NFL week nine preview

CINCINNATI — The following is a preview and breakdown of the key games in week nine of the NFL season.

Thursday Night Football: New York Jets @ Indianapolis Colts – 8:20 p.m. on FOX and NFL Network (Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, Erin Andrews, Kristina Pink) Radio: Westwood One (Brandon Gaudin, Tony Boselli)
Just four days after Mike White, yes, Mike White, torched the Bengals for 405 yard passing and three touchdown passes, he now gets to show a nationwide audience what he can do when he leads the Jets into Indianapolis to take on a Colts team coming off a heartbreaking loss to Tennessee Sunday.

The question I have with the Jets is was their performance against the Bengals something they can build on or an anomaly. They may not be as bad as their pathetic performance against the Patriots two weeks ago, but will they be able to sustain what they did against the Bengals?

Meanwhile, the Colts have bounced back from their 0-3 start, but have left two wins on the table over the last five weeks. They gave away that game against Tennessee, a game they really needed to win if they have playoff aspirations. They’re not out of it yet, but they can’t afford another loss or else they may dig themselves too deep of a hole.

This matchup may not be appealing to the casual football fan, but it is an important game for the Colts and a game to see if the Jets maybe can build off of their impressive win over the Bengals. And if the Jets are able to win, do they then have a quarterback competition on their hands?

Game pick: Colts 27 Jets 14

Cleveland Browns @ Cincinnati Bengals – 1 p.m. on CBS (Jim Nantz, Tony Romo, Tracy Wolfson)
A crossroads game for both teams. Cleveland’s season is teetering on the brink of disaster, and I don’t know if a win will totally save their season. At the time of this writing, I don’t know what’s going to happen Odell Beckham Jr.. The Athletic reported Wednesday that Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski sent Beckham Jr. home from practice. But no word has been reported of him being released, cut, waived, etc..

Meanwhile, the Bengals are coming off a bad loss to the Jets, but I think it’s the kind of loss that leaves a sour taste in the players’ mouths. This is still a really good team, I would argue the most talented in the division. For all the improvements and strides the Bengals defense has taken this season, this is the first time this season they are entering a game where they need to bounce back from a poor performance. Can defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo make the necessary adjustments from last week?

These Bengals-Browns games never end up being blowouts, so you know it’s going to be close. Both teams need to win this game. The Browns need to win to boost the morale of their locker room. The Bengals need to win to keep their playoff hopes on solid footing.

Game pick: Bengals 34 Browns 24

Denver Broncos @ Dallas Cowboys – 1 p.m. on FOX (Kevin Burkhardt, Greg Olsen, Pam Oliver)
Dak Prescott is expected to return in full to practice today, which means he will be playing on Sunday for the Cowboys. Dallas continues to improve by the week and keeps finding ways to win games. The question now is becoming, can they do it in January?

Denver snapped their four-game losing streak last week against Washington, and they still are fighting to be in position to make the playoffs. But do they have nearly enough firepower to keep up with the Cowboys? I don’t think so.

Game pick: Cowboys 31 Broncos 20

Green Bay Packers @ Kansas City Chiefs – 4:25 p.m. on FOX (Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, Erin Andrews, Tom Rinaldi)
This game was highly-anticipating, until it wasn’t. Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers will not pay after testing positive for COVID-19 Wednesday. What a shame. Will we ever see a Rodgers-Mahomes matchup?

Last week the Packers won a game with 11 starts out at the previously unbeaten Arizona Cardinals. Can they do it again without Aaron Rodgers? Good news for Jordan Love, he’ll be going up against the worst defense in football in the Kansas City Chiefs.

Speaking of the Chiefs, they’re just hard to watch. Nothing is coming easy for them. They just don’t look like the offense that has been so high-flying the last three seasons.

Game pick: Packers 27 Chiefs 24

Sunday Night Football: Tennessee Titans @ Los Angeles Rams – 8:20 p.m. on NBC (Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth, Michele Tafoya) Radio: Westwood One (Ryan Radtke, Ryan Leaf)
Another great matchup that will be void of a superstar. Titans running back Derrick Henry will be out Sunday night, and indefinitely, with a foot injury. Whoa if he was playing would this matchup be fun.

Henry is the Titans offense. Without him, they are going to completely have to reinvent themselves. Remember when they traded for Julio Jones? Maybe now is the time they finally start utilizing him like a No. 1 receiver.

The Rams are ridiculously talented on both offense and defense. Now they have Von Miller on defense, opposite Aaron Donald on the defensive line. Yikes!

This could still be a competitive game even without Derrick Henry, but I think the Rams abundance of talent will prevail.

Game pick: Rams 37 Titans 20

Monday Night Football: Chicago Bears @ Pittsburgh Steelers – 8:15 p.m. on ESPN (Steve Levy, Brian Griese, Louis Riddick) ESPN2 (Peyton and Eli Manning and select guests) Radio: Westwood One (Kevin Kugler, Trent Green)
Whatever the over/under is on this game, take the under. These two offenses are eye soars to watch.

