8:15 PM BALTIMORE RAVENS (3-3-1) AT MIAMI DOLPHINS (6-2)

Ravens Still in the Mix Despite Setbacks. Dolphs Tracking Pats and Jets

   Normally, a team that is just a half-game out of first place at this point in the year would be feeling pretty good about themself. But, we are talking about a Baltimore Ravens' team that has completely dominated the AFC North for years now, and been a major playoff force as well, for quite some time. At 3-3-1 and coming off a, 48-35, thrashing at the paws of the Chicago Bears in a game that was not nearly as close as the score may appear, these Ravens are wondering where their once-vaunted defense has gone. They are allowing a shocking 38.56 PPG that has them ranked 31st in the league with a pass defense that is dead last surrendering some 350.57 YPG! That spells big time trouble against a potent Miami Dolphins' offense that is humming along scoring 33.43 PPG.

   Final Analysis: Unless Baltimore can figure out what is wrong with their defense, they are going to continue to get blasted by top level offenses and Miami has one of the better attacks in the AFC. Miami 34-24.

1:00 PM: CHICAGO BEARS (6-1) AT CINCINNATI BENGALS (4-4)

Big Cats Meet in Ohio. Confident Bears Rolling in NFC North as Bengals Slipping in AFC North 

   Usually, the Cincinnati Bengals start off slow and finish strong. This year, however, they started off with a bang going 4-1 to begin the season. But, since then, they have logged three consecutive losses (Albeit to the division leading Jets, Packers, and Steelers) and have suddenly found themselves in a real tussle with virtually the entire division! Their downfall appears to be directly related to the injury sustained by top back Chase Brown, who has not played since week 5, when he ran for 144 yards in a, 42-3, rout of the Detroit Lions. HB Samaje Perine simply has not been able to get it done, and the team has paid the price dearly. Chicago and their coaching staff boasted about being a contender right after their, 41-21, demoliton of the defending NFC North Champion Minnesota Vikings, 41-21, back in week 1. They have backed up that bravado by averaging 36.61 PPG (#2 in the NFC) while giving up 22.22 PPG (7th in the PFL). And they have the top passing game in the NFC (368 YPG). The Bengals, despite their recent problems, are still ranked #1 in the league in scoring defense (19.02 PPG).

   Final Analysis: Brown remains a week to week injury and will likely miss this one as well. Without him, Cinci has really bogged down. Chicago 28-17.

  1:00 PM MINNESOTA VIKINGS (1-6) AT DETROIT LIONS (2-4-1)

Has Vikings' Ship Run Aground? Lions, Coming Off Bye and Win, Now Setting Eyes on Possible Playoff Run?

   Being a defending division champion often puts a target on that team's back. It seems everyone is hitting that target at will so far this season as the Minnesota Vikings have nearly collapsed under the weight.  The offense has plunged to 17th in the league and the defense has been getting ripped for 33.76 PPG (29th in the league and 15th in the NFC). They have now lost 5 consecutive games and are in serious jeopardy of falling completely out of the playoff picture. Last week the offense was shut down by the LA Chargers and the defense saw Charger rookie HB Omarion Hampton gash them for 114 yards rushing. The Lions are coming off a win and a bye. At 2-4-1, things are not looking great, but the truth is they are actually in 9th place in the conference are withing striking distance of the current 7th seed New York Giants who are 4-4!

   Final Analysis: The Lions are not out of it just yet and could get right into the playoff mix with a win here. The Giants have a tough one versus a solid 49ers' team this week so...Both teams near dead even statistically so this one could be a real barn burner. Who has the better weapons? Gonna go with Lions. Detroit 32-30?

  1:00 PM LOS ANGELES CHARGERS (4-4) AT TENNESSEE TITANS (3-5)

Two Teams Battling for Playoffs Butt Heads in Tennessee

   Sometimes a big win can turn a season around. At other times, a big loss by a competitor can open up a door. That would be the case for both the Chargers and Titans as they meet in a key week 9 matchup. Los Angeles got a big, 28-10, win over the Minnesota Vikings, as the Kansas City Chiefs were being upset by the Washington Commanders, putting the Bolts just 1 game out of first place in the AFC West. The Titans were busy dumping the Indianapolis Colts, 31-21, to close to wthin a half game of the division lead right behind the first place Jacksonville Jaguars! Both teams are hoping to continue their recent upward trends. The Chargers got, perhaps, their best overall team effort last week as QB Justin Herbert completed 80.5% (33/41) of his pass attempts for 280 yards and a touchdown and rookie tailback Omarion Hampton got his first career start and responded with a 15 carry, 114 yard performance. His output was even more impressive when one considers that his 100-yard game was the first by any Charger back this season! Tennessee's offense also played well as rookie QB Cam Ward connected for 269 yards and 2 touchdowns, while HB Tyjae Spears, also in his first start of the season, ripped through the Colts' defense for 120 yards on 15 carries!

