Week 8 Picks

Welcome to midsesason! The season is flying by, and every week has been a blast. I went 8-6 last week, bringing my season record to 47-25-1. Definitely could have better, but I have high hopes for this week. Let’s get into it.

Falcons 27-23 Panthers

Starting off this week with an upset pick. I’ve probably been the biggest blind believer in the Falcons this year, even despite all of their blown leads. I have also expressed how much I like the Panthers. Despite how much better Carolina has looked this season, I think this game will be a lot closer than people think, and I think Atlanta will pull of a close upset over their division rivals. I’m not sure what my main reason is for picking the Falcons, but it just feels right. I’ll probably look stupid after tonight, but anything can happen.

Bills 20-17 Patriots

This one is going to be hard to watch. Two teams that have spent the last month struggling mightily, especially offensively. These division rivals started the season pretty well, but things are going downhill quickly. Whoever comes out of this with an L can spiral downward very fast. Unfortunately for the Patriots, it’ll be them. Their offense just isn’t nearly as talented as Buffalo’s is. And despite the Bills’ offensive struggles and the talent of the Patriots defense, I think they’ll do what they need to do to get the job done. It will be close and can go either way, but I’ll trust the team that has proven more in 2020.

Titans 31-20 Bengals

I think this one can be fun. Yes, this is one of the league’s best teams against one of the worst, but like I said yesterday, the Bengals are always in the fight. I think it’ll be a bit tougher against a team like the Titans, who must be super fired up after a heartbreaking loss last week. Tennessee hadn’t lost since January, so I can only imagine how much that stung. They will win this game pretty easily, but once again, don’t be surprised if Cincy is a bit of a thorn in their side. It could be close.

Raiders 34-31 Browns

This might just be the most entertaining game of the week. Two very high-powered offenses that have scored a good amount of points this season. The Browns will be without OBJ, but they still have a good amount of weapons and young studs to give the ball to. Vegas is coming off a very tough loss to Tampa and now have to travel all the way out to Cleveland, but I think that their talent and coaching is better than that of the Browns, so I’ll take them to pull out a W. I know I’ve been a bit harsh on Cleveland in the last few weeks, but I just find it hard to have any sort of confidence in this team. They just struggle against good teams, and I think the Raiders are pretty good.

Colts 24-23 Lions

Another game that will be very entertaining, and very close in my opinion. The only reason I’m taking Indy here is because they’re coming off a bye. These teams match up pretty well with one another, and the Lions are pretty hot right now. Granted, their 2 consecutive wins are against 2 terrible teams. The Colts don’t have the most impressive resume either, but I just think the team is a smidge better than Detroit. I trust their defense a lot, as they have proven to be the difference maker in almost every game for Indianapolis. It wouldn’t shock me at all if the Lions pull this upset off, but I just don’t have it in me to pick them.

Packers 33-19 Vikings

We already saw how massive the difference between these teams is in Week 1. I expect a similar result on Sunday. The Packers are just so much better than the Vikings on both sides of the ball. Minnesota is also reeling, and despite coming off a bye, they will look lethargic on Sunday. It is an uninspired group playing uninspired football behind a coach and a quarterback that nobody wants to play for/with. Green Bay will score a lot of points early, get off to a huge lead, and then the Vikings will score some points at the end to make things look “respectable”, as they always do. But this will be a blowout, through and through.

Chiefs 35-10 Jets

Ohhhhhh boy. It’s not often that we see the best team in the league play the worst team in the league. It’ll be quite the sight to see on Sunday at Arrowhead. I truly believe the Chiefs could rest their starters and win this game easily. In any case, it’ll be ugly and not even remotely close. You don’t need me to tell you that. Kansas City is a 20-point favorite for a reason. I don’t think it’ll be one of the biggest blowouts ever, but it’ll be easy for KC. I’d like to think that Jets +19.5 is the sneaky pick of the week, but I don’t want to lie to myself.

Rams 27-17 Dolphins

The first start for new Dolphins starting QB Tua Tagovailoa will unfortunately be a loss. I’m very excited to see how the former Alabama signal caller performs, but I personally think he’s not ready. This is a move that the Dolphins should have made much later in the season, if not next season entirely. But I am rooting for the kid. It is a very tough first test against one of the league’s best defenses. The Rams have proven themselves as a team that can absolutely shut down offenses. Miami has a pretty good offense, but I don’t think they’ll be able to overcome LA’s talent with the rookie under center. I genuinely think the Dolphins would have won this game with Ryan Fitzpatrick at QB. I believe in Tua, but just not this week.

