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Week 3 was a good one. We not only ended up winning 12 games straight up but also reached double-digits against the spread. Of course, not everyone was a fan of my picks. Brandon from West Virginia thought I was insane to select the Eagles over the Steelers, and by 11 points, no less! Sadly for Brandon, no straitjacket for me will be required because I was not too far off the mark. Sean from Silver Spring, Md., took my Cardinals pick as a personal affront to both him and Redskins fans worldwide and demanded an apology. He even went so far as to call my Week 3 picks "the most pathetic and thoughtless predictions that I have ever seen in the history of sports." Well, I got that pick wrong, Sean, but I'm not apologizing for it because there was no malice behind it, no hidden agenda. I'm going to be picking against half of the teams that play every week, and that doesn't mean going against the team of which you are a fan is part of some nefarious plan by an underground cabal of evil prognosticators. If I were part of such an organization, I'd do something far more sinister, like pointing out that with six teams not playing this week, the schedule includes not one, not two, but three byes this week. That's right, "Bye, Bye, Bye." So what better way to truly strike fear in the hearts of my readers then to present to you my selections for Week 4, along with a heaping helping of song lyrics from Justin Timberlake and the boys from 'N Sync. Mwa ha ha ha! Here we go:

Tale of the Tape
Week 3, Straight Up: 12-4 (Overall: 28-19)
Week 3, Versus the Spread: 10-6 (Overall: 26-21)

Sunday, September 28

Cleveland at Cincinnati (-3½)

"Said the air is thick, it's smelling right. So you pass to the left and you sail to the right." The state of Ohio has not exactly been sweet-smelling yet this season, but one of these sad sides has to win this week. We envision Carson Palmer passing to T.J. Houshmandzadeh on the left and the Bengals sailing to the right side of the win column.

Prediction: Bengals by 6

Minnesota at Tennessee (-3½)

"Don't wanna be a fool for you, just another player in your game for two." Kerry Collins just has to stay out of the way of his two running backs, LenDale White and Chris Johnson. Collins doesn't have to do much -- just not be a fool and get in their way.

Prediction: Titans by 12

Denver at Kansas City (+9½)

"It's a lesson to be learned. Even the good guys get burned." Herm Edwards seems like a good guy. Heck, he PLAYS to WIN the GAME. But with this sad cast of characters standing next to him on the sidelines, what can he do?

Prediction: Broncos by 16

San Francisco at New Orleans (-6½)

"What goes around, goes around, goes around, comes all the way back around." Last year, the Saints beat the Niners 31-10. The year before, the Saints beat them 34-10. So the Niners will surely break out a huge first-half lead … only to see things come all the way back around as the Saints pull out a close one.

Prediction: Saints by 2

Arizona at Jets (-2½)

"Your bridges were burned, and now it's your turn to cry, cry me a river." Brett Favre may not be headed back to Wisconsin anytime soon, and it might be a little bit longer before he returns to the level of play that led the Packers to within a few plays of the Super Bowl last season. The Jets' time may come, but this week, their fans will be crying.

Prediction: Cardinals by 5

Green Bay at Tampa Bay (-1½)

"I don't wanna make excuses, baby. Won't change the fact that you're gone." Winning the first couple of games helped Aaron Rodgers avoid any negative comparisons to He Who Shall No Longer Be Named. However, after a close loss to the Bucs, the rumblings may start.

Prediction: Bucs by 1

Atlanta at Carolina (-7½)

"You gotta stop running games. It ain't about my fame." There isn't a lot of star power on the Falcons, but the charge to the Panthers defense is clear: Stop Michael Turner and the running game, and you'll win. Don't stop him, and you'll be booed off your own field and have to go into hiding yourselves.

Prediction: Falcons by 3

Houston at Jacksonville (-7½)

"Over and over I fall (over and over I fall) when I hear you call." Houston has had a rough start to the season with two blowout defeats on the road, sandwiched around a hurricane that postponed its home opener. Now the Texans get the call to hit the road again, and we're not optimistic about the result being much different.

Prediction: Jaguars by 16

San Diego at Oakland (+7½)

"You might've been hurt, babe. That ain't no lie." LaDainian Tomlinson might have been hurt last week, but it didn't stop him from running all over the Jets for tons of statistical goodness. The Raiders are improving, and as much as Al Davis may want to deny it, that ain't no lie. However, they're not ready to beat San Diego just yet.

Prediction: Chargers by 4

Buffalo at St. Louis (+8½)

"The thing you got to realize what we doing is not a trend." The Bills are 3-0. They're not doing it with smoke and mirrors, either. They're the real deal. They've got a solid defense and Trent Edwards doesn't make too many mistakes. What St. Louis is doing is not a mirage, either. They're headed downhill into a burning building with explosives in the backseat.

Prediction: Bills by 24

Washington at Dallas (-11½)

"I'm bringing sexy back. Them other boys don't know how to act." Tony Romo throws the ball to Jason Witten. He throws the ball to Terrell Owens. He hands the ball to Marion Barber. He blows a kiss to Jessica Simpson. Go 'head be gone with it.

Prediction: Cowboys by 13

Philadelphia at Chicago (+3½)

"And no matter what I do I feel the pain with or without you." The Bears are going to feel the painful sting of defeat to the Eagles and Donovan McNabb, whether or not Brian Westbrook is up to the task of pitching in or not. I guess now Lovie don't love me, no. Oh, well.

Prediction: Eagles by 5

Monday, September 29

Baltimore at Pittsburgh (-7½)

"I make your neck pop back, and in fact I buckle your knees." The tough, hard-hitting Ravens defense is salivating after watching game film of Ben Roethlisberger getting pounded repeatedly by the Eagles last week. I'm afraid the Ravens just might break him. First team (and possibly only team) to score in this one wins.

Prediction: Ravens by 1

The ESPN Eliminator requires that you make one and only one pick each week. You win and you live to pick again. You lose and it's all over. In Week 3, we survived yet again with our top choice, the Titans, and earned 13 out of a possible 15 points for the week. That puts our success ratio at 71 percent overall (32 of 45) for the season. Ronnie Brown shocked the world last week, and he took out quite a few Eliminator entries in the process. This is why you shouldn't keep a team in your back pocket for later in the season. Yes, the Patriots looked like a sure thing against the Dolphins when the schedule came out, but that all changed when Tom Brady went out. We used New England right off the bat in Week 1, so we didn't fall into last week's trap. This week, we're going to jump on this Buffalo streak now before teams start to pay closer attention to them and figure out how to stop them. Here's all of our Week 4 selections:

DEFCON 5: Bills
DEFCON 4: Broncos
DEFCON 3: Titans
DEFCON 2: Jaguars
DEFCON 1: Cowboys

Good luck to all of you, and remember to check your wardrobe before going out in public this weekend to avoid any embarrassing malfunctions.

AJ Mass is a fantasy football, baseball and college basketball analyst for ESPN.com. You can e-mail him here.