NFL Predictions: Richard Graves previews the Week 10 action

Sky Sports News' Richard Graves previews the weekend's NFL action and gives his predictions for the next round of games.

Bye teams: Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, Minnesota Vikings, New England Patriots, San Diego Chargers, Washington Redskins

Dallas Cowboys @ Jacksonville Jaguars - Live on Sky Sports 2, 5pm from Wembley

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Two weeks ago the Dallas Cowboys were being lauded as Super Bowl contenders! Well, two defeats in a row and a knee to QB Tony Romo's back has changed things a little. Last Sunday we saw just how important Romo is to this offense as his deputy, Brandon Weeden, stepped in and couldn't move the ball at all, finishing the day with just 183 passing yards, one TD and two interceptions. For 55 minutes, rookie CB Tyler Patmon's pick six was one more catch than WRs Dez Bryant and Terrance Williams had - combined! It all means America's Team are desperate to get their franchise QB back at Wembley and that will be a gamble!

The Jaguars may have one of the worst records in the NFL (1-8) and rookie QB Blake Bortles may have turned the ball over 14 times, but make no mistake, this defensive unit is good, it's kept them competitive in games this year and they hit hard!

It's a game the Cowboys should win but whether it's Weeden or a less than 100 percent Romo, expect the Jaguars defense to get after the quarterback and force him to move out of the pocket. This game could end up being a lot closer than many people expect - a potential trap game for Dallas. 

Pick: Dallas Cowboys

New York Giants @ Seattle Seahawks Live on Sky Sports 2, 9pm 

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The Giants are in trouble! They were torn apart by Andrew Luck and the Indianapolis Colts on Monday night and, to compound matters, they've now lost their best CB, Prince Amukamara, after he tore a bicep to end his season. 

The big problem for the Giants is their new West Coast offensive scheme just isn't clicking. They had only 89 yards on the ground against the Colts and their drives were plagued with receivers dropping the ball. The lone bright spot was rookie Odell Beckham, who finished the game with 159 receiving yards. 

Of course, all of this does not bode well when a trip to the defending Super Bowl champions is next on the schedule. Seattle haven't been pretty to watch but they have now won two in a row to stay in touch with the NFC West leading Cardinals. Offensively, the Seahawks still appear to be struggling a little but in Sunday's win over Oakland, RB Marshawn Lynch showed glimpses of the form that's earned him his "Beast Mode" nickname in recent seasons as he scored two TDs and had 143 all purpose yards. 

A game against the Giants may be just what Seattle needs to get their offense back in sync

Pick: Seattle Seahawks

Tennessee Titans @ Baltimore Ravens - Live on Sky Sports 2, 5pm 

Three weeks ago the Ravens were the in-form team in the NFL. They'd thrashed the Buccaneers in Tampa, taken care of the Panthers and Falcons and were in first place in the AFC North. Suddenly two straight defeats leaves them with a 5-4 record and dead last in their division!

Losing to their great rivals the Pittsburgh Steelers is bad enough, but the manner of Sunday night's defeat will have left a mark. This may not be a good time for the Titans and their rookie QB Zach Mettenberger to visit Baltimore!

Tennessee only have two wins all season and prior to their bye week were beaten comfortably by the Houston Texans. The promotion of Mettenberger to starter is widely seen as a sign Tennessee are looking to find out what they have ahead of next year's draft. 

Only the Raiders have scored fewer than Tennessee's 137 points this season - that's not the recipe for success against the Ravens

Pick: Baltimore Ravens

Kansas City Chiefs @ Buffalo Bills

With all the talk surrounding the Denver Broncos and the San Diego Chargers this season in the AFC West, the Kansas City Chiefs have almost gone unnoticed, but a comprehensive victory over the Jets last Sunday saw them improve to 5-3 and now they're just a game off first place. 

The Bills are coming off a bye week but they're also going well in an AFC East division which is shaping up to be very competitive. Buffalo are tied at 5-3 with the Dolphins as both teams pursue the Patriots and in rookie WR Sammy Watkins they have a genuine offensive game changer. Questions remain over the availability of RB Fred Jackson, who sat out their last game, and CJ Spiller is gone for the season, so much will depend on whether the Bills defense can stop the Chiefs RB, Jamaal Charles.  

There is much to like about Buffalo but the Kansas City Chiefs are well equipped to handle the weather conditions up there and they go into this match riding a three-game winning streak

Pick: Kansas City Chiefs

Miami Dolphins @ Detroit Lions

The Lions are coming off a bye week and expect to have WR Calvin "Megatron" Johnson and RB Reggie Bush back from injury. For once, though, this matchup is likely to be more about which defensive unit prevails. 

Detroit hold the league's number one ranked defense while Miami are ranked third and are coming off a week where they shut out the San Diego Chargers, intercepting Philip Rivers three times. 

The Dolphins QB Ryan Tannehill has been playing well of late and this could well be decided by which QB makes the best decisions in the big moments. My feeling is that Detroit have more play makers and if Miami's starting RB Lamar Miller is unable to go - after leaving Sunday's win with a shoulder injury - that will further cut down the options for the Dolphins 

Pick: Detroit Lions

San Francisco 49ers @ New Orleans Saints

A week ago, I never gave the Rams a chance in San Francisco, but a week ago I never envisaged the 49ers offensive line and QB Colin Kaepernick playing so badly! Even so, to fumble the ball with the game on the line and with fourth and goal at the one is not what you expect from a franchise QB. Now Kaepernick and the 49ers head to a stadium which holds perhaps worse memories.......remember fourth and goal with the Super Bowl on the line in 2013?!

