NFL Picks Week 8: Analyzing Expert Predictions from Around the Web

Whether football fans can believe it or not, it is already Week 8 of the 2013 NFL regular season. Before any more of the season gets away from us, let's take a look at the picks of some of the NFL's top media experts.

With the help of analysts like Frank Schwab of Yahoo! Sports, Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports and Mike Ditka of ESPN, here is what fans can expect to happen when the Week 8 schedule begins Thursday night.

Experts' Week 8 Picks

Week 8 Matchup	Frank Schwab (Yahoo! Sports)	Jason La Canfora (CBS Sports)	Mike Ditka (ESPN)
Carolina at Tampa Bay	Carolina	Carolina	Carolina
Dallas at Detroit	Detroit	Detroit	Dallas
Cleveland at Kansas City	Kansas City	Kansas City	Kansas City
Miami at New England	New England	New England	New England
Buffalo at New Orleans	New Orleans	New Orleans	New Orleans
NY Giants at Philadelphia	Philadelphia	New York Giants	New York Giants
San Francisco at Jacksonville	San Francisco	San Francisco	San Francisco
NY Jets at Cincinnati	Cincinnati	New York Jets	Cincinnati
Pittsburgh at Oakland	Pittsburgh	Pittsburgh	Pittsburgh
Washington at Denver	Denver	Denver	Denver
Atlanta at Arizona	Atlanta	Arizona	Arizona
Green Bay at Minnesota	Green Bay	Green Bay	Green Bay
Seattle at St. Louis	Seattle	Seattle	Seattle

Where Experts Agree

This week’s slate of games features some of the most potentially lopsided matchups of the year thus far, and the experts’ picks reflect the scope of those mismatches.

With nine of the 13 matchups being a clean sweep for our experts (all nine picks are the betting favorite, according to Covers.com), there are quite a few locks.

The AFC features the more interesting games this week, with each analyst believing that Kansas City, New England, Pittsburgh and Denver will walk away victorious. While there is never an easy game in the NFL, those four projected winners should be safe picks.

As entertaining as the AFC will be in Week 8, the NFC will feature mostly one-sided battles. Carolina, New Orleans, San Francisco, Green Bay and Seattle also tabbed as winners by all of the experts, leaving few matchups that could legitimately go either way.

If there is going to be a major upset of one of the nine aforementioned favorites, none of the three experts we are focusing see it coming.

Where Experts Disagree

While there are plenty of matchups that are considered locks, the experts are also split on several key games. This is where finding a reliable expert and trusting their analysis becomes so important.

In the matchup between Dallas and Detroit, La Canfora and Schwab have taken the Lions while Ditka has taken the Cowboys. With the game in Detroit and star wide receiver Calvin Johnson back to full health against the porous Dallas secondary, this should be a big win for the Lions.

The next disagreement is the Eagles-Giants game. While Schwab has shown confidence in the Eagles, La Canfora and Ditka believe this game is all about the Giants. The looming NFC East battle is the ultimate pick ‘em matchup, but Philadelphia has the home-field advantage, so ride with the Eagles.

All three experts are great at making picks, but the last two disagreements prove Schwab is the man you should be listening to in Week 8. With the Yahoo! Sports analyst taking Cincinnati (La Canfora has the Jets) and the Atlanta Falcons (Ditka took Arizona), follow his lead with these two matchups.

Now it’s time for you to make your educated picks. Good luck.

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