NFL 2017 Week 9 Preview

NFL 2017 Week 9 Preview

November has arrived and the NFL season enters the second half of the 2017 regular season. Here's a preview of key games in Week 9 and what to look for.

At the midpoint, there are nine teams with a .700 or better winning percentage, led by the 7-1 (.875) Philadelphia Eagles.

Since 1990, when the current 12-team playoff format was adopted, nearly 97 percent (60 of 62, 96.8 percent) of the previous teams to start 7-1 or better advanced to the postseason.

Through the first eight weeks, 16 teams have a winning record. Two divisions -- AFC East (New England 6-2, Buffalo 5-3, Miami 4-3) and NFC South (New Orleans 5-2, Carolina 5-3, Atlanta 4-3) -- each have three teams with a winning record.

The first half of the season has seen thrilling comebacks and close finishes, but the excitement will only intensify as the playoff push begins. And there's still plenty of football to be played so don't count teams out yet.

Since 2000, 44 teams have reached the halfway point of their season with a .500 or below winning percentage and advanced to the playoffs, including at least one in each season. Last year, there were four such teams: Detroit (4-4), Green Bay (4-4), Miami (4-4) and Pittsburgh (4-4).

Of those 44 teams, seven have advanced to the Conference Championship Game, including both the Packers and Steelers last season. The 2001 New England Patriots reached the midway point with a 4-4 record and went on to win Super Bowl XXXVI.

Week 9 began on Thursday night with New York Jets defeating the Buffalo Bills 34-21 in an AFC East division matchup. Week 9 concludes with a pair of primetime contests as the Miami Dolphins host the Oakland Raiders on Sunday night (8:30 PM ET, NBC) and the Detroit Lions visit the Green Bay Packers in a key NFC North showdown on Monday night (8:30 PM ET, ESPN).

Some of the other notable games in Week 9:

Denver Broncos (3-4) at Philadelphia Eagles (7-1)

(Sunday, CBS, 1:00 PM ET)

Denver owns the league's top overall defense this season, allowing 261 yards per game. The Broncos rank second in the NFL -- behind only Philadelphia (70.4) -- allowing 72.9 rushing yards per game.

Broncos linebacker VON MILLER has 24 sacks in 23 career games against NFC opponents (including Super Bowl 50). Since entering the league in 2011, Miller has 80.5 sacks, the most in the NFL during that span.

The Eagles have reached the halfway point with the league's best record (7-1) following last week's 33-10 win over San Francisco. Quarterback CARSON WENTZ threw two touchdown passes and cornerback JALEN MILLS returned an interception 37 yards for his first career touchdown.

Wentz is tied for the NFL lead with 19 touchdown passes, the most by an Eagles quarterback through the team's first eight games of a season. The previous mark of 17 touchdown passes was shared by Pro Football Hall of Famer NORM VAN BROCKLIN (1960) and NORM SNEAD (1967).

Atlanta Falcons (4-3) at Carolina Panthers (5-3)

(Sunday, FOX, 1:00 PM ET)

​Atlanta improved to 4-3 -- including a 3-1 record on the road -- with a 25-20 win at the New York Jets last week. Quarterback MATT RYAN threw two touchdown passes -- including the go-ahead score to wide receiver MOHAMED SANU in the fourth quarter -- in the victory over the Jets.

Ryan has won his past three starts against the Panthers, completing 78 of 100 passes (78 percent) for 1,086 yards (362 yards per game) with seven touchdowns and one interception for a 131.1 passer rating. In last year's Week 4 matchup against Carolina (October 2, 2016), Ryan passed for 503 yards and wide receiver JULIO JONES had 300 receiving yards as the Falcons became the first team in NFL history to have a 500-yard passer and 300-yard receiver in the same game.

The Panthers have reached the midpoint with a 5-3 record and look to begin the second half with a key division victory. Last week, Carolina notched a 17-3 win at Tampa Bay as the Panthers limited the Buccaneers to 279 total net yards.

Carolina defensive end JULIUS PEPPERS had a sack and forced fumble against the Buccaneers and ranks fourth in the NFC this season with 7.5 sacks. Peppers has 151 career sacks and passed Pro Football Hall of Famer CHRIS DOLEMAN (150.5) for the fourth-most sacks since the individual sack became an official statistic in 1982.

