In the Red Zone: Week 9 down, 8 to go Published Nov. 10, 2010 By Bryan Swink Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst Public Affairs JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. -- This week starts the coverage of NFL games on the NFL Network on Thursday nights. First of all, I hate that these games are only available if the cable provider has the NFL Network. It's about as frustrating as DIRECTV's monopoly over all the NFL games. Secondly, I want to point out that this article is written and finalized before Friday's publication date. As much as I would love to guarantee one extra win on my predictions, I am about integrity. I will be the first to say when I have made dumb and irrational decisions when picking the games. But honestly, who in their right mind actually thought that Cleveland would dominate Tom Brady and the New England Patriots? I'm still scratching my head over that and just about everything else that's gone on this season. Baltimore at Atlanta This game has the potential to be one of the best this season. Atlanta has yet to lose at home this year, while Baltimore's only two losses have been on the road against good contending teams. I'm interested to see how Falcons wide receiver Roddy White will matchup against the Ravens secondary. If the Ravens want a solid chance to win, they must use running back Ray Rice in passing downs. He is scary in the open field. Swink's prediction: Falcons win at home Detroit at Buffalo Detroit is coming off a heartbreaking loss in overtime to the NY Jets. Even if they are without Matthew Stafford and Shaun Hill at quarterback, they still have enough talent to get by the winless Bills. I must give it to Buffalo though. They have been extremely competitive in their last three games, only losing by a field goal. If they keep playing hard, this under-talented team could pull out their first win at home. Swink's prediction: Lions win on the road Minnesota at Chicago I think Minnesota's come-from-behind win last week has pushed this Vikings team in the right direction. If Brett Favre can continue his momentum from last week where he set a career high in passing yards, they have a good chance to creep back into this division. Chicago hasn't been playing well over the last few weeks, losing two out of three and barely getting by Buffalo last week. Even though they are playing at home, this game will be no cakewalk Swink's prediction: Vikings win on the road NY Jets at Cleveland The Jets got extremely lucky last week as they won in overtime against the Lions. On the other hand, the Browns beat the snot out of New England and pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the year so far. Who in the world is Peyton Hillis by the way? The Browns running back has quietly been putting up great numbers for a bad team. He has gained 873 total yards and eight touchdowns. It will be interesting to see if the Jets' 4th-ranked rush defense can contain him. Swink's prediction: Jets win on the road Tennessee at Miami I had high hopes for Miami last week, but they completely fell flat against the Ravens. It doesn't get much easier for them this week at home. Even though Tennessee lost on the road to San Diego, they have won their previous three away games. Miami hasn't won a single home game this year. With that in mind, I give the advantage to the Titans. I had faith in Miami early in the season, but it seems every week they disappoint me a little more. Swink's prediction: Titans win on the road Cincinnati at Indianapolis Cincinnati is faced with a similar situation to what the Colts were in last week. They are coming off a Monday-night game, going on the road to face a great home team. The Bengals have lost five games in a row and don't see them winning another game until next week at home against Buffalo. The Colts, even though extremely banged up, have a high-powered passing offense that seems to make no-name players look like future hall of famers. Swink's prediction: Colts win at home Houston at Jacksonville Jacksonville is hosting a Houston team that has struggled as of late, losing four of its last six games. The Jags will look to exploit the weak Texans secondary with the play of quarterback David Garrard, who threw for 260 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions in his last outing against Dallas. Houston is no slouch though. Their offense, when on the same page, is just as good as any team in the league. Swink's prediction: Houston wins on the road Carolina at Tampa Bay I don't know what it is about these Bucs, but I'm starting to buy into them. I still don't put them into the elite of NFL teams, but they have the potential to get there. They have struggled against good teams and dominated the bad ones. This week, they will dominate a division rival for the second time. Carolina is battling Dallas for the worst team in the NFC and will struggle without DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart at full strength. Swink's prediction: Bucs win at home Kansas City at Denver The Chiefs may have come back to reality as of late. After starting the season with a perfect 3-0 record, they have lost three of their last five and narrowly beat Buffalo with an overtime field goal. The Broncos are in even worse shape coming off their bye week. They can't figure out how to run the ball, or more importantly for this week, stop the run. The Chiefs have the best running game in the league and I wouldn't be surprised if they rushed for over 220 yards this week against the 31st-ranked run defense. Swink's prediction: Chiefs win on the road Seattle at Arizona The last two weeks, the Seahawks have scored a total of 10 points while giving up 74. On a positive note, their last win came against the Cardinals three weeks ago. Arizona needs this win at home to stay in the race for the NFC West. If the Seahawks can win and the Rams lose to the 49ers, Seattle will have sole possession of first place in the worst division in football. It really doesn't matter who wins in this division, no team will make it out of the first round of the playoffs. Swink's prediction: Cardinals win at home Dallas at NY Giants Wade Phillips is out, Jason Garrett is in as new head coach for the Cowboys. Will this be enough to win their second game of the season against a Giants team that's on fire? Absolutely not. The Cowboys were dominated last week by a good team and will feel the same way this Sunday in New Jersey. The Giants are way too talented and are playing like a team is supposed to. The Cowboys should take notes. Swink's prediction: Giants win at home St. Louis at San Francisco The Rams are the only team in the NFC West that I am somewhat interested in because of the play of Sam Bradford. It will be interesting to see how he plays in his first conference road game considering St. Louis hasn't won a single game on the road all season. The 49ers have the potential to be a solid team and they have come around winning two of their last three games. I wouldn't be surprised to see the NFC West bottom dwellers upsetting their first-place rivals. Swink's prediction: 49ers win at home New England at Pittsburgh The Patriots should be absolutely ashamed of themselves after getting smashed by the Browns. They better figure out what went wrong before they travel to Pittsburgh. The Steelers have looked solid on defense and quarterback Ben Roethlisberger seems to be getting his rhythm back with his receivers. The Patriots have a good offense led by Tom Brady, but their defense is young and susceptible to getting beat. It will take a lot for Brady to lead the Patriots past the Steelers on the road. Swink's prediction: Steelers win at home Philadelphia at Washington Eagles quarterback Michael Vick looked impressive in his return against the Colts last week and should have no problem dismantling the Redskins. Washington has a hard time stopping good passing teams. Combine that situation with the mobility of Vick and you've got a major problem. I'm not convinced the Eagles defense is one of the best in the league, but with the problems Washington has on offense, they could look like it this week. Even though Washington won the first meeting in Philly, the Eagles will get their revenge. Swink's prediction: Eagles win on the road If you want to argue a prediction or point I made, please e-mail me at bryan.swink-02@mcguire.af.mil. Give a detailed explanation of why you disagree and some responses will be posted in next week's column with, of course, my explanation of why you are wrong.