Week 8 was interesting for the four of us. We were wrong on three games that we picked unanimously (Colts over Steelers, Packers over Saints and Cowboys over Redskins) and Brandon, Cal and I suffered our lowest win total thus far. Cal is still in the lead with a 45-14-1 record, followed by Brandon (42-17-1) and then Jordan and I (41-18-1).
Week 9 has some nice matchups, so let's get started.
Saints at Panthers, Thursday @ 8:25 p.m.
The Saints perhaps had an awakening on Sunday night against the Packers, exploding for 44 points. The Panthers played the Seahawks tough, but gave up a late touchdown to fall to 3-4-1. Tonight they'll host New Orleans, who has injury troubles of their own, but Carolina is missing three starters on the offensive line, which is probably going to drastically affect the offense. I like the Saints to keep the train rolling (even though they're terrible on the road).
Tom: Saints 31, Panthers 23
Jordan: Saints 28, Panthers 17
Brandon: Saints 30, Panthers 19
Cal: Saints 31, Panthers 17 (Saints will cover -3 spread)
Buccaneers at Browns, Sunday @ 1:00 p.m.
This is an interesting game, solely because we may have an excuse to keep mentioning the G.O.A.T. Johnny Manziel. If Browns' quarterback Brian Hoyer has another less-than-stellar performance and the Browns happen to lose, the callings for Manziel may begin to mount. But the Browns have been getting the job done and are solid at home, so I think they'll pull this one off against the pathetic Bucs.
Tom: Browns 24, Buccaneers 16
Jordan: Browns 17, Buccaneers 7
Brandon: Browns 24, Buccaneers 10
Cal: Browns 20, Buccaneers 7
Cardinals at Cowboys, Sunday @ 1:00 p.m.
Arizona is quietly one of the best teams in football and they've played a number of games without Carson Palmer. The Cowboys are coming off of a tough loss to the Washington Redskins on Monday Night Football and now Tony Romo doesn't appear to be 100% after injuring his back again. He says he's going to play, but the Cardinals' defense is much better than the Redskins', so I think Arizona will hand Dallas their second straight loss.
Tom: Cardinals 23, Cowboys 20
Jordan: Cowboys 14, Cardinals 10
Brandon: Cardinals 27, Cowboys 24
Cal: Cardinals 24, Cowboys 20
Eagles at Texans, Sunday @ 1:00 p.m.
Philadelphia came out of their bye and fell to the Cardinals last week, and now they'll get back on the road to head to Houston. The Texans (4-4) have surprisingly performed well when they aren't making numerous mistakes per game. They've suffered losses to the Cowboys, Colts and Steelers recently, which were all one-possession games. Nick Foles has been having some trouble under center for the Eagles and I don't believe J.J. Watt is going to make it any better for him.
Tom: Texans 20, Eagles 19
Jordan: Eagles 24, Texans 13
Brandon: Eagles 34, Texans 17
Cal: Eagles 27, Texans 23
Jets at Chiefs, Sunday @ 1:00 p.m.
The Jets can't seem to get it together, and now with Michael Vick as the starter, the downward spiral will continue. Andy Reid is familiar with Vick's play and he specializes in beating down on wilting teams such as the Jets. The quietly solid Chiefs will have no problem in this one.
Tom: Chiefs 31, Jets 20 (Chiefs will cover -10.5 spread)
Jordan: Chiefs 17, Jets 10
Brandon: Chiefs 41, Jets 21
Cal: Chiefs 30, Jets 23 (Jets will cover +10.5 spread)
Jaguars at Bengals, Sunday @ 1:00 p.m.
Not much analysis needed here. The Jaguars have been slowly improving, but the Bengals are nearly unstoppable at home and they're coming off of a win against the Ravens. They need wins like these to compete in the AFC North.
Tom: Bengals 27, Jaguars 13
Jordan: Bengals 20, Jaguars 6
Brandon: Bengals 30, Jaguars 14
Cal: Bengals 24, Jaguars 10
Chargers at Dolphins, Sunday @ 1:00 p.m.
