Thursday Night Football Week 8

Week 8 of the NFL season begins tonight at 8:20 PM eastern time when the 6-1 Green Bay Packers visit the 7-0 Arizona Cardinals. It's a matchup of potential NFC playoff teams with elite offenses and superstar quarterbacks.

The Packers were crushed by the Saints in Week 1 but have won six games in a row. The offense has the ability to score on anyone but will be without wide receivers Davante Adams and Allen Lazard because of COVID protocols. Defensive coordinator Joe Barry is also out after a positive COVID test, which could be a huge factor against the Cardinals' offense.

On the other side, the Cardinals have become the surprise of the NFL this year as the league's last remaining undefeated team. The Arizona offense is rolling--scoring 30+ points in six out of seven games. Kyler Murray brings an exciting dual-threat element at quarterback and the receivers have the skills and speed to stretch out the defense and cause havoc. The addition of TE Zach Ertz and the emergence of James Conner at running back just make the unit even more lethal.

The bigger story for Arizona is the defense. The Cardinals have drastically improved on that side of the ball and even held the dynamic LA Rams' offense to just 20 points. The Rams are one of just two teams to score over 20 points against Arizona this year, which could change against Green Bay --if someone steps up in the passing game with Adams and Lazard absent.

The Cardinals will welcome back defensive lineman Zach Allen and pass-rusher Chandler Jones, who will need to make an even greater impact now that DE JJ Watt may be out for the season.