# Mike Kadlick: Previewing Week 5 of the 2026 season, Kadlick picks the Bengals to blow out the Dolphins, the Cowboys to beat the Buccaneers comfortably, and the Chargers to finally win at home against the Broncos. He also expects Jayden Daniels back for Washington, Michael Pittman Jr. possibly out for Pittsburgh, and names the Week 5 starting quarterbacks for Tampa Bay, Chicago and New York. **Claimed:** Oct 8, 2026 **Pundit:** Mike Kadlick — https://missedtakes.co/pundits/mike-kadlick **Outlet:** Sports Illustrated — https://missedtakes.co/outlets/sports-illustrated **How it reached us:** published in writing **Original:** https://www.si.com/nfl/nfl-week-5-schedule-2026-ranking-every-game-worst-to-best 8 checkable claims — 3 depth chart calls, 3 game outcome picks and 2 availability calls — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing call. It names 13 players and teams, each linked to their own record. 1 of 8 have settled so far, averaging 0 out of 100, against 0 for a naive guess at the same calls. Of the 3 unsettled calls enough other pundits have weighed in on, this one lands below the rest of the room on every one. > They should be able to take down the Buccaneers with relative ease. *(their words, quoted for attribution)* ## The claims - **Dallas Cowboys to beat Buccaneers** - Kind: Game Outcome Picks · About: Dallas Cowboys - Verdict: scored 0 out of 100, against 0 for a naive guess - Line: Closing line (Oct 8, 2026): Cowboys by 9.5 · favorite pick, Cowboys about 4 in 5 (81%). Source: nflverse; context only, never part of the grade. - **there’s a good chance that Washington will get Jayden Daniels back on Sunday after he was a full participant at Wednesday’s practice (Week 5)** - Kind: Availability Calls · About: Jayden Daniels, Washington Commanders - Verdict: not settled yet - **Jalon Daniels to be 1st on the depth chart** - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Jalon Daniels, Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Verdict: not settled yet - **Tyson Bagent to be 1st on the depth chart** - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Tyson Bagent, Chicago Bears - Verdict: not settled yet - **Cincinnati Bengals to beat Dolphins** - Kind: Game Outcome Picks · About: Cincinnati Bengals - Verdict: not settled yet - **Michael Pittman Jr. may miss his revenge game, as the Colts-turned-Steelers pass catcher did not participate in practice on Wednesday as he deals with a foot injury (Week 5)** - Kind: Availability Calls · About: Michael Pittman, Pittsburgh Steelers - Verdict: not settled yet - **Jameis Winston to be 1st on the depth chart** - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Jameis Winston, New York Giants - Verdict: not settled yet - **Los Angeles Chargers to beat Broncos** - Kind: Game Outcome Picks · About: Los Angeles Chargers - Verdict: not settled yet ## Who this take is about - Dallas Cowboys — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/cowboys - Jayden Daniels — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/jayden-daniels - Washington Commanders — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/commanders - Jalon Daniels — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/jalon-daniels - Tampa Bay Buccaneers — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/buccaneers - Tyson Bagent — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/tyson-bagent - Chicago Bears — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/bears - Cincinnati Bengals — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/bengals - Michael Pittman — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/michael-pittman - Pittsburgh Steelers — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/steelers - Jameis Winston — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/jameis-winston - New York Giants — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/giants - Los Angeles Chargers — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/chargers ## What others said about the same people - Nick Wright on Chicago Bears: Nick Wright lays out his season win-total picks (overs on Jaguars, Bears, Chiefs, Buccaneers, Raiders, Falcons; unders on Bengals, Colts, Broncos, Cowboys, Vikings, 49ers), playoff berth and miss calls, three division winners, a Chiefs-over-Buccaneers Super Bowl exacta, and five Week 1 picks. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/5049c576-4d69-4d73-a0ba-6296e5e50ff2 (scored 100) - Gregg Rosenthal on Dallas Cowboys: Rosenthal expects a high-scoring Eagles-Cowboys kickoff game, guesses a scoreline around 41-27, still believes Dallas can clear its win total and reach the playoffs, likes the Giants to beat expectations with Jackson Dart taking over as starter early. