NFL Week 8 Picks

POSTED IN Football Betting | no comments

NFL Week 8 Schedule

The 8^th week of the NFL regular season is scheduled as following:

There are going to be some great match-ups this week, each with great teams facing each other in hopes of getting another victory as the regular season is set be half-way done.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Minnesota Vikings; Vikings to Win

The Odds

With the Vikings playing at home right after winning their game against Arizona, they will be highly motivated to continue their winning streak at home.

The Buccaneers have not been doing so well on the road, especially when they face teams with a better overall defense. The Vikings have been playing quite well while on their home turf. The offense may not be as strong, but what keeps them afloat would have to be their good overall defense. Even though the Buccaneers have a better passing game, the Vikings are sure to be able to stop them; with their defense already getting 22 sacks, forcing 9 fumbles, and 4 interceptions. The Vikings have a strong rushing offense with RB Adrian Peterson, but that is not all they are good at. They also have WR Percy Harvin and TE Kyle Rudolph to help QB Christian Ponder in order to take advantage of the Buccaneers weak passing defense.

This will be a good match, but in the end the Vikings will be the winners. From what I have seen during the first 7 weeks of the season, the Vikings have been able to beat their opponents, tougher opponents than the Buccaneers, by 7 or more points. Both teams have the ability to get high scores, so the game will most probably end up having a high final score.

New England Patriots vs. St. Louis Rams; Patriots to Win

The Odds

The Patriots are back on the road playing against the Rams this week. They are hoping to end week 8 with a 5 – 3 record after beating the Rams, but it will certainly be a tough match, even for the Patriots.

When comparing the way these two teams have been performing it would seem that the three losses that the Patriots have suffered were by teams that outmatched them in terms of defense, and they had to have an excellent defense; like the Cardinals or the Ravens. However, during this particular matchup, the Rams defense won’t be able to handle the overpowering Patriots offense. In retrospect, the Patriots do not have that good of a defense either, as they depend more on their offense to win games. They do have a great lineup when it comes to stopping the rush, which will come in handy against the Rams and their preference for using their running game.

The Patriots, even when they have lost, have been able to get really high scores; even against the teams with excellent defenses. When looking at the Patriots offense vs. the Rams defense, we can be sure that Tom Brady will be able to get plenty of touchdowns. The Rams have been able to keep the score close when they have played at home, and against tougher opponents. They may keep the score close, but the Patriots will certainly be scoring a lot.

Miami Dolphins vs. New York Jets; Dolphins to Win

The Odds

The Dolphins are on the road against the Jets, and they have just come back after a bye-week, and that may be just what the Dolphins need to win.

The Jets have just come back from a road game where they lost against the Patriots, and they will have home field advantage, but the Dolphins are much better prepared than most would expect. The Dolphins have just come back from their Bye-week, with a full starting roster, and healthy and well rested players. Last time they met during week 3, the Jets beat the Dolphins by 3 points, which means they were already well balanced opponents. Miami does not do well against teams that have a better defense than they do offense, but in the Jets case the Miami offense is still better. Grudge matches are always more unpredictable than normal, but this week the Dolphins will surely come out on top.

Both of these teams have been performing quite equally, with the exception that the Dolphins offense has been doing slightly better. Scores for both these teams will be low during this matchup, so do not expect a lot of touchdowns; they may rely more on their kickers. Looking forward to this match.

New York Giants vs. Dallas Cowboys; Giants to Win

The Odds

This is going to be another great matchup between these two teams, after the Cowboys beat the Giants during the first week of the 2012 regular season; with the Giants wanting revenge for their previous loss.

Even though the Cowboys have a better overall defense than the Giants, the Giants have been improving a lot since they lost against the Cowboys during week 1. They are headed up by QB Eli Manning, throwing far more and far better than Cowboys QB, Tony Romo.  The main aspects that will get the Giants their next victory is the fact that their offense is dominating, even those teams that have good defenses. The fact that the Giants are able to keep and gain possession of the ball more often, while the Cowboys struggle with maintain possession is a very important factor. Solely relying on their defense, the Cowboys may keep the scoring low, but will not be able to overtake the Giants.

The Giants have shown that they can get plenty of touchdowns, whether through passing or rushing, so they will be able to mix it up enough to get around the Cowboys defense. This will mean that the scores will be relatively close, but the Giants will win. Expect a lot of touchdowns for both sides, as they will continue to try and outscore each other.

San Francisco 49ers vs. Arizona Cardinals; 49ers to Win

The Odds

After winning four games straight, the Cardinals have been in a losing streak and they have a very tough match this week against the 49ers.

In terms of defense, these two teams are certainly well balanced, so what will make the real difference is how both offenses match up against each other. The Cardinals do have some impressive players on their offense, like WR’s Larry Fitzgerald and Andre Roberts, but they lack when it comes to rushing the ball; which means they may end up depending on the pass to much during the match. The 49ers on the other hand have a better QB, Alex Smith, and better-rounded roster with RB’s Frank Gore and Kendall Hunter, and WR Michael Crabtree and TE Vernon Davis. This means that Smith may have a more players to create plays and opportunities of scoring with.

With both of these teams having such great defenses, there may be a lot of turnovers happening during the match. So, being able to maintain more possession of the ball will mean victory for that team; in this case, the 49ers have excellent ball handling skills and have a good turnover ratio. The score will be close and relatively low compared to their other matches.

Recommended Reading:

NFL Week 6 Picks NFL Week 7 Picks NFL Week 3 Picks NFL Week 4 Picks NFL Week 5 Picks NFL Week 9 Picks NFL Week 2 Picks NFL Regular Season, Week 13 Picks