Below are my breakdowns of some NFL Week 9 contests that could be a whole lot of fun, plus a look at some of the top picks on PrizePicks from each of the games. I'll focus on four of the biggies:
- Denver Broncos at Houston Texans – Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
- Carolina Panthers at Green Bay Packers - Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
- Indianapolis Colts at Pittsburgh Steelers – Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
- Kansas City Chiefs at Buffalo Bills - Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET
Bearman's NFL Week 9 Picks
Let's dive in to what might be an intriguing weekend of pigskin.
Denver Broncos at Houston Texans Picks & Stats to Know
- The Broncos have won five straight games, their longest winning streak since winning five straight in the middle of the 2023 season. The last time they won six in a row was 2015, when Denver started the season 7-0.
- The Broncos have been solid on both sides of the ball, as their offense is ninth in total yards and third in rushing yards, while their defense leads the NFL in yards per play allowed at 4.56. Denver’s 18.9 points per game allowed is fifth-best in the NFL.
- After not reaching 220-plus yards passing in his first three games of the season, Broncos QB Bo Nix has hit 220+ in four of his last five games.
- Nix has thrown at 1+ TD passes in 17 consecutive games. Eleven of the 17 games have been 2-plus TD passes, with a career-high 4 last week vs. Dallas.
- Broncos RB snap counts through eight weeks: J.K. Dobbins 279 (51.3 pct), R.J. Harvey 158 (29.0 pct), Tyler Badie 88 (16.1 pct).
- While the Broncos still split their RB snap counts, J.K. Dobbins had received 14+ carries in the last six games, hitting 75+ yards in six of the eight games.
- Houston’s defense leads the NFL in total yards, holding opponents to 266.9 yards per game and in scoring defense, holding teams to 14.7 PPG. The Texans are also fifth in rushing yards, fourth in passing yards allowed.
- Texans QB C.J. Stroud averaged 199.7 passing yards in the first three games, but has since averaged 256 yards per game over the last four.
- The Houston RB snap counts through eight weeks: Nick Chubb 199 (42.7 pct), Woody Marks 197 (41.7 pct)
- The Texans were without WRs Nico Collins and Christian Kirk last week and saw Xavier Hutchinson, Braxton Berrios, and Jaylin Noel all step up to get 5 catches each. Reports out of Houston have Collins trending towards playing this week. Collins has 4+ catches in each of his last four games.
Broncos vs. Texans Picks to Target
Broncos vs. Texans projections are from the PrizePicks real money NFL game — pick players, predict More or Less on their stats, and win cash when you're right.
- Broncos QB Bo Nix - 202.5 passing yards
- Broncos RB J.K. Dobbins - 57.5 rushing yards
- Texans QB C.J. Stroud - 217.5 passing yards
Carolina Panthers vs. Green Bay Packers
- Andy Dalton made the start last week at QB for Bryce Young and passed for 175 yards with one INT and 0 TDs. The game was only the second all season without a passing TD as Young has 1+ in six of his seven starts. Young’s status is up in the air this week but he did practice.
- The Panthers are 29th in the league in yards per play (4.91), passing yards per game (179.5) and 27th in scoring offense (19.3 PPG).
- Panthers coach Dave Canales talked about his RB timeshare this week. RB Rico Dowdle has 50+ yards in each of his last four games.
- Dowdle’s 5.7 yards per rush ranks third among all qualified RBs
- Panthers rookie WR Tet McMillan has 3+ catches in all eight career games and 5+ in four of them.
- The Packers defense ranks second in yards per play, holding opponents to 4.57 yards per play. They are third in rush yards allowed and first in pass yards per play.
- Both of Green Bay’s units are ranked in the top ten of DVOA, with the defense ranked eighth and offense, sixth.
- Packers RB Josh Jacobs is second in the NFL with 9 rushing TDs. He has 2+ rushing TDs in three of his last four games.
- Jacobs has 1+ rushing TDs in 15 of the last 16 games, dating back to last season.
- Packers QB Jordan Love has thrown for 250+ yards in five of seven games this season, averaging 256.9 pass yards per game.
- Love’s 360 passing yards last week vs. the Steelers were his second 350+ game of his career.
- His 112.8 passer rating is fourth best in the NFL.
Panthers vs. Packers
Panthers vs. Packers projections are from the PrizePicks real money NFL game — pick players, predict More or Less on their stats, and win cash when you're right.
- Packers QB Jordan Love - 250.5 passing yards
- Packers RB Josh Jacobs - .5 rush + receiving TDs
- Panthers RB Rico Dowdle - 49.5 rush yards
Indianapolis Colts vs. Pittsburgh Stats to Know
- The Colts are 7-1, their best start since starting 14-0 under QB Peyton Manning in 2009. The Colts went on to lose the Super Bowl following that season.
