Crazy as it sounds, we're almost halfway through the NFL season. The good and bad teams are definitely starting to separate themselves. In fact, we have six playoff teams in each conference right now without needing to apply any tiebreakers.
You also know it's Week 8 because of how few games there are on the schedule. For some reason, there are six byes this week. Seriously, why is four teams a week for eight weeks so difficult? As a result of the three lost games and the three primetime games, CBS and FOX each only get five...and FOX has the 9:30 a.m. game, as well as a national late game. Including Cubs-Indians it's a quadrupleheader on FOX, but the options still seem kinda lacking.
Redskins (4-3) vs. Bengals (3-4): Cincinnati-Finally we're done with this year's seemingly weekly London games! This is number three, and matchup-wise it might be the best one. A pair of division champions from a year ago. They could both use a win, too. The NFC East and AFC North are both getting very tightly bunched. The Bengals are the better team, though, so I'll take Cincinnati.
Patriots (6-1) at Bills (4-3): New England-New England's only loss of the season came against Buffalo. At Foxboro! But that was the Patriots' final Brady-less game, and they had no idea what they were doing at quarterback that week, which showed. That was during the Bills' four-game winning streak, which ended last week in Miami. I think the Bills might've been looking ahead to this one a little bit. The Patriots have been looking ahead, too. There's no way they're going to be swept by the Bills.
Jets (2-5) at Browns (0-7): Jets-Maybe the Cavs/Indians mojo will rub off on the Browns at some point. Cleveland raised a banner on Tuesday night and could win another title on Sunday night. If the Browns are going to join the party, this week seems like a good one for that to happen. Until it does, though, I'm not baking on it. The Jetropolitans are the pick.
Chiefs (4-2) at Colts (3-4): Kansas City-What is it about the Kansas City Chiefs? They're not flashy, but Andy Reid's guys find a way seemingly every week. And it's got them square in a tightly-bunched AFC West race. The AFC South race is close, too, mainly because all four of them keep losing to everybody but each other. The Chiefs aren't in the AFC South, so that tells you what I think about the Colts' chances.
Seahawks (4-1-1) at Saints (2-4): Seattle-That tie last week certainly helped the Seahawks more than the Cardinals. It also took Seattle out of all the tiebreakers, which could be significant later in the season. New Orleans needs to beat somebody out of the NFC South at some point, but even that offense is no match for the Legion of Boom.
Raiders (5-2) at Buccaneers (3-3): Oakland-Remember when these two played each other in the Super Bowl? Probably not. Since it seems like forever since either was good. Well, this year they both are. The Bucs are definitely in the NFC South mix, while Jack Del Rio's Raiders are legitimate playoff contenders. Oakland is undefeated on the road and a remarkable 4-0 in 1:00 games. I expect that to continue.
Cardinals (3-3-1) at Panthers (1-5): Arizona-If there's ever a way to have a tie feel like a loss, the Cardinals sure experienced that feeling last week. I'm still not sure how Arizona didn't win that game. Now they head east for an NFC title game rematch against an equally desperate Panthers team. One of them has to win (although, as the Cardinals proved last week, not really). The loser not only won't be returning to the NFC Championship Game, but will have a hard time even making the playoffs (if that's not enough of a long shot already).
Lions (4-3) at Texans (4-3): Houston-The last time these two met, it was that Thanksgiving game where the Lions won because of a clear fumble that Houston wasn't allowed to challenge...leading to the rule change that all turnovers are automatically reviewed. Detroit's won three in a row to get over .500, but all three of those games were at home. The Texans, meanwhile, got their butts kicked in Brock Osweiler's return to Denver. This one will be interesting, but I think Houston pulls it out.
Chargers (3-4) at Broncos (5-2): Denver-These two literally just played. It was two weeks ago in that Thursday night game that San Diego handed the Broncos their second straight loss. Denver had plenty of time to recover, and took care of Houston pretty handily on Monday night. Just like the Bills-Patriots rematch, I'd be shocked to see the better team get swept.
Packers (4-2) at Falcons (4-3): Green Bay-FOX moved this one into that national late slot, and it could be an important game for playoff positioning. Atlanta has started to come back to earth after that 4-1 start. The Packers, meanwhile, are starting to look like the team people thought they'd be. With this game in Atlanta, we'll really get to gauge where the Falcons and Packers actually stand. I think Green Bay's better, so that's my pick.
Eagles (4-2) at Cowboys (5-1): Dallas-Can we get three straight overtime Sunday night games? After last week's NFC West rivalry game somehow ended in a 6-6 tie, the NFC East rivals meet with first place on the line. It's thanks to the Eagles that Dallas is now tied for the best record in the NFC. That win snapped a two-game losing streak for Philadelphia. The Cowboys, of course, haven't lost since their opener. This is going to be a fun matchup.
Vikings (5-1) at Bears (1-6): Minnesota-Last Thursday, fans in Chicago had some decisions to make. The Bears were playing the Packers at the same time the Cubs were playing in the NLCS. This week, they won't have an issue. Because the Bears are playing on Monday night, which is the World Series off day (assuming the Cubs send the series back to Cleveland). Don't be surprised if the Bears put up a fight. Minnesota's just too good, though. (Also, quick sidebar, how/why did the Bears get four primetime games in the first eight weeks of the season? We're talking about the freakin' Bears here!)
This Week: 0-1
Last Week: 9-5-1
Season: 68-39-1
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