NFL Week 8 Predictions: Picks for Every Game

Week 8 of the NFL schedule features a matchup of two of the top five teams in the AFC when the New England Patriots travel to Pittsburgh to take on the Steelers.  How will Tom Brady and the league's No. 1 pass offense do against the league's No. 1 pass defense?

The Sunday night game features the Philadelphia Eagles and their No. 1 rushing offense against the Dallas Cowboys and their No. 1 rushing defense.

Teams on a bye this week include Atlanta, Chicago, Green Bay, Oakland, New York Jets and Tampa Bay.

Indianapolis Colts @ Tennessee Titans

People are always talking about how amazing it is what a difference Peyton Manning makes.  The Colts won their division last season with Manning, but look like they will be lucky to win a game this season without him.

While it is true that this would be a much better team with Manning, he does not play defense.  This team still would not be able to stop anyone.

All of that being said, this looks like a good opportunity for the Colts to get a win.  They head to Tennessee to take on a Titans team that is in total disarray after a promising start to the season.

As far as the Titans are concerned, if Chris Johnson is ever going to get going it would be against an Indianapolis defense that is giving up 150.9 yards per game on the ground.

The Colts keep this one close early but leave still searching for their first win.

Titans 24 Colts 10

New Orleans Saints @ St. Louis Rams

St. Louis is 13th against the pass.  That number looks pretty good until you put it into context.  Teams do not have to throw the ball at all against the Rams this year because they are giving up 183.8 yards per game on the ground.

The Saints are not going to change who they are.  They will put the Rams pass defense to the test early and often in this one.  The Rams will not have many answers for Drew Brees and Company.

This game will get really ugly if Sam Bradford is out for the second straight week.

Saints 38 Rams 13

Miami Dolphins @ New York Giants

The Dolphins are a mess right now.  They are still reeling from allowing Tim Tebow and the Broncos to storm back from 15 points down with less than three minutes left last Sunday.  Plus they are not a good football team.

The Giants are coming off of their bye and ready for a run at the NFC East title.

Miami is 20th against the run and 21st against the pass.  Look for the Giants to put up a lot of points in this one.

Giants 42 Dolphins 6

Minnesota Vikings @ Carolina Panthers

This could actually be an exciting game between a 1-6 team and a 2-5 team.  While the teams have been bad, there are quite a few guys in this game that are really fun to watch.

The first guy on that list is Adrian Peterson.  He is having a good year on a bad team.  This is a good matchup for him.  The Panthers are 29th in the league giving up 133.4 yards per game on the ground.

Cam Newton is another guy people will tune in to watch.  The Vikings defense is 29th in the league against the pass.  Look for both Newton and Steve Smith to have a big day in this one.

Panthers 24 Vikings 20

Arizona Cardinals @ Baltimore Ravens

Is there a more confusing team in the NFL right now than the Baltimore Ravens?

They beat up on three teams that will probably be in the playoffs—the Steelers, Jets and Texans—but lost to the Titans and Jaguars, who are not very good.

The Ravens should not have much trouble with the Cardinals, especially with the absence of Beanie Wells from the lineup, but you can never really know with the Ravens.

Arizona will have a lot of trouble moving the ball against the first-ranked defense in the league.

Ravens 20 Cardinals 6

Jacksonville Jaguars @ Houston Texans

The Houston Texans took control of the AFC South last week with their win over the Tennessee Titans.  That can only mean they will lose this week because that is what they do.

It is hard to see how the Jaguars can win this game when you look at the numbers.  They are facing a Houston defense that is much improved over last season.  They are currently eighth in the league in total defense.

The Jaguars are even better on defense.  They currently rank sixth in the league in total defense.

In a game with two top-10 defenses, the team with the better offense will usually win.  Houston has the better offense in this one, but they will find a way to choke this one away.

Jaguars 17 Texans 14

Washington Redskins @ Buffalo Bills

The key matchup in this game will be Fred Jackson against the Redskins rush defense that is allowing 117.5 yards per game.  The Buffalo offense runs through Jackson.  If they can get him going in this one it will be an easy win.

John Beck was pretty good in his first start last week.  He will have chances to make some plays against a Bills pass defense that gives up 284.8 yards per game.

The Redskins will be without two key weapons, Santana Moss and Tim Hightower, in this game due to injury.  That will not make it any easier to keep up with the high-scoring Bills.

Bills 27 Redskins 17

Detroit Lions @ Denver Broncos

The Tim Tebow experience will welcome the Detroit Lions to town this weekend.  It will probably get ugly.

Tebow was able to make his magic happen in a come-from-behind win against the Dolphins last Sunday, but things will not be as easy against a Lions team that features a ferocious pass rush.

The biggest problem for the Broncos in this game will be slowing Matthew Stafford and Calvin Johnson.  Denver gives up 247.5 yards per game through the air.

Lions 38 Broncos 13

New England Patriots @ Pittsburgh Steelers

This is the game of the week.  It features two teams that are considered to be among the top five in the AFC.  We will learn a lot about both of these teams in this game.

This is a classic strength vs. strength matchup.  The Patriots feature the No. 1 passing game in the league.  The Steelers feature the No. 1 pass defense in the league.  Whoever comes out on top in that matchup will likely win the game.

The Steelers have a slight edge in this one because their offense will be able to take advantage of a Patriots defense that is allowing 423.7 yards per game.

Steelers 24 Patriots 21

Cleveland Browns vs. San Francisco 49ers

This is going to be one of the better games of the weekend that not many people will see.  It will not be a pretty game because both teams pride themselves on playing defense and running the ball, but it will not be decided until the fourth quarter.

The one real statistical advantage that jumps out in this game is Frank Gore against the Browns run defense.  They rank 19th allowing 119 yards per game.

The 49ers defense is not very good against the pass, but the Browns do not have the weapons to take advantage of it.

49ers 17 Browns 14

Cincinnati Bengals @ Seattle Seahawks

It is a rough week for the late afternoon games. 

This game might be a good one, but there really are not any marquee players that are going to make people want to watch.

Andy Dalton and A.J. Green will have opportunities to make some big plays against a Seattle pass defense that is giving up 249.7 yards per game through the air.

Bengals 24 Seahawks 17

Dallas Cowboys @ Philadelphia Eagles

It is good news that the NBC game will actually be good this week.

There should be a lot of scoring in this one.  Last week the Cowboys discovered the art of the handoff, and it resulted in a rookie running back going for 253 yards.  Of course, that was against the Rams defense, but the Eagles rush defense is not much better.

This game also features the league's No. 1 rush offense in the Eagles versus the league's No. 1 rush defense in the Cowboys.  Something has to give. 

Cowboys 31 Eagles 27

San Diego Chargers vs. Kansas City Chiefs

The Chiefs have played themselves back into contention in the AFC West.  If they can win this game they will have a share of the lead in the division.

The Chiefs will have trouble slowing down the Chargers offense in this one.  Kansas City is 18th in the league in total defense.  The Chargers are eighth in the league in total offense.

Kansas City will do their best to keep the San Diego offense off the field with a heavy dose of Thomas Jones, Dexter McCluster and Jackie Battle.  They also get the advantage of playing this one at home.

Chiefs 24 Chargers 20