After the Thanksgiving games, we learned that the Cowboys season is officially over, as they have been all but mathematically eliminated from the playoffs. We also learned that the Chip Kelly experiment may be over sooner rather than later in Philadelphia, as the Eagles dropped to 4-7. Lastly, Green Bay's awesome retirement ceremony for Brett Favre was spoiled as they fell to Chicago, and suddenly the NFC North road goes back through Minnesota...assuming they beat Atlanta today. Let's take a look at the rest of Week 12's games.
Oakland -1
at Tennessee
The Raiders have been on a skid in recent weeks, but Tennessee is not a good football team. Oakland has better skill position players and despite a horrible performance last week, I think Oakland gets it done in Nashville. I believe more in Derek Carr and his receiving corps than I do in Mariota and the receivers in Tennessee. Oakland 19 Tennessee 13.
Buffalo
at Kansas City -5.5
Kansas City seems to be playing with a chip on their shoulder, winning their last 4 games, and both they and Buffalo have a chance at the playoffs sitting at 5-5. If Kansas City plays the type of football they've been playing, Buffalo is going to have a long day. Alex Smith has been near perfect during this stretch, and hasn't thrown an INT in 253 pass attempts. Buffalo has been hot and cold all year, and I think Kansas City just has more consistency, and being that this game is at home, they get the victory. Chiefs 22 Bills 17.
Tampa Bay
at Indianapolis -3
Age and Experience vs Youth and Flair. Matt Hasselbeck leads the Colts again for a 2nd straight game, after beating Atlanta on the road last week, in Andrew Luck's absence. This is why back up QBs are important, and why it's worth having a guy who can win you games when your starter goes down. The Bucs sit at 5-5 as well, and are looking to get the final Wild Card spot for the NFC. Jameis and Doug Martin have played extremely well of late and if this game was in Tampa, they'd likely be favored. Indy knows they have to keep pace and win their division if they hope to make the playoffs, and I think Hasselbeck makes enough plays when it counts to get them a close win at home. Indy 24 Tampa Bay 21.
NY Giants
at Washington -2.5
The NFC East might have turned into a 2 horse race between the Giants and the Redskins, and the winner of this game will be in the driver's seat going into December. The Redskins got demolished by Carolina last week, and they'll need to get their running game going to have a chance to get to .500. The good news is that the Giants defense isn't nearly as good as Carolina's, but that bad news is that the Giants still have Eli Manning and Odell Beckham. If this game was at MetLife Stadium, I'd clearly go with the Giants, but I think the Redskins control the clock by running the ball all day at home. Washington 30 New York 26.
New Orleans
at Houston -3
The Saints have had 2 weeks to prepare for Houston after firing Rob Ryan. They haven't been able to stop any offense this year, and Deandre Hopkins is emerging as an elite wide out. With Rob Ryan out the door and 2 weeks to prepare, I think the Saints will have a better game plan and execution against the Texans this week. The Saints offensive line is going to have their hands full with that Texans defense, who have gotten much better than they were at the start of the year, but I think they'll hold up long enough for New Orleans to execute some big plays. Saints 34 Texans 30.
Minnesota
at Atlanta -2.5
The Vikings got handed a tough loss last week against Green Bay, but the Bears did them a favor by beating the Packers at Lambeau, and if the Vikings can knock off Atlanta today, they'll be in first place in the NFC North. Devonta Freeman is out for today's game, and that's not good news for the Falcons. Atlanta started out 5-0, but they've dropped 4 of the last 5 since that great start. The Falcons are going to have to win this one in the air, if they hope to get to 7-4, but I think the Vikings defense and running game give them the edge against an Atlanta team that doesn't look nearly as good as it did a month ago. Minnesota 28 Atlanta 23.
St. Louis
at Cincinnati -9
I would not want to play the Rams, because it's pretty evident that opposing QBs have a habit of getting injured when they go up against St. Louis. Cincy has dropped their last 2 games after going 8-0, but I think they'll get back on track this week. St. Louis doesn't have a QB, and even if Case Keenum starts, the Bengals are a better football team than the Ravens. If Andy Dalton can stay upright today Cincy will get a victory at home. Bengals 19 Rams 12.
San Diego
at Jacksonville -4.5
This might officially be the worst game of the week. The 2-8 Chargers head across the county to face the 4-6 Jaguars. The Jags hope to make it 3 in a row this week against a team with Philip Rivers and a bunch of dudes. Blake Bortles has looked pretty good this year, and while the Jaguars aren't going to be an elite team anytime soon, they do look much improved from previous years. With this game in Jacksonville and Philip Rivers lacking most of his weapons, give me the Jags to get the win 26-17.
Miami
at NY Jets -4
Even with a bad performance last week, I still believe in the Jets more than I do the Dolphins. Miami's best win came against the Texans on October 25th, and I don't think they'll do enough to go up to New York and come out with a victory. With Revis out look for the Dolphins to throw the ball a lot today, but the Jets should still be able to hold them in check. Jets 20 Dolphins 16.
Arizona -8.5
at San Francisco
Well after getting beat by the Seahawks by double digits, it's pretty clear that San Francisco will be drafting early and they'll be in the QB market come 2016. Do they go get Jared Goff from Cal? Do they trade Kaep to the Eagles for whatever they can get for him, assuming Chip Kelly is still there? In any event, their woes will continue today as Arizona, the 2nd best team in the NFC comes to town. This one should be over early as the Cardinals jump out to a big lead. Arizona 31 San Francisco 13.
Pittsburgh
at Seattle -3
With Seattle desperately fighting for that last Wild Card spot, they need to win this game at home. Pittsburgh has a little bit of breathing room, but with the troubles the Bengals have been having, they're hoping to take the AFC North crown, and possibly get a bye. Beast Mode is likely out for the rest of the regular season, so Seattle is going to have to rely on Wilson's arm at their defense, especially their secondary, to get them over the hump against Pittsburgh. The match up between Antonio Brown and Richard Sherman should be fun to watch. Seattle 27 Pittsburgh 24.
New England -2.5
at Denver
At the beginning of the year, this game looked like it could be a preview of the AFC Championship. But as the season wore on, it appeared it would likely be the last time that Manning and Brady would square off. Both of those look unlikely now, as Manning is sidelined with an injury and has to watch as Tom Brady and the Pats come to town to face off against Brock Osweiler. Denver's defense will keep them in this game, but I don't see Brock Osweiler beating Tom Brady. Patriots 23 Broncos 17.
Baltimore
at Cleveland -3
Joe Flacco tore both his ACL and MCL last week, and still finished the game for the Ravens in their 16-13 victory over the Rams. That's toughness. Baltimore will also be without Justin Forsett who broke his right arm in last week's game. So the Ravens are now without Flacco, Forsett, Steve Smith, Sr., Breshad Perriman, and Terrell Suggs. Despite all the issues Cleveland has had this week with Johnny Football, they should win this Monday Night game at home. Josh McCown is a veteran and though he's clearly not going to turn into an MVP candidate, the Browns at least have most of their players healthy. Browns 17 Baltimore 13.
Week 12 gave us a nice preview on Thanksgiving. Let's hope that the rest of the league's games this week hold up.
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