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/a11f697d-1616-4bbe-9b7f-5bde7c6653ea (scored 0) - Nick Wright on Chicago Bears: In part two of his gambling show, Nick Wright ran through NFC (and recapped AFC) win-total picks, division winners and make/miss-the-playoffs bets, backing the Chiefs, Jaguars, Raiders, Bears, Buccaneers and Falcons to clear their totals while predicting Commanders, Bucs and Rams division titles. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/252a575e-6524-48d2-86c4-356e2509e8f5 (scored 100) - Nick Wright on Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Wright picked Chiefs over 11.5, Buccaneers over 9.5, Raiders over 6.5 (plus a Raiders playoff berth), Broncos under 9.5, 49ers under 10.5, Cowboys under 8, Jaguars over 7.5, and Bengals under 9.5 with Zac Taylor fired after missing the playoffs. He also had Commanders and Eagles both 11-6 with Washington winning the NFC East. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/c48e72df-628e-4f24-804f-5ce5f7a8e0e6 (scored 0) - Gregg Rosenthal on Washington Commanders: Rosenthal's under picks and a few freebie leans: Colts under 7.5 (possibly the worst team), Commanders under 9.5, Saints under 5.5 (possibly 2-15), Bears under 8.5, plus stated likes on Dolphins under 8.5, Giants over 5.5 and Ravens over 11.5. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/3f529d87-3976-4268-b793-c31075d71d04 (scored 100) - Nick Wright on Cincinnati Bengals: Wright's under picks: Broncos under 9.5, 49ers under 10.5, Cowboys under 8, Bengals under 9.5 with Cincinnati missing the playoffs and Zac Taylor fired. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/c3f0c208-282f-4dfc-8ca1-5c966eee0be2 (scored 100) ## More depth chart calls The same kind of call, about other players and teams. - Josh Alper on Olaivavega Ioane: Alper writes that Cam Jurgens, acquired by trade and in the concussion protocol, won't debut for Baltimore until the following week, leaving Vega Ioane as the likeliest starter at center against the Falcons before sliding back to right guard once Jurgens is available. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/275cec01-644f-4b6e-b878-55a46d1a1b51 (scored 100) - Chris Roling on Drew Lock: Roling expects Sam Darnold's hip injury to keep him out, meaning Drew Lock will be Seattle's quarterback when the Chargers visit in Week 4. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/8a070ae3-e756-45b8-bae4-0104e432653c (scored 0) - Christian Booher on Blake Miller: Booher lays out the Lions' projected depth chart for their Week 4 game at Carolina, naming starters, backups and reserves at every position, and suggests safety Bishop Fitzgerald could make his debut. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/de49ff55-54a5-4410-ba7c-0b7e1f1a2f68 (scored 0) - Carter Bahns on Shedeur Sanders: Bahns calls it reality that Shedeur Sanders will take over as Cleveland's starting quarterback by Week 4, with Deshaun Watson set to fail. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/18802de8-941e-4551-b6e3-df7a752020b6 (scored 0) - Carter Bahns on Shedeur Sanders: A CBS Sports preseason overreaction column argues Shedeur Sanders will take over as Cleveland's starting quarterback by Week 4, that Ja'Kobi Lane has a real path to a No. 2 receiver role as a rookie, and that Kenneth Walker III is a legitimate lead back atop the Chiefs' depth chart. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/e82d31e3-169f-4419-a38c-ceaaa1d053a7 (scored 0) - Pat Fitzmaurice on Jonah Coleman: In his Week 3 waiver column, Fitzmaurice makes several depth-chart calls around injuries: Jonah Coleman leading Denver's backfield, Marcus Mariota taking over in Washington, Michael Penix Jr. starting once healthy, and Malik Washington serving as Miami's top receiver, plus availability expectations for Detroit's injured safeties. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/2cbd48f6-15ea-4aa5-84bc-bcc50d94d09a (scored 0) --- Accuracy is 0-100 against what actually happened. The naive guess is what a strategy requiring no knowledge would have scored on the same call — the difference is the skill, and it is what the MissedTakes Score averages. Full method: https://missedtakes.co/methodology We summarize what a pundit said and quote a short span for attribution; we never republish their article. If this is wrong, tell us: https://missedtakes.co/corrections?pundit=mike-kadlick