Week 7 NFC predictions: Baker Mayfield will struggle while this rookie shines once more

Above-average QB play typically will keep a team in a game. If your team gets below-average QB or worse, that’s a recipe for disaster.
Ahead of the Week 7 schedule, Yardbarker NFL writers project ugly play from Buccaneers QB Baker Mayfield and another superb game for Commanders rookie QB Jayden Daniels. 

Here are predictions for each NFC team:

NFC East

DALLAS COWBOYS (3-3) | No game, bye week 

NEW YORK GIANTS (2-4) | WR Malik Nabers comes back, goes off |Nabers hasn’t caught anything in October while in the concussion protocol, but the rookie should do well at home against a young Philadelphia Eagles secondary. With rookies Cooper DeJean and Quinyon Mitchell manning two of Philadelphia’s three cornerback spots and veteran Darius Slay questionable with a knee injury, New York’s No. 1 receiver should top the 115 yards he had against the Dallas Cowboys in his last game.

PHILADELPHIA EAGLES (3-2) | RB Saquon Barkley makes himself at home | Lost in the postgame histrionics of his head coach was the fact that Philadelphia’s prized free agent ran for just 47 yards on 18 carries in a 20-16 win over the Cleveland Browns on Sunday. Expect Saquon Barkley, the NFL’s fourth-leading rusher with 482 yards, to more than double that number at MetLife Stadium vs. the Giants, with whom Barkley put up 7,311 yards rushing and receiving yards in six seasons.

WASHINGTON COMMANDERS (4-2) | Commanders drop 40 on Panthers | Expect Washington to score 40 points at home Sunday against a Carolina team allowing a league-worst 33.8 points per game. Only the Lions score more points per game (30.2) than rookie QB Jayden Daniels and the Commanders (29.7). Daniels should relish the opportunity to play against a Panthers team that allowed 200 rushing yards to Falcons running backs in Week 6. He already has 322 yards on the ground. — Bruce Ewing

NFC West

ARIZONA CARDINALS (2-4) | Defense struggles again | The Cardinals have made progress on offense, but the defense — especially against the run (153 YPG) — remains a major concern. Those struggles are going to continue on Monday night at home against the Los Angeles Chargers, who are one of the more effective running teams in the league (127.8 YPG). 

LOS ANGELES RAMS (1-4) | Defense gets two interceptions and gives up fewer than 10 points | The Rams defense has struggled this season, but that will change with a breakout game at home Sunday against a brutal Las Vegas Raiders offense that is starting Aidan O’Connell at QB (27-for-40, 227 yards vs. Steelers in Week 6) and has already signaled it is ready to give up on the season by trading WR Davante Adams. 

SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS (3-3) | 49ers hand Chiefs first loss | The 49ers are too talented to be without back-to-back wins this season. Thursday night’s big divisional win over Seattle could be a starting point and on Sunday, the 49ers will get a small piece of Super Bowl revenge and hand the Chiefs (5-0) their first loss of the season while showing they are still a legit Super Bowl contender. 

SEATTLE SEAHAWKS (3-3) | RB Kenneth Walker rushes for 125 yards | Walker has slumped the past two games (51 yards on 19 carries), but he gets an Atlanta Falcons defense on the road Sunday. The Falcons are one of the NFL’s worst teams against the run (142.7 yards per game). Expect Walker — and the Seahawks — to bounce back from a loss to the Niners. — Adam Gretz

NFC North

CHICAGO BEARS (4-2) | No game, bye week 

DETROIT LIONS (4-1) | TE Sam LaPorta scores again | RB David Montgomery recently received a two-year, $18M contract extension over the weekend, but he could have trouble striking paydirt against Minnesota’s second-ranked run defense when the Lions battle the Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium for the division lead. Fortunately for the Lions, Minnesota’s 30th-ranked pass defense (263 YPG) is much more porous, which should allow Detroit’s Pro Bowl tight end to score his second touchdown in as many weeks.

GREEN BAY PACKERS (4-2) | Xavier McKinney adds to league-leading interception total | McKinney leads the NFL with five interceptions, but Sunday’s game against the Cardinals was his first without a takeaway. Only three quarterbacks have more passing attempts than Houston’s C.J. Stroud (210), which should literally play into the hands of Green Bay’s talented safety when the Packers host the Texans on Sunday.

MINNESOTA VIKINGS (5-0) | WR Justin Jefferson has second 100-yard game of 2024 | Per StatMuse, Jefferson has more yards receiving against the Lions (1,073) than against any other team. The NFL’s sixth-leading receiver had a season-high 14 targets against the New York Jets in Week 5 before taking last Sunday off on bye and will have no problem reaching the century mark at home against a Detroit team that lost Pro Bowl defensive end Aidan Hutchinson to a gruesome leg injury against the Cowboys in Week 6. — Bruce Ewing

NFC South

ATLANTA FALCONS (4-2) | RB Bijan Robinson runs wild | The No. 8 overall pick of the 2023 NFL Draft had his best game of the season in Week 6 against the Panthers, rushing for 95 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries. With the Seahawks’ 27th-ranked rush defense (144.7 YPG) coming to town, Robinson will set a career high in rushing, surpassing the 124 yards he gained in Week 2 last season against the Packers. 

CAROLINA PANTHERS (1-5) | RB Chuba Hubbard has third 100-yard game | Lost in Carolina’s rough start to the season is Hubbard’s emergence as one of the league’s best backs. He ranks third in rushing (485 yards), trailing only Baltimore Ravens RB Derrick Henry (704 yards) and 49ers running back Jordan Mason (609 yards). Hubbard will have a monster game Sunday on the road against a Commanders defense allowing five yards per carry. 

NEW ORLEANS SAINTS (2-4) | Injury-plagued Saints shut out against Denver Broncos | Starting wideouts Chris Olave (concussion) and Rashid Shaheed (knee) are expected to miss Thursday’s home game. A non-existent rushing attack, a quarterback — rookie Spencer Rattler — making his second career start and a talented Broncos defense are a recipe for New Orleans’ first home shutout loss since Jan. 6, 2002.

TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS (4-2) | QB Baker Mayfield has another multi-interception game | In a battle of Heisman winners, Mayfield — who leads the NFL with 15 TD passes — will be outplayed on Monday in Tampa by Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson. A week after throwing three interceptions against the Saints, Mayfield will struggle against a talented Baltimore secondary that features former All-Pros Marlon Humphrey and safety Kyle Hamilton. Mayfield has already been sacked 17 times, tied for fourth most in the NFL.  — Eric Smithling