They say "any given Sunday" for a reason. The NFL is a league full of paid professionals and while there are certainly better teams than others, you just never know what's going to happen on a given week. Week 9 of the 2024 season is going to be loaded with intrigue despite the fact that there are a number of dud matchups in seemingly every time window.
There are a handful of matchups in Week 9 where the spread is at least six points in the early betting window and there are some underdogs who might command some attention if you're looking into the possibility of some upsets.
Let's take a look at the three biggest underdogs on the Week 9 slate of games and find out which -- if any -- have a chance to pull off an upset or cover the spread.
3 biggest underdogs on the NFL Week 9 schedule
1. Denver Broncos -- @Ravens, +9.5
The oddsmakers are clearly thinking the Denver Broncos are going to feel the wrath of the Baltimore Ravens this coming week following the Ravens' tough road loss against the Cleveland Browns.
Baltimore is a very beatable team this season, apparently, as they are heading into Week 9 with the exact same 5-3 record as the Denver Broncos. Despite their record, however, the Ravens feel like one of the best overall teams in the NFL, and they just got even better with the acquisition of wide receiver Diontae Johnson.
The Ravens are explosive offensively in every facet, and they've been tough for anyone to stop. The Broncos have the 3rd-ranked defense in the league but they have been susceptible at times. Still, giving 9.5 points is wild. This Broncos team could get boat-raced out of Baltimore but they haven't been blown out since last year and Sean Payton has his guys playing great football.
The wild card here is the fact that Denver has a rookie QB in Bo Nix, and as well as Nix has played lately, there is always an unpredictable element to that. The Broncos have played so well on the road this year and their defense has been so good that it's tough to see them getting beat by 10-plus points on Sunday afternoon.
2. Tampa Bay Buccaneers -- @Chiefs, +8.5
This is a pretty understandable one considering all of the injuries the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have been dealing with lately. Although the Bucs showed some fight against the Atlanta Falcons, the Chiefs are a different beast altogether.
Kansas City is still one of the top 10 teams in the NFL this season in terms of both scoring offense and scoring defense, and they are sleepwalking to a 7-0 record at this point in time. They are catching the Bucs at the right time, if there's a "right" time to catch them. Tampa Bay isn't going to have Chris Godwin or Mike Evans for the foreseeable future and Baker Mayfield is going to be adjusting to life without them.
I would say the Chiefs could be on upset alert if the Bucs had their home crowd behind them, but they are going into a hostile environment and it's going to be tough. If they can force a trio of turnovers, they can absolutely go on the road and beat KC.
Can they cover this spread? The Chiefs haven't exactly been blowing out teams this season, especially good ones. I wouldn't be shocked if the Bucs were able to keep it within seven points.
3. Jacksonville Jaguars -- @Eagles, +7.5
There are actually two teams tied for this final spot with the Las Vegas Raiders also currently 7.5-point road underdogs against the Cincinnati Bengals. I think in terms of overall record, however, the Jaguars are facing longer odds of going into Philadelphia and winning than the Raiders against the 3-5 Bengals.
As desperate as the Bengals are right now...
This game marks the return of Doug Pederson to Philadelphia, and the Eagles are starting to click a little bit. Meanwhile, the Jaguars seem to be on the cusp of blowing things up and selling at the trade deadline. The Jags did play well in Week 8 against the Packers (to an extent) and they have playmakers offensively to be able to outscore the Eagles.
They will need to force Jalen Hurts into bad habits in order to win this game, however, or even keep it close.