come off of their bye-week, let’s hope to see a big football splash as they face the Dallas Cowboys.

It is always a tragedy when one of the top football players of any NFL team gets injured, as it hurts the chances of team winning, but also due to the fact that fans enjoy watching these players perform their magic on the field. During last week’s games there were a couple of hard hitting injuries that have some teams scrambling to fill the hole left behind in hopes that during Week 4 they will be able to play at their best. Here are some of the injured players that may miss out on playing this week.

For those Seattle Seahawks fans it must be hard to lose Beast Mode right after shutting down the Chicago Bears 26-0, but he did leave during the game with an apparent hamstring injury. There is still no news on the severity, although initial rumors state it is minor, but Coach Pete Carroll stated that Lynch has had an MRI and will be re-evaluated later on in the week.

There are several players that have simply been placed on the Injured Reserve list, like Eagles Andrew Gardner and kicker Cody Parkey. They are actively looking for new kickers as they brought some in for workouts on Monday. Some of the other players that have minor injuries could get a positive health check later on this week and could actually play in NFL Week 4 football games.

Before going into Week 3 of the football season, we need to gauge which of the current NFL teams that have a 2-0 record are most likely to continue having great games, while others may start to flake and fall back in the rankings. There are a total of nine teams that have a 2-0 record, which is impressive for the start of the season. These teams are:

• New England Patriots
• New York Jets
• Cincinnati Bengals
• Denver Broncos
• Dallas Cowboys
• Green Bay Packers
• Atlanta Falcons
• Carolina Panthers
• Arizona Cardinals

This is a strong start for all of these teams, but we all know that the sport doesn’t always play out like most would expect. Not all will be able to make it to the playoffs, while some may even get hit with a losing record despite this good start. In 2014, the Buffalo Bills, Houston Texans and Philadelphia Eagles all followed up 2-0 starts with relatively strong seasons, but none ended up in the playoffs.

Two teams seem to have the worst odds of following this pattern this year, the Dallas Cowboys and Carolina Panthers. They are talented, but the future may not be good to them; especially for the Cowboys with Tony Romo and Dez Bryant out on injuries. The Broncos and Falcons are teams you just can’t rely on to be consistent, based on their 2014 performances.

The other five teams left over have the best odds to keep winning games and getting to the playoffs. Some fans may not agree, but all of these NFL teams have racked up enough talent on their team, kept them healthy, and are proving to be an unstoppable force in just the first two weeks of games. Their players have proved to be more than willing to outperform everyone else on the field, which is why their victories so far this football season have been outstanding.

As Week 2 of the 2015 NFL season is about to start, many football fans look forward to seeing which teams have improved, as well as which have gotten worse. There is nothing better than watching the underdog move up spots, while the overrated try to play their way back up. There has only been one week of games in the regular season, so these rankings can change, drastically, over the next 16 weeks.

The Week 2 NFL Power Rankings are:

It is remarkable that, previously ranked #1, the Seattle Seahawks would lose in overtime against the St. Louis Rams, 34-31 in overtime, but what else is amazing is that despite losing against a team ranked 19, they would only drop three spots. This must mean that the analysts at NFL.com really have a lot of faith in the Seahawks, and it is possible that they stay ranked high.

There were many other surprises during the Week 1 games, including the victory of the Buffalo Bills, Atlanta Falcons, and the San Francisco 49ers. The fans were not the only ones surprised by the games and performances by the favored teams, as sportsbooks also suffered from the close games that were played. It was no surprise that the Patriots would beat the Steelers, as they were missing key players on the offense and defense, and on top of that, Brady returned to the lineup after winning his battle against Commissioner Roger Goodell and the Deflategate scandal.

The Green Bay Packers are once again looking strong, like they have at the beginning of several seasons in the past. Let’s hope they are able to keep the performance at a high level, or they won’t get to the Super Bowl, again. The football regular season is looking to be full of great competition.

