Thursday 6 October 2016 09:33, UK
Week four produced the first tie of the 2016 season, not in the NFL but in the predictor league! Going up against Oakland Raiders fan Nick Easey, Richard produced an 8-7 record which was matched by Nick! That takes him to 1-2-1 for the season so far.
It's a new week in the NFL and Richard now has work to do as he looks to level his record against Minnesota Vikings fan Dave Thropp, who runs the Twitter account @UK_Vikings.
Arizona Cardinals @ San Francisco 49ers (Friday, 12:30am Sky Sports 1)
Richard: While the 49ers were expected to struggle this season, no one was predicting the Cardinals would hold the same 1-3 record coming into this Week 5 clash. Arizona have already lost two games at home and their offence hasn't got going. Should quarterback Carson Palmer fail the NFL's concussion protocol then Drew Stanton will start on Thursday night. This has to be frustrating for a Cardinals defence which is tied for third with nine takeaways, has 11 sacks and ranks ninth overall.
San Francisco lost linebacker Navarro Bowman to an Achilles injury on Sunday and it showed as the Dallas Cowboys ran the ball at will. A team struggling to mount anything on offence now appears to have lost the heart of their defence as well. The 49ers will need to establish their run game to have a realistic chance of victory but Arizona should have too much for them to handle. Cardinals
Dave: Cardinals' poor start is baffling. Stanton looks like he is in line to start and must be ready from the first whistle. 49ers need to hope [quarterback Blaine] Gabbert can survive a defence with a chip on its shoulder, but I think the Cards will be too much to handle. Cardinals
Minnesota Vikings @ Houston Texans (Sunday, 5:30pm Sky Sports 2)
Richard: This Minnesota Vikings defence is for real! They lead the league with 11 takeaways and a plus-10 turnover differential. Defensive performance means the losses of starting QB Teddy Bridgewater and RB Adrian Peterson haven't proven to be nearly so significant, with Sam Bradford managing the offence well and capitalising on opposition mistakes.
The Texans are 2-2 but lead the AFC South; however it's been a rocky start for highly paid free agent acquisition Brock Osweiler. Through four games, he's thrown more interceptions (six) than touchdowns (five). That's not the kind of production Houston paid over $70m for and it's compounded by the loss of their best defensive player for the season, J.J. Watt. On current form, it's a big ask for this team to go to Minneapolis and come out on top. Vikings
Dave: Losing Watt for the season is huge for the Texans who, like the Vikings, rely heavily on their defence. The Vikings' defensive unit match up well against the Texans' offence and should have enough weapons to remain undefeated. Vikings
Atlanta Falcons @ Denver Broncos (Sunday, 9pm Sky Sports 2)
Richard: Matt Ryan throwing for 500 yards, Julio Jones with 300 receiving yards. The Falcons' offence has been good this season but on Sunday they exploded to take care of Carolina, and are now the No 1 ranked offence in the NFL. Going up against a defence which is widely believed to be the league's best makes this a mouthwatering clash.
Denver haven't allowed more than 208 passing yards against them this season. They've only allowed two passing touchdowns and have claimed five interceptions. They also lead the league with 18 sacks. Although their QB Trevor Siemian left the game early in Tampa Bay through injury, they didn't miss a beat with rookie Paxton Lynch under centre. Siemian appears likely to play this weekend.
They say a good defence will always beat a good offence. Denver proved that to be true in Super Bowl 50. At Mile High, we'll see if they can prevail over Atlanta. Broncos
Dave: Atlanta were awesome offensively against the Panthers and have the weapons to damage any team. Defensively they still give up too many yards but I believe that the Broncos defence will have all they can handle. There's uncertainty at the quarterback position and offensive momentum could stall. Falcons
New York Giants @ Green Bay Packers (Sunday, 1am Sky Sports 2)
Richard: What has happened to Odell Beckham Jr? The Giants' star wide receiver has yet to find the end zone in 2016 and frustration is starting to show. Erratic behaviour on the sideline in the loss to the Redskins was followed up on Monday night with complaints that officials are treating him harshly. It appears that Giants head coach Ben McAdoo and QB Eli Manning have had enough of his antics and told Beckham he needs to start controlling his emotions. They sorely need him to be at his best ahead of a tough looking trip to Lambeau Field on the back of a two-game losing streak.
The Green Bay Packers are coming off of a bye week and have problems of their own that need addressing. Mike McCarthy's team are yet to put a complete 60 minutes together with the Aaron Rodgers-led offence impressive in the first half of games against Jacksonville and Detroit but struggling to finish. Home-field advantage, combined with an extra week to prepare for the Giants, who come off a short week, is a combination which appears to stack the odds in Green Bay's favour. Packers
Dave: Which Aaron Rodgers will show up? If the Giants can rattle him early they have a chance. However, New York have injuries on defence, and the offence looked lost against the Vikings. Manning and OBJ will need to get on the same page and produce a big game. Home advantage just sways me this week. Packers
Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ Carolina Panthers (Tuesday, 1:15am Sky Sports 1)
Richard: This is a huge game for both teams. Not only is this an NFC South clash but both teams have disappointing 1-3 records. The Bucs have so far failed to show the improvement expected under new head coach Dirk Koetter, while the Panthers have been one of the more disappointing teams this season. Cam Newton was manhandled a week ago by the Vikings' defence and on Sunday he was knocked out of the game against the Falcons. At the same time, Carolina's own defence simply isn't making the plays we saw in 2015.
If Carolina are to be post-season challengers this year, this is a game they have to win. They face a quarterback in Jameis Winston who appears to have slightly regressed on his rookie year and, at times, doesn't seem to know where he is on the field. His only other road game this season was a disaster, albeit against a good Cardinals defence, as he threw four interceptions and lost a fumble. Home field advantage should help Carolina prevail. Panthers
Dave: Who envisaged this as a must-win game for Carolina? Newton looks a different player from last year, and the defence couldn't contain the Falcons' attack. Tampa are a work in progress but Winston must restore confidence in himself and the offence. He will need to as the Buccaneers defence is 31st in points allowed, and Carolina can exploit their limited pass rush. Panthers