   Final Analysis: Both teams may have found something last week to build upon. This is a very big game, indeed, for each club with a lot, that could prove critical later in the year, on the line. Los Angeles 27-24.

GAME OF THE WEEK 

1:00 PM: SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS (5-3) AT NEW YORK GIANTS (4-4)

Surging Niners Hoping to Strike Gold Versus Sagging G-Men

   One of a few huge games in the league this week. Both of these teams are locked in a heated battle for a Wild Card berth and the loser of this one will, obviously, likely lose any tie-breaker at the end of the season should it come to that. The Niners clipped the Houston Texans, 21-10, for their third win in a row (And fourth in their last five) as they continued their upward run. The Giants, on the other hand, would suffer their second loss in three weeks to the rival Philadelphia Eagles, 27-7, and have now dropped three of their last four. They have not scored more than 28 points in any game this season and have gone 0-4 versus any team with a record above .500. Not that San Francisco has shown it can handle the big boys either, as they are 0-2 against teams with an above .500 record! San Francisco has had recent success mostly due to their willingness, finally, to utilize the running game led by Christian McCaffrey. While he has not had a 100-yard game all season, McCaffrey has, nonetheless, been effective. He has rushed 109 times for 468 yards (4.29 YPC) with 7 rushing touchdowns. That has helped QB Brock Purdy also be much more efficient. Purdy has now posted five games with an above 100 QBR and, after enduring a 100+ sack season last year, has only been dropped 30 times thus far this year! The Giants, of course, are back to their tradition of running the football. That formula proved very successful two seasons ago, but had the club come up short last year and, so far anyways, has not been a consistent winning method this season as well. They come into this one averaging 131 YPG on the ground (6th in the PFL), but are throwing the ball for only 227.5 YPG (25th)  and scoring at a 23.89 PPG clip (21st). San Fran has been pretty good at stopping the run coming in ranked 9th in the league (85 YPG). New York has been excellent at stopping the run (#2 at 70.5 YPG) and have the 5th best scoring D in the league (21.59).

   Final Analysis: The Giants running game philosophy shortens games, limits sacks and turnovers, and allows the defense to have success. The Niners' success has come from stopping the run and being more balanced on offense. This one should be close if, for no other reason, the styles of the two teams. New York 25-21.

 1:00 PM: DENVER BRONCOS (2-6) AT HOUSTON TEXANS (2-5)

Hard-Luck Broncos Try to Buck Losing Skid. Texans, Still 1 game out, Chasing Elusive Consistency

    For the Denver Broncos, the urgency to win games now has hit home big time. They really cannot afford to lose too many more games and have any realistic chance at winning the division or making the post-season. The Houston Texans have not played well much of the year, but they play in the AFC South and that division has a well established pattern of having the winner be around .500 when the dust settles. As of this writing, not a single team in the division has a winning record and the Texans are sitting just a single game out of first despite their 2-5 resume! Obviously, Houston is in a better position than Denver, but the Broncos could right their ship with a win here and, maybe, start winning some of these close games they have been losing this year. Denver has lost all six of its games by 7 points or less! Houston is averaging 23.32 PPG, but a big thorn in their side has been a running game that is grinding for only 89.86 YPG and has just 5 rushing scores all year long (Tied for 4th fewest in the league). RB Joe Mixon has been held below 3 YPC in each of his last three games and the team comes in with the third worst 3rd down conversion rate (30-103-29.13%) in the league. If, though, the Texans can find a way to get production out of Mixon, they could go on a run!

   Final Analysis: Denver owns the league's #4 run defense 7(8.63 YPG) and that just makes things even tougher for Houston. The Texans do not need a prolific number out of their running game to win this one, but they do need for it to be at least productive. Just have a feeling Houston might have enough defense to keep this one close as Denver's offense has struggled of late. Houston 27-24?

 1:00 PM: ATLANTA FALCONS (1-6) AT NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS (7-1)

Frustrations Continue for Luckless Birds. Hi-Powered Pats Licking Chops?

