NFL Picks Week 8: Expert Predictions, Odds Guide and Over/Under Lines
Good luck finding a safe bet in the Week 8 slate of NFL matchups.
According to Odds Shark, none of the 13 games on tap feature a team favored by so much as a touchdown. Five of the games boast spreads of less than a field goal. For bettors, it's probably fitting that a set of odds this scary comes on the weekend of Halloween.
The New England Patriots on the road against the Buffalo Bills is the biggest spread of Week 8, with the Pats sitting at 6.5-point favorites. While the Patriots are perennial powerhouses and a fine bet to win most weeks, it's hard to put too much faith in a road team playing a division rival that shut it out earlier this season.
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Whether you make predictions for pick'em leagues, survivor pools or even just for fun, there's no avoiding this difficult Week 8 schedule. If you're looking for some guidance, here's a rundown of the odds, over/under lines and some expert picks from around the web. All expert picks are straight up, not against the spread.
| Jacksonville Jaguars at Tennessee Titans (-3.5) | 43 | Titans | Titans | Titans | Titans | Titans 59% |
| Washington Redskins at Cincinnati Bengals (-3) | 47.5 | Bengals | Redskins | Bengals | Bengals | Bengals 52% |
| Seattle Seahawks (-3) at New Orleans Saints | 48 | Seahawks | Seahawks | Seahawks | Seahawks | Seahawks 70% |
| Detroit Lions at Houston Texans (-2.5) | 45 | Lions | Texans | Lions | Lions | Texans 59% |
| New England Patriots (-6.5) at Buffalo Bills | 47 | Patriots | Patriots | Patriots | Patriots | Patriots 52% |
| Oakland Raiders at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (-1.5) | 49.5 | Raiders | Buccaneers | Buccaneers | Raiders | Buccaneers 55% |
| New York Jets (-3.5) at Cleveland Browns | 43.5 | Jets | Jets | Browns | Jets | Jets 65% |
| Kansas City Chiefs (-2.5) at Indianapolis Colts | 50 | Chiefs | Colts | Chiefs | Chiefs | Chiefs 62% |
| Arizona Cardinals at Carolina Panthers (-2.5) | 47.5 | Cardinals | Panthers | Panthers | Panthers | Panthers 51% |
| San Diego Chargers at Denver Broncos (-5) | 43.5 | Broncos | Broncos | Broncos | Broncos | Broncos 78% |
| Green Bay Packers at Atlanta Falcons (-2.5) | 52.5 | Falcons | Packers | Packers | Falcons | Falcons 56% |
| Philadelphia Eagles at Dallas Cowboys (-4.5) | 43.5 | Cowboys | Cowboys | Cowboys | Cowboys | Cowboys 59% |
| Minnesota Vikings (-4.5) at Chicago Bears | 40.5 | Vikings | Vikings | Vikings | Vikings | Vikings 75% |
Oakland Can Pull Off an Upset over Tampa Bay (-1.5)
Perhaps it's time people stopped doubting the Oakland Raiders.
Sure, it's difficult to trust a franchise that hasn't had a winning season since 2002 (in which they lost the Super Bowl to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers), but the Raiders have pulled off wins as the underdog more than once this year.
Just last week, the Raiders were slight underdogs to the Jacksonville Jaguars, but they ended up coming away with a 33-16 road victory.ย
The Raiders' shoddy secondary managed to pick off Blake Bortles twice in that contest and held him to 246 yards passingโpositive signs heading into a matchup against Jameis Winston, who has had a couple of dud performances this year but tossed three touchdowns in a win over the San Francisco 49ers in Week 7.ย
Winston will be buoyed by a suddenly potent running game led by Jacquizz Rodgers, who has rushed for 255 yards in the past two weeks. Containing him could be difficult for a Raiders defense that is giving up 5.0 yards per carry, per ESPN.com.
Even if the Bucs come out firing, the Raiders should be able to keep up. Quarterback Derek Carr has 13 touchdowns against three interceptions this season, and though his play has slowed in the past couple of weeks, he can't be down for too long with a pair of talented wide receivers in Amari Cooper and Michael Crabtree at his disposal.
The running game should also be solid, with Latavius Murray coming off a two-touchdown game against the Jags and DeAndre Washington filling in admirably in spots.
But the main reason for picking Oakland to win this game is Carr, who is about as clutch as they come in the NFL. He boasts a 127.4 quarterback rating in the last two minutes of the half and a 114.1 rating in close games in the fourth quarter, per NFL.com. If the Raiders can keep it close, Carr can engineer a victory.
Patriots (-6.5) Should Win, but Bills Will Cover if Health Permits
When these two teams played in Week 4, the Bills managed a surprising 16-0 victory, stifling Patriots third-string quarterback Jacoby Brissett and doing just enough on offense to prevent anything wonky from happening at the end of a sloppy game.
Now that quarterback Tom Brady is back in the fold, the Patriots should be able to get revenge in this road game, but the Bills can cover if the team's health allows a few key players to get onto the field Sunday.
LeSean McCoy is questionable with a hamstring injury and didn't practice Wednesday, per NFL.com'sย Conor Orr. Shady is putting together another fine season, with 598 rushing yards and six touchdowns on 5.3 yards per carry.
While his dynamic play is key to the Bills' attack, his understudy, Mike Gillislee, is no slouch, averaging a robust 6.2 yards per carry this season. Quarterback Tyrod Taylor is also good for a handful of solid running attempts each game.
Taylor's options in the passing game have been limited this year with Sammy Watkins out injured, but he could get a boost this week with the return of Robert Woods, who practiced Wednesday and hopes to play against New England, according to BuffaloBills.com'sย Chris Brown.
"It feels pretty good," Woods said of his foot, per Brown. "I'm still trying to get it right, but I've got to go out there and put it through some things and get out there and play."
Wide receiver Justin Hunter has done well to work his way into the Bills offense, and Taylor has also done a fine job of protecting the football with just two interceptions on the season.
There's still the matter of stopping the Patriots offense, with Brady back and tight endย Rob Gronkowski much healthier than he was when these two teams met a month ago.
The Bills have proved to be one of the tougher teams to score against this season, allowing just 18.7 points per game. Pass-rushing machine Lorenzo Alexander will be key to this one, as he leads the league with nine sacks.ย Buffalo should be getting a boost in stopping a potent Patriots running game led by LeGarrette Blount, as defensive tackle Marcell Dareus is in line to make his season debut on Sunday.
So check the injury reports before this one. If the Bills can get something out of McCoy and Woods is back in the fold, the Bills should be able to muster enough firepower to stay within striking distance of the Patriots.
Odds are courtesy of Odds Shark and updated as of Oct. 27. Picks are courtesy of ESPN.com, SB Nation, FoxSports.com, CBSSports.com and FiveThirtyEight.
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