NFL gambling lines: Week 6 picks against the spread

Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ Atlanta Falcons (-3.5)

Man, Vegas really hurts you with that extra half a point. The Atlanta Falcons were destroyed at Heinz Field on Sunday, and now they welcome Jameis Winston and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to the Georgia Dome. I’ve waited two weeks to bet against Winston, but now the Falcons look terrible.

The Falcons defense may be one of the worst in the league. It’s not their fault, as injuries are the biggest reason this defense is basically just furniture. Either way, the Falcons are 31st in the NFL in points against with 32.6 per game.

The Buccaneers gave up on Ryan Fitzpatrick after his first bad game, and used the bye week to get Winston acclimated to the offense. Still, the Bucs defense looked liked a completely different team in their last two games. The secondary wasn’t stopping anyone, and the pass rush wasn’t getting the rush. Go with the Falcons and Matt Ryan, who are looking to crush someone after last week’s loss.

Atlanta 35, Tampa Bay 31 

Pittsburgh Steelers @ Cincinnati Bengals (-3)

This is a matchup to tell who’s actually good in AFC North. The Pittsburgh Steelers have been up and down all season long. They are coming off an up, crushing the Falcons 41-17. The Bengals, on the other hand, are coming off their own high. It was the second straight come from behind victory, when they scored 24 points in the fourth quarter in a win against the Dolphins.

That makes this pick a little harder. Both these teams have been inconsistent within singular games, so how can one pick the team?

This game is going to be nuts, because all the games between these two teams have been. In fact, this is the first meeting between the two teams since Ryan Shazier’s career basically ended. Since this matchup is so hard to figure it out, just take the points.

Cincinnati 28, Pittsburgh 27