    The Atlanta Falcons lost, yet again, another close one last week as they fell to the Miami Dolphins, 41-34. The club moved away from its normal dedication to the run and saw QB Michael Penix throw for a season high 432 yards with 3 TD passes. However, he would also suffer 2 interceptions and be sacked a season most 7 times. HB Pierre Strong had a nice day as well rushing for 83 yards and a touchdown on just 12 carries. Unfortunately, the defense was lit up by tailback De'Von Achane, who had an 80 yard TD run, and the D could not get enough pressure on Dolphin QB Tua Tagovailoa (2 sacks). New England had QB Drake Maye looking very much like last season as he completed 79% (34/43) of his throws for 379 yards, 2 touchdowns, and no turnovers in the Pats win over the Cleveland Browns, 37-22, to stay right on the heels of the undefeated New York Jets.

   Final Analysis: Atlanta just cannot find a way to win a close game and it has really put a major damper, so far, on their season. They come in rated 3rd in the PFL in rushing (145.71 YPG) and could pull off the stunner here as the Patriots are allowing teams to run on them to the tune of 120 YPG (24th in the league). This could be tighter than many may expect. New England 28-23.

   1:00 PM: CAROLINA PANTHERS (2-6) AT GREEN BAY PACKERS (6-1)

Close Losses Pile Up on Panthers. Packers' Offensive Woes Grow as D Shines

    The Carolina Panthers lug in an unimpressive win-loss record, but they have played pretty well of late despite being on a 5-game losing skid. They just dropped a tough, 37-34, OT game to the Buffalo Bills with K Ryan Fitzpatrick missing a PAT that could have won it in regulation! Bryce Yound was re-inserted as the starting quarterback and responded to his benching with, arguably, his best game of the season throwing for 434 yards. The Green Bay Packers were able to pull away in the 4th quarter of their game with the Pittsburgh Steelers enroute to a, 27-17, win. QB Jordan Love would complete 74% (28/38) off his throws for 244 yards and 2 touchdowns in the win. Perhaps a bit more significant was the running game that was utterly absent the week before when the club was trounced by the Arizona Cardinals. HBs Josh Jacobs and Emmanuel Wilson combined for 76 yards rushing on 17 carries (4.47 YPC). While the numbers certainly were not eye-popping, they were efficient stats. A big concern was the number of penalties the Packers were guilty of, on both sides of the ball, as the team killed drives with holding and false start flags and extended or kept Steeler drives alive with a few roughing the passer no-nos. The offense has not been good, thus far this season, coming in near the bottom of the league averaging just 337.43 YPG (26th in the league). Still, the Packers have managed to score 30.91 PPG which is 5th in the NFC and 10th overall. The defense continues to play well as DE Micah Parsons recorded 3 more sacks. The D is ranked 2nd in the PFL in yards allowed (300.57 YPG) and #3 in points allowed (19.88 PPG).

   Final Analysis: The weather is starting to get cooler now and Green Bay began to look a bit more physical last week. Expect them to continue to evolve as the season unfolds. Carolina comes to Lambeau Field and can only hope that Bryce Young can have another good day. Green Bay 30-20.

1:00 PM: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS (2-6) AT PITTSBURGH STEELERS (4-3)

Lame Colts Limp Into Pennsylvania to Face Front Running Steelers

   Pittsburgh is coming off a hard fought game against the Green Bay Packers in which they saw a 17-17 tie entering the final quarter get away from them.  The Colts would drop their fourth game in a row, 31-21, to the Tennessee Titans and are in serious jeopardy of having the rest of their season become a moot point. The club did run HB Jonathan Taylor, however, a season high 23 times in an effort to establish a running game, but his efforts were simply not impactful enough. The defense was shredded for 120 yards rushing by little known Tyjae Spears and also had rookie QB Cam Ward have a solid game.

   Final Analysis: The Steelers could have easily won last week's game versus the Packers, but the offense just could not take advantage of the flurry of penalties called on Green Bay and eventually the team relented to the Packers' attack in the fourth quarter. Still, the outcome was encouraging. Pittsburgh's 9 passing touchdowns, though, is tied for the 30th fewest in the league. Indy has not been good on third down (30.673 %) and the team is last in the league averaging a paltry 264.38 YPG on offense. Pittsburgh 27-18.