Justin Fields looked much better last week than he did against Tampa Bay, but the Bears still lost by 11. Head coach Matt Nagy returns to the sidelines this week after a COVID absence, but how much does that help the Bears?

Pittsburgh, despite not making it look pretty on offense, identified the problem within their offense and has remedied it; they are running the football much better than they did in the first four weeks of the season. And their defense is still playing at a high level making game-changing plays to help seal victories in their last two games.

Just as we started to write off Pittsburgh when they were 1-3, they have turned it around with three straight wins playing with their identity.

Game pick: Steelers 20 Bears 13

Other week nine games

Atlanta Falcons @ New Orleans Saints – 1 p.m. on FOX –
Coming off an impressive win over Tampa Bay, the Saints now host the Falcons in another crucial division game. A win and the Saints are tied for first place in the NFC South with Tampa Bay, and New Orleans holds the tiebreaker.

Atlanta is coming off a disappointing loss to Carolina and now must win this game to keep pace in an NFC South race that is closer than one might think.

Game pick: Saints 27 Falcons 24

New England Patriots @ Carolina Panthers – 1 p.m. on CBS
You knew New England was going to get rolling at some point, right? Well, they have looked really good the last two weeks, and you could argue they could be at least two games better than they are right now at 4-4.

Carolina snapped their four-game losing streak last week, but quarterback Sam Darnold left the game Sunday at Atlanta with a concussion. He was limited in practice this Wednesday, and is questionable ahead of Sunday’s game.

A crucial game for both teams, and it’s also a revenge game for Panthers cornerback Stephon Gilmore as he faces his former team.

Game pick: Patriots 26 Panthers 17

Minnesota Vikings @ Baltimore Ravens – 1 p.m. on FOX
Every time I’m ready to buy stock in Minnesota, they lose a game they have no business losing like the one against Dallas last week. Now they go on the road to face a team they shouldn’t beat in the Baltimore Ravens.

The last time we saw the Ravens, they were thrashed by the Bengals 41-17. Coming off a bye, will we come to realize that that thrashing was an anomaly or a sign that maybe the Ravens are not as good as we thought they were through the first six weeks of the season.

Game pick: Ravens 31 Vikings 17

Buffalo Bills @ Jacksonville Jaguars – 1 p.m. on CBS
Both teams are coming off disappointing performances in week eight. Jacksonville took a considerable step back in its development by getting blown out in Seattle while Buffalo struggled to get going early against Miami. But the difference in this game is Buffalo’s far-and-away better talent than Jacksonville.

Game pick: Bills 34 Jaguars 20

Houston Texans @ Miami Dolphins – 1 p.m. on FOX
Is this game on FOX or Comedy Central?

Game pick: Dolphins 24 Texans 10

Las Vegas Raiders @ New York Giants – 1 p.m. on CBS
This is more of an intriguing game than people think. This is the time of season when the Raiders begin to sputter. They’re 5-2 right now, and they can pad their lead in the AFC West significantly with a road win this week. They can also take care of business before a brutal stretch to end November with home games against the Chiefs and Bengals and a road game at the Cowboys on Thanksgiving.

The Giants are 2-6, but they have looked much more competitive the last two weeks than their week six game against the Rams. The problem is, what’s their identity? That they play hard? That’s great, but what do they do well that helps them win games?

Game pick: Raiders 27 Giants 20

Los Angeles Chargers @ Philadelphia Eagles – 1 p.m. on CBS
Another game that may not stand out on the schedule, but this is an important game for both teams. The Chargers have lost two straight and now head back to the east coast. The last time they traveled to the east coast, they were run off the field by the Ravens. All the attention Justin Herbert received in the first month of the season, now he’s under pressure to snap the Chargers two-game slide and get back in the thick of the playoff race.

Philadelphia may only be 3-5, but they are dangerous. If they can run the ball, that makes their offense dynamic. And that’s if their running game is coming from Jalen Hurts or their running backs. Plus, their defense hasn’t been great, but they have allowed 400+yards in just two games this season.

Game pick: Eagles 27 Chargers 24

Arizona Cardinals @ San Francisco 49ers – 4:25 p.m. on FOX
How will Arizona look following their first loss of the season? That remains to be seen, but the good news is quarterback Kyler Murray says he will be good to go Sunday as he battles a sprained ankle sustained in last week’s Thursday night loss to Green Bay.

San Francisco continues to be a mystery. Based off Jimmy G’s performance last week, has he gotten back on the right foot and solidified his status as the starter?

The 49ers need to win this game to keep playoff aspirations alive, while the Cardinals need to win this to keep holding off the Rams in the race for the NFC West title.

Game pick: 49ers 30 Cardinals 27