NFL Week 9 schedule: 5 best games on the slate

NFL Week 9 kicks off with the Cardinals vs the 49ers on Thursday Night Football. We take a look at the 5 best games on the NFL Week 9 slate.

5. Green Bay Packers at Los Angeles Chargers

The Chargers are only 3-5, but this has to make the list. We’re getting Aaron Rodgers and Philip Rivers squaring off. It doesn’t happen often, and barring some kind of miracle run out of Rivers and Los Angeles, it’s almost certainly the last time. The Packers should win even as they have to fly halfway across the country, but we could see some fireworks. The big question here is will Rivers have time to survey the field and throw, or will he on his back for most of the afternoon?

4. Detroit Lions at Oakland Raiders

Sneaky good game here. The loser is all but out o the playoff race, while the winner will be feeling spry entering the back half of the season. The Lions are 3-3-1 but coming off a solid home win against the New York Giants. Oakland sits at 3-4 and is trying to overcome the sting of letting one get away against the Texans down in Houston. This is the first time the Raiders are playing a true home game since Week 2, and they’ll look to make the most of it against Matthew Stafford and Co.

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3. Houston Texans at Jacksonville Jaguars

This one kicks off the Sunday slate from London. Jacksonville is technically the home team, and it is looking for revenge after losing at the goal line on a failed two-point conversion to Houston in Week 2, falling 13-12. The Jaguars have the benefit of not dealing with future first-ballot Hall of Famer J.J. Watt, who unfortunately tore his pec in Week 8 and will miss the rest of the season. Houston hopes to ride the hot hand of Deshaun Watson, who is playing himself into MVP contention after another great game last week against Oakland in a 27-24 victory.

2. Minnesota Vikings at Kansas City Chiefs

If Patrick Mahomes doesn’t play, this stays on the list but falls a bit. If he does play, it could be No. 1. Mahomes should have a field day against the Vikings’ secondary, but the same holds true for Minnesota running back Dalvin Cook going against the Chiefs’ linebackers. This could be a case of who has the ball last. The looming question is whether Kirk Cousins could outplay Mahomes on the road.

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1. New England Patriots at Baltimore Ravens

Short and sweet here. This is Sunday night, in Baltimore, with the Ravens coming off a bye week. The Patriots are 8-0 and sporting what could be a legendary defense. That unit now tries to stop Lamar Jackson. Grab the popcorn.