By Week 8 of the 2024 NFL season sees rookie clashes, historic rivalries renewed and opportunities for teams to change their fortunes.
The week began with the Los Angeles Rams’ impressive – yet controversial – 30-20 victory over the Minnesota Vikings on Thursday.
Sunday is a blockbuster day of action with no sides on a bye week meaning it’s a jam-packed slate of games.
Here are the three matchups you don’t want to miss.
The best photos from the 2024 NFL season
The Philadelphia Eagles and Cincinnati Bengals have both endured highs and lows this season and have both faced their own questions.
The Eagles have struggled on offense, with questions surrounding head coach Nick Sirianni after the team’s poor end to last season.
But they have answered those critics somewhat in recent weeks, first beating the Cleveland Browns and then celebrating a dominant victory over the New York Giants where they looked much more like themselves on offense and defense.
Running back Saquon Barkley had a big game against his former team and the return of wide receiver tandem AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith has helped QB Jalen Hurts settle into a rhythm.
Ahead of the Week 8 clash with the Bengals, Sirianni said he’s been impressed with the “selflessness” shown by his team as they find their identity.
“When you’re building a team and you’re building as a group, you’re building together to try to do this, those things go a long way, the selflessness,” he told reporters on Wednesday. “But at the end of the day, it’s about winning the football game and what we have to do to be successful.
“And when you’re a guy who gets the ball a lot, like (Brown and Smith), and then it’s a day that you don’t get the ball, how are you affecting the game in a positive way when you’re not touching the football? And those guys, I just can’t say enough.”
For Cincinnati, the team is riding a two-game winning streak after falling into a 1-4 hole to begin the season.
Quarterback Joe Burrow has played well despite the results, but now with the whole team firing on all cylinders, the Bengals look a much more formidable outfit than a few weeks ago.
Burrow is only NFL quarterback ranked inside the top 10 in every major passing category but faces a stiff test against Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio who the 27-year-old says “keeps you on your toes.”
“If you can just find completions, get the ball in your guys’ hands, then you’re going to give them more opportunities to go make plays after the ball, go score touchdowns, get the ball in your playmakers’ hands,” Burrow said. “It’s not always going to be the coverage that you expect versus the concept that you call it for. It’s ‘can you still get a positive gain?’
“Some of the best plays turn out to be two, three, four-yard gains, but maybe you got pressure and you had to slide in the pocket. You get hit, but you find the back just trying to keep the ball in your guys’ hands, let them give them more opportunities to make plays.”
Chicago Bears (4-2) vs. Washington Commanders (5-2) – 4:25 p.m. ET
Sunday’s clash could see the top two picks from the 2024 NFL Draft come head-to-head, health permitting.
No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams of the Chicago Bears and second pick Jayden Daniels of the Washington Commanders have both shined in their brief NFL outings, showing why they were touted so highly.
Daniels has enjoyed a historic start to his rookie campaign, but suffered a rib injury during Washington’s Week 7 victory over the Carolina Panthers, leaving the game and not returning.
Commanders head coach Dan Quinn said after the win that Daniels was “week-to-week” with the injury but remained “hopeful” that he might feature against the Bears.
The 23-year-old missed practice throughout the week to throw his participation into question. If he is not able to suit up, 2015 No. 2 overall pick Marcus Mariota will step in for him.
With Daniels potentially out, all eyes will be on Williams, who has steadily improved after a rocky start to life in the NFL.
The former USC star struggled with accuracy and adjusting to the speed of professional football in his early appearances but has blossomed of late to help the Bears to three consecutive wins.
After two touchdowns and five turnovers in his first three games, Williams has seven touchdowns and just one turnover in the last three outings.
The 22-year-old is aided by a star-studded veteran offense as he establishes connections with DJ Moore and Keenan Allen while running back D’Andre Swift has also gotten into a groove.
Washington cornerback Mike Sainristil said that he believes the Commanders defense has the tools to slow Williams and the Bears offense down though.
