My 2022 NFL Picks (Week 8)

If you had told me that the standings would look the way they do as we approach midseason, I most certainly would not have believed you.  The Giants and Jets are a combined 11-3.  The Falcons and Seahawks are in first place.  The Patriots and Steelers are in last.  And who knows what's going on with the Bucs and Packers?!  (I bet Brady's probably rethinking his unretirement.)

No, this is definitely not how we expected this season to be playing out.  But isn't that part of the fun sometimes?  You seriously never know what's gonna happen in this league from one week to the next.  Especially this season.

Thursday Night: Tampa Bay (Loss)

Broncos (2-5) vs Jaguars (2-5): Jacksonville-I'm going to skip my usual spiel about the Broncos being on national TV every week (which technically they are again) for a few reasons.  First, the game is at 7:30 am Denver time, so if people want to get up early to watch them, that's their problem.  Second, it's ESPN+, and I don't see this game moving the needle to get people to sign up for ESPN+ plus.  They either already have it or they don't.  This matchup ain't changing that.  Finally, there's a grand total of about 11 people who care about this game.  If you're one of them, knock yourself out!  Should be a fine display of terrible offense, three-and-outs, and punting for our British friends!

Panthers (2-5) at Falcons (3-4): Atlanta-The 3-4 Atlanta Falcons are in first place.  Just take a second to let that sink in.  The Falcons, who no one thinks are good by any stretch of the imagination, are in first place with a sub-.500 record in a division that includes Tom Brady.  Pretty wild, isn't it?  The good thing is that they won't be a sub-.500 division leader after this week.  They'll be a division leader whose record is exactly .500.

Bears (3-4) at Cowboys (5-2): Dallas-Dallas is in a very strange position.  The Cowboys know how good they are, but they also know that they're stuck being a wild card unless the Eagles start losing.  The only part of the equation they can control is whether or not they win themselves.  And this week they get Dak Prescott back.  They've been doing just fine without him, so it's not like they need him.  But still, it's not exactly like having your franchise quarterback makes you any worse.

Dolphins (4-3) at Lions (1-5): Miami-Miami is a completely different team with Tua.  They got him back last week and suddenly looked like the team that started 3-0 again.  Which means it's vital they keep him on his feet the rest of the season.  Because they can be a playoff team if they do.  The Lions have scored a total of six points in their last two games.  They don't have the offense to keep up.

Cardinals (3-4) at Vikings (5-1): Minnesota-OK, it's finally time to jump off the Cardinals bandwagon.  This is a team I legitimately thought would be good after what they did last season, but I just haven't seen it so far.  Those black helmets were as awesome as I thought they'd be though!  The Vikings, meanwhile, could have something special going on this season.  They've put it all together and, with the Packers struggling, have a chance to take real control of the NFC North at the halfway point.

Raiders (2-4) at Saints (2-5): New Orleans-As crazy as it sounds, if the Panthers and Saints both win, everybody in the NFC South will be 3-5.  I kinda want that to happen just to see the ridiculous four-way tie.  And it absolutely could.  While I think Carolina beating Atlanta is a bit of a stretch, the Saints should be able to do their part in setting up that scenario.

Patriots (2-4) at Jets (5-2): Jets-Just when I thought the Jets would actually be a home favorite against the Patriots for the first time in forever, the final line somehow has New England -1.5.  How?  Did they see the game on Monday night?!  This might be Belichick's worst team.  Of course, the Patriots usually go into MetLife Stadium and find a way to get it done, but I think this year will be different.

Steelers (2-5) at Eagles (6-0): Philadelphia-How's this for scheduling?  The Eagles' Thursday night game is next week...in Houston!  So, they're playing on Sunday and Thursday, which just happen to be the World Series off days.  No conflicts here!  (And the Philadelphia Union's MLS Cup playoff game is Sunday night, so again, no conflict.)  Good time to be a Philadelphia sports fan.  Especially when their first-place football team is about to be 7-0.

Titans (4-2) at Texans (1-4-1): Tennessee-Take what I just said about the Eagles and also apply it to the Texans, who have home games the day after and the day before the Astros (assuming the World Series heads back to Houston).  Of course, the difference is that Houston's football team isn't nearly as good.  Houston's old football team is.  The Titans need to take advantage of their division games and bulk their record up.  Which is exactly what they should do here.

Commanders (3-4) at Colts (3-3-1): Indianapolis-A few weeks ago, I saw a graphic on social media predicting who the Colts' quarterback every year for the next decade would be.  After all those years with Peyton Manning and then Andrew Luck, Indianapolis has become the place where veteran QB's careers go to die.  Matt Ryan is just the latest example.  He's out, Sam Ehlinger is in.  And his first game as the starter is against the guy they tried last year--Carson Wentz.  Oh, the way these things happen sometimes!

49ers (3-4) at Rams (3-3): San Francisco-Every time the 49ers play the Rams, San Francisco wins.  The NFC Championship Game was the (pretty big) exception.  But otherwise, it's like clockwork.  The 49ers play the Rams, San Francisco wins.  So why should I think this one will be any different?  I still think the Rams are the better team, but I've learned my lesson.

Giants (6-1) at Seahawks (4-3): Seattle-After the Giants beat the Ravens, I checked out their upcoming schedule and saw that it's pretty favorable for them heading into that Thanksgiving matchup in Dallas.  This was the one game I had circled as a potential loss, though.  Traveling to Seattle is never easy to begin with.  Then add in the fact that they were just in Jacksonville, and it makes the trip that much longer.  Then, of course, there's the fact that the Seahawks are actually playing well and will have the 12th Man behind them.

Packers (3-4) at Bills (5-1): Buffalo-When they selected this one for Sunday Night Football before the season, it made complete sense.  On paper, it was a great matchup between two perennially good teams with marquee quarterbacks.  One of these two teams has been exactly that.  The Bills have lived up to all of the preseason hype, and Josh Allen is probably your leading MVP candidate right now.  The Packers?  Not so much.  They've lost three straight for the first time in I can't even remember.  And it's about to become four.

Bengals (4-3) at Browns (2-5): Cincinnati-Lots of orange on Halloween night in Cleveland!  It's almost as if they planned it that way!  Anyway, the Bengals seem to have found their stride after a shaky start.  They've won four out of five since an 0-2 start, and the only loss in that span was by two points in Baltimore.  The Browns, meanwhile, are about where I thought they'd be as they get ready to welcome back their sexual abuser of a quarterback after the bye.

This Week: 0-1
Last Week: 9-5
Overall: 60-48-1