Welcome back to the ninth installment of Hart’s Picks for the 2026 NFL regular season. My Week 8 slate of predictions was my best thus far. I finished with a 12-2 record with my only losing picks being the Cowboys and Seahawks. Not too shabby! We’re basically at the halfway point of the season, so I thought I’d give a review of where I stand to date.
Week 1: 11-5
Week 2: 10-6
Week 3: 9-7
Week 4: 8-8
Week 5: 10-5
Week 6: 7-7
Week 7: 9-5
Week 8: 12-2
Thus far, that’s 76 correct picks and 46 wrong picks.
That’s good enough for 63-percent accuracy. However, that is still several points behind where I have been the past two seasons. This week there are 15 games with just the Pittsburgh Steelers and Tennessee Titans on their bye week.
Jacksonville Jaguars at Baltimore Ravens — Thursday Night Football
With Lamar Jackson likely out for the rest of the regular season due to a broken thumb and Tyler Huntley being on injured reserve, the Ravens will be starting Joe Fagnano against the Jaguars on Thursday Night Football. However, they did strike a trade to acquire Jacoby Brissett from the Arizona Cardinals to keep their playoff hopes alive. That won’t matter this week, since he won’t be playing. Due to an unstable quarterback situation in Baltimore, I’ll be giving Jacksonville the edge here.
Winner: Jaguars
Cincinnati Bengals at Atlanta Falcons — Sunday (Morning Game)
This will be an international affair taking place in Madrid, Spain. The Bengals are coming off an overtime win against the Titans. Meanwhile, the Falcons were shutout by the Buccaneers in a game where Tampa Bay didn’t even complete a pass to win. All things considered, I’ll be taking Cincinnati in this one. I think they will light up the scoreboard.
Winner: Bengals
Cleveland Browns at New Orleans Saints — Sunday (Early Game)
The Browns are coming off a loss, and the Saints are fresh off their bye week with an extra week of rest and preparation. The key storyline to watch in this one is who starts at quarterback for Cleveland. Deshaun Watson is in concussion protocol, which mean Shadeur Sanders could get the nod on Sunday. If so, I’m worried about Cleveland’s ability to get things done on offense. I’ll be taking the Saints at home in this one due to that.
Winner: Saints
New York Jets at Kansas City Chiefs — Sunday (Early Game)
Both of these teams are coming off Week 8 losses. I’m far more confident in Andy Reid and the Chiefs’ ability to bounce back from a loss at home as opposed to the Jets being able to find a way to win at Arrowhead. Sorry Jets fans, but I’m picking Kansas City in this one. But hey, you have three top ten picks currently in the 2027 NFL Draft. That’s something to look forward too—unless most of the top underclassmen at QB opt to go back to school.
Winner: Chiefs
Los Angeles Rams at Washington Commanders — Sunday (Early Game)
Both these NFC teams earned wins in Week 8. The Rams have now pulled to 4-4 on the season and aren’t out of it yet. Meanwhile, the Commanders are 2-4-1 and a few games out of the lead in the NFC East. At the end of the day, I think the Rams are the much better team and will find a way to win on the road. It’s an absolute must to keep their playoff hopes alive in a tough NFC.
Winner: Rams
Dallas Cowboys at Indianapolis Colts — Sunday (Early Game)
The Cowboys and Colts have certainly underwhelmed thus far. Both teams have failed to meet the expectations many fans and analysts had prior to the regular season. If Dallas wants to keep their playoff hopes and NFC East title chances alive, this is a must-win road game against the Colts who seem determined to acquire as much draft capital as possible to embark on a complete rebuild. I’ll be taking another road team and am picking Dallas.
Winner: Cowboys
Detroit Lions at Miami Dolphins — Sunday (Early Game)
Each week, there seems to be a game I think is a surefire win that winds up backfiring on me. Looking at this week’s slate of games, this is about as close to an easy pick for a matchup I can find. I think the Lions roll on offense and cause a lot of problems for a Dolphins’ defense that is one of the worst in the NFL.
Winner: Lions
Denver Broncos at Carolina Panthers — Sunday (Early Game)
They haven’t been playing their best football, but the Broncos continue to find ways to win. They have a four-game winning streak and all the momentum heading into their Week 9 road matchup versus the Panthers. I think Denver’s offense will run the ball with authority and dictate the pace of the game to earn their seventh win of the season on Sunday.
Winner: Broncos
New York Giants at Philadelphia Eagles — Sunday (Early Game)
The Eagles have been an absolute flop this season and have lost six in a row. Meanwhile, the Giants have been one of the league’s surprise teams and lead the NFC East. It hasn’t always been pretty, but they’ve been finding ways to win and are pretty balanced on offense and defense. I’m getting a bit wild here picking road teams, but I like the Giants in this one.
Winner: Giants
Houston Texans at Los Angeles Chargers — Sunday (Afternoon Game)
The Texans are a bad football team at 2-5. There is no doubt they have woefully underperformed expectations. Quite honestly, the only other team in AFC that has been more disappointing are the winless Chargers at 0-7. I expect the Texans to get back on track here and take care of business on the road since the Chargers are terrible.
Winners: Texans
Las Vegas Raiders at San Francisco 49ers — Sunday (Afternoon Game)
The Raiders are back to being a .500 ball cup. On the flip side, the 49ers had an extra week of preparation after their Week 7 loss to the Falcons to gameplan for the Raiders. I think that is going to make all the difference here. I just don’t see them dropping another game to an underdog. I’ll take Kyle Shanahan’s crew.
Winner: 49ers
Green Bay Packers at New England Patriots — Sunday (Afternoon Game)
This is one of my favorite matchups of Week 9. The Packers and Patriots are both 5-3 and coming off Week 8 victories. I feel they are evenly matched. It could definitely go either way, though I’ll be giving the Patriots the nod here because of their homefield advantage.
Winner: Patriots
Arizona Cardinals at Seattle Seahawks — Sunday (Afternoon Game)
The Cardinals were able to shock the Cowboys last weekend. I honestly didn’t see that coming. Meanwhile, the Seahawks lost to the Bears in primetime—the other matchup I failed to get right last week. At 4-4, the Seahawks are starting to slip in the NFC West. They need this victory to get back on the right track. I’m confident they will pull out a victory at home. But Sam Darnold needs to perform better, and they have to start running the ball effectively.
Winner: Seahawks
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Chicago Bears — Sunday Night Football
The Buccaneers may have been able to pull off a win last weekend without completing a pass. However, they are going to have to be firing on all cylinders to keep up with a top-notch Chicago offense. I’m not sure that’s possible. Caleb Williams is really hitting his stride and playing well. I think Chicago won’t have any issues beating Tampa Bay at home.
Winner: Bears
Buffalo Bills at Minnesota Vikings — Monday Night Football
The Vikings were the last unbeaten team in the NFL until the Lions beat them last weekend. The Bills were able to obliterate the Ravens and are now 6-1 and the top team in the AFC. I’m excited to see how Brian Flores tries to combat Josh Allen and the Bills’ offense. That’ll be great to see in primetime. Though I remain confident Allen and the Bills can do enough to win on the road in Minneapolis.
Winner: Bills
