NFL Picks Week 9: Predicting Which Teams Will Emerge Victorious This Weekend

Week 8 is officially in the books, and with Thursday Night Football right around the bend, it's time for Week 9 game picks. 

With nearly one-fifth of the league on a bye this week, fans can anticipate another light slate this weekend. However, the stakes and drama are sure to be as high as ever. 

Below I'll predict winners for all 13 matchups in Week 9, highlighting three home teams primed to come away with victories on Sunday afternoon.

NFL Picks Week 9

Matchup/Prediction

Cincinnati Bengals 23, Miami Dolphins 17

Dallas Cowboys 34, Minnesota Vikings 24

Tennessee Titans 20, St. Louis Rams 16

Kansas City Chiefs 20, Buffalo Bills 13

New Orleans Saints 27, New York Jets 23

Carolina Panthers 24, Atlanta Falcons 21

Washington Redskins 38, San Diego Chargers 35

Oakland Raiders 26, Philadelphia Eagles 17

Seattle Seahawks 30, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 10

Baltimore Ravens 20, Cleveland Browns 17

New England Patriots 27, Pittsburgh Steelers 21

Indianapolis Colts 21, Houston Texans 18

Green Bay Packers 31, Chicago Bears 20

Washington Redskins

The Washington Redskins will be thrilled to return home in Week 9, where they'll host the San Diego Chargers on Sunday. 

Don't be fooled by San Diego's winning record, the Bolts are far from a playoff caliber team and the Redskins, who will have the slightly sore Robert Griffin III at quarterback (per NFL Network league insider Ian Rapoport), are poised to prove it. 

While there's no denying that the Chargers' passing attack has been one of the most productive in the NFL this season, that unit will be under immense pressure to deliver in Landover this weekend. The reason: San Diego's defense is allowing more yards per game than 22 other teams in the league and has only been able to force an NFL-worst four turnovers in seven games this season.

Therefore, Philip Rivers and the Chargers' offense will have to be incredibly efficient on the road in Week 9 in order to have a chance against the Redskins, who boast a top-10 offensive attack of their own.

San Diego's inability to generate turnovers means it's highly unlikely the Chargers will gain extra possessions for their offense, thus providing them with much less room for error.

Oakland Raiders

Surprisingly, the Oakland Raiders enter Week 9's showdown with a better record than their opponent, the Philadelphia Eagles.

And while Terrelle Pryor still has a ways to go until he establishes himself as one of the NFL's premier quarterbacks, he and the Raiders appear to be much better off than the Eagles, who are running out of options under center with injuries starting to pile up.

It's difficult to win in the NFL without a talented quarterback, and the Eagles will prove it again on Sunday afternoon.

Despite the fact that Nick Foles, Matt Barkley and Michael Vick have all led Chip Kelly's offense over the past two weeks, Philadelphia has just three points to show for its offensive effort over the past eight quarters. 

When you can't score points and your defense ranks 31st in fewest total yards allowed, you don't stand much of a chance on the road in the NFL. On top of that, there's the hard-to-ignore fact that the Eagles have yet to beat a team with a tally in the win column at the time of their meeting (Washington (0-0), New York Giants (0-4) and Tampa Bay (0-4)). 

New England Patriots

Tom Brady and the AFC East-leading Pats may have their fair share of issues on both sides of the ball, but thus far that hasn't stopped them from playing winning football.

In Week 9, New England will welcome a team with even more serious issues into Foxborough as the Pittsburgh Steelers look to avoid a 2-6 start on Sunday afternoon. But Pittsburgh is coming off a loss to Oakland in which it looked just as terrible, if not worse, than New England in Week 8.

And if there's one stat that stands out above all others, it's the two teams' contrasting turnover differentials. While the Pats are plus-seven through eight games and generating two takeaways per game, the Steelers are minus-nine and have managed to force just five total turnovers in seven games.

With both offenses struggling to move the ball consistently, New England's opportunistic defense will decide this game. 

Watch for Bill Belichick's squad to head into the bye week at 7-2 and right in the thick of things in the AFC.

Follow Bleacher Report Featured Columnist Patrick Clarke on Twitter.