NFL Week 9: 5 teams that must win

Which NFL contenders are desperate for a win this weekend? Let’s run down the five teams that need to get a victory more than any other…

5. Tennessee Titans

The Titans are coming off their bye week and host the Baltimore Ravens, who are coming off a 40-0 drubbing of the Miami Dolphins. Baltimore is 4-4 and Tennessee is 4-3, making this an important game for both sides. Still, it’s more imperative for the Titans, whoa both at home and in the heat of a tight race in the AFC South. Marcus Mariota, who has four touchdowns against four interceptions this season, has to play well against a tough Baltimore secondary.

4. Detroit Lions

The Lions are on life support in the race for a playoff berth in the NFC. At 3-4, Detroit has lost three straight games and now plays the Green Bay Packers in Lambeau Field on Monday night. If Aaron Rodgers were playing, this game would be a massacre, but it’s Brett Hundley at the helm. In other words, Detroit has a terrific chance of winning a divisional game and getting back into the playoff race, only two games behind the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC North.

3. Dallas Cowboys

The Cowboys have taken care of business the past two weeks, beating the San Francisco 49ers and Washington Redskins. Now Dallas comes home to take on the Kansas City Chiefs, who got right on Monday night in a 29-19 win over the Denver Broncos. The Cowboys will have to take down one of the league’s best without Ezekiel Elliott, who has officially been suspended for six games. If the Cowboys want to keep pace in the NFC wild card race — and keep tabs on the Philadelphia Eagles — Dallas has to win this one.

2. Miami Dolphins

The Dolphins are acting like a team that has no faith going forward, but things change quickly in the NFL. After trading Jay Ajayi to the Eagles for a fourth-round pick, the Dolphins brass is putting up a quasi white flag on the surface, but Ajayi has been struggling. If Miami can go out on Sunday night and beat the Oakland Raiders, the Dolphins will be 5-3 and in good position to snag a wild card berth in the middling AFC.

1. Atlanta Falcons

There is nobody who deserves this spot more than the Falcons. Atlanta finally broke through its losing streak on Sunday with an uninspiring 25-20 win in the rain over the New York Jets. Now, the Falcons travel to Charlotte to take on the Carolina Panthers. Carolina is 5-3 and a half-game ahead Atlanta. If the Falcons win this one, they have to feel good going forward in the NFC South. A loss, and Atlanta might be buried with the New Orleans Saints and Panthers beginning to run away.