Vincent Frank
Week 8 represents the halfway mark for a lot of teams around the NFL. In the words of Tom Brady, it’s time for teams to “hit the accelerator.”
It starts Thursday night with the surging Miami Dolphins taking on a struggling Baltimore Ravens squad. Can Matt Moore perform well in Jay Cutler’s stead? Then, Sunday morning, the Los Angeles Chargers have a real statement game against the Patriots in New England.
If that wasn’t enough, the NFC brings us multiple tremendous matchups. The Dallas Cowboys are out to prove their blowout win over San Francisco was not a fluke. And speaking of proving a point, the New Orleans Saints will attempt to win their fifth consecutive game.
These are among the top storylines for each Week 8 NFL game.
Miami Dolphins at Baltimore Ravens: Finding a way with Matt Moore
Now that Jay Cutler is out for Week 8, the up-and-coming Dolphins need this veteran to step up in a big way. After taking over for the injured Cutler last week, Moore completed 13-of-21 passes for 198 yards with two scores and a pick. It came in the midst of Miami’s third consecutive victory, a narrow 31-28 win over the division-rival New York Jets.
Taking on a Ravens defense this week that has yielded nine touchdowns and 10 picks to quarterbacks, it will be important for Moore to remain relatively mistake-free. He should be relying on the combination of Jarvis Landry and Kenny Stills, who combined for 178 yards and three scores against New York last week.
Minnesota Vikings at Cleveland Browns: Hue Jackson’s complete ineptitude
We’re sure Hue Jackson is a likable enough guy. He’s also proven to be a darn good assistant coach during his career. But this whole head coaching thing is not working out. We can focus on his 1-22 record as the Browns’ coach. Though, that would be doing a disservice to Jackson. Cleveland understands full well that it’s in the midst of a long-term rebuild. Immediate on-field success was never a real possibility.
With that said, it’s the way Hue has handled the entire quarterback situation that has us at a loss for words. He’s now benched rookie DeShone Kizer in three consecutive starts, turning to the likes of Kevin Hogan and Cody Kessler in the process. How Jackson thinks this is going to help an immature Kizer overcome rookie struggles is anyone’s guess.
Now, Jackson has indicated he might rotate quarterbacks for the remainder of the season. That rarely works in college football, let alone the NFL. And it’s led to Browns quarterbacks turning the ball over at a record clip through the team’s winless first seven games. None of this will get better against one of the bes defenses in the NFL come Sunday.
Los Angeles Chargers at New England Patriots: Chargers’ chance at legitimacy
For the first time this season, New England played nearly flawless football in all three aspects of the game against the Atlanta Falcons last Sunday night. That’s a scary proposition for opposing teams in what has quickly become a more competitive AFC East. Whether this continues into Week 8 remains to be seen.
The Pats will be taking on a hard-charging Los Angeles team that has won three consecutive games after starting the season 0-4. Last week against the division-rival Broncos, these Chargers pitched their first shut out since 2014. Led by the ferocious pass-rush tandem of Joey Bosa and Melvin Ingram, this defense is playing elite-level football.
It also doesn’t hurt that the usually turnover-prone Philip Rivers has thrown six touchdowns and just one pick over the past three games. Los Angeles has an opportunity to go into Gillette and prove its relevancy Sunday afternoon. Not only that, it can remain in the AFC West race moving into the second half of the season.
Chicago Bears at New Orleans Saints: Two surprise teams
They’ve done it in vastly different ways. Chicago is in the midst of a two-game winning streak even with its starting quarterback having completed a grand total of 12 passes during that span. Spearheaded by a defense that’s yielded zero defensive touchdowns over the past six quarters, the Bears are playing much more competitive football than most imagined was possible at the start of the season.
On the other hand, the Saints find themselves in first place in the NFC South and are in the midst of a four-game winning streak. Their defense followed up a three-touchdown performance against Detroit by allowing Packers quarterback Brett Hundley to throw for less than 100 yards last week. Prior to that, the Saints gave up a grand total of 13 points in their previous two games.
With more balance on offense and a much improved defense, Drew Brees isn’t being asked to do too much for the Saints. And with a victory at home on Sunday, New Orleans will have its first five-game winning streak since the start of the 2013 season. This team is legit.
Carolina Panthers at Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Two struggling teams
Cam Newton’s issues are by now well known. He’s played disastrous football over the past two weeks, both Panthers losses. During that span, the former MVP has tossed five interceptions. He’s also been sacked seven times in these two games. This has the Panthers in second place in the NFC South heading into Week 8.
In a game against a squad Carolina anticipated battling for a division championship with, the Buccaneers themselves are not in the best of spots. We’ve seen multiple players speak out against the lack of playing time recently. All this coming as the Buccaneers have dropped three consecutive games by a combined 13 points. Something has to give here, and the loser will likely find itself on the outside looking in when it comes to the division race moving forward.
Indianapolis Colts at Cincinnati Bengals: Bengals in a must-win situation
We shouldn’t say the Bengals themselves are in a must-win situation. Instead, it’s now all about the futures of quarterback Andy Dalton and head coach Marvin Lewis, both of whom continue to hold on to their jobs with the shortest of possible leashes.
