2014 NFL SEASON WEEK 9

Before I get into my picks, I will make a shocking announcement.

I will probably not be watching a lot of football this Sunday.

(cue the Apocalypse)

As you are aware, there are elections in Colorado that are very close. The Senate race could determine control of the US Senate. There is a US House race that I am helping to flip to Team Blue. Most importantly, we have a gubernatorial, state legislative races, and a couple of ballot initiatives that are key to what kind of state do we want Colorado to be.

Enjoy the games. I will enjoy the block walking and phone banking while I follow the scores on my phone.

WINLESS WATCH

Raiders (0-7): at Seattle

MUST WATCH GAMES

Bengals at Jaguars

Jets at Chiefs

Raiders at Seahawks

Broncos at Patriots

Another matchup between Peyton Manning and Tom Brady. Enough said.

OTHER MUST WATCH GAMES

Panthers at Saints

No team is above .500 in the NFC South. Someone is going to have to win this division.

Carolina gave it their best against the Seahawks and held them to 13 points. Problem was that their offense scored 9 points. If the Panthers are going to beat the Saints, they will have to score more points (master of the obvious there).

The Saints proved they can put up points in their win over the Packers and demonstrated they have a running game. Running back Mark Ingram ran for 172 yards and scored a touchdown. The game was a sort of an arrival for first round pick Brandin Cooks who caught 6 passes for 94 yards, a passing touchdown, and a rushing touchdown.

Hmmm… I wonder if anyone has him on their fantasy team and should keep an eye on him for next season…

One thing about the Saints is they have been consistent. Their 3 wins, all in New Orleans. Their 4 losses, all on the road.

The Saints are looking to snap is their road losing streak. Since 2013, at the Superdome the Saints are 11-0. When on the road, they have gone 4-10. They last road win: in the playoffs at Philadelphia for the franchise's first road playoff win. Their last regular season road win: at Atlanta in November 2013.

Cardinals at Cowboys

Well… 6-2 at the midpoint of the season is not bad.

The Cardinals are good and should not be underestimated. Last week the Cardinals held the Eagles to 20 points. What did I say last week? The Cardinals are 6-0 this season when holding teams to 21 or less. The only time a team scored more than 21 was the Broncos in the Cardinals' Week 5 loss at Denver.

The Cardinals defense will have their hands full taking on the Cowboys offense consisting of wide receiver Dez Bryant, tight end Jason Witten, and running back DeMarco Murray who went over 1,000 yards rushing in the loss to Washington. Quarterback Tony Romo is expected to play despite suffering a back injury in last Monday's game.

As will the Cowboys secondary in taking on wide receivers Larry Fitzgerald and John Brown. Each receiver went over 100 yards and scored touchdowns that went longer than 70 yards in their 24-20 win over the Eagles at home last week.

Chargers at Dolphins

Kind of an unexpected matchup here and it could shape the playoff race. San Diego was 2013's unexpected playoff team when they went on a 4 game winning streak to end the season and made the playoffs on the final Sunday last year. The Dolphins are trying to be this season's unexpected playoff team.

If the playoffs were to start right now the Chargers would be the AFC 5-seed while the Dolphins would be out, but they are in the hunt with Baltimore, Pittsburgh, and Kansas City.

Ravens at Steelers

These teams meet again in primetime, this time under the Sunday Night banner and in the Steel City. Pittsburgh put up an offensive show against the Colts at home scoring 51 points and Ben Roethlisberger passing for 522 yards and 6 touchdowns, both Steelers' franchise records.

Baltimore nearly won at Cincinnati last week but an offensive pass interference call negated a Steve Smith touchdown pass.

Colts at Giants

Like the Cowboys, the Colts too had their long winning streak snapped as well. Well, Colts and Steelers were my AFC Championship Game pick so it shouldn't surprise anyone if these two teams meet again in the playoffs. If these two teams end up with the same record, the game will be played in potentially cold Pittsburgh and not the climate controlled confines of the Colts homefield in Indianapolis.

The Colts nearly pulled off the comeback. Trailing by 8, Colts quarterback Andrew Luck was flagged for intentional grounding in the end zone that resulted in a safety and put the Steelers up by 10. After that, Pittsburgh scored another touchdown to put the game out of reach. Luck's stat line in that loss: 26-45, 400 yards, 3 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions. Two Colts receivers went over 100 yards in that game.

The Colts ran into a quarterback that had a REALLY good game. Eli Manning has the potential to do that, but the Giants have been inconsistent at times.

And now the picks.

Kickoff times are mountain time, games airing in Denver are noted by (DEN), and picks are in BOLD.

NFL Television Schedule Map

	Me	Monica	Luke
WEEK 8	10-5	9-6	8-7
TOTAL	80-40-1	77-43-1	76-44-1

BYE WEEK

Bears, Bills, Falcons, Lions, Packers, Titans

THURSDAY NIGHT, NFL 6:15 PM

Saints at Panthers

CBS 11AM

Chargers at Dolphins (DEN)

Jaguars at Bengals

Jets at Chiefs

FOX 11AM

Cardinals at Cowboys (DEN)

Buccaneers at Browns
Eagles at Texans
Washington at Vikings

CBS 2PM

Broncos at Patriots (DEN)

Raiders at Seahawks

FOX 2PM

Rams at 49ers

SUNDAY NIGHT, NBC 6:15 PM

Ravens at Steelers

MONDAY NIGHT, ESPN 6:15 PM

Colts at Giants

TUESDAY NIGHT

Election Night In America 2014

First polls across the country close at 4 PM (MT).

Colorado voters, ballots must be received at your local county voter service center by 7 PM (MT). You can also vote at one of these centers in person by that time.

VOTE! IT DOES MATTER!