Thanksgiving is almost upon us! It only means a few things: being thankful, eating turkey and passing out, and football. The fact is this, most of the games on the Thanksgiving slate aren’t that truly appetizing this year, at least NBC actually shows a game that is watchable and features someone other than Detroit or Dallas. If at least one of those two teams were doing well, then the football part of the holiday would be great to watch.
I finished week 12 with a record of 6-7-1 (the tie being the Vikings-Packers game), and if that didn’t happen I would be staring at a .500 record for the week, if the Packers did win. Still the Titans pulling a win out of their asses is quite the accomplishment, and Chicago losing in dramatic fashion against a semi-decent Rams team also killed me.
Here are the picks:
Green Bay @ Detroit: Packers. Of course. The first game on FOX features an Aaron Rodgers-less Packers team that goes into Detroit looking at a win to tie for the division lead against the Lions. The Packers defense held Reggie Bush down the last game these two played and I definitely like the Packers chances giving that Matt Flynn plays like he did against Minnesota last week.
Oakland @ Dallas: Cowboys. The sleeper game, or the second game, on the Thanksgiving schedule has the Raidas going to Jerry World looking to upset the ‘Boys at home. Unfortunately I feel that Dallas will win this game. Sorry Oakland you blew chunks against the Titans.
Pittsburgh @ Baltimore: Steelers. Black and gold is riding pretty high right now, and certainly the Ravens to a certain degree. Vegas has the Ravens as the favorite but I think I’ll take the underdog Steelers in this one.
Tampa Bay @ Carolina: Panthers. The Bucs have had quite the turnaround this season, but they come up against a scorching hot Panthers team fronted by its pack leader Cam Newton. Give me Carolina!
Jacksonville @ Cleveland: Browns. Sure the Jags could steal a win in this one, but the Browns have much riding on the line in this game. To get to five wins will tie for the mark set by them last season. If they win the next two games to get to 6-7 it’ll be the first time the Browns reached six wins since 2005! Let’s go with the Browns since they’re much more stable.
Miami @ New York Jets: Jets. Close game.
Arizona @ Philadelphia: Tough choice. The Cardinals are having one of their better seasons in a while, Philadelphia having its best season for a long time. I could’ve gone with the Cardinals, but I think the Eagles have the edge, but the edge is about as thin as a paperclip. Nick Foles maybe the biggest edge out of it all.
New England @ Houston: Patriots. Don’t give me any reason why the Texans will win this game.
Atlanta @ Buffalo: Bills. The game is at Toronto, in the annual game where Canada gets a glimpse of NFL football in its turf. I’m feeling the Bills as the Falcons problems seem to lie deeper than Matt Ryan.
St. Louis @ San Francisco: Niners. Give me the 49ers. They’re on a roll right now, and I definitely like them topping the Rams.
Denver @ Kansas City: Broncos. The first time these two teams played, it was a pretty good game. The game is at Arrowhead, one of the more louder stadiums in the NFL, Denver won the first matchup, but I’m going with the Broncos again.
New York Giants @ Washington: Giants. Let’s face it, the Redskins got embarrassed against the Niners last Monday. Giants suffered a minor setback against the Cowboys, I like the Giants offense over the Redskins defense.
Tennessee @ Indianapolis: Colts. Certainly the Colts haven’t been playing the way that they should be playing, one example was the Cardinal game last week. Still gotta feel good about the Colts at home.
Chicago @ Minnesota: Vikings. With the way the Bears defense has been playing, the game could easily be the Vikings winning this game. You might give the Bears the edge in this game. Adrian Peterson might have one of his best games this season in this one.
Cincinnati @ San Diego: Chargers. I almost picked the Bengals to win this game, but then I swore I would never pick the Bengals ever again this season, at least until the playoffs. the Chargers impressed me with beating the Chiefs at home. Phillip Rivers is playing back to his old self. Give me the Chargers.
New Orleans @ Seattle: Seahawks. Potential NFC Championship game in the future. The game will be a shootout against two great QB’s in the league. The scores could combine into the 50’s to the 60’s in this game. Biggest edge: 12th man. That place is louder than a Who concert.
2013:
Week 1: 12-4
Week 2: 11-5
Week 3: 7-9
Week 4: 11-4
Week 5: 10-4
Week 6: 9-5
Week 7: 9-6
Week 8: 10-3
Week 9: 10-3
Week 10: 8-6
Week 11: 8-7
Total: 111-63-1
2012:
164-90-1
Market Broadcasts:
FOX Single: Chicago @ Minnesota; Thom Brennamen, Brian Billick
CBS Early: New England @ Houston: Greg Gumbel, Dan Dierdorf
CBS Late: Denver @ Kansas City; Jim Nantz, Phil Simms
darthretro 