There are two teams in the AFC West with playoff hopes in sight and that is the undefeated Denver Broncos and the surprising Oakland Raiders. With the Broncos remaining undefeated after last week’s big win against the Green Bay Packers, their division title appears to be inevitable. The Raiders on the other hand are vying for a Wild Card spot.
Each week becomes more important than the last at this point in the season, and each matchup is crucial.
Here’s a look at how the AFC West teams will matchup for Week 9.
Oakland Raiders at Pittsburgh Steelers, Sunday 1:05p.m. EST
The 4-3 Raiders made a huge statement last week in their dominating 34-20 victory over the New York Jets. This Raiders offense has been rejuvenated and this team is turning things around.
This is a classic matchup with a lot of history between these two teams, which always makes for an interesting game. The Steelers are 4-4 and coming off a 16-10 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals last week.
Steelers running back Le'Veon Bell is out for the year after suffering an MCL injury, but they have DeAngelo Williams as backup, who performed very well in the beginning of the season when Bell was serving a suspension.
This will also be Ben Roethlisberger’s second game back after missing time with a knee injury.
The Raiders offense has been efficient in both the passing game and run game. Derek Carr now has two very good targets in Amari Cooper and Michael Crabtree to provide spark in the offense and create plays.
Pittsburgh’s defense is ranked 26th in the passing game, so expect Carr and company to put up quite a few points and moved downfield well.
On the contrary, Oakland’s pass defense is ranked 31st and has shown serious struggles in the secondary. With Roethlisberger back, the Steelers offense could be potentially dangerous for this Raiders defense, especially with it being an away game for the silver and black.
This is a big matchup for Oakland. As it stands now, the Raiders are the fifth seed in the playoff picture and own a Wild Card spot.
They have played extremely well as of late, and they need to keep the ball rolling if they want to keep their playoff hopes alive.
Final Score Prediction
Raiders 27 Steelers 17
Denver Broncos at Indianapolis Colts, Sunday 4:25p.m. EST
Peyton Manning returns to Indianapolis to take on his former team this week as the 7-0 Broncos take on the 3-5 Colts.
There has been much talk as of late regarding Manning and this Broncos offense that has appeared to be lackadaisical, but they quited some doubters with their 29-10 victory over the Packers, giving them their first loss of the season.
This will be an intriguing matchup, not only because of Manning’s return, but also because of how Andrew Luck and the Colts offense will handle the Broncos defense.
Luck has had his struggles this year, particularly early in games, then seems to find a decent rhythm, which the Broncos defensive line will look to take advantage of.
Last week, the Colts nearly gave the Carolina Panthers their first loss of the season, but fell short and lost 29-26.
Manning and company were able to handle the Packers defense just fine, and should be able to do just that in Indy this week.
The biggest test here will be whether or not the Colts offense can get through the strong Denver defense, and that all starts with Andrew Luck.
In order for the Colts to have a chance, they need Luck to perform well and get off to a good start, but Denver will look to get turnovers early and keep the young quarterback off his game.
Final Score Prediction
Broncos 31 Colts 20
Chicago Bears at San Diego Chargers, Monday 8:30p.m. EST
The 2-6 Chargers will host the 2-5 Bears on Monday Night Football this week. While the Chargers may be a better team than their record suggests, it’s all about how you finish games and overall wins and losses in this league.
This matchup has little on the line, but San Diego will look to keep some playoff hope alive, especially considering this team always comes on strong in the second half of the season to make a push.
Philip Rivers and the Chargers offense will look to pick apart the Bears defense in the passing game, as their run threat is pretty much null.
Defensively, the Bolts will look to get to Jay Cutler and create turnovers.
Neither team has performed as they’d hoped this year, but it is only Week 9 and there’s still a lot of football to be played.
When it comes to San Diego, the injury bug has continued to bite, but this team has still battled and stayed in games all season long. They are coming off a tough three-point loss to the Baltimore Ravens last week, and are hoping this homefield advantage on primetime will give them a boost.
Final Score Prediction
Bears 14 Chargers 20