Week 9 of the NFL will see the Colts and Saints defend their undefeated records, the Cowboys, Eagles, Dolphins and Patriots play for best in the East while the Chargers and Giants battle to stay relevent.

Panthers at Saints(-13):  Carolina looked the best they have all season when they routed the Cardinals, with the held of six turnovers and 178 yard day from DeAngelo Williams.  New Orleans offense proved formidable at coming from behind again when a fumble by Drew Brees left them down a touchdown. The Saints scored three times in the second quarter to take the lead and they were able to sit on that most of the second half.  The defense was bruised up more than they have been all year, battered by Michael Turner for 151 yards.  I'm sure Williams and Jonathan Stewart are licking their chops at that but even if the can exploit that weakness there's no way Jake Delhomme keeps up with Brees in the dome.  Saints by 17

Redskins at Falcons(-10):  Atlanta has lost two straight for the first time since Mike Smith became their head coach but they are meeting up with the perfect team to right their ship.  Washington is in really bad shape and even their owner knows it.  He and their fans will be feeling even more "frustration" this weekend and no amount of "hope" is going to turn this around.  Falcons by 12

Cardinals at Bears(-3):  After winning three in a row, Arizona looked downright lousy last week in their loss to Carolina.  Kurt Warner threw five interceptions and lost a fumble.  Chicago wasn't impressive against the Browns but they did end their two-game losing streak.  They have won four straight at home and their running game seems to be improving, still they can't seem to protect Jay Cutler.  The re-juggled offensive line still gave up four sacks to the Browns.  Warner probably won't turn the ball over five times this week, but the Cardinals just aren't that good outdoors.  Bears by 3

Ravens(-3) at Bengals:  Baltimore had their best game of the year when they knocked the undefeated Broncos off their perch and stopped their three-game losing streak.  Cincinnati is coming off the bye and they have already beaten the Ravens on the road.  Carson Palmer needed a last minute touchdown pass to Andre Caldwell to get the job done on October 11th but their 45-10 win over the Bears shows what their offense can do now that it is in full gear.  Bengals by 7

Dolphins at Patriots(-10.5):  New England blew two of the lesser teams out in the weeks before they went into their bye.  Those kind of teams are good to tune up against but they don't necessarily tell you where you are at against the teams you need to beat.  Last season, the Dolphins unveiled the Wildcat offense against the Patriots and shocked the league with how well they were able to move the ball in so many different ways.  Still, New England has had two weeks to get ready for it this time and they know it's coming.  It's not a gimmick, but it's far from unstoppable.  Patriots by 6

Packers(-9) at Buccanneers:  Tampa will be a welcome sight for Green Bay after dealing with the visiting Vikings.  The Bucs have no quarterback and no real running game.  Aaron Rodgers looks good when he has the time to throw and a running game that takes the pressure off.  He should have both in Tampa this weekend.  Packers by 11

Chiefs at Jaguars(-6):  Jacksonville looked awful getting trounced by Chris Johnson and the previously winless Titans.  Maurice Jones-Drew had quite a day as well, springing on two long touchdown runs and he could have the same kind of room to run this weekend against Kansas City.  The Chiefs look to be in disarray.  Any positives they might have yearned from their win over the Redskins was wiped out by a rainy disaster of a game against the Chargers.  It just got worse after that when Larry Johnson insulted his coach and reporters and ended up getting suspended.  The Chiefs might not win a game the rest of this season.  Jaguars by 10

Lions at Seahawks(-10):  Seattle still hasn't come together  the way they should, getting blasted in back-to-back weeks after they blew out Jacksonville upon Matt Hasselbeck's return.  There is virtually no running game and Hasselbeck still hasn't sync'd up with T.J. Houshmandzadeh.  The Lions sunk to a new low last week when they lost to the winless Rams.  Matthew Stafford was less than 50% in completions and injuries to Calvin Johnson and Kevin Smith didn't help.  Both could be out through this week too, good news for Seattle.  Seahawks by 14

Chargers at Giants(-3):  It seems funny that you would have two teams in week 9 that are in a must-win game against each other but with the Giants losing three in a row and the Chargers 2 games behind the Broncos with a loss to their division leader as well, neither team can really afford a fourth loss this early in the season.  San Diego's defense looks ripe to give Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw a big day but Phillip Rivers has a way of making up what his defense gives up.  Still, the Chargers have yet to beat a team with a winning record this season and they don't travel well.  Giants by 5

Titans at Forty-Niners(-6):  It may not have been a huge surprise that Tennessee would get their first win of the season against an up and down Jaguars team but they 30-13 rout was a shock nonetheless.  Chris Johnson was a beast and Vince Young was mistake-free in his first start since 2007.  San Francisco has played better with Alex Smith in the game and a half he has played but they have still ended up with two more losses to show for it.  Now they will be missing both Nate Clements and Joe Staley.  They do have the second-best rushing offense in the league which should slow them just enough for the Titans just enough to get San Francisco a narrow win.  Niners by 4

Cowboys at Eagles(-3):  With both these two teams at 5-2, the midseason lead in the NFC East is up for grabs.  Both teams have had their rough patches but both now seem to be in their groove.  Brian Westbrook returns for Philadelphia just in time, making Donovan McNabb and DeSean Jackson even more dangerous.  Miles Austin is still on fire and he keeps giving Tony Romo a great target to find right when he needs it.  The Eagles embarrassing loss to the Raiders might have been the best thing that could have happened to this team, reminding them to bring it every single week.  Eagles by 7

Steelers(-3) at Broncos:  Denver's first loss of the season probably doesn't make them frauds but it makes their wins against a not a full speed yet Patriots team and an underachieving(again) Chargers team look a little more suspect, especially when they are dumped 30-7.  Pittsburgh is now on a four game winning streak and coming off a bye, that's just bad news for the Broncos.  Even in their six wins they couldn't run the ball and the Steelers won't have to sellout to stop the run.  Pittsburgh's pass rush is gonna give Kyle Orton more than he can handle for 60 minutes and while Ben Roethlisberger won't have a field day against Denver's solid defense, he will be better.  Steelers by 4

Last Week's Results:  8-5

Overall Results:  77-39