On the face, the TV schedule for Week 9 in the NFL leaves a bit to be desired. There aren't any marquee matchups except the Pittsburgh Steelers vs. the New York Giants. Sunday night also offers the Dallas Cowboys visiting the Atlanta Falcons.

But there are some intriguing story lines in several other games that make them worth tuning in. Below is a list of Sunday's games and the top picks for each time slot.

SUN, NOV 4

TIME (ET)

TV

LOCATION

Denver at Cincinnati

1:00 PM

CBS

Paul Brown Stadium

Baltimore at Cleveland

1:00 PM

CBS

Cleveland Browns Stadium

Arizona at Green Bay

1:00 PM

FOX

Lambeau Field

Chicago at Tennessee

1:00 PM

FOX

LP Field

Miami at Indianapolis

1:00 PM

CBS

Lucas Oil Stadium

Carolina at Washington

1:00 PM

FOX

FedEx Field

Detroit at Jacksonville

1:00 PM

FOX

EverBank Field

Buffalo at Houston

1:00 PM

CBS

Reliant Stadium

Tampa Bay at Oakland

4:05 PM

FOX

O.co Coliseum

Minnesota at Seattle

4:05 PM

FOX

CenturyLink Field

Pittsburgh at NY Giants

4:25 PM

CBS

MetLife Stadium

Dallas at Atlanta

8:20 PM

NBC

Georgia Dome

 

Hi-res-154120326_crop_exact Chris Trotman/Getty Images

1:00: Miami at Indianapolis

Andrew Luck was expected to be the top rookie in 2012, but Ryan Tannehill is putting together a solid rookie season of his own. His touchdown rate is seriously lacking, but he's completing almost 60 percent of his passes and has the Miami Dolphins in AFC contention at 4-3.

Tannehill had strung together several good games prior to playing the New York Jets last weekend. He left early with a leg injury. 

Keep an eye on his status over the next few days, but it looks as though he'll be ready to go on Sunday.

As for Luck—his Indianapolis Colts are a surprising 4-3 as well. This game could decide which rookie quarterback sees the playoffs this season.

 

4:05: Minnesota at Seattle

This game wins basically by default. The Bucs and Raiders may present a clash of the pirates, but the winner between these two surging teams will reach .500 while the loser sees their playoff hopes all but dashed.

Hi-res-154878645_crop_exact The Seahawks could be thin at receiver on Sunday due to a recent rash of injuries.
Leon Halip/Getty Images

Seattle and Minnesota have struggled in recent weeks after opening the season strong. If the Seahawks win, this game could end up being an important head-to-head tiebreaker. A win by the Vikings sets them up for a strong second half of the season.

A 4-5 mark and not being able to defend their own house will likely point to a disappointing season for the Seahawks.

These two games are as close as teams can get to must-win situations in the middle of the season.

 

4:25: Pittsburgh at New York Giants

I'd imagine there will be a slew of televisions flipping to the CBS feed on Sunday afternoon. This game should help answer the questions regarding the real status of the Steelers secondary.

If this game isn't all it is expected to be there should be a battle brewing in Seattle. 

 

Darin Pike is a writer for Bleacher Report's Breaking News Team and a Featured Columnist covering the NFL and the Seattle Seahawks.