Ahh, Thanksgiving weekend… It’s that wonderful time of the year when we can enjoy the annual three-game Thursday slate of pure football action, and the relish the start of the NFLs bye-free schedule leading up to the playoffs.
With all 32 teams in the league scheduled to play every week from here on out, there will be even more surprising victories to come from weekly underdogs against the spread. As such, let’s take a look at this festive week’s top five upsets in the making.
And for a thorough breakdown of each of next week’s games on tap, check out our complete Week 12 picks and predictions feature to round out your football betting and reading needs.
[sc:Football ]Top 5 NFL Week 12 Sleepers Predictions
Carolina Panthers at Dallas Cowboys (+1.5) (Thu, Nov. 26, 4:30 PM ET)
[sc:NFL240banner ]Why the Cowboys will win: Two words: Tony Romo. The long-time franchise QB exhibited in Sunday’s win over the Dolphins at Miami just how valuable he truly is to the Dallas organization by snapping the team’s seven-game losing skid.
The Cowboys are undefeated in all three games this season that Romo has started, and they have defeated the Panthers in all four contests played in Arlington dating back to the 1998 season.
Why the Cowboys will lose: Well, Carolina is still undefeated after ten games this season, so there’s that. Also, it wasn’t as if Romo’s performance on Sunday was entirely amazing. He had to overcome two interceptions in the win over Miami, and his 83.5 QB rating from that game is still far from the Tony Romo that the Cowboys are used to seeing.
Writer’s Prediction: Romo fuels the Cowboys (+1.5) to another win and hands the Panthers their first loss of the season, 27-23.
Minnesota Vikings (+2) at Atlanta Falcons (Sun, Nov. 29, 1:00 PM ET)
Why the Vikings will win: Let’s not forget that the Vikings are still tied for the division lead in the NFC North even though they just lost to the Packers. Atlanta’s also in a three-game slide, and even worse, the team might also have to play without running back Devonta Freeman in this upcoming game. That means the Vikes, who have the sixth-best passing defense in the league, can simply focus on containing Matt Ryan and Atlanta’s passing game.
Why the Vikings will lose: Minnesota’s success this season has largely hinged on Adrian Peterson’s stellar production in the running game more so than Teddy Bridgewater going through the air. With that being said, AP may be running into a brick wall on Sunday, as the Falcons have the league’s best run defense – one that gives up just 87.4 rushing yards per game.
Writer’s Prediction: The Vikes (+2) stay on par with Green Bay in the division standings with a sound 29-20 road win over Atlanta.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (+3) at Indianapolis Colts (Sun, Nov. 29, 1:00 PM ET)
Why the Buccaneers will win: Don’t look now, but the Bucs are at the .500 mark – same with Indianapolis – and are hot off the heels of a monster five-TD day from the franchise’s rookie cornerstone, Jameis Winston. And here’s quite a fun fact: three of the Colts’ five losses this season have come at home, while three of Tampa Bay’s five wins have come on the road.
Why the Buccaneers will lose: Honestly, Indy looks to be in better shape with 40-year-old Matt Hasselbeck running the team’s offense rather than the injured and struggling Andrew Luck. The Colts have won all three games that Hasselbeck had started this year.
Oh, and each of the team’s last three games were decided by exactly three points too, so your wager on this matchup could very well result in a push. Place the blame on Indianapolis’s tenacity of hanging in there till the last play, whether the team is on the winning end of the decision or not.
Writer’s Prediction: The Bucs (+3) continue their midseason surge with a 24-19 victory over the underachieving Colts.
Pittsburgh Steelers (+4.5) at Seattle Seahawks (Sun, Nov. 29, 4:25 PM ET)
Why the Steelers will win: Pittsburgh is coming off a bye, which should’ve given Ben Roethlisberger enough time to recuperate from his myriad of injuries. Also, the Steelers defense is slowly coming back to is Steel Curtain form of old; the team now ranks fifth in the league in scoring defense at a little under 20 points allowed per contest, and fourth in the league in total sacks with 28 for the season.
Why the Steelers will lose: In spite of already having two losses at home this season, getting a road win in Seattle’s 12th Man of a stadium is still no easy task for any team that steps foot inside CenturyLink Field.
In addition, Russell Wilson just had one of his most efficient passing performances of his career this past Sunday (24-of-29, 260 yards, three TDs versus the Niners), and could expose Pittsburgh’s confounding secondary. For as good as the Steeler D has been at sacking the QB and limiting points to the opposition, that unit is still surrendering about 278 passing yards per contest, bad enough for third-worst in the NFL.
Writer’s Prediction: The Steelers (+4.5) solidify their current position as a wild card entrant for the postseason with a stellar 33-23 win over the Seahawks.
Baltimore Ravens (+2.5) at Cleveland Browns (Mon, Nov. 30, 8:30 PM ET)
Why the Ravens will win: The Browns may have won their first meeting of the season with the Ravens in Baltimore, but they probably wish that round two would be held in Maryland instead of Ohio, as the Ravens have won six of their last seven contests played in Cleveland. In fact, before the loss in Week 5, Baltimore has fallen to the Browns just once over the past 14 meetings in general.
Why the Ravens will lose: Basically, there’s nobody left on the Ravens’ starting lineup on offense that resembles their solid 2014 roster as the team enters its Week 12 bout against Cleveland. Joe Flacco (torn ACL/MCL), Justin Forsett (broken arm) and Steve Smith Sr. (torn Achilles) – Baltimore’s top producers at their respective positions – are all out for the rest of the season. An offense composed of Matt Schaub, Buck Allen and Kamar Aiken doesn’t really inspire that much confidence, even from the most die-hard Ravens supporters.
Writer’s Prediction: Baltimore stays competitive throughout the game in a tense 21-20 loss to the Browns, and in turn, still manages to cover (+2.5).
Create a betting account now to cash in on any or all of these sleepers in Week 12 of the NFL’s exciting 2015 season.
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