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Honored Contributor
Posts: 24,105
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Week Eight of the NFL Regular Season!!!

For those teams that have not had a bye yet, this is the halfway mark of the NFL regular season. For those teams that have had, or are having a bye this week, next week is the halfway mark. At this point you can pretty much tell who the contenders and pretenders are. A few contenders will fall by the wayside and a few pretenders will put on a dash and get competitive, but by and large you have a pretty good feel now for how things stand. The Jets, Jags, Raiders and Bucs are all fighting for that first overall draft pick and are not contenders. The Giants, Bears, Saints, Falcons and Seahawks are all hanging on and hoping to catch fire to get back into this thing. There are a whole bunch of teams hanging around with two or three wins that are looking like they'll be somewhere in the middle of the pack.

On to the games for this week. We start out with a pretty good (on paper anyway) game. The Chargers take on the Broncos on Thursday night. It's hard to pick against the Broncos at home as long as Manning's healthy. I'll take the Broncos in this one, but it should be a good game.

Detroit goes to Atlanta. I'll take Detroit. I was hoping Atlanta would bounce back this year, but it's not happening.

Seattle goes to Carolina. Seattle should win (and truthfully they need to win), but my gut says the Panthers pull this one out. Seattle seems to have lost that edge that good teams have and some self doubt has crept in. This is a huge game for the Panthers and I suspect they'll pull it out.

Baltimore goes to Cincinnati. The last I saw AJ Green was still in a boot, so I'll go with Baltimore. It should be a close game though.

Miami goes to Jacksonville. Jacksonville seems to be rallying a bit, but I think Miami will take them. An upset here wouldn't shock me though.

Saint Louis goes to KC. I'll take the Chiefs here. Andy's done a heck of a job getting them to 3-3 considering the injuries and losses to free agency.

Chicago goes to New England. I've got to go with the Patriots here. The Bears need a win, but beating Tom Brady is not easy.

The Bills go to the Jets. This will be Percy Harvin's first shot at redemption with the Jets. He helps the Jets, but their big issue is at QB and he's not a QB. I'll take the Bills. If Harvin can pull off a punt or kickoff return for big yardage then the Jets have a shot.

Minnesota goes to Tampa Bay. So much for Lovie Smith turning around the Bucs in a hurry. I'll take the Vikings here even though they're the underdog by three in this one.

Houston goes to Tennessee. I'll take JJ Watt and whoever they put around him over almost anyone these days. He's the likely MVP this year if he can keep up this pace. I'll take the Texans. If they can get Clowney back playing at a good level that defense will win games single-handedly.

Philadelphia goes to Arizona. I'm a bit nervous about this game. We're getting healthy again which is good, but those players coming back from injury will be a tick rusty and it'll take a few games to knock off the rust. I'm hoping the Eagles win and I'll pick the Eagles, but I would not be surprised to see Arizona win it.

Oakland goes to Cleveland. I'll take Cleveland here.

Indy goes to Pittsburgh. The Steelers are looking old and slow. I'll take the Colts. I'm thinking we'll see a big rebuilding effort get underway in Pittsburgh in the near future. If a team offered enough, I'm thinking Big Ben might be gettable. Put Roethlisberger on the Jets for a year or two and the Jets would suddenly be competitive. The Colts should win this one pretty easily.

Green Bay goes to New Orleans. The Saints lost their heart. I have a strong suspicion you'll hear team officials talk about the need to rebuild the team chemistry this off season. Malcolm Jenkins and Darren Sproles were a lot more valuable to the Saints than team management believed them to be. I expect Green Bay to take this one easily.

Washington goes to Dallas on Monday night. This should be a blowout win for Dallas, but NFC East games are seldom easy. I'll still take Dallas to win, but I think Colt McCoy will have a good game for the Skins and it'll be pretty competitive. Right now though the Cowboys think they can win more than the Redskins do. If Colt McCoy has a bad game (tries to do too much) then this could be a rout. If Romo makes a bad throw or two the Skins could eke this one out.

Fly!!! Eagles!!! Fly!!!
Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 6,501
Registered: ‎03-11-2010

Re: Week Eight of the NFL Regular Season!!!