Indianapolis Colts (2-6) at Houston Texans (3-4)

(Sunday, CBS, 1:00 PM ET)

Indianapolis running back FRANK GORE had 101 scrimmage yards (82 rushing, 19 receiving) in last week's game at Cincinnati. Gore became the ninth player in NFL history to reach 17,000 career scrimmage yards (17,015) and the other eight players to accomplish the feat are enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Colts kicker ADAM VINATIERI scored 11 points last week and tied GARY ANDERSON for second on the NFL's all-time scoring list with 2,434 career points.

Last week against Seattle, Houston rookie quarterback DESHAUN WATSON became the first player in NFL history with at least 400 passing yards (402), four touchdown passes (four) and 50 rushing yards (67) in a single game. Texans wide receivers DE ANDRE HOPKINS (224 yards, one touchdown) and WILL FULLER V (125 yards, two touchdowns) each had at least 100 receiving yards and a touchdown.

Watson has thrown at least three touchdown passes in four consecutive games and is the first rookie in NFL history to accomplish the feat. His 16 touchdown passes in his past four games are the most in league annals by a rookie in any four-game span and his 16 touchdown passes in October are the most ever by a rookie in any calendar month. This season, Watson has 19 passing touchdowns, the most in league history by a player in his first seven career games.

Unfortunately, Deshaun tore his right ACL in practice Thursday and is out for the season. Tom Savage -- replaced by Deshaun Watson in the Houston Texans' season-opener -- will start at quarterback in his stead.

Cincinnati Bengals (3-4) at Jacksonville Jaguars (4-3)

(Sunday, CBS, 1:00 PM ET)

The Bengals defeated Indianapolis 24-23 last week as quarterback ANDY DALTON threw two touchdown passes to lead the offense.

With Cincinnati trailing by six (23-17) in the fourth quarter, defensive end CARLOS DUNLAP had a 16-yard interception-return touchdown to help put the Bengals ahead for good. It marked the second fourth-quarter game-winning interception-return touchdown in team history (KEN RILEY, October 23, 1983).

The Jaguars, who had a bye last week, are coming off a 27-0 win at Indianapolis in Week 7. Led by defensive ends YANNICK NGAKOUE (2.5 sacks) and CALAIS CAMPBELL (two), the Jaguars recorded 10 sacks against the Colts. Jacksonville, which recorded 10 sacks in Week 1, became the first club in NFL history to record at least 10 sacks in two of a team's first seven games of a season.

Campbell, who leads the AFC with 10 sacks in his first season with the Jaguars, has the most sacks by a player in his first seven games with a new team since the individual sack became an official statistic in 1982.

Kansas City Chiefs (6-2) at Dallas Cowboys (4-3)

(Sunday, CBS, 4:25 PM ET)

The Chiefs improved to 6-2 with a 29-19 win on Monday night over the division-rival Denver Broncos. Rookie kicker HARRISON BUTKER converted all five field-goal attempts and is the first rookie in NFL history to have two games with at least five made field goals.

Chiefs cornerback MARCUS PETERS opened the scoring against Denver by forcing a fumble and returning it 45 yards for a touchdown. Peters, who also added an interception in the opening period, is the first player to have both a fumble-return touchdown and an interception in the first quarter of a game since ED REED on December 7, 2008. Since entering the NFL in 2015, Peters has 21 takeaways, the most in the league over that span.

The Cowboys have won two consecutive games, including last week's 33-19 win at Washington. Defensive tackle TYRONE CRAWFORD blocked a field goal -- which was returned 86 yards by cornerback ORLANDO SCANDRICK to set up a touchdown -- and also recorded a sack and forced fumble.

Dallas defensive end DEMARCUS LAWRENCE, who leads the NFL with 10.5 sacks, has recorded a sack in all seven games this season. With a sack on Sunday against the Chiefs, Lawrence would join EVERSON GRIFFEN (2017), DWIGHT FREENEY (2009) and ROBERT MATHIS (2005) as the only players to record a sack in each of his team's first eight games of a season since the individual sack became an official statistic in 1982.

Carson Wentz: Soaring Eagle

Carson Wentz: Soaring Eagle

Philadelphia Eagles quarterback CARSON WENTZ passed for two touchdowns in the Eagles' 33-10 victory over San Francisco last week.

With 26 completions against Denver on Sunday, Wentz, who has 540 completions in 24 career games, would surpass MATTHEW STAFFORD (565) for the most completions in NFL history by a quarterback in their first 25 career games.

