FAVORITE TEAMS

BYE WEEKS: BILLS, BEARS, RAIDERS, VIKINGS, GIANTS, RAVENS

Washington’s likely not winning this matchup, however, there’s nothing wrong with watching Sam Howell because he’s entertaining. It’s up to the offense playing a consistent game by protecting their quarterback while keeping up with Miami’s offense. If Howell can keep the ball from hitting in Jalen Ramsey’s direction, the game could be close for sure. Miami played by far their best road game in the most boring (and cursed) Prime Video Black Friday this season. Tua, Tyreek, Raheem, Jaylen, and company continue lighting up the score without much resistance in games they’re supposed to win. It’s likely going to happen here, but it all depends on how their defense responds without Jaelan Phillips, who is on IR after last week’s injury.

MY PICK: DOLPHINS

The brand-new Lions looked like the same-ol’ Lions after losing from start to finish on Thanksgiving. Turnovers punished the Lions and their defense failed to stop the onslaught of Jordan Love and Christian Watson. Now, they look to bounce back against the Saints that honestly can’t find any offensive consistency that could compare to the 49ers’ offense. New Orleans may have the most total points of the entire division (229), but it’s an insult when each NFC North team has more total points than New Orleans. The Saints could be in for a long day if they can’t figure out how to run their offense properly with Derek Carr under center. It’s disappointing when you have Taysom Hill and Alvin Kamara to work with that’s somewhat similar to Christian McCaffrey and Deebo Samuel. Unfortunately, the Saints might be shorthanded at the receiver position with Chris Olave, Rashid Shaheed, and Michael Thomas all likely out. It’s possible they can keep it close thanks to their defense led by Cam Jordan, but they come up short with the Lions front seven making an impact with New Orleans shorthanded through the air.

MY PICK: LIONS

This is an underrated matchup to watch in the morning as a resurgent Russell Wilson takes on rookie phenom CJ Stroud. The Broncos are on a five-game winning streak while the Texans won six of their last nine games. Denver’s defense is playing like their Top 5 selves again, which is great for Sean Payton and the offense that needed some hope. Defeating Kansas City, Buffalo, Minnesota, and Cleveland showed that this team may have something for a playoff run. The Texans have their quarterback who’s lit up the stats and points so early into his career. It’s unthinkable that the Panthers passed him up, but who knows how things would’ve worked out then (…David Tepper). Their defense made an impact, but when the game was on the line, everyone leaned on CJ Stroud. Houston looks to bounce back after a close loss against the Jags, but there’s a sense of new hope by Denver that’ll make things complicated for the rookie quarterback. What’s worse is that Stroud’s playing with a beat-up offensive line, which works in favor of Denver’s defense. I like CJ, but I’m giving Denver the edge.

MY PICK: BRONCOS

The Chiefs and Packers clash for an interesting matchup of classic NFL brands with a Super Bowl history. Jordan Love duels with Patrick Mahomes again. The first time met was Love’s very first start his rookie season in 2020 while Aaron Rodgers was out with COVID. He played like a deer with headlights and couldn’t figure his way out to help the team win a surprisingly close game. Now, Jordan Love’s slowly but surely finding his groove as Green Bay’s main guy. He will have Christian Watson and company to try attacking Kansas City’s defense that played their best football in Patrick Mahomes’ stint. While the defense was K.C.’s bright spot, the offense is inconsistent. Outside of Travis Kelce and the running backs, the receivers were less than helpful in crucial situations. Three games Mahomes needed their help when Kelce was either out or covered, they failed to execute which resulted in three losses. If there’s an answer with their pass-catchers, it starts with Rashee Rice and maybe Justin Watson. If Mahomes can get these guys cooking, the offense should hum like usual again. The only glaring issue is Green Bay’s injuries, including the run game. I said this last week, and yet they defeated Detroit. This time will be different because Green Bay’s up against a good Chiefs’ defense. Jordan Love might play well, but it won’t be enough to win the game.

MY PICK: CHIEFS

So, we finally come to this. The rematch we’ve all been waiting for. For me as a Niner fan, this is a game where they continue where they left off in the first quarter before Brock Purdy got hurt. Say what you will and judge me as you like, but they never finished the game. This time should be different because Brock Purdy’s at full strength with better backup options, and so are the rest of the angry 49ers. Purdy has plenty of weaponry such as Christian McCaffrey, Kyle Juszczyk, Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk, George Kittle, Trent Williams, and a defense manned by Fred Warner, Nick Bosa, and Charvarius Ward. The Eagles don’t care what the issue is and know they won the game outright. It is football after all. Injuries do happen. Well, San Fran returns to that very LINC to hopefully finish what they started. It won’t be easy as the Eagles still play at a high level even if it’s not consistent. They have Jalen Hurts, an offensive line led by Jason Kelce, a receiving core led by AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith, and a defense led by Fletcher Cox and Darius Slay. This matchup is definitely a gauntlet, a slugfest, and probably plenty of chirping back-and-forth. Nonetheless, it should be one of the Game-of-the-Year type matchup, and it’s expected to be wet in Philadelphia. Philly’s secondary will be tested against the 49ers’ pass game while the 49ers front four will be tested against the run game and their offensive line. I’m giving the edge to the 49ers because Brock Purdy should have the game of his life and the defense will get to Jalen Hurts in a similar situation that the Jets did to towards the end of the game.

MY PICK: 49ERS

OTHER GAMES

SEAHAWKS AT COWBOYS [THURSDAY NIGHT]

COLTS AT TITANS

CHARGERS AT PATRIOTS

FALCONS AT JETS

CARDINALS AT STEELERS

PANTHERS AT BUCCANEERS

BROWNS AT RAMS

BENGALS AT JAGUARS [MONDAY NIGHT]

TOP THANKSGIVING WEEK RESULTS: 7-2

WEEK 12 TOTAL – 38-24

OVERALL THANKSGIVING WEEK RESULTS: 11-5

TOTAL RESULTS – 130-60