I think the Colts will pull out a win, but it will be a close game. Pittsburgh concerns me, even though they're an older team. They are still capable of making plays. I saw an interview with Mike Tomlin, and he is familiar with all the Colts' stats. I'm thinking that the Steelers will be prepared for whatever the Colts hand them. The game is being played at Heinz Field, which ,in the past, has been a problem for runners. I'm hoping they get that fixed.

Indy is on a winning streak, and sometime that could end. Pittsburgh could be the team to do that. I hope I'm wrong, but the Steelers aren't going to be easy. Just a feeling I have. The Colts will do their best, but this should be a hard fought game.

I wouldn't rule out Washington winning. Dallas is riding high, but all it takes is a couple mistakes, and if Washington can take advantage of them, the game could go their way. Watch out for Dez Bryant, though.

I'll probably get this wrong, but I picked the Chargers to beat the Broncos. Going with an upset here.

"The more I learn about people, the more I like my dog."

Mark Twain
Contributor
Posts: 50
Registered: ‎03-28-2010

Re: Week Eight of the NFL Regular Season!!!

Just a quick note. Detroit and Atlanta are playing in London this Sunday. The game will start at 9:30am eastern time. For those of us out west it will be a 6:30 (gulp) start.

Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 6,501
Registered: ‎03-11-2010

Re: Week Eight of the NFL Regular Season!!!

SPURT, about using my influence to rest the starters when they play Washington: I tried, but Pagano isn't returning my phone calls.{#emotions_dlg.bored} I don't have Twitter, so can't do it that way. The teams don't play for a while, so there's plenty of time to prepare. Haven't had a reply from the Colts on Facebook, either. I guess I don't have that much influence, after all.

"The more I learn about people, the more I like my dog."

Mark Twain
Valued Contributor
Posts: 664
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: Week Eight of the NFL Regular Season!!!

OK, I've got gardenman on board, how about it Spurt? teganslaw? Bills / Jets pick? I'm just glad I get to stay home and sleep in this Sunday!
Valued Contributor
Posts: 664
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: Week Eight of the NFL Regular Season!!!

Just noticed Peyton is changing up Omaha with "Elway, Elway"
Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 6,501
Registered: ‎03-11-2010

Re: Week Eight of the NFL Regular Season!!!

Sheltie Mom, I picked the Bills. I just don't feel comfortable choosing the Jets, even if they have Harvin. I don't like that team and never cared about Rex Ryan.

I didn't notice Peyton calling "Elway, Elway." I thought I still heard a few "Omahas". Maybe I wasn't paying attention.

"The more I learn about people, the more I like my dog."

Mark Twain
Honored Contributor
Posts: 24,105
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: Week Eight of the NFL Regular Season!!!

Peyton reportedly threw in a Romo or two also. He's getting a bit more creative these days. It looks like the Broncos will cruise into the playoffs this year. What happens there could be interesting. It's hard to find a competitive team on the AFC side of the ledger right now. The Patriots, Ravens and Colts are the likeliest challengers, but the Broncos look better than all of them. Avoiding injuries will be the big key for the Broncos.

Percy Harvin is the wildcard in that Bills game. I don't expect much, if anything, out of him as a receiver this week, but he could do some damage in the punt and kickoff return areas. That's the scary part of his game right now. It'll take him a while to get on the same page as the Jets quarterbacks so unless Buffalo completely blows a coverage Harvin should be contained as a receiver. Containing him on kickoff and punt returns though might be more challenging.

Fly!!! Eagles!!! Fly!!!
Respected Contributor
Posts: 3,797
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

Re: Week Eight of the NFL Regular Season!!!

Yes, Atlanta is the home team, but the game is in London!! We have been there all week!! Kickoff is 8:30am CDT...REALLY Goodell?????

I may not agree with what you say, but I will defend, til death, your right to say it
Honored Contributor
Posts: 33,629
Registered: ‎03-20-2010

Re: Week Eight of the NFL Regular Season!!!

On 10/23/2014 teganslaw said:

SPURT, about using my influence to rest the starters when they play Washington: I tried, but Pagano isn't returning my phone calls.{#emotions_dlg.bored} I don't have Twitter, so can't do it that way. The teams don't play for a while, so there's plenty of time to prepare. Haven't had a reply from the Colts on Facebook, either. I guess I don't have that much influence, after all.

HI TEGAN---

LOL......Continue to try to reach the Colts we need ALL the help we can get......{#emotions_dlg.laugh}

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