Tyler Duke—Staff Writer
Week 8 was the last time I blogged my predictions, and it was a magnificent week if I must say so myself. I missed the Thursday night upset I predicted in the Chargers-Broncos game. I followed that up with a perfect 13-0 record on the Sunday games. It was the best week of the season for me, and I continued the success with a 10-3 week last week. The schedule seems to set up well for another good showing this week as there are quite a few easy looking games.
SUN, NOV 9
San Francisco at New Orleans 1:00 PM
The Saints are catching fire at the right time with some tough opponents coming into town. Mark Ingram has looked unstoppable the last two weeks, and New Orleans has suddenly become a run-first team. The 49ers don’t have the passing attack to take advantage of the weak Saints secondary, and I expect that to cost them the game. Saints 34, 49ers 28
Kansas City at Buffalo 1:00 PM
All hail Kyle Orton! Orton has led the Bills to two straight wins and has the chance to cement his team into Wild Card discussions in the AFC with a win over the Chiefs. I have a feeling this could be one of those weird, low-scoring AFC games and the Bills will prevail at home. Bills 17, Chiefs 16
Miami at Detroit 1:00 PM
Megatron is back. The NFL is now trembling with fear as the top receiver in the NFL looks to be healthy again. Adding Calvin Johnson to one of the top defenses in the league could be very troublesome for opponents in the second half of the season. Miami completely blew out a good San Diego team last week, but I see some regression in this one. Lions 27, Dolphins 24
Dallas at Jacksonville 1:00 PM
In a game where the Cowboys were without their starting quarterback, they unfathomably gave the best running back in the NFL the least carries he has had this season. Games like that are why the Cowboys have been nothing but a mediocre team in the past. I expect Jason Garrett to learn from his mistakes and let DeMarco Murray run all over the Jaguars defense on Sunday. Cowboys 38, Jaguars 20
Tennessee at Baltimore 1:00 PM
The Ravens are at 5-4 and last in the AFC North. A game like this is a must-win against a pretty bad Titans team starting a rookie quarterback. The Ravens defense should have no problem shutting down the Titans. Ravens 27, Titans 10
Pittsburgh at NY Jets 1:00 PM
Combining the Steelers passing game with the Jets secondary this week should a lot of fun. Well, a lot of fun if you have any of the Steelers offense on your fantasy team. Ben Roethlisberger has been putting up astonishing numbers in the last few weeks, and it could easily continue against a bad Jets passing defense. Steelers 35, Jets 17
Atlanta at Tampa Bay 1:00 PM
We all know what happened the last time these two teams met – a historical beat-down of the Bucs. The Falcons have been pretty bad themselves since that game, and the Bucs haven’t gotten much better either. Josh McCown will go back under center in this one and look to improve on his terrible performance in Atlanta. This one will be much closer, but the Falcons should get the victory again. Falcons 34, Buccaneers 27
Denver at Oakland 4:05 PM
Well, this one may get ugly. The Raiders still haven’t won a game. It’s pretty safe to say that won’t change this week. There’s really not much left to analyze in this game except that it’s Peyton Manning playing the Raiders. Broncos 41, Raiders 17
St. Louis at Arizona 4:25 PM
The Cardinals now find themselves at the top of the NFC with a 7-1 record. They’ve done that with a solid offense and a stingy defense that stops the run. The Rams have shown they can hang with anyone, and if this game was at home, I would maybe even give them the nod. Unfortunately for them, it is not, and the Cards should handle this one. Cardinals 27, Rams 17
NY Giants at Seattle 4:25 PM
Both teams in this contest have been fairly unpredictable this year. The Giants defense was completely dismantled on Monday night against the Colts, while the Seahawks struggled to put away a bad Raiders team. The main reason I’m going with the Hawks in this one is because of where this game will be played. Seahawks 24, Giants 21
Chicago at Green Bay 8:30 PM
R-E-L-A-X. The Packers were dominated by the Saints before their bye week, but they’re now back at home rested up for a division rival on primetime TV. Chicago has been inconsistent on the offensive and defensive side of the ball this year, and the defense doesn’t seem adept at being able to stop the Packers passing game. Packers 34, Bears 24
MON, NOV 10
Carolina at Philadelphia 8:30 PM
No Nick Foles, no problem. Mark Sanchez was able to come in and finish the game for the Eagles last week, and he’ll likely be starting for the rest of the season. It’s hard to determine if he’ll be able to succeed in the Chip Kelly offense, but I can’t imagine that he’ll be as proficient as Foles was. The Panthers are in dire need of a win, and I think they’ll get it on Monday night. Panthers 27, Eagles 21
