2012 NFL Predictions: Regular Season Week 8

After a weird Week 6, Week 7 was a little more predictable; too much so, in fact. Of the four picks I got wrong, all four were upset picks. We’ll see if Week 8 leans toward the unpredictability that made Week 6 so strange but so fun, or toward Week 7, which was…different.

Week 8 Byes: Baltimore Ravens, Buffalo Bills, Cincinnati Bengals, Houston Texans

	Game	Puff’s Pick
Thurs., 8:20 pm	Tampa Bay @ Minnesota	Minnesota Vikings
Sun., 1:00 pm	Miami @ NY Jets	Miami Dolphins
	San Diego @ Cleveland	Cleveland Browns
	Indianapolis @ Tennessee	Tennessee Titans
	New England @ St. Louis	St. Louis Rams
	Jacksonville @ Green Bay	Green Bay Packers
	Atlanta @ Philadelphia	Philadelphia Eagles
	Washington @ Pittsburgh	Washington Redskins
	Seattle @ Detroit	Seattle Seahawks
	Carolina @ Chicago	Chicago Bears
Sun., 4:05 pm	Oakland @ Kansas City	Oakland Raiders
Sun., 4:25 pm	NY Giants @ Dallas	New York Giants
Sun., 8:20 pm	New Orleans @ Denver	Denver Broncos
Mon., 8:30 pm	San Francisco @ Arizona	Arizona Cardinals

	Puff on the NFL
Week 8 Record	7-7
Current Season Record	66-52

Games to Watch (Predicted winners in Bold)

Sunday, Oct. 28, 2012, 1:00pm – San Diego Chargers @ Cleveland Browns

The Chargers are clearly not the contender people expected them to be. However, they also are not without talent. Going up 24-0 against Denver’s defense – well, 17-0 against the defense and 7-0 against the offense – in one half takes a good team. But I consider the second half to be a more accurate definition of this team. The Browns are a much better team than their record shows, which could be trouble for the Chargers considering their tendency to play to other teams’ levels.

Sunday, Oct. 28, 2012, 1:00pm – Atlanta Falcons @ Philadelphia Eagles

Both teams are coming off a bye, but the game is in Philly. Atlanta won’t relinquish their undefeated status easily, but the Eagles have several things going for them that make it tough to pick against them.

Sunday, Oct. 28, 2012, 1:00pm – Washington Redskins @ Pittsburgh Steelers

The Steelers will be wearing their bumblebee costumes – er, uniforms – on Sunday. The Redskins have been playing very well the past few weeks. They competed against the Falcons, beat a strong Vikings team, and nearly pulled one out in New York if it wasn’t for Eli Manning and Victor Cruz. Despite the 77-yard score for the Giants, Washington’s pass defense has been improving every week. The Steelers will be toast if they have to deal with multiple drops from Mike Wallace this week.

Sunday, Oct. 28, 2012, 4:25pm – New York Giants @ Dallas Cowboys

The Giants became the first defending Super Bowl champion to lose in the NFL Kickoff Game, losing at home against the Cowboys in Week 1. Neither team has looked the same since, in a way that heavily favors the Giants. It’s still a tough pick, though, because NFC East matchups are never predictable.

Sunday, Oct. 28, 2012, 8:20pm – New Orleans Saints @ Denver Broncos

The Saints are on a two-game win streak (they beat the Chargers in Week 5, were off the following week, and are coming off a win against the Buccaneers). The Broncos are still one of the top five teams in the AFC despite a 3-3 record. Coming off the bye and playing at home heavily favors the Broncos, and Tracy Porter will be looking to pick off the quarterback who he made a Super Bowl champion just a few short years ago. Brees never goes down without a fight, though, so it should still be a fun game to watch.

Stay tuned for recaps of this week’s games. Thanks for reading and enjoy the eighth week of the season!