It's not Baltimore who they face in the Superdome this week but the unstoppable juggernaut that is the New Orleans Saints, who swept aside the Green Bay Packers there two weeks ago and have now won 10 in a row at home! Combine that with the Saints recording their first road win of the season in Carolina last time out and you've got a team who are suddenly top of the NFC South and have a scary amount of fire power on offense, which looks like it's beginning to gel.

The key to all of this may well be RB Mark Ingram, who's rushed for at least 100 yards in each of the Saints last two games, meaning Drew Brees can operate the play action pass to much greater effect. 

Expect the Saints to win this and leave the 49ers in real danger of missing out on the post season.

Pick: New Orleans Saints

Pittsburgh Steelers @ New York Jets

If you're the New York Jets - a team which has lost eight games in a row - the last team you want to face right now is surely one which has scored 94 points in their last two games with a quarterback who is playing lights out! 

The Pittsburgh Steelers have been mightily impressive in their last two outings. QB Ben Roethlisberger has thrown six TDs in back to back games - the first time that's ever happened in the NFL. Don't look now,  but the Steelers are back in the playoff race, riding a three-game winning streak, and it's tough to see how the Jets will stop them. 

With rookie WR Martavis Bryant making an impact, scoring two TDs against Baltimore and complementing Antonio Brown and Markus Wheaton, the Steelers suddenly have a number of weapons.......too many for the Jets to contain.

Pick: Pittsburgh Steelers

Atlanta Falcons @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Atlanta have had two weeks to stew on the game that got away at Wembley but now they've got an NFC South clash against a Bucs team who appear to already be preparing for next year. 

While the Falcons were on a bye, Tampa Bay were losing to Cleveland and a season that started with so much optimism looks destined to end with the Buccaneers rooted to the bottom of their division.

Atlanta's last win came in Week Three against the Buccaneers, when they routed them 56-14, and while I wouldn't necessarily expect the same scoreline this weekend, the Falcons have at least shown they can move the ball and put points on the board (they led 21-0 against Detroit).

Nobody concedes more points per game than the Buccaneers as they have given up an average of 30 points this season, the worst in the NFL. 

Pick: Atlanta Falcons 

Denver Broncos @ Oakland Raiders

Broncos QB Peyton Manning declared "I stunk today" following their 43-21 loss in New England. Admittedly he threw two interceptions but he also threw for over 400 yards and two TDs - he expects high standards from himself as well as those around him and that can only spell trouble for the Raiders. 

Oakland fought gainly but ultimately slipped to another defeat against the Seahawks last weekend and there's no reason to think they'll do any better against the Broncos. In fact, such was Manning's frustration after Sunday's loss, it would come as no surprise if he turns in a huge performance this weekend.

To their credit, the Raiders do appear to have more fight under interim head coach Tony Sparano, but they are outclassed in all areas of the field in this matchup and Denver should win comfortably.

Pick: Denver Broncos

St. Louis Rams @ Arizona Cardinals

The Rams produced the shock result of Week Nine - going to San Francisco and beating the 49ers in their own house - proving that divisional matchups are never a formality! 

The Arizona Cardinals are frankly a better team than the 49ers though and it's no fluke that they sit on top of the NFC West. Their 7-1 record is the best in the entire league right now and since the start of last season they are 17-7! 

Their defensive line went to Dallas and bossed an offensive line that some were touting as the best in the NFL as they knocked off the Cowboys. They are also the only team this season to have held DeMarco Murray to less than 100 rushing yards in a game. 

If St. Louis are to win, they'll have to do it through the air and although they've beaten both Seattle and San Francisco in recent weeks, victory in the desert would be remarkable. 

Pick: Arizona Cardinals

Chicago Bears @ Green Bay Packers

An NFC North rivalry is renewed and it's one full of intrigue. The Green Bay Packers saw their four-game winning streak ended in New Orleans in a game where QB Aaron Rodgers picked up a hamstring strain. Although he finished the game, his movement appeared to be impaired and all eyes will be on him this week. 

Chicago are coming off a bye and a chance to regroup after morale sapping defeats to Miami and New England. QB Jay Cutler's play has been erratic at best this year. His propensity to turn the ball over (12 times this season) has hurt this team and is one of the reasons they currently sit at the foot of the division with a 3-5 record. That being said, a trip to Lambeau Field in November is a daunting prospect for any team, let alone one that has struggled with consistency. 

If Eddie Lacey can run the ball effectively for the Packers, that will open up the passing game for Rodgers as Green Bay look to catch the division leading Detroit Lions

Pick: Green Bay Packers 

MONDAY 10 NOVEMBER

Carolina Panthers @ Philadelphia Eagles

The good news for Philadelphia is they are now the clear leaders with a 6-2 record in the NFC East after Sunday's win in Houston. The bad news, is that win came at a cost as QB Nick Foles broke his collarbone and will miss 6-8 weeks, meaning Mark Sanchez is now at the helm for Chip Kelly's high speed offense. Still, WR Jeremy Maclin continues to have a breakout year. His ability to stretch the field is proving to be a huge problem for opposing defenses as he hauled in two more TDs against the Texans to take his tally to eight for the season. The question now is, can Sanchez find him as regularly as Foles did?

Carolina's season appears to be slipping away. A home defeat to the New Orleans Saints also saw them surrender top spot in the NFC South and no matter how good you think QB Cam Newton is, he just doesn't seem to have fully recovered from off season ankle surgery. Their defense is the key to this game. If they can make Sanchez feel uncomfortable in the pocket and rush him into errant throws, they will have a chance, but if he's afforded time to pick apart Carolina's secondary, there's no way the Panthers have the fire power to keep up with the Eagles

Pick: Philadelphia Eagles