Week 9 Viewing Guide for Resting Ravens Fans

With the Ravens having the primetime Thursday night game, what should Ravens fans pay attention to Sunday and Monday? Here is your “viewing guide” for the other upcoming Week 9 games, where I will rate each game’s “watchability index” from 1 to 10.

Sunday 1:00 games

Bears at Bengals

Obviously, this one has implications for the AFC North.  Two big questions here regarding this game.  First, will Joe Flacco be able to play through the a/c joint sprain, and if he does, will he be effective?  Second question is will either defense show up?  The Bengals inexplicably gave up 39 points to Justin Fields and the New York Jets last week.  The Bears somehow gave up 30 points to a Tyler Huntley-led Baltimore Ravens offense.  This one has the makings of a pretty high-scoring competitive game.  I think the Bengals will pull this one out in a close high-scoring affair if Flacco is able to go and reasonably effective.  If Flacco is unable to go and Jake Browning gets the start, I think the Bears pull it out.

Watchability index:  8 out of 10

Vikings at Lions

This is a very tough matchup for QB J.J. McCarthy to return to.  I expect there to be some rust, and the Detroit Lions – I believe – are one of the best teams in the league.  The Vikings might make this competitive for a while, but I can’t see them hanging with the Lions.

Watchability index:  5 out of 10

Panthers at Packers

Not much to see here.  The Green Bay Packers look good.  The Carolina Panthers do not.  Obviously, if QB Bryce Young is able to play that makes the Panthers more competitive, but I still don’t think they can hang with the Packers.  If Andy Dalton gets another start for the Panthers, this game could get ugly fast.

Watchability index:  3 out of 10

Chargers at Titans

Not much to see here.  The Los Angeles Chargers appear to be rebounding, and the Tennessee Titans are still a bad team.  The Chargers should win this one pretty easily.

Watchability index:  2 out of 10

Falcons at Patriots

The Falcons are an extremely up and down team.  You never know what to expect from them.  Hopefully, Michael Penix, Jr. is able to play because Kirk Cousins decided to remind the world why he was benched.  Depending which Falcons team shows up, this could either be a very competitive game or an ugly blowout win for the Patriots.  Pay attention to the first half of this game to see which direction it’s going.

Watchability index:  6 out of 10

49ers at Giants

Following the injury to Cam Skattebo, this New York Giants team became less fun to watch.  Jaxson Dart is still fun to watch and will make some great plays, but he’s too inconsistent to beat a good San Francisco 49ers team.  I think the 49ers win easily, but I’ll give a little boost here because Dart is a fun QB to watch.

Watchability index:  5 out of 10

Colts at Steelers

As Terrell Owens would say: “Get your popcorn ready.”  This should be a highly competitive game between two division leaders.  Obviously this game has huge implications for the Ravens as they are trying to catch the Pittsburgh Steelers.  As hard as it may be for some long-time Baltimore fans, Ravens fans need to root for the Colts to knock the Steelers down another notch in the division.

Watchability index:  10 out of 10

Broncos at Texans

Anything can happen in this game.  Despite the Denver Broncos being 6-2, they have been very inconsistent at times, such as their 13-11 win vs. the Jets in London.  The Texans meanwhile looked dead in the water early, but have been playing better recently, winning two of their last three games (Baltimore and San Francisco with a loss to Seattle in between).  I still don’t trust the Texans offense, especially against a very good Denver defense, so I think the Broncos win this, but the Texans might make it interesting.

Watchability index:  6 out of 10

Sunday Late Games

Saints at Rams (4:05)

Again, not much to see here.  The Rams are good; the Saints are not.  The only reason to tune into this would be to see how rookie QB Tyler Shough looks in his first NFL start.

Watchability index:  2 out of 10

Chiefs at Bills (4:25)

Two AFC juggernauts.  Patrick Mahomes vs. Josh Allen.  The games between these two teams are almost always great games to watch.  Added intrigue this year because both teams are actually not in first place at the moment in their divisions (Broncos lead AFC West; Patriots lead AFC East)

Watchability index:  9 out of 10

Sunday Night

Seahawks at Commanders

It looks like Jayden Daniels is going to suit up, so that gives the Washington Commanders a fighting chance.  Daniels will be without WR Terry McLaurin who aggravated his quad injury last game.  The Seahawks (5-2) are trying to keep pace with the Los Angeles Rams (5-2) and San Francisco 49ers (5-3).  The Commanders have fallen to 3-5 and this is a very important game for them to try to hang in the NFC playoff picture.  This has the makings a good game but I like the Seahawks and coach Mike McDonald to contain the Washington offense and pull out the victory, putting the Commanders season on the brink.

Watchability index:  8 out of 10

Monday Night

Cardinals at Cowboys

Meh.  Two inconsistent teams that can sometimes play well and sometimes not.  Neither are a threat to make the playoffs at this point, but the game could still be entertaining….or it might not….you never know with these two teams.

Watchability index:  3 out of 10

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