The prime-time games on the Week 8 NFL schedule have a great mix of superstars and elite teams. As a matter of fact, all but one (Cincinnati Bengals) of the five remaining unbeaten teams will play under the lights.
Here's a look at the full slate of games:
Coverage maps of the week's games can be viewed here, courtesy of 506 Sports. All out-of-market NFL games can be live-streamed via DirecTV's NFL Sunday Ticket with the exception of the Detroit Lions vs. Kansas City Chiefs game from London. It will air nationally on Fox television only.
Dolphins Pass Rush Needed to Stop Pats' Dominance
Over the last two weeks, the Miami Dolphins have found a way to get to the quarterback consistently. The front seven has 10 sacks in the last two games after producing just one as a team in its first four contests.
New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady has seen the improvement of the ballyhooed Dolphins pass rush, and he's aware it's dangerous. Per Kevin Duffy of MassLive.com, Brady said this at a Tuesday press conference:
Those guys are great at what they do and they've really cut those guys loose to get after the quarterback, and they've done it. So whatever they changed is really working. I think they're playing at an extremely high level. They've gotten off to some big leads and that spells trouble against this defense.
The Dolphins have won every game this season in which they've had a sack. We'll see if Ndamukong Suh and Co. can dump Brady and the Pats and hand them their first loss of the season. It won't be easy. The Fins haven't beaten the Pats in New England since 2008.
Brady suffered an injury in that game, and Matt Cassel was the man under center for the Patriots. The only time Miami has won in New England during the Brady era was back in 2006 in the regular-season finale that saw the Patriots rest most of their starters.
Brady didn't play at all in the second half as Cassel—who was a rookie—couldn't stop the streaking Dolphins from capturing a 28-26 win. Unless Brady is injured in this one, the Dolphins will probably be seeing him for all four quarters on Thursday night.
Someone's "0" Must Go
Despite mediocre play from future Hall of Famer Peyton Manning, the Denver Broncos sit atop the AFC West with a 6-0 record. Behind steady play from quarterback Aaron Rodgers and a rushing attack that is sixth in yards per game, the Green Bay Packers have the same mark.
Instead of this game being billed as a matchup between two legendary quarterbacks, it's more about Rodgers against one of the NFL's best defenses. Denver has allowed the fewest yards per game on the ground and fourth fewest through the air.
Can Denver slow down down the Packers offense? If the Broncos can continue their dominance on Sunday night, it'll be tough for Green Bay to leave Denver undefeated. On the flip side, Denver has to find a way to score some points.
The team has scored more than 30 points just once this season, and Manning has thrown 10 interceptions to just seven touchdown passes. Woody Paige of the Denver Post thinks the end has come for Manning:
A revival is sorely needed if the Broncos hope to remain unblemished.
Newton Has Had All the Luck
Almost no one predicted Cam Newton and the Carolina Panthers would still be undefeated. The Panthers sit at 6-0, while the more celebrated Andrew Luck and Indianapolis Colts are having a disappointing season at 3-4. Even though the Colts have a losing record, they're still in first place in the woeful AFC South.
Newton should be seriously considered for MVP if the Panthers continue having success. He's his team's second-leading rusher and has run for four scores along with the nine touchdowns he's thrown. He has thrown seven interceptions, but his receivers should have caught at least two of those.
Two of his three picks in Week 7 against the Philadelphia Eagles were off his receiver's hands. Luck has slightly better numbers (11 touchdowns and nine picks), but few people would say the Colts quarterback is having a better season than Newton.
An Indy win on Monday night could shift a lot of criticism off Luck, and the team would be back to the .500 mark.