Mattie T’s Week 8 NFL Predictions

Happy Halloween everyone!!!! The last two weeks for me have been “scary” bad, but i’m hoping to redeem myself during this fright filled holiday weekend!

Let’s get it started…

Week 7: 7-6

Overall: 68-35 (.660)

Denver at Baltimore.

I hope that Baltimore got their secondary issues sorted out over the bye week, because Brandon Marshall is the type of receiver that can really give their defense fits.

The thing that really scares me about Denver’s defense is the level of their play after halftime. In six games so far, NOBODY has scored a touchdown on them in the 2nd half. I think Baltimore’s best best to win here is to feed the ball to Ray Rice often, as he presents a great multi-dimensional threat in both the pass & run game.

Unless the Ravens show a more disclipined & mistake-free game plan, i think that the Broncos will slip out a close win to improve to 7-0.

Houston at Buffalo.

This game could present a challenge for Matt Schaub, as he’ll face some strong wind conditions & a Bills defense that’s ranked 10th against the pass & is tied among the league lead with 13 interceptions.

Luckily for Houston, Buffalo also sports the league’s worst run defense which should mean plenty of Steve Slaton to try & use good clock management.

Andre Johnson looks like he will play Sunday, but he might not be 100% after leaving last week’s win over San Francisco with a chest contusion.

Ryan Fitzpatrick will definitely need to put together a better effort at quarterback, as he hasn’t topped 150 yards passing yet in two games since taking over for the injured Trent Edwards (concussion), who won’t play on Sunday.

This will be close, but i look for Houston’s rejuvenated run defense to shut down Marshawn Lynch/Fred Jackson & lead the Texans to a close win.

Cleveland at Chicago.

It will be an emotional day at Soldier Field, as Sunday will mark the 10-year anniversary of Walter Payton’s death.

Fans are encouraged to wear his jersey to the game & as much orange as possible, but it’s the Browns who will be seeing red if they can’t get their offense going soon.

Cleveland is only averaging 225.4 yards per game on offense, which is good for 31st in the league despite making a quarterback switch from Brady Quinn to Derek Anderson.

Since throwing for a season-high 269 yards during their October 4th overtime loss to Cincinnati, Anderson has only completed 23 of his last 70 (32.8%) pass attempts.

Just in case you were wondering, Cleveland’s 3rd string quarterback is Brett Ratliff. If Anderson delivers another stinker on Sunday, Ratliff may see his first NFL action. This all leads up to a big Chicago win at home.

Seattle at Dallas.

Don’t look now, but the Cowboys are just one game out of 1st place & might have found their new #1 receiver in Miles Austin.

Austin has exploded in his last 2 games for 421 receiving yards, which surpasses former Cowboy Terrell Owens’ (242 yard) entire 2009 mark.

Seattle’s offensive line took another big hit with the season-ending injury of Walter Jones (knee), so the Cowboys pass rush could have the same success on Matt Hasselbeck that they did against Atlanta’s Matt Ryan last week.

Look for Dallas to keep it rolling with a 3rd straight win on Sunday.

St. Louis at Detroit.

The Lions could receive a big boost on Sunday if quarterback Matthew Stafford is able to go, but it looks like Calvin Johnson will be another game-time decision.

Kevin Smith can help burden the ease off both men by destroying the Rams’ 27th ranked run defense, while St. Louis has also given up a league-high 11 rushing touchdowns.

The Rams have been so bad offensively that they have only scored one or more touchdowns in a single game just ONCE all season. Look for the Lions to add to their 2009 misery.

San Francisco at Indianpolis.

Alex Smith gave the 49ers some hope with his play in the 2nd half of their loss last week to Houston, but faces a tough test against the Colts’ 6th ranked pass defense.

Reggie Wayne looks like he will play on Sunday despite suffering a groin injury in last week’s win over St. Louis, while Austin Collie caught a touchdown pass for the 3rd straight game in the blowout win.

San Francisco could keep it close with a big game from Frank Gore, but Peyton Manning will prove to be too much to handle as Indianapolis will win to improve to 7-0.

Miami at N.Y. Jets.

The Dolphins will try to rebound from a stunning loss to New Orleans last weekend in which they blew a 24-3 lead just before halftime.

While their Wildcat formation didn’t have much success against the Saints, it could work against the Jets with the absence of nose tackle Kris Jenkins.

Miami has some injury problems of their own, as they will be starting a pair of rookies (Vontae Davis & Sean Smith) in their secondary.

This is a matchup i feel Mark Sanchez can exploit, while the Jets’ noisy home crowd will give them just enough energy to sneak out a close home win over their AFC East rivals.

N.Y. Giants at Philadelphia.

Sunday will be a sensational sports day (and a big business booster for the local sports bar) as the Giants & Eagles will clash during the daytime before a Game 4 World Series matchup between the Yankees & Phillies is played under the lights.

Eli Manning has cooled off after a hot start, as the Giants’ starting quarterback has thrown for just 2 touchdowns & 4 interceptions in back-to-back losses after accounting for 10 touchdowns & just 2 interceptions during their 5-0 start.

