NFL Week 10 bold predictions: Which players, teams will turn heads?

We’re on to the second half of the 2024 NFL season.
With nine weeks complete, the league has officially crossed the midway point of this year’s campaign. From the playoff chase to individual awards, very little is settled, with several teams still having ample opportunity to begin an ascent that could lead all the way to the postseason. And if Thursday night’s thriller between the Cincinnati Bengals and Baltimore Ravens is any indication, the final two months of the season should feature several scintillating showdowns.
With all that in mind, here are bold predictions for NFL Week 10 games from several of USA TODAY Sports’ writers and editors:
Christian McCaffrey makes his long-awaited 2024 debut for the 49ers at Tampa Bay with a bang. While Jordan Mason proved to be a more-than-capable fill-in to keep the running game intact (685 yards, 5.3 per carry), the NFL’s reigning Offensive Player of the Year will remind us just how lethal of a multi-tasking weapon he is out of the backfield. The 49ers sorely missed CMC’s impact in the passing game – which was needed even more with the injuries that struck San Francisco’s receivers corps. Well, as McCaffrey gets well from his Achilles setback, so do Brock Purdy’s numbers in the passing game as his ace running back not only runs routes as well as a polished wide receiver but opens up windows for other targets. I’m expecting that CMC will strike paydirt twice on Sunday with his fresh legs and crack 100 yards from scrimmage on the turf in Tampa — with more than half the output coming in the passing game.
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— Jarrett Bell
DeAndre Hopkins is going to cement his status as the Chiefs’ new No. 1 wide receiver.
Hopkins hasn’t eclipsed 100 receiving yards in a single game since Week 14 of last season. The veteran wide receiver will top the century mark in his second home game in Kansas City versus a stingy Denver pass defense that features cornerback Pat Surtain II. Hopkins will have 100-plus receiving yards and one touchdown, giving him three touchdowns in his first three games in a Chiefs uniform. Hopkins’ performance will help the Chiefs improve to 9-0, as the franchise will become just the fifth reigning Super Bowl champion to win its first nine games. Furthermore, Patrick Mahomes’ dominance against the AFC West is going to continue. A win will increase Mahomes’ record to 33-5 versus divisional opponents.
The NFL has been lucky enough to enjoy another record run of close games, with 75 having been decided by seven points or fewer. That dynamic might be on hold this week, however, with several contests looking particularly lopsided. Five of my picks for Week 10 featured deficits of at least 21 points. The Jacksonville Jaguars’ tilt against the Minnesota Vikings might be especially ugly, with quarterback Trevor Lawrence expected to sit out with a shoulder injury. The New Orleans Saints (vs. Atlanta Falcons), Denver Broncos (at Kansas City Chiefs), Tennessee Titans (at Los Angeles Chargers) and Dallas Cowboys (at Philadelphia Eagles) all could be staring down some serious setbacks as well.
— Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz