NFL TV Schedule Week 9: Most Underrated Games to Watch on Sunday

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

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.

"

Matt Moore on Ryan Tannehill's injury: "If you're asking me, I think he looks good."

— Ben Volin (@BenVolinPBP) October 31, 2012"

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.

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.

"

Key Week Nine matchup to watch: #Seahawks WR Sidney Rice vs. the #Vikings secondary, by @eric_edholm - bit.ly/TWA69U

— Pro Football Weekly (@ProFootballWkly) November 1, 2012"

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. 

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