The quarterbacks with the most completions in their first 25 career games in NFL history:

 

QBs Most Completions in First 25 Career Games

 

Texans Dynamic Duo

Houston Texans wide receivers DE ANDRE HOPKINS (224 yards, one touchdown) and WILL FULLER V (125 yards, two touchdowns) each had at least 100 receiving yards and a touchdown catch in Week 8.

Fuller and Hopkins are tied for the NFL lead with seven touchdown receptions each this season. With a touchdown catch by both players against Indianapolis on Sunday, Fuller and Hopkins would become the third pair of teammates in NFL history with at least eight touchdown catches each in their team's first eight games of a season.

The pairs of teammates with at least 8 TD catches each in first eight games of a season:

 

Dynamic Duos

 

With three combined touchdown catches on Sunday, Fuller and Hopkins, who have 14 total touchdown receptions this season, would tie for the second-most combined touchdown catches by a pair of teammates through their team's first eight games of a season in NFL history.

The pairs of teammates with the most combined touchdown catches in their team's first eight games of a season:

 

Most Combined Touchdown Catches

 

Adrian Peterson Gains Ground

Recently acquired Arizona Cardinals running back ADRIAN PETERSON has 11,983 rushing yards and 99 rushing touchdowns in 11 career seasons.

With 17 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown at San Francisco on Sunday, Peterson would become the seventh player in NFL history with at least 12,000 career rushing yards and 100 rushing touchdowns. All six of the players with at least 12,000 rushing yards and 100 touchdown runs are enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

The players with at least 12,000 rushing yards and 100 rushing touchdowns in NFL history:

 

Career Rushing: 12,000 Yards & 100 TDs

 

Jaguars On The Prowl

The Jacksonville Jaguars, led by defensive ends YANNICK NGAKOUE (2.5 sacks) and CALAIS CAMPBELL (two), recorded 10 sacks in the team's 27-0 win at Indianapolis in Week 7. Jacksonville enters Week 9 following a bye last week.

With seven sacks on Sunday against Cincinnati, Jacksonville, who leads the NFL with 33 sacks and ties for third in the league with 10 interceptions, would become the second team in the Super Bowl era with at least 40 sacks and 10 interceptions in its first eight games of a season. The 1967 Oakland Raiders, who advanced to Super Bowl II, are the only other team to accomplish the feat in the Super Bowl era.

Landmark for Jarvis Landry

Miami wide receiver JARVIS LANDRY ranks second in the NFL with 50 catches this season.

With five catches against Oakland on Sunday Night Football, Landry, who has 338 receptions since entering the league in 2014, would surpass ANQUAN BOLDIN (342) for the most catches by a player in his first four seasons in NFL history.

The players with the most receptions in their first four seasons in NFL history:

 

Most Receptions In Their First Four Seasons

 

Dominant Demarcus Lawrence

Dallas Cowboys defensive end DEMARCUS LAWRENCE recorded a sack in the Cowboys' 33-19 win at Washington in Week 8.

Lawrence, who leads the NFL with 10.5 sacks, has recorded a sack in all seven of Dallas' games this season. With a sack against Kansas City on Sunday, Lawrence would become the fourth player to record a sack in each of his team's first eight games to start a season since the individual sack became an official statistic in 1982.

Minnesota's EVERSON GRIFFEN, who is on a bye in Week 9, has recorded at least one sack in each of the Vikings' first eight games of the 2017 season.

The players to record a sack in each of their team's first eight games of a season since 1982:

 

Players with a sack in each of first eight games

 

NFL 2017 Week 9 Schedule

(All times local)

Byes: Chicago, Cleveland, Los Angeles Chargers, Minnesota, New England, Pittsburgh

Thursday, November 2

Buffalo 21 New York Jets 34

Sunday, November 5

Atlanta at Carolina, 1:00 PM

Kansas City at Dallas, 3:25 PM

Indianapolis at Houston, 12:00 PM

Cincinnati at Jacksonville, 1:00 PM

Baltimore at Tennessee, 12:00 PM

Arizona at San Francisco, 1:05 PM

Washington at Seattle, 1:05 PM

Tampa Bay at New Orleans, 12:00 PM

Los Angeles Rams at New York Giants, 1:00 PM

Denver at Philadelphia, 1:00 PM

Oakland at Miami, 8:30 PM (NBC)

Monday, November 5

Detroit at Green Bay, 7:30 PM (ESPN)

 

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