Steelers 26-23 Ravens

This is the Game of the Week without question. It better live up to the hype. I personally think it will. Steelers-Ravens hasn’t disappointed for seemingly my entire life. Moreover, these teams are back to playing football the way they want to, and the way they did when this rivalry was the best in the the NFL. They can beat you in so many ways offensively, but they pride themselves on their defense. Both teams have stellar defensive units with stars all across the board. This is going to be a classic, I can just feel it. I’d typically roll with the home team in a game like this, but what does being at home really mean in 2020? You don’t have to travel? Pittsburgh to Baltimore is mere hours on the road anyways. So I’ll roll with the team that I think is better, and that is the Steelers, but JUST barely. I simply trust their offense more, as they have been able to get things done both throwing and running the football. The Ravens are statistically the best run team in football, but their passing game has been a bit suspect this season. QB Lamar Jackson tends to struggle in big games, and this is a huge one. I just don’t know if he is built for a moment like this. In any case, I’ll take Pittsburgh in a very, very close game.

Chargers 30-24 Broncos

This should honestly be a very easy win for the Chargers. But, as I always say, they will find a way to almost blow it. Division games are never easy, but the Broncos are a very bad team that is continuing to reel week after week. The Chargers finally have some momentum on their side after finally picking up their second win of the year last Sunday. They are simply far more talented and better coached than Denver and they have no business losing this game. I expect QB Justin Herbert to have another big game, and the LA defense might finally show up against a Broncos offense that has struggled all year long. It would be nice to see the Chargers actually win a game convincingly for once.

Saints 27-13 Bears

This game looks very good on paper, considering the records of these teams, but I don’t think it’ll be close. The Bears offense has been absolutely putrid and impossible to watch all year long. On Monday night, they had the audacity to not even reach the endzone. They’re trying to make things work offensively on the fly, and it is not working at all thanks to very poor QB play. Meanwhile, the Saints are finding their groove with 3 straight wins and some great offensive play. Their defense has been a bit suspect, especially in the secondary, but it would take a special kind of bad secondary to make Nick Foles look good. I think the Saints win this game very convincingly, and we might even see a bit more QB shuffling from Chicago.

Seahawks 31-24 49ers

This is another absolutely awesome game on this week’s schedule. The games between these two rivals have been so good in the last few years, and I don’t expect this one to be any different. The 49ers are getting their rhythm back after some early season embarrassments. Seattle is coming off a heartbreaking loss in the desert and will be hungry to bounce back. This is a massive game in both the division and the conference. These teams actually match up with each other quite well, especially considering how awful Seattle’s defense is. San Francisco is still battered injury-wise, but players have stepped up and proven that the depth of this team can overcome those injuries. However, I’m not sure if this week’s squad has what it takes to overcome Russell Wilson. Last Sunday night taught us that the only thing that can beat the Seahawks QB is himself. I doubt he’ll make as many mistakes as he made last week, and it’ll be enough to pull out a win on Sunday. It will be close, but Russ will pull it out, as he always does.

Eagles 31-10 Cowboys

Another classic NFC East showdown in primetime. Although, unlike last week’s Thursday night affair, this one is going to be genuinely awful. The Cowboys will likely start rookie QB Ben DiNucci, who they took in the 7th round of this year’s draft, in light of Andy Dalton dealing with a concussion suffered last week in Washington. In his relief efforts in the last two weeks, he has looked awful. So I can only imagine how his first start will go. The Eagles have all the momentum they can have after pulling off a huge comeback win last Thursday to vault into first place, and they do not want to look back. This team should absolutely demolish Dallas on Sunday. The Cowboys are playing awful football, none of the players are inspired to play without Dak Prescott, nobody is buying into HC Mike McCarthy’s system, the list goes on and on and on. Philly should win huge. Or maybe DiNucci will shock the world. I doubt it.

Buccaneers 31-13 Giants

Man, WHY are so many NFC East teams on primetime all the time? These games are just blowouts waiting to happen. The Giants will be this week’s victim on Monday night at the hands of their good friend Tom Brady. The Bucs offense has absolutely exploded in the last two weeks with 41.5 points per game. Meanwhile, the Giants offense hasn’t been able to get out of its own way. The New York defense is admittedly pretty good, but good enough to stop the hottest offense in football? I think not. It should be an easy win for Tampa. The offense might be a bit more limited against an actual good defense, but they’ll still find themselves in the endzone quite a bit. And the Bucs defense will absolutely suffocate the Giants offense. It is a complete mismatch.

All stats taken from ESPN.