- Indy leads the NFL in points (33.8), total yards (385.3), and yards per play (6.54). Breaking it down, the pass offense is sixth (250.9) and rush offense is sixth (134.4).
- The offense in Indy is also at the top of DVOA, ahead of KC, the Rams and Bills.
- Colts QB Daniel Jones is enjoying his best start to a season in his career. He has passed for 260+ yards in two straight games and in five of his eight games.
- Indy RB Jonathan Taylor scored 3 additional TDs in Week 8 and has 10 total TDs over the past four games.
- Taylor’s 850 rushing yards, 12 rushing TDs and 14 total TDs all lead the NFL. His 5.9 yards per rush is second, behind Buffalo’s James Cook.
- Colts WR Michael Pittman has 5+ catches in six of eight games this season. His 6 receiving TDs ranks tied for third in the NFL behind WR Amon-Ra St. Brown and TE Dallas Goedert.
- Unlike the Colts offense, the Steelers’ is near the bottom of the rankings, 25th in yards (297.1), 25th rushing (94.3) and 19th in passing (202.9).
- Rodgers has thrown for 200+ yards in six of seven games this season with 2+ passing TDs in five of the seven games.
- Pittsburgh RB snap counts through seven weeks: Jaylen Warren 211 (52.2 pct), Kenneth Gainwell 177 (43.8 pct), Kaleb Johnson 26 (6.4 pct).
- Steelers WR DK Metcalf has had an up and down season and has TDs in five of the last six games. His 5 TDs ranks T-8th among all NFL receivers.
Colts vs. Steelers Picks to Target
Colts vs. Steelers projections are from the PrizePicks real money NFL game — pick players, predict More or Less on their stats, and win cash when you're right.
- Colts QB Daniel Jones - 236.5 passing yards
- Colts RB Jonathan Taylor - 96.5 rushing yards
- Steelers QB Aaron Rodgers - 233.5 passing yards
Kansas City Chiefs vs. Buffalo Bills Stats to Know
- During the 2023 and 2024 season, the Chiefs won an NFL-record 17 consecutive one-score games. This season, the Chiefs are 0-3 in one-score games.
- After averaging 315.6 yards per game the first three games of the season, KC has averaged 415.8 yards of offense in the last five games, with WR Xavier Worthy’s return to the lineup in Week 4 and WR Rasheed Rice’s return in Week 7.
- The Chiefs are sixth in the league, averaging 26.8 points per game and second in scoring defense, holding opponents to 16.4 points per game.
- Chiefs TE Travis Kelce recorded a season-high 99 yards in Week 8 vs. the Commanders. It marked the second time in three weeks he has recorded 70+ yards. Prior to Week 6, including postseason, Kelce had failed to reach 70-plus yards receiving in 14 of the previous 16 games.
- After throwing for 1 passing TD in each of the first three games, Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes has multiple TD passes in four of his last five games, totaling 14 passing TDs over this span.
- Mahomes has passed for 250+ yards in five straight games after averaging 223 passing yards in the first three games. The last time Mahomes had 250+ in five straight games was in 2022, when he did it in seven straight.
- Buffalo’s issue has been on defense, where they are allowing 150.3 rush yards per game, 31st in the NFL and only ahead of Cincinnati.
- Bills RB James Cook has 753 rushing yards on the season, second to Jonathan Taylor of the Colts. His 6.0 yards per rush leads the NFL. His 7 rushing TDs is tied fourth.
- Cook has hit 100+ rushing in four of eight games this season, also tied with Taylor for most 100+ games this season.
- While the Bills are still winning, QB Josh Allen has not put up the same MVP numbers as in 2024. He has passed for 220+ yards in only two of seven games this season after doing so in nine of 17 games last season.
- Allen had been doing it on the ground with six straight games of 25+ rushing yards until being held to 7 rushing yards in Week 8.
Chiefs vs. Bills Picks to Target
Chiefs vs. Bills projections are from the PrizePicks real money NFL game — pick players, predict More or Less on their stats, and win cash when you're right.
- Bills QB Josh Allen - 232.5 passing yards
- Bills RB James Cook - 73.5 rushing yards
- Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes - 269.5 passing yards
Make Week 9 NFL Picks on PrizePicks to Win Cash
The Broncos look to stay on top of the AFC West, traveling to Houston to face the Texans, the NFC-leading Packers host the Carolina Panthers and the NFL-leading Colts are in Pittsburgh to face Aaron Rodgers and the Steelers. Plus, the Chiefs and Bills continue their AFC rivalry on Sunday afternoon.
We hope these Week 9 picks and stats to know can help you make your picks and predictions on PrizePicks real money NFL game.
Simply pick your players, predict More or Less on their Week 9 stats, and win cash when you're right. It's the simplest way to play NFL DFS, all season long.
