2023 NFL Pick Em Confidence Pools: Week 9 Predictions
Updated: Sunday, Nov. 5 at 6:50am ET
With NFL Week 9 kicking off tonight with the Thursday Night Football game between the Tennessee Titans and Pittsburgh Steelers, it’s time for us to finalize out football picks for those playing in Pick Em Confidence Pools. We may not be getting an exciting game to start the week off, but there are some fantastic games ahead, most notably the Miami Dolphins and Kansas City Chiefs in Frankfurt, Germany and the Buffalo Bills taking on the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday Night Football. The rest of the NFL Week 9 match-ups are…well…just okay. But of a top-heavy slate, but we have to make our picks nonetheless.
In addition to making our picks, we also have to start taking a look at where we are in the overall standings of our pool as we now need to start thinking about taking some chances with picks and moving further up the leaderboard. In my primary NFL Confidence Pool, I’m right at the cusp of the top-10 and I may need to do some maneuvering now in order to prevent the leader from running away with it. I’m not saying that it’s time to make outlandish calls, but it’s time to start pushing some of the more questionable match-ups to the top of my list, looking to tighten the points gap we have right now. You’ll be able to see where I am doing just that based on the money-lines I have in the chart below.
- Season Record: 72-50
- Season Points: 642
Ready for NFL Week 9? Let’s get it!
| Game | Pick | Confidence # | Money Line |
| Chicago Bears at New Orleans Saints | Saints | 14 | -395 |
| Arizona Cardinals at Cleveland Browns | Browns | 13 | -360 |
| Seattle Seahawks at Baltimore Ravens | Ravens | 12 | -265 |
| Minnesota Vikings at Atlanta Falcons | Falcons | 11 | -205 |
| New York Giants at Las Vegas Raiders | Raiders | 10 | -125 |
| Indianapolis Colts at Carolina Panthers | Colts | 9 | -135 |
| Los Angeles Chargers at New York Jets | Chargers | 8 | -175 |
| Washington Commanders at New England Patriots | Patriots | 7 | -148 |
| Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles | Eagles | 6 | -162 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Houston Texans | Texans | 5 | -148 |
| Los Angeles Rams at Green Bay Packers | Packers | 4 | -185 |
| Tennessee Titans at Pittsburgh Steelers | Steelers | 3 | -148 |
| Buffalo Bills at Cincinnati Bengals | Bengals | 2 | -115 |
| Miami Dolphins at Kansas City Chiefs (Germany) | Dolphins | 1 | 100 |
Related Articles & Links
- NFL Best Bets & Player Props
- NFL Week 9 Match-Up Report
- 2023 NFL Week 9 Survivor Picks
- 2023 NFL Seasonal Stats
Player News
49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said WR Jacob Cowing suffered a hamstring injury in Wednesday’s practice.
Cowing was a rising star during the 49ers’ spring practices, drawing praise from reporters including The Athletic’s Vic Tafur, who said he could take over some of Deebo Samuel’s vacant gadget touches. Now Cowing will join Brandon Aiyuk and Ricky Pearsall on the sidelines. Aiyuk is recovering from a torn ACL and isn’t expected to be ready for Week 1. Pearsall is dealing with a lingering hamstring issue but isn’t expected to miss much time. Despite airing his desire for a new contract publicly, Jauan Jennings showed up to practice and fully participated on Wednesday, putting any notions of a “hold-in” to bed. If the 49ers can’t field a healthy receiving corps around him, Jennings will project for a gaudy target share out of the gates.
The Charlotte Observer’s Mike Kaye believes Hunter Renfrow has found “some notable chemistry” with Bryce Young.
Kaye points out that Young targeted Renfrow regularly throughout the first practice of training camp. It wasn’t just reporters noticing their chemistry either. Young praised Renfrow’s ability to get open and understanding of the game before saying he’s excited to continue building chemistry with him. Renfrow did not play in 2024 and went for a combined 585 yards in the previous two seasons. His odds of being an impactful player in 2025 are slim, but this is what the beginning of a bounceback would look like for the veteran slot receiver.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports Dolphins CB Artie Burns is believed to have suffered a torn ACL in Wednesday’s practice.
The Sun Sentinel’s David Furones has since confirmed that Burns tore his ACL in practice. The injury will sideline him for the entirety of the 2025 season. Burns signed a one-year deal with the Dolphins in the offseason to bolster their secondary. Burns bounced between the Seahawks’ practice squad and active roster last year and was set to compete for a rotational role in Miami. The injury and Jalen Ramsey trade leave Miami severely undermanned at corner. They could look to the free agent market for some depth.
ESPN’s Courtney Cronin reports Bears WR Luther Burden is not practicing at the start of training camp.
As Cronin notes, Burden got banged up when he landed on the ball in an early offseason practice. He was also dealing with a hamstring issue at one point. It’s not clear which injury is forcing him to miss the start of camp, but it’s a bad sign no matter the cause. The fact thta Ben Johnson previously indicated that Burden would be ready for camp and he isn’t is an even brighter red flag. Burden left Mizzou as a schemed-touches master, perfect for Johnson’s heavily curated offense. Fantasy managers should still bet on him carving out a role as a rookie, but the odds of that happening early in the season are decreasing by the day.
NFL insider Jordan Schultz reports WR Keenan Allen “has drawn interest from multiple teams in recent weeks.”
Schultz said Allen, 33, who had 70 receptions for 744 yards and seven touchdowns last season with the Bears, has “been waiting for training camps to open to better assess the landscape and get a clearer picture of each team’s wide receiver situation.” Allen ranked 16th among wideouts in targets, operating for much of the year as Chicago’s No. 1 receiver. Look for Allen to sign this summer with a wideout-needy team that would use him as an every-down player. Some teams in need to receiver help include the Patriots, Steelers, Cowboys, Seahawks, and Jets.
Dolphins T Bayron Matos was taken to a hospital via helicopter on Wednesday.
Matos, 24, reportedly sustained a serious injury near the end of Wednesday’s training camp practice and was helicoptered to a nearby hospital for further evaluation. It’s a frightening situation. We’ll update Matos’ condition as the team offers updates on his condition.