NFL Week 9 Picks: Division Leaders Poised for Blowout Wins

We've reached the midway point of the NFL season and the contenders are starting to separate themselves from the rest of the pack. Aside from the unexpected 8-0 Kansas City Chiefs, the rest of the league's division leaders are the usual suspects.

Here is the full slate of Week 9 matchups on the schedule:

AWAY	HOME	WINNER
Cincinnati Bengals	Miami Dolphins	Bengals
Atlanta Falcons	Carolina Panthers	Panthers
Minnesota Vikings	Dallas Cowboys	Cowboys
New Orleans Saints	New York Jets	Saints
Tennessee Titans	St. Louis Rams	Rams
Kansas City Chiefs	Buffalo Bills	Chiefs
San Diego Chargers	Washington Redskins	Chargers
Philadelphia Eagles	Oakland Raiders	Raiders
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Seattle Seahawks	Seahawks
Baltimore Ravens	Cleveland Browns	Browns
Pittsburgh Steelers	New England Patriots	Patriots
Indianapolis Colts	Houston Texans	Colts
Chicago Bears	Green Bay Packers	Packers

Let's take a look at some first-place teams positioned for big victories in Week 9.

Seattle Seahawks vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

On paper, there's no bigger Week 9 mismatch than this contest set to take place in Seattle. First of all, the Buccaneers (0-7) join the Jacksonville Jaguars (0-8) as the only winless teams in the league, while Seattle is rolling atop the NFC West.

Tampa Bay's situation is getting worse by the week, with NFL.com's Mike Silver even speculating that coach Greg Schiano could be fired in the not-too-distant future. Silver detailed the major disconnect growing in the Buccaneers locker room from Schiano's reportedly abrasive coaching style, citing it as the major reason behind the team's abysmal start despite having a talented roster.

Ian Rapoport of NFL.com shared a picture of the Tampa Bay Times following the Week 8, 31-13 loss to the Carolina Panthers:

That's not the type of team you want to bring into CenturyLink field, home of one of the best crowds in sports. The Seahawks are rounding into form and will also be adding another weapon with Percy Harvin expected to be available for Week 9, according to Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports.

With the 12th man behind the Seahawks, Tampa Bay's locker room in disarray and Harvin coming back to aid the league's third-best rushing attack, this has all the makings of a lopsided Seattle win.

Final score: Seahawks win 35-10

Green Bay Packers vs. Chicago Bears

The Packers have finally found a running back, and that doesn't bode well for the rest of the league. Rookie Eddie Lacy has emerged as the go-to guy for the Packers in the past four contests, averaging more than 24 carries and nearly 99 yards per game in that span. No coincidence, Green Bay has won each of those games, posting a season-high 44 points in a victory against Minnesota in Week 8.

No matter that top receiver Randall Cobb is out with a knee injury and James Jones is recovering from his own knee injury, Aaron Rodgers is still leading the Packers as the No. 3 scoring offense in the league (30.3 points per game).

The Packers team Instagram account recently shared this picture of Rodgers at work in Week 8:

The Bears are currently the second-best scoring team in the league at 30.4 points per game, but most of that success has been based on the arm of Jay Cutler, who is expected to miss the next three weeks with a left groin injury. Josh McCown was a serviceable replacement in Week 8 (14-of-20, 204 yards, 1 TD), but the offense isn't nearly as explosive without Cutler's big arm. Chicago's defense has also been afflicted with injuries and now is the fourth-worst team in the league in terms of points allowed (29.4 per game).

All signs point to this being a big victory for the Packers, whose offense is clicking just as the Bears defense struggles to cope with injuries.

Final score: Packers win 38-14

New England Patriots vs. Pittsburgh Steelers

Tom Brady and the Patriots offense aren't as prolific as in years past, but New England is still 6-2 and atop the AFC East. Remarkably, Brady is still seeking his first three-touchdown game of the year and has just thrown two total touchdowns in the past four contests.

But Brady has to explode sometime and it might be this week against the Steelers, as receiver Danny Amendola and tight end Rob Gronkowski are expected to be in the lineup together for the second straight game. Even though Pittsburgh has the league's second-best pass defense (181 yards allowed per game), it's just a matter of time before Brady breaks out.

There has been concern about possible inflammation in Brady's throwing hand, but the quarterback recently told NESN he's not having any problems out on the field:

For the first 30 minutes of their Week 8 contest in Oakland, it looked like the Steelers were going to get blown out by the Raiders. After giving up a 93-yard touchdown run to quarterback Terrelle Pryor on the first play from scrimmage, Pittsburgh continued to stumble and entered the locker room at halftime down 18 points before losing 21-18.

From defensive breakdowns to offensive futility to missed extra points, the Steelers looked sloppy in Week 8 following two victories. Look for Brady to recapture his form against an inconsistent Pittsburgh team and put up big numbers for the Patriots.

Final score: Patriots win 42-17

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