Week 9
NFL predictions

Week 9 begins the cold November rains. This is the time when cold fields become a factor for the teams that are used to playing either inside or in the warm Southern sun. There are some great matchups with the Dallas vs. NY Giants being the cream of the crop. But the Pack vs. Titans will be a good one, Pittsburgh at the 'Skins will be another great battle in the trenches and Indy vs. NE Pats will be a tough week 9 conference game for both teams.

Week 8 was good to me, going 9-5. Week 9 has more possibilities of having the games go either way. Good competition is ahead. I am going out on a limb and picking the Bengals to upset the Jaguars. The Jags just do not want it like they have in years past.

Teams that have a BYE are: New Orleans Saints, San Diego Chargers, San Francisco 49ers, and the Carolina Panthers. Too bad the 49ers are off this week, I wanted to see if Coach Singletary was going to continue with his infamous rant on either Vernon Davis or another player that loses his head during the game and costs the team 15 yards in penalties! That was an NFL classic moment, right up there with Coach Jim Mora as the Colts head coach saying, "Playoffs?! I just hope we win another game!!!" And what is up with the "pulling down the pants" during halftime?

So let the ranting stop and on with the predictions for week 9.


New York Jets at Buffalo Bills
This is an interesting conference game. The Bills are coming off a loss to the Miami Dolphins; I guess they had their mind on Miami Beach instead of Miami Dolphins. The Jets won their game against the lowly Kansas City Chiefs, but is that really a strong victory to build upon? Especially when Brett was gun slinging it to the other team so much? The Jets do not travel well on the road. A loss to Oakland happened two weeks ago, and the Bills at home are a much strong team that Buffalo. The Bills are trying to figure out what went wrong, too. Probably was the heat, and playing in Buffalo this weekend, the heat will not be a factor.
Buffalo Bills 23 New York Jets 21

Detroit Lions at Chicago Bears
For the Lions, the agony will continue for a while. For the Bears, the question is not if they will win, but will they beat the spread?
Chicago Bears 35 Detroit Lions 21

Jacksonville Jaguars at Cincinnati Bengals
I cannot figure the Jags out this year. They were supposed to be contenders for the AFC division champions, and they fizzle when the pressure is applied. What gives? The Bengals are struggling. They were blown out last week by the Texans on the road. But the Bengals play tough at home. I really like this game as an upset here. Week 9 Upset of the Week
Cincinnati Bengals 24 Jacksonville Jaguars 23

Baltimore Ravens at Cleveland Browns
This is a good game. Both teams are coming off victories and I expect both defenses will be getting to the quarterback. But Flacco has not impressed me when the Ravens are on the road. While he is a very good rookie, he still is a rookie. Derek Anderson is more composed and will have home field advantage for this crucial game for both teams. If Cleveland doesn't win this game, it will be a long November for them and a new head coach could come into play.
Cleveland Browns 27 Baltimore Ravens 17

Green Bay Packers at Tennessee Titans
Another really good game but the Titans are playing at another level. Their come from behind win last Monday night is a proverbial testimony to the heart of this Titan team. They win games in the trenches. Nothing fancy, no pre-madonnas, just hard work in the trenches so that Kerry Collins can do his thing. Aaron Rodgers is playing good, but I don't think he will have the time or experience to lead the Packers to victory against this Titan defense.
Tennessee Titans 31 Green Bay Packers 17

Arizona Cardinals at St. Louis Rams
Both teams are coming off loses from last week. Arizona did some traveling to Carolina and was part of the traveling West Coast teams that could not win on the East Coast last week. All three teams fell apart last week and continued the trend of losing when having to play on the East Coast. Now, St. Louis isn't as far as Carolina, but the Cardinals are not at home, and the Rams have played strong at home. Rams quarterback Mark Bulger also had over 300 yards passing in New England last week, so I expect him to have a good game at home against a pass defense team that isn't nearly as strong as the Pats.
St. Louis Rams 24 Arizona Cardinals 13

Houston Texans at Minnesota Vikings
A road trip for the Texans. It's been a while and it will be interesting to see how they play. The Texans went 3-0 the last three weeks, but wins over Detroit and Cincinnati are "give me" games, nothing to brag about as an upset or a strong victory. Minnesota had the week off and it will be interesting to see if the quarterback dilemma is behind them now and if Adrian Peterson is refreshed and ready to run wild.
Minnesota Vikings 27 Houston Texans 21

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Kansas City Chiefs
Tampa Bay had the chance to make some noise last week against Dallas and bombed, big time. Kansas City had the game thrown to them, literally and didn't come through in the end. So will the Bucs respond and get on track with a road win? They need to going into a bye week for week 10. Two losses will hurt their chances for a strong second half of the season. Kansas City has too much drama with Larry Johnson and injuries to Brodie Cryle to be playing quality football.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 17 Kansas City Chiefs 13

Miami Dolphins at Denver Broncos
While Miami is playing well at home, they haven't proven themselves on the road. And Denver is no place to come in hoping to get a road victory. Denver had the week off last week and should have ironed out some of their weak links in the defense.
Denver Broncos 24 Miami Dolphins 16

Atlanta Falcons at Oakland Raiders
This is a good opportunity for the Falcons to pick up an important road win. Oakland didn't fair well on the road last week, but they pulled it out at home the week before. But Atlanta has been predicted to be the team that folds over the second half of the season and begin a losing trend. A loss at Oakland will prove many people right that Atlanta isn't worthy, but a I think they are.
Atlanta Falcons 23 Oakland Raiders 16

Dallas Cowboys at New York Giants
Wow.... another big week for the Giants with Dallas coming to town. A conference win here would go a long way for the Giants, but a road win will put Dallas on the road to recovery. But Dallas has not faired well on the road, and I doubt that Brad Johnson will be able to keep the 'Boys in this game. The Giant defense will smother him and limit him to screen passes or short passing routes. There will be no deep threat as Johnson will not have the time or the arm strength to get the ball to TO or Roy Williams in stride for 40+ yards and a TD. Giants all the way.
Giants 34 Cowboys 20

Philadelphia Eagles at Seattle Seahawks
While Seattle got a win last week against the 49ers, I guarantee you the Eagles have a much stronger defense. The question is the offense and if McNabb will play like McNabb and the Eagles are capable of playing. McNabb also gets some injured receivers back this week, and they seem to be playing strong. And the Phillies just won the World Series, so the smell of victory is in the air.
Philadelphia Eagles 28 Seattle Seahawks 14

New England Patriots at Indianapolis Colts
The Colts just don't have that killer instinct this year. The Colts SS returns but they lose a starting CB for the year. Peyton just hasn't been himself with the knee injury hampering his success. The Pats have been without Tom Brady for the season but seem to still have that killer instinct in them when the game is close. I would like to see the Colts win a home game here, but I don't think that it will be against the Pats. Pats still look very good, and the Colts don't look good at all.
New England Patriots 25 Indianapolis Colts 19

Week 9 Monday Night Football
Pittsburgh Steelers at Washington Redskins
Another mega game here. Pittsburgh was very dominant in their loss to the Giants last week. They fell apart at the end, and it cost them dearly in the loss. The 'Skins won against Detroit, but they didn't blow them out as they had to fight in the forth quarter to come away with the victory. So will the dominant Redskins team of earlier this year show up and play or will they fold like they did in St. Louis and struggle to victory like they did last week in Detroit? Pittsburgh is banged up, and it shows. Tough break for a great team that has so much potential. The Skins will win thanks to two things: 1) Jason Campbell having a big night and 2) the home field advantage. Week 9 Game of the Week # 2
Washington Redskins 31 Pittsburgh Steelers 21

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