“I think just going against different quarterbacks that we’ve faced this season has definitely helped us prepare up to this point,” Sainristil told reporters. “Caleb Williams is a good quarterback – mobile, can throw outside the pocket, can extend plays very well as well.
“But I think, from the very beginning, just being able to keep him in the pocket and make him play quarterback within the hashes is gonna be big for us.”
The Bears are 4-2 coming off their bye while the Commanders are 5-2, so this is a must-see game.
Sunday Night Football sees one of the NFL’s most historic rivalries renewed.
The duels between the Dallas Cowboys and the San Francisco 49ers came to define the 1990s, with the two star-studded teams meeting multiple times in high-profile playoff clashes with the winner often going on to lift the Lombardi Trophy as Super Bowl champions.
However, since those heydays, both have struggled for postseason success, but it takes nothing away from the significance of the silver and navy of Dallas clashing against the red and gold of San Francisco.
Gone are the days of Steve Young, Jerry Rice, Deion Sanders, Troy Aikman, Michael Irvin and Emmitt Smith. Now, it is Brock Purdy, Deebo Samuel, George Kittle, Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb representing the rivalry.
And both teams enter Sunday’s game looking to kick-start their stuttering seasons.
The 49ers have been beset by injuries and are coming off a Super Bowl rematch defeat to the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 7.
They will continue to be without star running back Christian McCaffrey and receiver Brandon Aiyuk has been ruled out for the season after suffering a knee injury in last Sunday’s loss.
San Francisco has had a poor start to the season – largely down to a multitude of injuries – as they sit at 3-4 after seven weeks.
The Cowboys, meanwhile, are coming off their bye at 3-3 and in need of some good vibes.
Their last game was a humiliating 38-point home defeat to the Detroit Lions, meaning they have lost all three of their home games and won all three of their games on the road.
Like the 49ers, their season has been plagued with injuries but some questionable decision-making from head coach Mike McCarthy and Prescott haven’t helped matters in Texas.
Both teams could use a victory on Sunday to jump start their season and reinvigorate their playoff aspirations.
For 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan, he says relying on the character of his team is important with results not going their way.
“We’ve been in this situation before where not everything is going perfect and you’re a little ‘back is against the wall,’” he told reporters on Wednesday. “But our group, our culture, it’s never really been an issue.
“I’ve never had to make a big deal about stuff. And anytime that there is, I’ll call guys in and address it. But we know each other pretty well, I think they know me pretty well. And we’ve got a bunch of good people that don’t blame each other and know what you’ve got to do after stuff like this. There’s only one thing, you can sit and talk and evaluate all this stuff or you can get to work and find a way to be better the next week.”
Away @ home
Baltimore Ravens (5-2) vs. Cleveland Browns (1-6) – 1 p.m. ET
Tennessee Titans (1-5) vs. Detroit Lions (5-1) – 1 p.m. ET
Indianapolis Colts (4-3) vs. Houston Texans (5-2) – 1 p.m. ET
Green Bay Packers (5-2) vs. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-5) – 1 p.m. ET
Arizona Cardinals (3-4) vs. Miami Dolphins (2-4) – 1 p.m. ET
New York Jets (2-5) vs. New England Patriots (1-6) – 1 p.m. ET
Atlanta Falcons (4-3) vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-3) – 1 p.m. ET
Philadelphia Eagles (4-2) vs. Cincinnati Bengals (3-4) – 1 p.m. ET
New Orleans Saints (2-5) vs. Los Angeles Chargers (3-3) – 4:05 p.m. ET
Buffalo Bills (5-2) vs. Seattle Seahawks (4-3) – 4:05 p.m. ET
Chicago Bears (4-2) vs. Washington Commanders (5-2) – 4:25 p.m. ET
Carolina Panthers (1-6) vs. Denver Broncos (4-3) – 4:25 p.m. ET
Kansas City Chiefs (6-0) vs. Las Vegas Raiders (2-5) – 4:25 p.m. ET
Dallas Cowboys (3-3) vs. San Francisco 49ers (3-4) – 8:20 p.m. ET