Dalton is coming off a disastrous two-interception performance in a loss to Pittsburgh last week. It’s a game that saw him target Pro Bowler A.J. Green a whopping four times. Now with nine touchdowns and eight picks on the season, some are left wondering whether A.J. McCarron would be the better option.
As it relates to Lewis, he has seemingly gone off the rails recently. We’re talking about a coach that just criticized Joe Mixon for being immature because the young running back wants more touches. Nothing else. He also has Cincinnati at 2-4 in a season it’s readily apparent Lewis is a lame duck. If the Bengals can’t find a way to defeat the hapless Colts at home Sunday, there’s a darn good chance Lewis will be the first head coach shown the door. If so, Dalton’s status as the team’s starter would then also be up in the air.
Oakland Raiders at Buffalo Bills: Potential playoff seeding
Having won four of its first six games, Buffalo has been a tremendous story this season. It has started with cornerback play, but Tyrod Taylor has recently turned up his performance under center. He’s coming off a 268-yard outing in a comeback win over Tampa Bay last week. Despite all the good vibes in Western New York, it looks like the Bills’ best path to a first playoff appearance since 1999 is through the wild card. That’s where Sunday’s game against Oakland is huge.
The Raiders themselves are coming off a dramatic late-game win over the Kansas City Chiefs. It’s a game that kept Jack Del Rio’s squad in contention in the AFC West. But at 3-4 on the season, Oakland still finds itself two games out in the division. Winning the west will be a major uphill climb moving forward. But a wildcard spot is definitely within reach. Again, going up against a conference opponent, Sunday’s game against Buffalo is huge for the Raiders.
San Francisco 49ers at Philadelphia Eagles: Carson Wentz’s emergence
Wentz has just been lights out this season. He’s coming off a four-touchdown performance against the Washington Redskins and has thrown 17 touchdowns compared to four picks on the season. This has led to an NFL-best 6-1 record for Philadelphia ahead of Sunday’s outing against the still winless 49ers. Needless to say, there’s no real reason to believe that the second-year quarterback won’t have another huge game here.
San Francisco ranks in the bottom eight of the NFL against the pass and has yielded a 98.5 quarterback rating to opposing signal callers. Should Wentz perform at a high level here, Philadelphia will cake walk to a 7-1 start to the season.
Atlanta Falcons at New York Jets: These struggling dirty birds
A lot has been made of the Falcons’ current three-game losing streak. Is offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian cut out to call an NFL game? How much of a downgrade is he from former coordinator Kyle Shanahan? And what exactly is happening in regards to the Matt Ryan-Julio Jones connection?
We won’t get answers to all these questions Sunday against the Jets, but the game itself is absolutely huge for Atlanta. At 3-3 on the season, it currently sits in second place in the NFC South. Ryan has thrown just seven touchdowns compared to six interceptions in six games. Meanwhile, the team will be taking on a Jets defense that’s yielding an 85.7 passer rating to opposing quarterbacks.
Houston Texans at Seattle Seahawks: A Tell-Tale game
The odds are definitely stacked against Deshaun Watson and the Texans heading into this one. But it can very well act as a statement game for the young quarterback and his up-and-coming team coming out of the bye. Watson has put up 15 touchdowns compared to just five picks on the season. He’s also tallied 13 total scores over the past three games.
It won’t be easy Sunday in Seattle against a Seahawks team that has given up just five passing scores in six games this season. Seattle also ranks first in the NFL in scoring defense, having yielded 15.7 points per game. It’s a great test, and a potential statement game for Houston.
Dallas Cowboys at Washington Redskins: Was Week 7 a mirage?
It sure looked like the Cowboys got their groove back big time in a 40-10 win over the San Francisco at Levi’s last week. But it must be noted that it came against a 49ers squad that’s now 0-7 on the season and has lost 21 of their past 23 games.
In order for the Cowboys to prove that they’re really back, they need to handle a much more talented team. That opportunity comes in the form of a Washington squad that’s coming off a blowout loss to Philadelphia last week. Should Dak Prescott, Ezekiel Elliott and Co. dominate here, the Cowboys will have proved that they are back.
Pittsburgh Steelers at Detroit Lions: Did the bye do any good?
Detroit received a bye at the best possible time. Losers of three of their past four games, the Lions needed this bye to fix a questionable defense and to get Matthew Stafford healthy once again. Detroit yielded 52 points in a loss to New Orleans back in Week 7. And for his part, Stafford is coming off a three-interception performance of his own.
Now set to take on a Steelers team that has won five of its first seven to start the season, Sunday night will be a major test for the Lions. Can the team’s defense contain the remarkable Antonio Brown? Can Stafford avoid the turnover issues that plagued him last time out? How these two questions are answered will tell us a lot about Detroit’s chances in Week 8.
Denver Broncos at Kansas City Chiefs: Quick hook for Trevor
Even Trevor Siemian knows he’s not performing up to snuff. Following a Week 7 shutout loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, the young quarterback put himself on absolute blast. And for good reason. He was sacked five times and threw a brutal interception in the loss. The third-year quarterback has now tossed two touchdowns compared to four picks in the past four games.
The good news here is that he has a decent matchup against a Chiefs defense that ranks in the bottom five of the NFL against the pass and has yielded 13 scores through the air this season. Should Siemian struggle early, maybe the Broncos call on either Paxton Lynch or Brock Osweiler here.
