Listen in as Anthony Stalter and I discuss the Chargers/Steelers debacle, Brandon Jacobs’ knee, Deuce McAllister’s possible suspension, the Tampa Bay running game, and much, much more. I’ll also throw out a few QB and RB sleepers for fantasy owners in need.
Click here to listen to the podcast.
The opening and closing music is AC/DC’s “It’s a Long Way to the Top (If You Want to Rock & Roll)”
Sunday’s Best: Cowboys (5-3) at Giants (6-1), 4:15 PM ET
This game has lost a lot of its luster with Brad Johnson starting at quarterback in place of the injured Tony Romo and the uncertainty of Jason Witten’s (ribs) status. But it’s still a classic NFC East matchup and the Dallas defense is coming off its best performance of the season in a win over the Bucs. Let’s be frank – the Giants should roll. Their pass rush should eat Johnson alive, which could mean we see Brooks Bollinger before the day is over. But the wildcard in this scenario is Marion Barber. If the Cowboys can get him going and Johnson doesn’t turn the ball over, Dallas might be able to play conservative and sneak out a win. But if they get down early, a second half comeback is unlikely and New York might post a double-digit victory. The Cowboy defense will have to produce an effort similar to the one they did last Sunday against Tampa or else Eli Manning, Brandon Jacobs and the rest of the G-Men offense should have no problem putting up 30 points.
Upset Watch: Cardinals (4-3) at Rams (2-5), 1:00 PM ET
Since Jim Haslett took over in St. Louis, the Rams are playing more physically sound football. They hung tough against the Patriots last week in Foxboro despite not having Steve Jackson in their backfield and the defense is starting to show signs of life. The Cardinals are coming off a disappointing loss to the Panthers, a game in which they led 17-3 early in the third quarter. Arizona continues to struggle on the road and although he’s played well this year, Kurt Warner can’t seem to avoid costly turnovers. Jackson might not play again this week, but the Cards’ defense doesn’t post that much of a threat and the Rams should have enough offensively to pull out a win. Obviously they’ll need to keep Warner and ‘Zona’s prolific passing attack at bay, but this could be one of the better upsets in Week 9 if St. Louis keeps playing hard under Haslett.
Intriguing Matchup: Patriots (5-2) at Colts (3-4), 8:15 PM ET
Boy this game has lost a lot of pizzazz hasn’t it? Who would have thought that when this game was schedule, it would feature a Tom Brady-less Patriots and a 3-4 Colts team? Regardless, this is still the most interesting matchup on the Week 9 schedule. Indy has to win this game to at least keep within sniffing distance of a Wild Card berth and New England is in a great battle with the surprising Buffalo Bills in the AFC East. The Colts have major issues on the defensive side of the ball and things got worse earlier this week when it was discovered that starting CB Marlin Jackson would miss the rest of the season with a torn ACL. Without Jackson and Bob Sanders in the secondary, the Colts are giving up big plays on third downs. If they sell out to stop the run, opposing quarterbacks are picking apart the beleaguered secondary. If they play not to get burned deep, opposing backs are having a field day running against Indy’s smaller front seven. A loss to the Pats on Sunday night could mean a Colts-less postseason in the NFL. That’s hard to imagine.
Other Notable Games:
Packers (4-3) at Titans (7-0), 1:00 PM ET
With “Elbow Bad” Johnson starting for the Cowboys this weekend in New York, the Green Bay-Tennessee game might wind up being the best matchup on the Week 9 schedule. With the Titans coming off a short week and finally getting the monkey off their backs in beating the Colts, are they primed for the taking? Aaron Rodgers vs. the Titans’ D should be an intriguing battle.
Ravens (4-3) at Browns (3-4), 1:00 PM ET
Some believe that Baltimore is a legitimate playoff contender in the AFC and Cleveland is starting to resemble the team that many thought would take the next step this year. You gotta love it when Art Modell has to travel to Cleveland, too.
Dolphins (3-4) at Broncos (4-3), 4:05 PM ET
Miami continues to be one of the better surprises this year in the NFL and will look to build off their impressive win over Buffalo last Sunday. Denver needs to shake off its embarrassing loss to the Patriots two weeks ago on Monday night.
– For the second straight day, Colts’ wideout Reggie Wayne missed practice due to a knee injury. If he doesn’t practice Friday, there’s a good chance he won’t play against New England Sunday night. (Rotoworld.com)
– Steven Jackson’s status for Week 9 is still up in the air after being “limited” in practice on Thursday. Jackson is battling a quad injury. (Belleville News-Democrat)
– Cowboys’ TE Jason Witten will be a game-time decision this Sunday in New York. He did not practice on Thursday as he continues to nurse a rib injury. (DallasCowboys.com)
– Rookie Darren McFadden apparently has turf toe on both of his feet and isn’t expected to play Sunday against the Falcons. (ESPN)
– It might not be this week, but the Lions are expected to give Drew Stanton a shot at quarterback sometime this season according to beat writer Tom Kowalski. (Mlive.com)
Jason Witten has a broken rib but wants to play through it this week in a big game against the Giants. Conventional wisdom states that the Cowboys should rest Witten this week because they have a bye in Week 10, so that would give him 2-3 weeks of rest. If Witten can’t go, Martellus Bennett wouldn’t be a bad fill in. Visanthe Shiancoe or Zach Miller would be good spot starters as well…Santonio Holmes will play Monday night, which means that Nate Washington will be relegated back to WR3 duties…Matt Hasselbeck is likely out for Week 9 with a bulging disk in his back. He apparently doesn’t have pain in his back or leg, but he has a ‘dead leg’ feeling. Not good…The 49ers named Shaun Hill their starting QB. He’s an interesting pickup in fantasy leagues since he’s playing in Mike Martz’s offense…Steven Jackson should be ready to go in Week 9, according to Jim Haslett.
LT2 did some damage in PPR leagues (with six catches), but he totaled 67 yards on 20 touches and failed to score. After his Week 9 bye, he has four nice matchups over the next six weeks, but that might be too late for his owners to make a run…Reggie Bush (10 touches, 60 yards) is out for the next 3-4 weeks with a meniscus injury in his knee. This is the downside of drafting Bush. Deuce McAllister looks like he will get the bulk of the work in his absence…Chris Johnson (20 touches, 172 yards, TD) and LenDale White (18 touches, 156 yards, 3 TD) both went nuts against the worst rush defense in the league (KC)…Willis McGahee (21 touches, 152 yards, TD) is still RB1 in Baltimore when he can play…Ronnie Brown’s (14 carries, 28 yards) schedule is pretty easy from here on out, so if you might want to buy low after a bad game against the Ravens…Steven Jackson (27 touches, 176 yards, 3 TD) ran like a madman this week. He’s definitely back in must-start territory…Ryan Grant (33 touches, 117 yards, TD) looked pretty good against a very bad Colts rush defense. His schedule isn’t very favorable over the next several weeks, so you might want to think about selling high…Thomas Jones (25 touches, 159 yards) is looking good and he has a favorable upcoming schedule. It might not be a bad idea to try to snatch him away from an unsuspecting owner…Clinton Portis (28 touches, 183 yards, TD) is looking like a top 5 back. He shrugged off a hip flexor to post big numbers against the Browns…Jamal Lewis (20 touches, 98 yards) played better than his stats would indicate. He almost scored on a catch and had a couple of goal line opportunities, but the Browns’ line failed to get the necessary push…Julius Jones (8 touches, 37 yards) and Maurice Morris (8 touches, 68 yards) are back in a timeshare now that Morris is healthy again.
© 2026 The Scores Report – The National Sports Blog
Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