HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!

LAST WEEK’S RECORD: (9-5) I thought turkeys could fly last week with some of my picks that went south.

SEASON RECORD: (100-64)

WEEK 12 STRAIGHT PICK-EM

THE THURSDAY THANKSGIVING DAYS GAMES

GREEN BAY PACKERS (4-6) AT DETROIT LIONS (8-2)

The Packers found a way at home last week versus the Chargers. The Lions were in deep slumber late in the game over the Bears until they fought back and won the game being down two scores with very little clock time left. Jordan Love is playing better. Jared Goff looked very bad last week but managed to get his act together. The Packers are 1-4 on the road. This is the Lions’ best team since Barry Sanders was running the ball with Wayne Fontes as the head coach and they ran the run and shoot offense.

The Lions are better than that team. The Lions good, bad or ugly always play tough on Thanksgiving day.

OUR PICK: LIONS

WASHINGTON COMMANDERS (4-7) AT DALLAS COWBOYS (7-3)

When the Washington franchise was called the Redskins and when they played the Cowboys on Thanksgiving it seemed like the Pilgrims and Indians gathering for a feast and playing some ball. Now they are called the Commanders and they looked like they checked out versus a bad Giants team last week. The Cowboys prey on teams under 500 and they feasted on Panther jello last week in a easy victory for them. The Commanders traded their top defenders away weeks ago, and Dak Prescott and company should have no problem picking this Washington team apart.

The good ole days of John Madden and Pat Summerall calling one of the Thanksgiving Day games every year, were priceless with their six legged turkey.

OUR PICK: COWBOYS

SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS (7-3) AT SEATTLE SEAHAWKS (6-4)

Thanksgiving with father and son moments like above. Al Bundy once said if you lose to the Rams, you should be kicked out of the league. The Seahawks lost to the Rams last week and now were swept by their division rival as they lost opening day to LA. The 49ers after the bye week found whatever they were looking for and all are rolling again looking like the Superbowl pick everyone predicted at the start of the season. Geno Smith is banged up on a short week versus that 49er defense. It is a stuffing recipe gone bad.

OUR PICK: 49ERS

THE BLACK FRIDAY GAME

MIAMI DOLPHINS (7-3) NEW YORK JETS (4-6)

The NFL has been hyping the dumpster fire game for weeks. All the networks with the hard on for the Jets putting them in all these prime time games for what? To see Aaron Rodgers. Pathetic!!! The Jets have made a QB change and are going with Tim Doyle instead of Zach Wilson.

Tim Boyle has played for the Packers, Lions, and Bears. Boyle started three games in a Lions uniform back in 2021 and did not win any of those games. The Miami Dolphins will get at least 20 points which will be good enough as the Jets defense will keep close, but it’s another loss for gang green.

OUR PICK: DOLPHINS

THE SUNDAY SLATE

NEW ORLEANS SAINTS (5-5) AT ATLANTA FALCONS (4-6)

Both the Falcons and Saints are coming off their bye week. Did that give Derek Carr enough time to heal? The Falcons have lost three in a row and a victory over the Saints keeps them in the thick of things. The Saints win, they may be able to give the Falcons season their fatality. However this is the NFC south, and these two teams will meet again later in the season and probably be neck and neck. I like the Saints defense. I question the Falcons’ one dimensional offense they run. The Saints stop the Falcons running game & it’s over.

OUR PICK: SAINTS

PITTSBURGH STEELERS (6-4) AT CINCINNATI BENGALS (5-5)

Would Charlie Brown and the Peanuts be a successful cartoon without Joe Cool aka Snoopy? Joe Burrow is done for the year and on comes Jake Browning.

Browning making his first ever NFL start versus the Steel Curtain defense. Browning threw a touchdown pass last week in garbage time versus the Ravens defense. The Steelers fired their offense coordinator this week so Kenny Pickett and the offense may look efficient for a change. Steelers defense against another young quarterback, I can’t see them letting this happen two weeks in a row as the Browns rookie did it to them last week. Steelers have found 6 wins with a bad offense and this may be the week the playbook opens up.

OUR PICK: STEELERS

JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS (7-3) AT HOUSTON TEXANS (6-4)

It seems like the power of the AFC is thriving suddenly in the south. The Texans have won 4 straight. The Jaguars got back on track last week after losing to the 49ers to break their 5 game winning streak. These two teams met up earlier in the season when the Texans won in Jacksonville. The Texans have won the last 10 out of 11 meetings when these two teams meet. It’s hard to pick against the Texans, they are rolling. The Jaguars played & dispatched a bad Titans team last week. Before that, the 49ers brought the Jags back down to earth. I think the Texans are inside Trevor Lawrence’s head.

OUR PICK: TEXANS

TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS (4-6) AT INDIANAPOLIS COLTS (5-5)

The Colts come off their bye week after beating the Patriots in London. The Buccaneers really had no shot at beating the 49ers last week. Which QB will have the better game in this match up: Baker Mayfield for the Buccaneers or Gardner Minshew? Both quarterback’s stats are similar as Baker has more touchdown passes. The Colts rely on their running game with Jonathan Taylor and Zach Moss giving them the edge over the Buccaneers who don’t run the ball well. The Colts defense has gotten their act together and have found ways to stop teams lately. They should be able to make key stops versus Baker Mayfield. Colts do better on the road than at home but they get another notch in front of the home faithful.