The Eagles might have to play Sunday without Brian Westbrook, who will be a game-time decision after suffering a concussion on Monday night after taking a knee to the head in the 1st quarter.

Giants wide receiver Steve Smith has cooled off after a hot start (no touchdowns in each of his last 3 games), but Hakeem Nicks is starting to come on with one touchdown in each of his last 4 games.

Unless New York’s secondary can force a few takeaways, i think Philadelphia will have just enough to squeak out a close home win & move into 1st place in the NFC East.

Oakland at San Diego.

Since winning a Week 2 thriller at Kansas City, Oakland has been outscored by a grand total of 73 to 13 in their last two road losses.

The Raiders are also very close to having the NFL’s worst offense, as they have only outscored St. Louis by 2 points so far throughout the season’s first 7 games.

They will be facing a hot Philip Rivers, who threw a 3-touchdown game for the 2nd time this season during San Diego’s blowout win over Kansas City & has not thrown an interception since Week 2.

If Vincent Jackson is hauling in deep balls, it’s an automatic win for the Chargers. Jackson is a perfect 5-0 in games which he’s hauled at least one 50-yarder in, so i think San Diego will air it out often en route to a big victory over Oakland on Sunday.

Jacksonville at Tennessee.

The Titans have decided to make a quarterback switch, as Vince Young will start for the first time since September of 2008, which was also against Jacksonville.

After a shaky 0-2 start, the Jaguars have regained confidence with 3 wins in their last 4 games & could go over the .500 mark for the first time this season with a win on Sunday.

David Garrard should have no problems lighting up Tennessee’s secondary, as he did so on October 4th after throwing for 323 yards & a season-high 3 touchdown passes during Jacksonville’s 37-17 rout. The Titans are also only one of two teams that are allowing 400 yards or more (Cleveland is the other) on defense.

I feel this game will be closer, but Tennesse has no chance no matter who’s at quarterback unless their struggling secondary can get it together.

Looks like Jeff Fisher’s first win of the 2009 season will have to wait at least one more week. I’m taking Jacksonville to win this one.

Minnesota at Green Bay.

Welcome to the Favre Bowl, Part Deaux.

Brett will play his 1st game as a vistor in Lambeau Field on Sunday against a Green Bay team that can tie Minnesota in the loss column with a win.

The Vikings have several big injuries on both sides of the ball, as All-Pro cornerback Antoine Winfield will miss his 2nd straight game on Sunday with a foot injury & will probably be ready to go after the team’s Week 9 bye.

Bernard Berrian might not be ready to play on Sunday, as he’s battling a hamstring problem & will be a game-time decision.

If Berrian can’t play, then rookie Jaymar Johnson will get his first NFL start. Johnson caught the first pass of his career last week with a 9-yard reception during Minnesota’s 27-17 loss to Pittsburgh.

Berrian’s injury will limit Favre from throwing his trademark deep ball, while Winfield’s injury in the secondary opens up things for Aaron Rodgers providing that his line is ready to protect him.

Green Bay’s done a better job of that recently, as Rodgers wasn’t sacked for the first time all season during the team’s 31-3 blowout win over Cleveland last week.

The Packers’ pass defense has also elevated to 4th best in the NFL, so if they can once again keep Adrian Peterson in check, then i like their chances of ruining Brett Favre’s homecoming. I am taking Green Bay here.

Carolina at Arizona.

Rematch of last season’s NFC Divisional Playoff Game matchup, where the Arizona defense made Jake Delhomme’s life a living hell for 60 minutes.

It could come true once again come Sunday afternoon, as Delhomme has thrown 5 interceptions in Carolina’s last two games & hasn’t had a multi-touchdown effort yet this season.

DeAngelo Williams & Jonathan Stewart were unable to take advantage of a terrible Bills defense last week & now has to face Arizona’s top-ranked run defense, which is the only unit in football that’s giving up fewer than 70 yards per game.

The Panthers secondary has only forced 3 interceptions all season, so look for Kurt Warner to have a good game as Arizona notches their 4th straight win.

Atlanta at New Orleans.

Reggie Bush made some recent comments about New Orleans possibly going undefeated. If noone is able to slow down their offensive powerhouse, he might be onto something.

The Saints rallied from a 24-3 deficit last week in Miami & still wound up scoring 40 or more points for the 4th time already this season, which is an NFL-best.

Outside of a 45-10 rout over San Francisco 3 weeks ago, Atlanta has yet to top 30 points in 5 of their first 6 games this season.

Michael Turner is a big reason for that, as he’s currently averaging a 39-yard dropoff from last season’s pace (106.7 yards per game in 2008 compared to 67.7 yards per game this season) & averaging a career-low 3.4 yards per carry.

If you remember the last time the Saints & Falcons hooked up in New Orleans during Monday Night Football, it was on September 25th of 2006 as the city welcomed back its beloved Superdome for the first time since the horrific events of Hurricane Katrina.

Drew Brees’ quote after that game?

“From the moment I signed with the Saints, I was looking forward to this. It was a great night. It’s something we’ll never forget.”

He might have to change that thought if New Orleans wins the Super Bowl. But for now, the Saints will be content with a big Monday Night win over their NFC South rivals.