They obviously make the NFL schedule many months in advance and have no idea what teams' records will be when they have their bye week. So, it's purely coincidental that the two remaining undefeated teams--the Chiefs and Vikings--both have the same bye week...right before what could very well end up being their first loss of the season. Anyway, as for the teams that aren't on their bye this week...
Thursday Night: Seattle (Loss)
Jaguars (1-4) vs Bears (3-2): Chicago-Roger Goodell said some interesting things during his London press conference. And, while I doubt the whole "London could get a Super Bowl" (that would start at midnight local time) thing, I can definitely see the Jaguars continuing to play multiple games across the pond. This is the second straight season in which they'll play back-to-back games in London. This week, they're the "road" team against the Bears. London is where they've found their game in the past, so maybe that's what they need. Because Jacksonville had been floundering before finally getting a win last week, and this one looks like it could be a Chicago romp.
Cardinals (2-3) at Packers (3-2): Green Bay-Arizona is a very interesting team. The Cardinals are 2-0 against their own division, blowing out the Rams at home and pulling off the upset last week in San Francisco. They're 0-3 against everybody else and have scored only 27 points combined in their last two losses. The Packers, meanwhile, are a 3-2 last-place team in the suddenly very deep NFC North. So, they don't really have a choice but to keep winning their non-division games.
Colts (2-3) at Titans (1-3): Indianapolis-Well, what do you know? Maybe Joe Flacco still had some gas left in the tank after all! I bet the Browns were wishing they still had him after that performance for the Colts last week. It came in a losing effort, but so what? If he continues to play like that, it bodes well for Indianapolis. This is actually a fairly important game for the Colts, too. Because 3-3 looks a whole lot better than 2-4, especially with another winnable game against Miami coming up before they go to Houston and Minnesota.
Texans (4-1) at Patriots (1-4): Houston-While the Bills made some questionable late-game decisions, that was still quite a statement the Texans made last week. They're right behind the Chiefs with the second-best record in the AFC, and now they have the tiebreaker over Buffalo. It's the opposite story for the Patriots, who've lost four straight since upsetting Cincinnati in their opener. Make it five.
Buccaneers (3-2) at Saints (2-3): New Orleans-Let's not forget the most important thing, and that's the safety of everyone in the Tampa area. It was actually a fortunate coincidence that the Bucs were away this week, and they left for New Orleans before the hurricane hit. From what it looks like, Raymond James Stadium escaped the type of damage Tropicana Field got, but it's still a good thing that they're out of town and the city doesn't have to worry about all that goes into a Bucs home game while dealing with everything else (although, since this is a division matchup, I have a feeling they probably would've flipped home games under the circumstances). Anyway, with everything going on this week in Tampa, don't be surprised if the Bucs' minds are elsewhere.
Browns (1-4) at Eagles (2-2): Philadelphia-Cleveland is a far cry from last season's playoff team. The Browns have completely lost the ability to score and, yes, they should bench Deshaun Watson. I don't know why that's even a question! Don't forget, last year when they made their run, their quarterback was Joe Flacco, who was sitting on his couch until November. Not Watson. The Eagles haven't exactly been great, but they're coming off their bye, which hopefully gave them a bit of a reset.
Commanders (4-1) at Ravens (3-2): Washington-The only reason I can think of why this game wasn't flexed into Sunday night is because CBS blocked it. Because, frankly, it should be the Sunday night game. And I'm sure there are plenty of people who want to see Washington, which has been the surprise team in the NFL this season. Specifically, Jaylen Daniels and that offense. The Commanders' offense is actually good now! Too bad the national audience on Sunday night won't get to see it.
Chargers (2-2) at Broncos (3-2): Denver-Maybe Sean Payton knew what he was doing after all. Because that Denver defense is legit! They've only given up 60 points in five games this season and have won three in a row. It's been a while since the Broncos were good, but that defense makes them real contenders. We'll see how Jim Harbaugh's Chargers do against them, but I think the chances of Denver making it four straight are pretty good.
Steelers (3-2) at Raiders (2-3): Pittsburgh-Last week, the Steelers played one of their 70s rivals--the Cowboys. This week, they play their other big rival from that decade--the Raiders. Both of the Raiders' wins this season are against the AFC North, so you know the Steelers won't be looking past them. Still, though, where is the offense gonna come from for Las Vegas?
Lions (3-1) at Cowboys (3-2): Detroit-This is Tom Brady's sixth week as FOX's lead analyst...and the fourth time he's doing a Cowboys game. And the only two Cowboys games he hasn't done were on either a Thursday night or Sunday night. So, out of the four chances FOX has had to assign Burkhardt and Brady to the Cowboys, they're 4-for-4. Although, this week, there's a good reason for Dallas to be in the America's Game of the Week slot. Most of the country will see them against Detroit. Last year's game between these two was great. What do they have in store this season?
Falcons (3-2) at Panthers (1-4): Atlanta-That amazing comeback last Thursday night against Tampa Bay moved the Falcons into first place. Now they can take sole possession of the top spot with a win over the Panthers and a Bucs loss in New Orleans. The Falcons should be able to hold up their end of the deal. Carolina made the QB change last week, but it didn't really help the offense much against the Bears. Why should we expect things to be any different against the Falcons?
Bengals (1-4) at Giants (2-3) Giants-I'm confused why this is the Sunday night game for a few reasons. Why did they think America would want to watch this matchup in the first place? And why wasn't it flexed out when they both suck? Isn't that the point of flex scheduling? Anyway, those people who aren't watching Mets-Dodgers will get the chance to see if the Giants can pick up their first home win or if the Bengals can actually play like an NFL team this week.
Bills (3-2) at Jets (2-3): Buffalo-Aaron Rodgers is adamant that he DIDN'T get Robert Saleh fired. Which, even if he wasn't involved in the actual decision, still isn't entirely true, since Saleh likely wouldn't have been fired if Rodgers was actually playing well and the Jets were as good as people thought they'd be. Instead, their offense has been just as anemic as it was before Rodgers arrived. Kinda like it was all of last season...after Rodgers got hurt four plays into their season-opening Monday night game against the Bills at MetLife. The Jets ended up winning that game, too. Now it's time for a do-over, and the Jets will actually be in first place if they win. Which they probably won't.
This Week: 0-1
Last Week: 8-6
Overall: 42-37
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