Seven straight wins, and the Los Angeles Rams are not getting the love ...
Sean McVay's football team has taken on all comers, and disposed of most of them quite easily. Not only do the Rams deserve as much coverage as Patrick Mahomes or the Le'Veon Bell saga, but they are darn interesting ... especially this week. They face the Packers and Aaron Rodgers in what will be the first meeting between Cal quarterbacks since Vince Ferragamo's Rams beat Steve Bartkowski's Falcons in 1983. The Rams are also trying to go 8-0 for the first time since the AFL-NFL merger. They started 7-0 in 1978 and 1985, but lost the next game in both seasons. They were also shut out in the NFC Championship Game in both seasons. This week, Green Bay will try to shut the door on their undefeated season.
The Packers first faced the Los Angeles Rams at the Coliseum in 1946, and the teams have played a few important contests over the years. For instance, the 1967 Divisional Round bout, which Green Bay won, advancing to the 1967 NFL title Game -- the "Ice Bowl." Or there was the 2001 Divisional affair in St. Louis, when Brett Favre chucked six interceptions.
Elsewhere ...
Fair question, Pete. The Panthers barely lost in Washington. I always try to think of it this way: Who wins on a neutral field? Carolina is better at QB1, RB1, and the defenses are about even. The Panthers also have a superior point differential -- very close, though.
Washington faces the reeling Giants this week, while Carolina plays host to the Ravens, who are probably still in disbelief with how they lost to the Saints last week. See my thoughts on those games below. Your thoughts are welcome, too ... @HarrisonNFL is the place.
Elliot Harrison went 10-4 on his predictions for Week 7, bringing his record for the season to 70-35-2. How will he fare in Week 8? His picks are below.
THURSDAY, OCT. 25
Houston Texans 26, Miami Dolphins 17
8:20 p.m. ET (FOX/NFL Network/Prime Video) | NRG Stadium (Houston)
Let's hope this Thursday night affair is slightly more competitive than last week's. Picking the Texans to win at home after their gritty victory in Jacksonville. Deshaun Watson should have recovered at least a wee bit more, although the fact that he has to play on a short week is concerning. Enter the debate over the viability of Thursday night games when it comes to franchise health. Watson's wubby: a defense that is currently eighth in average points allowed (20.6). Miami must thwart former porpoise Lamar Miller, who crawled (flippered) out from his underwater cave to run for 100 yards last week. Looks as though Brock Osweiler will have the opportunity to show the Texans what they've been missing. Uhh, I will let you run with that.
SUNDAY, OCT. 28
9:30 a.m. ET (NFL Network) | Wembley Stadium (London, England)
How disappointing would a 7-9 follow-up act to an exhilarating Super Bowl win be? That's where Philadelphia is headed if the offense doesn't turn it around quick. You can't play the Giants every week. The Eagles' main struggles on that side of the ball start with turnovers, where they're tied for the league lead with eight fumbles lost. They can't stay on the field, either, going three-and-out 24.1 percent of the time -- fifth-worst in the league. Thus, the opposing offense gets the ball back quickly while the Eagles' vaunted front four tires out. (Witness what happened against the Panthers last week.) Luckily, they face a Jaguars outfit playing musical chairs at quarterback (although they're sticking with Blake Bortles as the starter) in an offense in far more disarray than Doug Pederson's. Philadelphia evens its record this week.
Kansas City Chiefs 30, Denver Broncos 14
1 p.m. ET (CBS) | Arrowhead Stadium (Kansas City, Mo.)
Are the Broncos back in contention? Perhaps, but they will lose this week. They've had since last Friday to prepare for Patrick Mahomes and the most dynamic offense in the league. Denver will also find out -- oh, about seven seconds into Kansas City's first possession -- that this group is not only notthe Cardinals, but that it's a different deal playing Andy Reid's team at Arrowhead. The Broncos' defense managed to hold Mahomes in check for three quarters when these division rivals met in Denver earlier this month, yet struggled with Kareem Hunt. Hunt has looked downright explosive the last couple of weeks, especially on that deep catch-and-run against the Patriots. Vance Joseph's group could do itself a massive favor by establishing Phillip Lindsay and Royce Freemanearly, but I don't see that being enough to win in Kansas City.
