Cover photo taken from NFL.com.
Last Week: 9-5
Season Total: 95-67-1
Bills 27-20 Lions 
Thursday, 12:30 PM EST, CBS
Thanksgiving kicks off with what should be a very entertaining game in Detroit. The Bills are playing their second straight game at Ford Field after the blizzard moved their game there last week. They’re going to be much more comfortable in this game than they were on Sunday against Cleveland, and I think their offense is going to look much better. Josh Allen should be able to string together a solid performance, and he has a penchant for tearing it up on Thanksgiving. I do think the Lions will be competitive though. They’re on a three-game win streak and have looked very good on both sides of the ball in recent weeks. They won’t back down from this challenge at all. But I think this is a bit too tall of a mountain for them to climb.
Cowboys 26-13 Giants 
Thursday, 4:30 PM EST, FOX
If last week was any indication, then this game shouldn’t be close. The Cowboys are 9.5-point favorites for a reason. They looked unstoppable on both sides of the ball last week in Minnesota, while the Giants lost to a Lions team that hasn’t been anything special this season. Now, the Cowboys come home and should be able to handle this Giants team with ease. They already beat them this year on the road, and that was when Cooper Rush was starting. With Dak back and playing great ball, and with that defense being as dominant as they are, I think this one could be a blowout.
Patriots 20-17 Vikings 
Thursday, 8:20 PM EST, NBC
Everyone is jumping ship on the Vikings after their embarrassment/exposé last week. While I’m not ready to give up on them, I do think this is going to be another brutal matchup for them. New England’s defense has been great, and Kirk Cousins is bound to struggle in primetime against another stout defensive front. New England’s offense isn’t anything special, but they should look much better than they did last week amidst the elements in Foxboro. I just think this matchup plays right into the strengths of the Patriots with their defense and run game, and they should be able to escape with a close win.
Browns 21-18 Buccaneers 
Sunday, 1:00 PM EST, FOX
This is one of the more even matchups of the week for me. I think the Bucs are a better team than the Browns, but this feels like a very winnable game for Cleveland. Tampa is coming off a bye and had some good momentum going into it, but this is a tough road test for them. The Browns have been losing, but they’ve been competitive. Amari Cooper has been playing fantastic, and if they can get Nick Chubb going, then they can win any game. The key to this one is how the Buccaneers offense looks coming out of their bye. I’d like to think that they won’t be completely lethargic, but they have been lacking something all year long. This is a great opportunity to prove their worth as they try to get back over .500.
Titans 23-20 Bengals 
Sunday, 1:00 PM EST, CBS
This rematch of last year’s divisional playoff matchup should be a blast. This is the best game of the week in my opinion, as well as the hardest to pick. It’s easy to lean the Bengals way with how hot Joe Burrow and their offense have been, especially since Ja’Marr Chase is returning to the lineup after missing the last month or so with injury. Perhaps the result of that playoff game also lingers in people’s minds. But I just can’t bring myself to side with Cincy here. I just think this is a great matchup for the Titans. Being at home helps, but they are simply going to take advantage of all of the Bengals’ weaknesses. Their defensive front should feast on Cincinnati’s horrible offensive line, just like the Steelers did a week ago. Plus, Joe Mixon might not even play for Cincy, so Burrow will be dropping back time after time and will likely get hit over and over again. Derrick Henry has been unstoppable, and considering the Bengals couldn’t stop Najee Harris last week, I think the King could have another huge game. As long as Ryan Tannehill limits his mistakes and the defense keeps Burrow and company in check, the Titans should be able to out-execute the Bengals down the stretch and come away with this win. Or, Burrow and Chase could explode like they always do and carry Cincy to a win. Neither result would shock me.
Dolphins 38-10 Texans 
Sunday, 1:00 PM EST, CBS
The Dolphins are one of the best teams in the NFL with perhaps the best, most explosive, most dynamic offense in the NFL. The Texans are the worst team in the league by a solid margin. This will be a complete wash. Next!
Jets 20-17 Bears 
Sunday, 1:00 PM EST, FOX
The Jets are finally doing the right thing and benching Zach Wilson. It’s about damn time. I’m glad they’re owning up to their mistakes. The reins are now being handed to Mike White, who was a bit up and down last year, but is definitely an upgrade over Wilson. If all else fails, they can always turn to Joe Flacco again, who wasn’t awful in his few starts this year. Regardless, I think the Jets are simply the better team in this game, and I expect their defense to do the heavy lifting on Sunday. The Bears will likely be able to play Justin Fields, but his shoulder injury will limit him. If they can ride David Montgomery all game long, then they could win. But that just doesn’t seem feasible.
