***SWAMPY SUNDAY HALLOWEEN MUCK 5 SPECIAL - WEEK 8***

WAAaZZahhHHHHBEEIIIiiii SWAMP NATION! Brutal start to week 8 as some ugly tricks have struck early with the Dolphins on Thursday night getting blown out and the Lions currently getting their butts handed to them in London, ickkk. Your favorite MuckMan hopes to be treatin' in the Swamp today with these merky 5 picks! LET'S ROCK-

***CINCINATTI BENGALS @ PITTSBURGH STEELERS***

Big Ben is back baby and what a spot to make his return! This team is extremely talented and their undefeated division rival the Cincinatti Bengals will surely get a maximum effort from the "Killer Bees" today in PItt. The Steelers have been amazingly resilient stringng along some wins in their QB's absence and the return of Rothlisberger today will surely provide some extra juice to an already amped up team. Heinz field will be ROCKING and the combination of RB LeVeon Bell, and WRs Antonio Brown, Martavias Bryant, Markus Wheaton and with a side of TE Heath Miller will prove to be too much for any defense. This is a HUGE spot for Cincinatti to prove to the world that they ARE in fact the real deal. They have been playing lights out this year with the same 'ol "yea but can they do it in the playoffs" type of stigma around them and today will be a chance to prove that they can show up in the big spot on the road. That being said, all the pressure will be on the Red Rifle Bengal QB Andy Dalton and his team to beat their long time divisional big brother and I think they crumble a bit in the spotlight. Big Ben in a big way for the win! STEELERS PK

***MINNESOTA VIKINGS @ CHICAGO BEARS***

Da Bears are off the bye and finally at full strength. I like them at home with their new Head Coach John Fox to hang tough in a division game here. Everyone knows the Purple People are a tough team and on the rise so there will be no overlooking Minnesota in this one. This will be a true black and blue division type of game and I expect it to be close throughout. I believe we will get the good side of Dr. Jekyll and Hyde himself in Bears QB Jay Cutler with the extra preparation time for this one. He has WR Alshon Jeffery back in his arsenal and that will clear up some space for RB Matt Forte to catch some balls out of the backfield, he is due for a big game. TE Martellus Bennett will roam the middle of the field and cause havoc as well, leading to da Bears to at least bang FGs with their consistent Kicker Robbie Gould all game. The Vikings will try to establish RB Adrian Peterson early, and Bears Coach John Fox will surely have some defensive schemes ready to force Viking QB Teddy Bridgewater to keep up in the passing game which I like to turn into some costly mistakes. DA BEARS +2

***TAMPA BAY BUCANEERS @ ATLANTA FALCONS***

The Falcons have been struggling against the league's lesser teams these past few weeks and I don't think that changes today despite being back at home. This is a division game and the Bucs have all the weapons needed to keep this thing close and spook the Birds. They blew a HUGE lead last weekend in Washington and gave one away but did do some very good things early in both the running and passing game against a very underrated Redskin defense. Head Coach Dan Quinn is very smart but his defense is average and Bucs QB Jameis Winston has a big arm, I think he comes ready for this one and suprises some a bit. The Atlanta offense will get theirs with WR Julio Jones but I like the Bucs to keep it within the number, woof woof baby! BUCS +7.5

***SD CHARGERS @ BALTIMORE RAVENS***

The Black Birds fell juuuuuust short of a huge upset on Monday Night against a very tough Arizona team despite what the score says. They had a chance at the end to tie it up and failed but that is all ya can ask for. That being said, I like what I saw from them, effort. Despite having a terrible season thus far and the injuries they have had to overcome, Head Coach John Harbaugh has these guys fighting and clawing with everything they got. Today they are back at home after a long road and will surely be looking to head into their bye week on a positive note. The Chargers are all sorts of messed up right now and are coming off an embarassing performance last week at home against the Raiders. San Diego's offensive line and defense are completely banged up, so this is a great spot for the Ravens to right the ship and get one for the fans at home. I do love the fight in Charger's QB Philip Rivers and think he will be able to score on the Baltimore secondary however as this one will most likely become a shootout. I just think the Ravens will find a way to get the W! RAVENS -4

***NEW YORK JETS @ OAKLAND RAIDERS***

DA RRRAIIIIIDAAAAASS have some swag dripping from them right now as they just beat down the San Diego Chargers and must be starting to think that they just may be a contender this year. That confidence is extremely important to have week in and week out and when a team like this with all their young talent has it going full force, it will almost always serve as a great spot to back them, at home, as a dog! The Jets are off of a straight up war with the Patriots where they fell short and now are traveling out west to the Black Hole, on Halloween nonetheless (I know it is NOV 1., same thing). That place will be CRAZY! NY is banged up a bit and I am calling for a bit of a letdown here in a tough spot. Oakland will serve the Jets some of their own medicine in the run game by pounding the rock with RB Latavius Murray, which will help open up things through the air. I am willing to go ahead and say that I think the Oakland QB Derek Carr finds success in this one despite the Jets having arguably the best secondary in the league. The way I look at it is, Denver has what I think is probably the best defense in the league, and Carr was able to do his thing against them until a mistake at the very end of a potential game winning drive cost them the game. I think that type of situation teaches him a lot and that this kid is a straight up gunslinger, he and his trusty new rookie WR Amari Cooper will be a combination we will be hearing about for a very long time. The Raiders will be AMPED up on defense for this one and I can see Jets QB Fitzpatrick finally coming back down to earth here and looking like his old self after performing extremely well all season so far. Things will get a little spooky in the Black Hole today, DAAA RRRAIIIIIIDAAAAASSSSS +3

HAPPY HALLOWEEN EVERYONE!