Written by: Eli Berkovits
Eli is an NFL fanatic, with fantastic knowledge surrounding the sport. Be sure to follow Eli on X (@BookOfEli_NFL).
Week 5 of the NFL season is already here and I’m not sure how I feel about it. Every season seems to go by faster and faster so you better get all your bets in while you can. Last week we finally saw offenses around the league take control with 13 different teams scoring 25+ while eight teams scored 30+ points. I think I speak for all fans when I say the more points the better and I’m expecting another high-flying batch of games this weekend.
So, without further ado, let’s get to my Week 5 NFL locks.
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Baltimore Ravens -4.5 vs Pittsburgh Steelers
There are few rivalries as intense and heated as Ravens vs Steelers. We’ve seen these two teams face off in some truly legendary battles over the years, but I don’t see this Sunday being one of them. The Ravens are currently riding high after a 28-3 trouncing of the Browns while the Steelers are coming off a putrid 30-6 loss to the Texans.
Normally, I’d avoid taking a team to cover the spread in this rivalry because of how close these teams play each other, but this week is different. The Steelers are currently running one of the worst offenses in football ranking in the bottom eight in total yards, pass yards, rush yards, and points per game. As if that wasn’t bad enough, Kenny Pickett is now dealing with a knee injury that could force him to miss the game. Meanwhile, the Ravens are getting healthier with multiple key players returning to practice this week. Baltimore has been great against the spread this year at 3-1 and I fully expect them to raise that to 4-1 come Sunday afternoon.
Buffalo Bills -5 vs Jacksonville Jaguars
There is no team hotter than the Buffalo Bills right now. They are coming off three straight games of 37+ points scored and have looked tremendous doing it. The same cannot be said for the Jaguars. Few teams had more hype this offseason than Jacksonville but through four games, they haven’t looked all that impressive.
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The Bills enter this game 3-1 against the spread and have won their last three games by a combined 90 (NINETY) points. The Jaguars aren’t a bad team, but they are not going to be able to keep up with that kind of offensive firepower. Trevor Lawrence hasn’t taken that next step everyone was expecting and as a result, they haven’t scored more than 23 points since Week 1. Don’t overthink this one, the Bills are just too good.
Green Bay Packers -1 vs Las Vegas Raiders
No better game to be betting on than primetime football in Las Vegas. The Packers will travel west this week to face the Raiders in a crucial matchup for two teams trying to get back in the win column. The home team is coming off their 3rd straight loss and continues to struggle to get anything going on offense. They enter this week 28th in points per game, 25th in total yards, and 32nd in rush yards per game. Things aren’t much better on the defensive side of the ball, ranking 24th in points allowed and dead last in turnover differential.
This is a great setup for a Packers team looking to get back on track after a brutal loss to the Lions last Thursday night. In his first year as the starter, Jordan Love has this Packers offense looking solid averaging 25 points per game. There is still room for improvement, but they’ve played most of this season without two of their best offensive players in Aaron Jones and Christian Watson – both of whom should be at 100% come Monday. Green Bay is 3-1 against the spread this year and is in a great position to take that record to 4-1 this weekend.