Commanders 23-13 Falcons 
Sunday, 1:00 PM EST, FOX
There is not a universe where this game should be remotely close. The Falcons are a team that is incapable of throwing the football, boasting the second worst passing offense in the league with a measly 154.5 yards/game. They just lost one of their only viable pass-catchers with Kyle Pitts’ knee injury. While they’re a good running team, they’re going up against one of the most stout run defenses in the league on the road. The Commanders have give up the sixth least rushing yards per game in the NFL, and the defense is only getting hotter. With Chase Young finally returning to the lineup, they’ll have even more juice on that side of the ball. Like last week, the Commanders offense won’t have to do too much for them to come away with a win. All they have to do is rely on the run game and let their defense do the rest.
Panthers 13-10 Broncos 
Sunday, 1:00 PM EST, FOX
Similar to the Broncos game a week ago, I don’t want anything to do with this, and I know you don’t either. I can’t believe I’m trusting Sam Darnold of all people to win a game, but like last week, I’m just going to drop this here and move on.
Ravens 24-20 Jaguars 
Sunday, 1:00 PM EST, CBS
This is a weird matchup. No matter what my pick would have been, I know I would feel weird about it. On one hand, I feel like the Jaguars could be competitive and maybe even win this game coming out of their bye. The Ravens looked dreadful last week and didn’t inspire a lot of confidence in their offense. On the other hand, this is another Florida homecoming for Lamar Jackson, and the first one went swimmingly. So, who’s to say it won’t happen again? I feel like Baltimore is going to look much better offensively in this game than they did last Sunday, but I also think the Jaguars are going to give them fits for a bit. It will probably be close for a while, but the Ravens pulling away late makes sense to me.
Chargers 27-24 Cardinals 
Sunday, 4:05 PM EST, CBS
Both of these teams suffered pretty tough primetime losses to division rivals last week. That makes this pick extremely difficult. The Chargers showed me infinitely more to like than the Cardinals did, especially offensively. Justin Herbert looked great now that he has all of his weapons available. We still don’t really know what’s going on at QB for Arizona, so it’s hard to put any faith in them to win. I do like both of their options, but, neither are better than Herbert. Moreover, the Cards defense got absolutely smacked on Monday, and I think that LA can take advantage of their weaknesses in the secondary. I just think the Chargers are ever so slightly better on both sides of the ball, so they’re my pick, even in a tough road setting.
Seahawks 24-16 Raiders 
Sunday, 4:05 PM EST, CBS
I don’t see a world where the Seahawks lose at home off a bye to a team as bad as the Raiders. The last time we saw Seattle was in Munich, where they suffered a tough loss to the Bucs. Now, they’re well rested off the international break, and should be ready to come home and smack a bad team. I’m honestly pretty excited to see how their offense plays. They can either lay a dud like they did in Germany, or they can get back to their dominant ways from the first half of the season. The latter seems much more likely, especially in a matchup like this.
Chiefs 31-10 Rams 
Sunday, 4:25 PM EST, FOX
A lot has changed for both of these teams since their absolute classic of a meeting four years ago in LA. The Rams have changed infinitely more than the Chiefs have, specifically in the department of being a good team. Kansas City is easily the best team in football, while the Rams have become a laughingstock that sold their soul for a ring. By all means, this should be a complete blowout for the Chiefs. They are hot and are showing no signs of slowing down. The Rams might not even have Matthew Stafford for this game, so that makes it even easier to project a total wash for KC.
49ers 24-13 Saints 
Sunday, 4:25 PM EST, FOX
The Saints got their mojo back last week, but they’re about to run into a complete wall in San Francisco. The 49ers are far and away the best defensive team in the league, and New Orleans doesn’t pose enough of an offensive threat to make me believe that this one will be close. Moreover, the Niners offense was clicking better than ever before on Monday night in Mexico. At home against an arguably worse defense, I see no reason for them to slow down.
Eagles 27-19 Packers 
Sunday, 8:20 PM EST, NBC
The Eagles need a game to get back on track and return to their dominant form from the first half of the season. I think this is their opportunity. Coming back home for another primetime game against a struggling Packers team seems like a promising chance to find themselves again. I think Jalen Hurts is going to have a huge game, and more importantly, I think Philly’s defense is going to bounce back in a massive way and put together a dominant performance. If the Eagles can limit Green Bay’s offense similar to how Tennessee did last Thursday, then they’ll control this one from start to finish.
Colts 16-13 Steelers 
Monday, 8:15 PM EST, ESPN
This is going to be low-scoring, smash mouth football from end to end. Both of these teams like playing defense and at least trying to run the ball, and both teams have done well at doing both of those things in recent weeks. The Colts have found their run game again since Jeff Saturday became coach, and the Steelers have seemingly unlocked Najee Harris again. So, that will be the name of this game, especially considering that both QBs aren’t exactly world-beaters. With this game being in Indianapolis where the Colts nearly just beat the Eagles, it’s pretty easy to pick Indy to win, but I think it’s going to be close and honestly pretty entertaining.
All stats taken from ESPN.
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