4:05 PM: JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS (3-4) AT LAS VEGAS RAIDERS (4-3)

Jags Keep Riding Lady Luck in AFC South! Vegas Hopes Wounds Healed After Bye Week

   Two weeks ago the Vegas Raiders were humbled, 45-31, by the Kansas Cith Chiefs. They then entered their bye week and should be set to go here against the visiting Jaguars. Despite the loss, rookie tailback Ashton Jeanty continued his sensational first season in the league with a sparkling 208 yard rushing display versus the Chiefs! It was his first game running for over 200 yards, but the performance marked the third time this season where he has run for 182 or more yards in a game. He now has rushed for 906 yards and 5 touchdowns with a 5.73 YPC average! The Jaguars, who some felt backed their way into the AFC South crown a season ago, seem to be enjoying much of that same mojo this season. Despite their less than spectacular 3-4 record, they are in first place in the division. The play of QB Trevor Lawrence, though, has regressed back to his earlier years in the league. He has thrown 11 interceptions already (which is the most in the league) and lugs in an 84.77 QBRTailback Travis Etienne has, however, performed well rushing for 556 yards and 5 touchdowns while averaging a very healthy 5.25 YPC. 

   Final Analysis: This is a big game for both teams. J-Ville has been pretty good against the run (90.86 YPG) and must shut down or at least limit Jeanty. Vegas needs to keep the pressure on Lawrence.  Las Vegas 26-20.

 4:05 PM: NEW ORLEANS SAINTS (7-1) AT LOS ANGELES RAMS (2-5)

Devilish Rattler-Snakes to Sofi to Confront Punchless Rams

    New Orleans keeps rolling along under the guidance of Coach Mike Kleinknecht.  No coaching staff has been able to identify what Kleinknecht does in order to, seemingly, always get tremendous success from, otherwise, mediocre talents. And, until somebody does come up with an answer, the Saints will continue to pile up stats and wins. LA has been a middle-of-the-road defensive team and will likely have trouble contending with the New Orleans' schemes.

  Final Analysis: Not seeing the Rams being able to contend with the offensive tactics employed by the Saints. New Orleans 35-16.

    4:25 PM: KANSAS CITY CHIEFS (5-3) AT BUFFALO BILLS (2-4-1)

Shocked Chiefs Head to Western New York in Angry Mood. Suddenly Revived Bills on Quest for Three in a Row

    The Kansas City Chiefs are still in their accustomed perch atop the AFC West, but an upset loss to the Washington Commanders has tightened things up a bit within the division and one can count on an angry bunch of Chiefs coming into Highmark Stadium this week. QB Patrick Mahomes threw for a season high 5 touchdowns in the, 44-38, loss but was also sacked a season most 8 times and picked off once. In addition, the running game with Isaiah Pacheco was completely shut off with Pacheco rushing for a meager 10 yards on 6 carries. His production was the lowest since week 1. The Bills survived an over-time win against the Carolina Panthers, 37-34, as the combo of QB Josh Allen (28-36-273-2) and HB James Cook (13-81-1) returned to form.

   Final Analysis: The Bills can score a bit (26.8 PPG), but they have the worst scoring defense in the league ceding an unreal 42.6 PPG, and that almost certainly means KC is going to light up the scoreboard. Kansas City 37-20.

8:15 PM: SEATTLE SEAHAWKS (0-7) AT WASHINGTON COMMANDERS (3-5)

Can 'Hawks End Misery? Commanders Coming Off Upset Win Over KC

   The Seattle Seahawks are the only team in the PFL without a win to their credit. Neither veteran signal caller Sam Darnold nor rookie slinger Jalen Milroe has been able to supply an answer.  Darnold has tossed 5 interceptions, while recording a mere 3 TD passes. Milroe has 3 TDs and 3 picks, but has only completed 58.42% of his pass attempts. Not only that, but consider Darnold has been sacked 27 times and Milroe another 16! Washington pulled off a big upset last week and outgunned the Kansas City Chiefs, 44-38. QB Jayden Daniels had a big day with 4 TD passes, 468 yards through the air and was near perfect completing 34 of 39 attempts (87.18%)!

   Final Analysis: Seattle came close last week against Houston only to see a flurry of miscues allow the Texans to strike twice in the waning moments of the game and walk away with a, 28-21, victory. The passing game simply has not been there. RB Kenneth Walker has been a steady force, but his efforts have not been good enough to overcome the passing woes and he has not had a 100+ yard game since week 1. Washington 26-22.

8:15 PM: ARIZONA CARDINALS (6-1) AT DALLAS COWBOYS (2-6)

Streaking Cards Set to Descend Upon Pokes. Big D Has Now Won Two of Last three!

TEAMS ON A BYE