1 p.m. ET (CBS) | Heinz Field (Pittsburgh)
The Browns almost pulled off the home upset in their season-opening tie against the Steelers, until they were done in by their scary kicking game. Appropriate adjective, given that Halloween is approaching, and appropriate to mention, given how kickers have struggled at Heinz Field over the years. Cleveland must avoid settling for field goals in this contest, as Pittsburgh has awoken from its slumber. Even without Le'Veon Bell, the Steelers' offensive attack is still top-shelf. Pittsburgh paces the league in scoring from inside the 30 and yards after the catch -- two significant categories -- while ranking fifth in points per game at a robust 28.5. Quietly, JuJu Smith-Schuster is tearing up the league, while Bell dominates headlines and Antonio Brown commands constant attention.
1 p.m. ET (FOX) | MetLife Stadium (East Rutherford, N.J.)
Division road games are never easy affairs. These two franchises have been going at it since 1932, back when Cliff Battles was chugging away for the Boston Braves (then Boston Redskins, then Washington Redskins), leading the league in rushing. The series has seen so many eras/stars: Sammy Baugh, Charlie Conerly, Frank Gifford and the 1956 NFL champs, Sonny Jurgensen's ropes in the '60s, the dead-ball era of the Giants in the '70s, Gibbs vs. Parcells in the '80s. Unfortunately, Big Blue's season is pretty much over. You realize they are allowing teams to score on 46.8 percent of their drives? That's a huge percentage. Yet, if they deal the Redskins a loss here, it could pull the division awful tight with the Eagles playing a winnable game, and the Cowboys improved(?) with Amari Cooper. Still think the Giants lose.
Detroit Lions 28, Seattle Seahawks 24
1 p.m. ET (FOX) | Ford Field (Detroit)
Good game. No, seriously -- this matchup is legit. The Seahawks are coming off the bye week, rested after their trip across the pond, where they ousted the Raiders in front of a bunch of Phil Collins fans. The Seattle faithful are more into Candlebox, anyway. Maybe not. The Seahawks may win this important game in the wild-card race if they can keep the passing game producing at the level it has over the last two games, vs. the Rams and Oakland. Meanwhile, the Lions are hoping Ziggy Ansah returns from injury to bolster what has been a surprisingly feisty pass rush. With Kerryon Johnson emerging again last week in Miami with nearly 200 yards from scrimmage, the Detroit defense should have fresher legs -- important vs. the always-pesky Russell Wilson. Surprisingly, he's not running as much this year (17 attempts this year versus 32 through six games in 2017).
1 p.m. ET (FOX) | Paul Brown Stadium (Cincinnati)
Bucs fans are not gonna like this, but this uni matchup is even worse than last week's. When two teams with wild looks, and similar hues on part of their apparel, clash ... well, it clashes. On to football: Jameis Winston's decision-making was suspect late against the Browns. He also missed a few throws, including a curveball to Cameron Brate on an important third down in overtime. Chandler Catanzaro bailed the Tampa offense (and himself) out with the cannon shot from 59 yards out, but the Bucs will need far more than that against a Bengals team that was embarrassed last week on national television. (The worst part: Cincinnati was flexed into the prime-time slot -- NBC execs didn't have to air that game!) The Cincy passing game will be the difference this week, as Tampa has struggled on the back end all season.
Chicago Bears 27, New York Jets 16
1 p.m. ET (CBS) | Soldier Field (Chicago)
An interesting matchup between two teams that come from different conferences but have much in common. Both organizations would like to build around emerging quarterbacks with complementary running games, and (in theory) stout defenses. The Bears pulled ahead in the latter category with the addition of Khalil Mack. Like the Jets, however, their secondary flashes sometimes, gets torched others (Brock Osweiler?!). Each team's ground attack is capable, yet New York has been plagued by wild peaks and valleys from Isaiah Crowell, while Chicago is waiting on that breakout performance from Jordan Howard that harkens back to 2016, when he averaged 5.2 a pop. I like the Bears at home in this game, mostly because they can force mistakes from Sam Darnold. Wouldn't say Mitch Trubisky is too far ahead of the Jets' rookie in terms of development, though.
1 p.m. ET (CBS) | Bank of America Stadium (Charlotte, N.C.)
