Mark Craig's Week 9 NFL picks: Enjoy the best week of the season

The best week of the NFL season to date features four marquee games between teams with winning records.

The Dolphins (6-2) and Chiefs (6-2) meet in Frankfurt, Germany, on Sunday morning in the first international game between two teams that are at least four games over .500.

Seattle (5-2) plays at Baltimore (6-2) in a matchup of the top two scoring defenses since Week 4. The Bills (5-3) travel to Cincinnati (4-3), which has won three straight and four of its last five.

And the Cowboys (5-2) go to Philadelphia to face the only seven-win team (7-1) led by the only quarterback (Jalen Hurt) without a loss (9-0) against a winning team since 2022.

Here are six games to watch:

Vikings (+3½) at Falcons: Taylor Heinicke will be somewhat functional and slightly less awful in the Backup Quarterback Bowl. Falcons 12, Vikings 10

Rams (+3½) at Packers: Aaron Rodgers' replacement might look better as Sean Clifford's backup. Rams 17, Packers 9

Bears (+8½) at Saints: It feels weird having this much confidence that Derek "67-83" Carr will win. Saints 34, Bears 16

Cardinals (+7½) at Browns: You'd think this old Clevelander would have half a mind not to make the Browns a no-brainer. Browns 28, Cardinals 13

Colts (-2½) at Panthers: Indy is learning that Gardner Minshew is OK in small doses only. Panthers 23, Colts 21

Cowboys (+3½) at Eagles: The Cowboys are building back up to that point where they let everyone down. Cowboys 24, Eagles 21 (OT)_

Season record straight up/against the spread: 27-21; 23-25.

Upset special: 2-6.

Lock of the Week: 8-0.

Vikings: 4-4.