On Saturday, the deadline for each NFL team to reach their 53-man roster was met, although there were many football fans surprised by some of the cuts. It is a hard job for a coach to do, as they look for only the best players possible to fill their roster in preparation for the start of the 2015 season. For those that want to check out the entire list of players that were cut, you can check it out here.

The teams released over 700 players on Friday and Saturday, and as we mentioned before, more than a few of the cuts came a surprise. Here are just a few of the players that we believed would make the cut and remain on their team:

Tim Tebow was actually looking good during the preseason, which is why it surprises us that the Eagles decided to let him go. However, Ealges coach Chip Kelly mentioned that he just was not good enough to be third-string QB. Another interesting cut was of James Jones, who has played very well since he was drafted by the Packers in 2007, racking up 4,971 yards and 43 touchdowns. The good news, however, is that the Green Bay Packers have just picked Jones up, as they lost Jordy Nelson to an injury, so he will be on a good team this season.

Other players that had news worthy exits from their teams include: Robert Turbin (Seahawks), Matt Cassel (Bills), IK Enemkpali (Bills), as well as the mutual release of Reggie Wayne from the Patriots. There are many other players that, although released, have good chances of getting picked up by other NFL teams for the 53 player roster, or even for the football practice squad.

For those football fans, especially those rooting for the New England Patriots, that were waiting to finally get an answer on whether quarterback Tom Brady will get the full, reduced, or no suspensions for his dealings in Defaltegate. Although the evidence hasn’t really proven that Brady was ever directly or indirectly involved in the incident during the game against the Colts last season, the NFL still says he was involved due to the destruction of a cell phone. This phone allegedly had video of the incident, which is why Brady is on trial at the moment and being given the 4-game suspension.

There was no settlement reached when the NFL and the lawyers were in talks on Monday at the Federal court house. Judge Richard Berman, the judge that has been in charge of the case for several weeks already, announced early in the morning that the talks were over. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and Tom Brady were both in attendance for Monday’s session, where Judge Berman mentioned that “some cases are simply not able to be settled.”

As a decision was not met on Monday, we should expect some kind of resolution and final decision by the end of the week. This has to be resolved before the start of the 2015 Regular Season, which actually begins on September 10. The biggest issue is that the Patriots are playing the first game of the regular season against a tough opponent, the Pittsburgh Steelers. So, you can imagine that the Patriots would like to have an answer before then to see how they can work out their strategy.

Whether Brady is given the full 4-game suspension, or it is reduced to 2-games, the Patriots will still miss out on having their star QB on the field. On the off-chance that the Judge determines that the NFL did not have enough evidence to suspend Brady, it will be a completely different story, and may even give them a huge advantage over other teams who do have suspended or injured players. In this case, they would be able to overcome the Steelers, as they have lost three key players due to injury and a suspension.

Let’s wait until Judge Richard Berman finally reaches a decision to start throwing our arms up in displeasure. Football season is always full of excitement, whether it is on the field or in the court room. Can’t wait to have the points, touchdowns, and victories actually mean something.

Football is a very competitive and physical sport, and there is always a chance that a player will get injured while playing on the field; or even off the field as some have occured. This is common knowledge in the NFL, but what gets everyone angry is that their favorite teams lose good players during the preseason, where the games don’t really matter.

During Week 2 of the preseason there have been several injuries that could greatly affect how a team performs once the regular season starts. For instance, the Pittsburgh Steelers just lost their great Center, Maurkice Pouncey with a broken ankle. He may not be the most important player on the field, but his presence was crucial to the offense.

Pouncey is not the only that suffered this week, take a look at some other injuries that happened during the weekend games:

Let’s hope that no other players get seriously injured during the remaining two weeks of the preseason, as it would be a shame for them to miss out on football games that actually mattered. Fantasy sports fans shouldn’t be the only ones upset about these injuries, and hopefully the NFL will lower the amount of preseason games in the future.