A lot of these matchups so far look like they're going to pay out well for bookies everywhere. This is another tough one. The Dolphins have been playing decently while the Chargers have lost two in a row. Traveling across the country also doesn't help. But if we look closer, the Dolphins have wins over the Patriots (before Tom Brady said "enough is enough"), Raiders, Jaguars and Bears (who are apparently spiraling into oblivion). The Chargers haven't won many impressive matchups, but they're definitely the more consistent squad, so I'm going with Philip Rivers and co.
Tom: Chargers 28, Dolphins 27
Jordan: Chargers 24, Dolphins 16
Brandon: Chargers 27, Dolphins 21 (Chargers will cover +2.5 spread)
Cal: Chargers 34, Dolphins 10
Redskins at Vikings, Sunday @ 1:00 p.m.
RG3 will be starting on Sunday, but I'm not buying into the Redskins' win against Dallas on Monday night. It was an impressive win, but it was a division game and the stakes are always different. Washington will travel to Minnesota to face the Vikings, who are the definition of a mediocre team. RG3 has been out of action for too long to simply come back and spark the Redskins' flat offense. If Bridgewater can keep the ball out of the defense's hands I think Minnesota can easily win.
Tom: Vikings 22, Redskins 20
Jordan: Redskins 23, Vikings 14 (Redskins will cover -2.5 spread)
Brandon: Redskins 25, Vikings 17
Cal: Redskins 20, Vikings 17
Rams at 49ers, Sunday @ 4:05 p.m.
The Rams gave the Niners a scare when the faced each other on Monday Night Football a few weeks back. They pulled ahead 14-0 but eventually lost 31-17. Now they're on the road and San Francisco is coming off of a much needed bye week, which has helped them get a number of players back on the practice field. The 49ers will take this one with ease.
Tom: 49ers 28, Rams 17
Jordan: 49ers 28, Rams 10
Brandon: 49ers 27, Rams 13
Cal: 49ers 34, Rams 7
Broncos at Patriots, Sunday @ 4:25 p.m.
This is the game of the week and a rematch of last year's AFC Championship game. Just a few weeks ago this didn't look like it would be a good matchup because the Patriots looked like they were finally becoming an average team after years of dominance. But Tom Brady's awakening has him playing flawlessly since Week 5. The Broncos will be their toughest test yet and New England may have the upper hand after defeating Denver in Foxboro last year. I'm taking New England because they're too hot right now.
Tom: Patriots 31, Broncos 29
Jordan: Patriots 38, Broncos 31
Brandon: Broncos 30, Patriots 27
Cal: Patriots 34, Broncos 33
Raiders at Seahawks, Sunday @ 4:25 p.m.
Look, I know Seattle has been a little off lately and the Raiders have started to play a bit tougher under Tony Sparano. The farthest I'll go is taking the Raiders +16.5, which is exactly what I will do.
Tom: Seahawks 27, Raiders 16 (Raiders will cover +16.5 spread)
Jordan: Seahawks 20, Raiders 10 (Raiders will cover +16.5 spread)
Brandon: Seahawks 26, Raiders 7
Cal: Seahawks 23, Raiders 10
Ravens at Steelers, Sunday @ 8:30 p.m.
This is the second primetime matchup between these two teams in 2014. The Ravens won 26-6 back in Week 2, but the Steelers have turned it around since then. Pittsburgh has been scoring a ton of points at home and I think that will continue, but the Ravens won't drop two division games in a row. Joe Flacco will find a way to win this one in the end.
Tom: Ravens 27, Steelers 24
Jordan: Ravens 24, Steelers 21
Brandon: Ravens 24, Steelers 17
Cal: Steelers 30, Ravens 27
Colts at Giants, Monday @ 8:30 p.m.
I CANNOT WAIT for Jon Gruden to incessantly talk about how much he loves Andrew Luck and Eli Manning. Hopefully ESPN broadcasts some awkward one-on-one interviews he's had with them in the film room. This should be a fun game for the viewers though. The Giants are coming off of a bye week and have gotten some personnel to rest up, but they're just so bad on Monday Night Football that I don't see them beating a good Colts team. The Colts were playing very well up until their 51-34 dismantling at the hands of Pittsburgh, but I think they'll rebound and get a win at MetLife Stadium
Tom: Colts 31, Giants 28
Jordan: Colts 28, Giants 17
Brandon: Giants 32, Colts 30
Cal: Colts 42, Giants 33
That's all for Week 9 folks. Comment below and tell us what you think!