OUR PICK: COLTS

NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS (2-8) AT NEW YORK GIANTS (3-8)

You can flip a coin in this one and find the winner that way. Your call!! The Patriots lost in Europe and the team is in disarray right now. The Giants’ Tommy DeVito had his best game of the year last week versus a dead Commanders team. Bill Belichick does very well against rookie quarterbacks. If Billy Boy is not smoking the pipe by now, he was planning his attack right when he got on the plane after the Colts game in Europe. Brian Daboll can be that QB whisperer. Watch DeVito have another good game as the Patriots offense struggles massively here. Belichick and the Patriots would like a top QB out of next year’s draft. That is what I’m seeing since Mac Jones is not the answer.

OUR PICK: GIANTS

CAROLINA PANTHERS (1-9) AT TENNESSEE TITANS (3-7)

Another rookie match up here with Bryce Young first round pick versus a guy who slid to the second round in Will Levis. The Panthers are trying and showing up every Sunday which is half the battle. The Titans are finally home after losing three straight on the road. Young will have a better day than his usual. The Titans defense is better than the Panthers and will force Young into mistakes. Will Levis will let it rip at home? The Titans are better at home and have won all three of their games this season. I like the 2nd rounder beating the 1st rounder in this one.

OUR PICK: TITANS

LA RAMS (4-6) AT ARIZONA CARDINALS (2-9)

The Rams looked better with Matthew Stafford back behind center as he returned from an injury last week. You have to like the first two games of the year for Kyler Murray as the Cardinals look like a different team when he is behind center. Both these teams know each other in a division battle. This game can go either way. I like the Cardinals defense playing better at home in a close game able to capitalize on Stafford’s mistake or two. This Rams team does not have that same defense like they had in recent years. Murray will play well and be able to put points on the score board.

OUR PICK: CARDINALS

CLEVELAND BROWNS(7-3) AT DENVER BRONCOS (5-5)

Can you say the Broncos right now are in the playoff hunt? We know the Browns are with their stellar defense. It does not matter who starts behind center for them as they have won three straight. The Broncos looked like the worst team in football. The team now has won 4 straight games and are climbing the standings man. Sean Payton looks like he fixed Russell Wilson and he’s having a come back season. The Browns can run the ball as they like to control the clock and kill the time with the lead. On the road, the Browns will be coming after Wilson who can improv with the best of them and find some scoring plays. You live by the blitz, you die by the blitz. The deciding factor I think is teams can run the ball on the Broncos defense. If the Browns do this and they do it well, this will get them the win on the road.

OUR PICK: BROWNS

KANSAS CITY CHIEFS (7-3) AT LAS VEGAS RAIDERS (5-6)

The Chiefs lost a tough one against the reigning NFC champs, the Eagles in the Superbowl rematch of last season. The Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce has revitalized this Raiders team that looked dead in the water weeks ago. The Chiefs hardly ever lose two straight games. If Pierce wants to remove the word interim from his job title, this is the game he needs to win. In Vegas it is a home game for the Raiders, but I can see the stadium taken over by Chiefs fans. Patrick Mahomes will do his thing in a close game but a Chiefs rebound win.

OUR PICK: CHIEFS

BUFFALO BILLS (6-5) AT PHILADELPHIA EAGLES (9-1)

The Eagles are the best team in the league this year as they have the best record. The Bills have struggled weeks prior until last week they looked awesome in their win over the Jets. Both teams are going through the meat of their schedule and the Bills need this game more than the Eagles. It’s a short week for the Eagles and you could say they needed a lot of effort in that win over the Chiefs on Monday night coming back in the second half. Josh Allen looks reborn with a new offensive coordinator. This can make Allen very dangerous. Jalen Hurts will be tough for that Bills defense to control as Russell Wilson made improv plays with that Bills pass rush. The Bills clean up their game in this one and throw everything they have including the kitchen sink at this Eagle team and win on the road before finally going on their bye week. It will be close, but the Bills Mafia will feel like the team is back on track.

OUR PICK: BILLS

THE SUNDAY NIGHT GAME

BALTIMORE RAVENS(8-3) AT LA CHARGERS (4-6)

The Ravens right now are the best team in the AFC. Lamar Jackson is having one of his best seasons in his career. The Chargers laid a clunker in Green Bay and this team is not making it back to the post-season. The Chargers defense is sketchy and the Ravens passing game should have no problems picking them apart. The Chargers offense can be in the conversation as one of the best offenses in the league, but this team is flawed. The coaching staff is hot garbage. They should be better than this on both sides of the ball with the talent they have. The Ravens defense, one of the best in the league, should be able to contain this Chargers offense most of the night. Ravens win rather easily.

OUR PICK: RAVENS

THE MONDAY NIGHT GAME

CHICAGO BEARS (3-8) AT MINNESOTA VIKINGS (6-5)

Both the Bears and the Vikings lost heart breakers last Sunday. The Bears blew their game in the last few minutes of the game on the road in Detroit. The Vikings lost by one point on the road in Denver. The Vikings and Bears are always close games. Can the Bears rebound? Justin Fields looked awesome in his return from injury versus the Lions. Then the Vikings riding the hot hand of Joshua Dobbs. I don’t trust Fields and Matt Eberflus, head coach of the Bears, in close games. Eberflus, since taking over as the Bears head coach, still has not won a game in the division. The Vikings the last few years, seem to play all close games and have a better percentage of closing them out than the Bears.

OUR PICK: VIKINGS