NFL Picks Week 9: Over-Under Vegas Lines, Expert Predictions and Odds

Two of the most anticipated games of the NFL season take place in Week 9, and the oddsmakers are expecting both contests to be dominated by offense. 

The Sunday afternoon clash between the Los Angeles Rams and New Orleans Saints pits a pair of offenses with plenty of depth at each skill position against each other. 

Sunday night's showdown between the New England Patriots and Green Bay Packers will be more about the play of quarterbacks Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers, who are more than capable of putting up eye-popping stat lines.

The pair of heavyweight showdowns are two of four games with over/under lines set at 50 points or higher, while eight others sit in the 40s and the lowest line of the weekend features one of the most porous offenses in recent memory.

Week 9 Schedule (Available Odds via OddsShark)

All Times ET.

Picks in bold and are against the spread. 

Thursday, November 1

Oakland at San Francisco (-2.5) (Over/Under: 45.5) (8:20 p.m., Fox/NFL Network)  

Sunday, November 4

Detroit at Minnesota (-5) (Over/Under: 49) (1 p.m., Fox) 

Chicago (-10) at Buffalo (Over/Under: 37.5) (1 p.m., Fox) 

Tampa Bay at Carolina (-6.5) (Over/Under: 55) (1 p.m., Fox) 

Kansas City (-9) at Cleveland (Over/Under: 51) (1 p.m., CBS)

New York Jets at Miami (-3) (Over/Under: 45) (1 p.m., CBS)

Pittsburgh at Baltimore (-3) (Over/Under: 47.5) (1 p.m., CBS) 

Atlanta at Washington (-1.5) (Over/Under: 47) (1 p.m., Fox) 

Los Angeles Chargers at Seattle (-1.5) (Over/Under: 48) (4:05 p.m., CBS) 

Houston at Denver (-1) (Over/Under: 46) (4:05 p.m., CBS) 

Los Angeles Rams at New Orleans (-1.5) (Over/Under: 59.5) (4:25 p.m., Fox) 

Green Bay at New England (-5.5) (Over/Under: 56.5) (8:20 p.m., NBC) 

Monday, November 5

Tennessee at Dallas (-6.5) (Over/Under: 41) (8:15 p.m., ESPN)

Expert Predictions

Predictions from all of the major media outlets can be found on NFL Pickwatch.

Chicago, Carolina, Kansas City and Minnesota are the overwhelming favorites for Week 9 in the eyes of NFL writers, while New England and New Orleans have the edge in Sunday's best contests. 

Odds Picks

Go After The High Overs in the Pair Of Big Games

All we want to see out of Week 9's two best games is a high level of production out of all four offenses. 

That is certainly possible since three of the four franchises rank in the top 12 of total offense, with the Los Angeles Rams leading the league.

Denis Poroy/Associated Press

Surprisingly, New Orleans ranks 20th in total offense, but it makes up for that in scoring offense, as it's third behind the Rams and Kansas City, while New England is fourth in scoring offense. 

The Packers lag behind the Rams, Saints and Patriots, as they're 13th in points per game with 25, but that's a number Aaron Rodgers could easily eclipse if the Patriots fail to clog up their defensive holes like they did against Kansas City. 

Given the offensive firepower, it's hard to not bet the overs, even if they both sit above 55 points. 

The defensive stats produced by the quartet of teams through eight weeks suggest the overs can hit, too. 

New Orleans gives up 26.1 points per game, while Green Bay and New England concede 24.7 and 23.1 points per contest, respectively.

The Rams are the only team of the group that's conceded less than 20 points per contest at 19.4, which is good enough for the sixth-best mark in the NFL.

Although the Rams have a decent scoring defense, they've let up 27 points or more to Green Bay, Minnesota and Seattle, who have been the three toughest teams on their schedule. 

The offensive and defensive numbers of each team suggest the overs are absolutely in play, and there's a good chance both will hit if offense reigns supreme at the Superdome and Gillette Stadium.

Take The Chicago-Buffalo Over

On the opposite end of the over/under spectrum sits Chicago's visit to Buffalo. 

The Bears are rightfully an overwhelming 10-point favorite over the struggling Bills, but the over/under line sits at 37.5 because no one has any faith in the Buffalo offense. 

In three of their four victories, the Bears produced 24 points or more, which seems easy to attain against the Buffalo defense as long as they don't settle for field goals like the Patriots did Monday night.

Nam Y. Huh/Associated Press

The possibility of a defensive touchdown or two lingers, as Nathan Peterman has been thrust into the starting quarterback role once again by the Bills, who have had zero luck at the position in 2018. 

In his career, Peterman's thrown nine interceptions on 81 passing attempts, and another pick or two should be expected Sunday against a Bears secondary with the second-most interceptions in the NFL. 

If you take the over in this contest, it means you're hoping for a pick six out of the Bears, or interceptions that create short field position for Mitchell Trubisky and Co. to score from. 

The only concern with taking the over is sweating if the Bills score at least one touchdown. In the last two weeks, the Bills totaled 11 points through a safety and three field goals. 

If the same incompetence is displayed for all four quarters, the over might be in danger if the Bears take their foot off the accelerator. 

Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90