SI Betting Mailbag: NFL Week 5 and CFB Week 6 (Falcons, Nebraska, and 0-4 Teams)

The weather is getting colder, football is on almost every night, and the playoff picture in both the NFL and college football is becoming clearer by the week. It's truly a beautiful time of year.

It's time to get into this week's edition of the SI Betting Mailbag! Each week, I'll be answering YOUR questions about both the NFL and college football.

You have two ways to submit questions each week:

Send me (@IainMacBets) a DM on X or Instagram
Send me an e-mail at iain@si.com

Each week, we'll choose a few questions to answer in an article.

This week, we're talking NFL Week 5 and college football Week 6. Let's dive into the questions.

NFL Week 5 + CFB Week 6 Mailbag Questions

How about them Falcons?? Are you back in on Atlanta?
Austin T.

What a world! Right when all of my favorite teams were causing me to fall into a deep sense of apathy and melancholy, Michael Penix Jr. arrived and gave me faith! Not only am I back in on my Dirty Birds, but I wrote an article this week breaking down all the different ways I'm betting on them now and why I think they're legitimate contenders.

They dominate in the trenches on both sides of the ball, they have the best running back in the league, they've been the best run defense through the first four weeks, and Kevin Stefanski is living up to the hype built by his two Coach of the Year awards.

I'm ready to get hurt again.

Can any of the 0-4 teams make the playoffs?
Ryan P.

Only one team has ever started 0-4 and made the NFL Playoffs. The San Diego Chargers pulled it off back in 1992. When you think of all the bad teams that have made the postseason over the years, including teams that have won their division with a losing record, it's quite something that only one 0-4 team bounced back to make the postseason.

I don't think this is the year that it's going to happen for a second time. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have taken a step in the right direction, beating the Cowboys on Thursday Night Football to move to 1-4, but the Panthers and Falcons look like legitimately good teams this season, so I don't think this is going to be another year where a losing record wins that division.

Sportsbooks haven't given up on the Houston Texans yet. They have odds of +220 to make the playoffs despite being 0-4, but that's not a bet I'm running to place. The Texans have the seventh-easiest remaining schedule, but the bad news for them is that both the Colts and the Jaguars have even easier remaining schedules.

I'm not going to buy-in on any 0-4 team this year.

What team is this year's version of Indiana?
Bryan P.

By that, I'm assuming you're asking which team, seemingly out of nowhere, can surprise people and compete for a national championship. That's a great question to ask this week because there are a couple of interesting teams that are set to play a true measuring-stick game this weekend.

The obvious team to point out is the UCLA Bruins. They have the talent to be a playoff team, and they've looked extremely impressive so far, putting up 52+ points against both Purdue and Maryland. They're 14th in the country in net-adjusted EPA per play and seventh in net success rate. They're set as big underdogs to Oregon this weekend, but if they can beat them, the sky is the limit for the Bruins.

The other team that's a bit more off the beaten path that I have liked quite a bit is the Nebraska Cornhuskers. They're 5-0 to begin the season, but they're still not ranked in the top 25 of the AP Poll. With that being said, they're 11th in the country in net adjusted EPA per play and fifth in net success rate.

They'll now face the defending national champions on Saturday, so if they beat them, they'll skyrocket up the rankings. It's time to hop on the Cornhuskers hype train.

Follow Iain on X and Instagram

You can check out all of Iain's bets here!

Unlock $100 in bonus bets — all without a promo code for DraftKings. Sign up and place a $5 bet and you will receive $150 in bonus bets no matter what.

Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER.

Add us as a preferred source on Google