This past week in the NFL was trade week and boy did teams make the moves. A roundup of key trades were:
- Running Back Khalil Herbert traded from the Chicago Bears to the Cincinnati Bengals in exchange for a seventh round draft pick next year.
- One of the most significant trades was made by the Detroit Lions who received defensive lineman Za’Darius Smith and a seventh round pick in 2025 from the Browns giving up a fifth round pick next year and a sixth round selection in 2026.
- The Cowboys get wide receiver Jonathan Mingo from the Carolina Panthers giving the Panthers a fourth-round draft pick in 2025. Dallas also gets a 2025 seventh round pick.
- The Steelers as anticipated got another wide receiver to add their weapons picking up Mike Williams from the Jets and sending New York a 2025 fifth round pick. Pittsburgh also traded with Green Bay giving the Packers a seventh-round pick next year and in exchange getting defensive end Preston Smith to bolster their depth on the d-line.
- The New Orleans Saints traded with the Washington Commanders sending cornerback Marshon Lattimore and a fifth-round draft pick for next year to Washington and their prizes are a 2025 third round, fourth round, and sixth round pick.
- The Baltimore Ravens are trying to improve their secondary, which is one of the worst in the league by making a trade with the Los Angeles Rams sending the Rams a seventh-round draft pick in 2026 and getting cornerback Tre’Davious White in return.
- The Denver Broncos and Arizona Cardinals did business with Denver getting a sixth-round pick for 2025 and sending linebacker Baron Browning to Arizona.
How these new players will impact the teams they are now playing for remains to be seen but all the moves were to bolster the club’s chances at the playoffs and trying to get a post-season win. These trades won’t affect my picks much for this week, but I had a decent record in week nine. Now it’s time for week 10.
Cincinnati at Baltimore: If you want to talk about a very crucial game for two teams this one would be it. Baltimore is one half game behind the Steelers and Cincinnati it trying to climb back into the AFC North race as well as the opportunity to be a wild card if they can’t wrest the division crown from Baltimore. I think even with a new cornerback in the mix, the Ravens have proven they can be thrown on. With Joe Burrow tossing the rock around, that does not bode well for Baltimore. Bengals 34 / Ravens 27
New York Giants at Carolina: The “who cares” game of the day. The Giants are 2-7 and a mess. The Panthers are still the worst team in the NFL and sit at 2-7 also. Both teams are in dire need of a complete house cleaning. The game has no impact on anything, but the respective fan bases are loyal to their teams. Giants 20 / Panthers 13
New England at Chicago: This is a game that rookie quarterback Caleb Williams certainly wants to play well in. In front of his own fans, the much-hyped kid out of USC has not played up to expectations. Here’s a chance against at team with only two wins to show off the skill set everyone believes he has. For the Bears they have two losses in a row and are fading…fast. If they want to contend, this is a game they must have. Bears 23 / Patriots 17
Buffalo at Indianapolis: The Bills are hoping SOMEBODY beats the Chiefs before the season ends. Buffalo would love to have that home field advantage in the playoffs but right now they are two games behind Kansas City. Indianapolis is sticking with Joe Flacco at quarterback, and they are two games behind the Texans for the division lead. The Bills are riding a four-game winning streak while the Colts are on a two-game skid. That ends on Sunday. Colts 27 / Bills 24
Denver at Kansas City: As I thought Denver would be competitive in Baltimore in week nine, instead, they got their doors blown off. That result doesn’t provide much confidence heading into Kansas City to face the unbeaten Chiefs. Chiefs 37 / Broncos 13
Atlanta at New Orleans: The Saints are simply a mess. Kirk Cousins is starting to build the foundation of play Atlanta knew he had thus why they put him behind center. The Falcons should have an easy time down in the “Big Easy.” Falcons 34 / Saints 17
San Francisco at Tampa Bay: The Bucs nearly handed Kansas City their first defeat of the season but fell short in overtime. To keep pace with Atlanta a win at home will be crucial. The 49ers may have Christian McCaffrey available but how well he can play coming off an Achilles injury will dictate how good he is. Baker Mayfield continues to ball out, so I think that trend continues. Buccaneers 26 / 49ers 21
Pittsburgh at Washington: The Steelers after a bye week under Mike Tomlin are 13-4 dating back to 2017 have won seven consecutive games following their bye. Pittsburgh can set themselves up for a stranglehold on the AFC North with a win as they play the Ravens next after this game. The Commanders are the surprising leaders of the NFC East led by a rookie quarterback, Jayden Daniels. Mike Tomlin also has an impressive record when facing rookie signal callers winning 25 of 31 games in his career as Steelers head coach. Steelers 27 / Commanders 13
Minnesota at Jacksonville: The Sam Darnold experiment in Minnesota continues to work. The Vikings find themselves just one game behind the mighty Detroit Lions. Jacksonville is virtually mirroring the Vikes’ record of 6-2, only the Jags have lost seven. If the Lions reach the Super Bowl only Cleveland, Houston, and the Jaguars will be the teams that have not even tasted an appearance in the Super Bowl. With that said, I think Jacksonville is better than their record, but Trevor Lawrence is not developing into the elite quarterback the Jaguars thought they would be. Jaguars 27 / Vikings 27
Tennessee at Los Angeles Chargers: Any team in the AFC West can forget winning that division. The defending Super Bowl champion Chiefs are running away with it. Therefore, the Chargers have their eyes set on earning a wild card spot. The Titans are in rebuilding mode now and into next year and the Chargers are on a two-game winning streak. Make that three. Chargers 45 / Titans 13
Philadelphia at Dallas: Jerry Jones must be the worst owner in the NFL. He just keeps believing in his team, yet they are 3-5 and the losers of three straight. He refuses to make significant changes to his roster and now Dak Prescott is out for several weeks with a hamstring injury. In steps Cooper Rush most likely (although it could be Trey Lance) so there goes the neighborhood. Eagles in an easy one. Eagles 31 / Cowboys 17
New York Jets at Arizona: Will we see a monster game from Aaron Rodgers this season? I think not. Believe it or not, the Cardinals are in first place above the Rams, Seahawks, and 49ers. They’ll still be in that top spot after this one. Cardinals 25 / Jets 20
Detroit at Houston: This is an intriguing game and a test for the Texans to measure up against the NFC’s best team and perhaps the best team in NFL. The Lions are just a black and blue team that loves to get physical. They will be too much for the Texans. Lions 33 / Texans 23
Miami at Los Angeles Rams: The Rams are on a three-game winning streak and playing at home. While many thought that Miami would contend this season, instead they find themselves losers of six of their first eight games. Even with Tua Tagovailoa returning from this latest concussion, Miami still lost to Buffalo in week nine. I can’t see them traveling west and winning this game. Rams 28 / Dolphins 27
Teams having their bye week in week 10 are: Cleveland, Green Bay, Las Vegas, and Seattle.
Running Pick Record from Week to Week
Week 1: 12/15
Week 2: 8/16
Week 3: 8/16
Week 4: 11/16
Week 5: 7/14
Week 6: 9/14
Week 7: 9/15
Week 8: 11/16
Week 9: 10/15
Week 10: TBD
