Trav's 2023 Week 7 NFL Predictions

Week 6 is in the books and it was arguably the craziest weekend of the season. My record was 6-4 and my overall mark went up to 39-21 for the year. The winning percentage goes from 66 to 65%. The two biggest defeats of the season occurred this pas weekend. The first one saw the Cleveland Browns with a backup QB defeated the San Francisco 49ers. The other surprise was that the New York Jets beat the Philadelphia Eagles. The losses by the 49ers and Eagles were their first defeat and now there’s no undefeated teams in the league. The other loss came when the Jacksonville Jaguars defeated the Indianapolis Colts. The final one was on Monday when the Cowboys went to Los Angeles and beat the Chargers 20-17. The week started when the Kansas City defeated the Denver Broncos in an AFC West showdown.

The Chiefs defense held Russell Wilson and the Broncos offense to only 8 points. Wilson only threw for 95 yards, and he tossed two picks in the process. Miami continued to put up a lot of points by scoring 42 points in their win over Carolina. Trevor Lawrence and Jimmy Garoppolo both were injured, but their teams still won their games. Detroit continues to show they’re one of the best teams in the league in their win over the Bucs. This week I’ll be predicting another 8 games. Let’s see how things will turn out.

We kick things off with the Thursday night game as usual. The Jacksonville Jaguars will head to New Orleans to take on the Saints. The big question heading into this game in the availability of Trevor Lawrence. Lawrence went down last week with a knee injury and he could possibly miss this game. If Lawrence misses this game, the Jaguars will have to lean heavily on Travis Etienne and the running game. Etienne has had an amazing pair of games in the last two weeks. New Orleans is coming off a tough loss on the road to the Houston Texans. Despite throwing for over 350 yards, the Saints only scored 13 points against the Texans. The defense could feast on the Jaguars offense if Lawrence isn’t available. Whether Lawrence plays or not I’m going with the Saints to win this game. New Orleans Win 23-17

We head to the AFC for a battle of two teams whose quarterbacks are dealing with shoulder issues. The Cleveland Browns will head to Indianapolis to battle the Colts. The Browns shocked everyone last week with their win over the 49ers. Cleveland done in without Deshaun Watson who missed his second consecutive game with a shoulder injury. P.J. Walker got the starter last game and could be called upon if Watson was not ready to go. Walker played well against the tough Niners defense. Indianapolis could be without their rookie signal caller Anthony Richardson for the year. Richardson injured his shoulder and could be headed for surgery to finish his rookie campaign early. Gardner Minshew will continue to be the starter for the Colts. Minshew will need to improve on his 3 INT performance from a week ago. I’m going with the Browns and their defense. Cleveland Win 20-17

We head to the NFC South for this pivotal early season matchup. The Atlanta Falcons will head south to Tampa to face the Buccaneers. Atlanta have lost three of their last four games after starting 2-0. Desmond Ridder is coming off a 3 INT game. With questions about the future of Ridder, he will need to improve on that poor performance. The Falcons defense has played well this season as they’re in the middle of the pack for scoring defense. The Bucs have dropped two of three after starting the season 2-0. The losses came against two of the top teams in the NFC in Philadelphia and Detroit. Tampa Bay has a top-10 defense, but they need to improve on one of the worse running games in the league. In a tough one I’m going with the Bucs. Tampa Bay Win 21-17

We have a matchup of two teams that are Super Bowl contenders in their respective conferences. The Detroit Lions will make the trip to Baltimore to take on the Ravens. The Lions are currently riding a 4-game winning streak. They have one of the better offenses in the league. Jared Goff has been amazing, and they have relied heavily on David Montgomery. Montgomery will miss some time after suffering a rib injury last week. Can the Lions running game continue to flourish without Montgomery? Baltimore is coming off a hard-fought win over the Titans in London. The defense continues to be one of the better ones in the league. On offense, you know they rely on Lamar Jackson and his legs to make them one of the top rushing teams. This will be a tough one, but I’m riding with the Lions to win. Detroit Win 20-19

We have the Pittsburgh Steelers heading to the west coast to take on the Los Angeles Rams. The Steelers are coming off their bye week. The previous week they walked away with a very impressive win over the Baltimore Ravens. Despite being 3-2, the Steelers offense is one of the worse in the league. They are giving up more than they score and that’s a problem. With fans calling for offensive coordinator Matt Canada to be fired, will they turn things around? The Rams are coming off a 26-9 win over the Cardinals. With Cooper Kupp still being worked into the offense, they should continue to thrive. Puka Nacua continues to be one of the more surprising rookies in the league. Kyren Williams is turning into one of the better backs in the league. I’m going with the Rams to leave with the win. Los Angeles Win 24-17

We have an AFC West battle as the Los Angeles Chargers head to Kansas City to face the Chiefs. The Chargers just had their 2-game winning streak snapped by Dallas. The Cowboys defeated the Chargers 20-17 on Monday Night Football. Justin Herbert is still affected by his broken finger on his non-throwing hand. The Chargers defense looked great as they held the Dallas offense to only 20 points. They will need to repeat that same performance against Kansas City. Kansas City is currently riding a 5-game winning streak. Despite ranking 2^nd in passing and 9^th in scoring, the offense hasn’t looked in sync this season. The defense has stepped up as they’re giving up less than 15 points per game. Can they get after Justin Herbert and the Chargers offense? I’m picking the Chiefs to leave with the win. Kansas City Win 27-24

We have the Sunday Night game between a pair of Super Bowl contenders from each conference. The Miami Dolphins will travel to Philadelphia to take on the Eagles. The Miami Dolphins bring their high-powered offense against a tough defense. Miami rank 1^st in almost all the offensive categories. They are averaging an unprecedented 37 points a game. On the flip side, the defense is giving up 26 points per game. Tua is arguably the frontrunner for league MVP as of now. The Eagles lost their first game last week and the offense looked awful. Jalen Hurts tossed 3 picks, they didn’t run the ball and they had key drops. The defense held their own, but they’re not facing Zach Wilson in this matchup. The Eagles have a lot of injuries in their secondary, but think the front four will help them win this game. Philadelphia Win 31-27

We have the Monday Night game as the San Francisco 49ers travel to Minnesota to face the Vikings. San Francisco experienced their first defeat last week in Cleveland. The Niners are viewed as the best team in the league with many thinking they can go undefeated. San Francisco lost Christian McCaffrey and Deebo Samuel to injuries last week. The defense looked great for the most part. San Francisco will probably be angry heading into this contest. Minnesota is experiencing a bad season to say the least. They won their 2^nd game of the season last week against Chicago. Justin Jefferson has been lost for at least 4 weeks with a hamstring injury. Minnesota could be trading assets to build for the future before the trade deadline. I’m picking the 49ers to go to Minnesota and defeat the Vikings. San Francisco Win 27-17

There we are my predictions for the 2023 Week 7 NFL season. What games intrigue you the most for the 2023 Week 7 NFL weekend? What do you think about my picks? Check out my top 5 teams in both conferences below. Leave some feedback below about anything NFL related or my 2023 Week 7 NFL predictions.