Week 8 morning thread: Backups and rookies under center

Nine games are on the morning slate for Week 8. If you’re hoping the 49ers can get that precious 1st seed, most of you will be watching the Washington Commanders take on the Philadelphia Eagles.

There’s more than just the seeding. Per a report from Adam Schefter, the Commanders won’t be making trade decisions until after that game. Meaning, if the Commanders win, the likes of players like Montez Sweat (if you were wanting the 49ers to get him) are probably going to vanish. The flip side is if the Eagles win, the Commanders may go right into a fire sale. This, of course, means you root for the Eagles to win again, which can come back to bite us all.

Beyond that, we have the Los Angeles Rams against the Dallas Cowboys. I do feel a bit dirty rooting for Dallas, but get the pesky Rams as far away from the division, please.

The New York Giants and the New York Jets have their fun battle of the city in the AM. The Jets are favored by three points and the 35-point total is shared with the Atlanta Falcons/Tennessee Titans matchup.

There’s also the Minnesota Vikings and the Green Bay Packers. The Vikings are favored by one (1) point. Which essentially makes this a pick-em. Given how the Vikings impressed against the 49ers, maybe they can work that same magic again against Green Bay. The game isn’t in Minnesota, however, so that could change your opinions a bit.

The largest spread of the AM games goes to the New England Patriots-Miami Dolphins. The Dolphins are favored by 8.5 points. They managed to beat up on New England in Week 2 and the game is in Miami this week, so the winner might be already obvious. 8.5 points is steep, though.