So on Tuesday, your friendly writer agonized over which of these teams was superior. You can check the league's hierarchy here, but (spoiler alert) I ultimately went with the Panthers. We'll find out if I was right on Sunday, although I should note Carolina will own the inherent advantage of playing at home. Both the Ravens and Panthers are coming off draining contests, with the latter completing a 17-point fourth-quarter comeback on the road, while Baltimore fell in a gutting loss to the Saints. If Joe Flacco starts out flat, the Ravens could be in trouble. While not a powerhouse, this Panthers offense has proven it can string together long drives, pulling that off three times late in Philadelphia. And Carolina's sixth in the NFL in plays per scoring drive at 8.1. Flacco might not receive enough possessions to warm up in time to win late.
4:05 p.m. ET (CBS) | Oakland Coliseum (Oakland, Calif.)
What might have appeared as a tough road assignment for the Colts in August looks like more of a bye week now. Well, unless Seth Roberts emerges as a WR1 and Jared Cook goes back to putting up 150-yard receiving days. Remember, the Raiders' offense has no Marshawn Lynch to fall back on in the running game, with Doug Martin and Jalen Richard left to play heroes now. Indy rushed for over two hundy last week, and while achieving that two games in a row might be a lofty goal, forcing Andrew Luck to chuck 50 passes per game can't be the strategy every time out. Give Frank Reich a ton of credit. Despite his record (2-5), the Colts have been in every game.
4:25 p.m. ET (FOX) | State Farm Stadium (Glendale, Ariz.)
Ugh. These are two ships heading in the same direction, and it ain't forward. At least the 49ers can move the football, even if their offensive line got trampled by the Rams. This Arizona front isn't close in quality to the Rams group, even with Chandler Jones playing lights out this season. Unfortunately, the lights are dimming, if not going out, for both squads, so evaluation is key. Josh Rosen taking a small step forward with new offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich would be nice to see. Leftwich must find a way to get David Johnson more touches in more advantageous situations. Stat of the Day: The Cardinals average 161.4 yards per game less than their opponents. Ouch.
4:25 p.m. ET (FOX) | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (Los Angeles)
My completely unbiased colleague James Jones swears up and down that the Packers are going to win this game in L.A. Jones told me that with Randall Cobb and Geronimo Allison getting healthy, and Aaron Rodgers getting healthier, Green Bay will outscore the Rams' high-octane offense. Not seeing it, and not because of Rodgers. Green Bay doesn't have the means to pressure Jared Goff often enough, nor have the Pack faced an RB like Todd Gurley in a long time. Another matchup problem: the Packers' offensive line versus Aaron Donald and Co. Sean McVay's group improves to 8-0.
8:20 p.m. ET (NBC) | U.S. Bank Stadium (Minneapolis)
You will see the "Minneapolis Miracle" more times this weekend than the Stefon Diggs' hands-stick-to-everything commercials. (Which, by the way ... Why wasn't Diggs walking with an unhinged door attached to his palm? Hey, how did he get outside?! Is he one of those tech cowboys in Santa Clara who wears low-rise Converse, shaggy jeans and has an automatic sliding door installed in his home?) The Saints are coming off an important road win at Baltimore, and will face another such test against a talented defense, with crowd noise an obvious factor. Talented, but not stronger than the Ravens' unit. The Vikings' key to winning is generating pressure in Brees' face (something Baltimore couldn't do enough of) and Kirk Cousins challenging the Saints downfield. New Orleans' secondary hasn't been stressed vertically much in the team's past two games, with Alex Smith and Joe Flacco going a combined 2-of-8 on deep passes (20-plus air yards) against the Saints during that span.
MONDAY, OCT. 29
8:15 p.m. ET (ESPN) | New Era Field (Orchard Park, N.Y.)
Bills win by 30! ... OK, I was wondering if any of you actually read these blurbs or simply glance at the score. If Buffalo is to have a chance Monday night, and not lose by 30, three things must happen:
1) The front seven shows up like it did vs. the Vikings, Titans and Texans, producing knockdowns, if not sacks.
2) From that pressure, turnovers must come. Move Tom Brady off his all-too-comfortable perch early. He's enjoyed the creature comforts of home in Buffalo over the lengthy course of his career.
3) If LeSean McCoy can't go (concussion), pound Chris Ivory in the first quarter, with another heavy dose late. Exactly nobody loves tackling that guy. I don't even like writing about tackling that guy.
So ... James White scores thrice and the Pats win by 18.
Follow Elliot Harrison on Twitter @HarrisonNFL.
