NFL Weekend Preview: Week 12 - Thanksgiving Edition

The Lions get their annual moment in the sun on Thanksgiving. Hopefully they show better than they did last year when they lost 47-10 to the Titans. Someday the Lions will actually be good, and the first game of Thanksgiving Day will have a little excitement...okay, probably not.

I think Adam Sandler said it best when he sang, "Thanksgiving is a special time." Nothing like getting together with family, gorging yourself with turkey (or BBQ Brisket, as my family is planning this Thanksgiving), and settling in for a day of football. Even the fact that the Lions are prominently involved can't ruin it, that's how good it is! As I stare at the docket for tomorrow, the games could be better, but it's impossible to ruin football on Thanksgiving. Unless my Broncos get smoked by the Giants for their fifth straight embarrassing loss, in which case maybe you can ruin it; But we'll hope for the best. Here are the predictions for Thanksgiving, I'll have the rest of the weekend's previews up a little later on...

Green Bay at Detroit: The Lions are coming off of their biggest game of the season, in which Matt Stafford energized a fan base that has had very little to cheer in recent years with a legendary gutsy performance in pulling out a game against the Browns on the last play of the game. Unfortunately for the Lions, they are going to be playing an NFL team that actually has a modicum of talent this time. The Packers have won their past two games, and are looking to sweep the Lions, after decimating them earlier in the season at Lambeau by a final score of 26-0. I doubt the Lions get swept this time, but I don't think they'll be able to do enough to get a second straight win. Packers 30 Lions 17

Oakland at Dallas: The Raiders are much like the Lions in that they are coming off of a huge win on Sunday when they upset the heavily favored Bengals in Oakland. The Raiders have been pretty dreadful this season, and it seems unlikely that they'll be able to keep up with the Cowboys, although the Boys have barely been lighting the world on fire. They have only scored seven points in each of their past two games, and unless their offense gets back in sync, it will be difficult for them to be able to cover a thirteen and a half point spread when they have only scored 14 points total in their last two games. The Raiders are dreadful, but I say they keep it respectable as the Cowboys don't look great. Something to look for in this game is to see if Shane Lechler, the Raiders rocket-legged kicker will be able to do something that no one has done since the preseason...hit the giant jumbotron above the field with a punt. Lechler has one of the strongest legs in the NFL, and with as often as the Raiders are likely to fail on offense, he'll probably get several shots to whack the behemoth, but I have a feeling that it's not going to happen. It does bring an extra level of excitement to the game, however. Cowboys 21 Raiders 13

New York Giants at Denver: The Broncos have been riding a fast moving train to Loserville over the past month. After leaping out to a shocking 6-0, they are starting to look like the miserable team that so many projected them to be at the start of the season. If they are to pull out of this tailspin, they're going to need to play with the intensity and fire that they showed over the first month and a half of the season. I'm skeptical they can get their groove back, but hopefully we'll see a Thanksgiving miracle. The Giants are coming in off of a short week, and they have to feel like they have a monkey off of their backs as well, as they finally won on Sunday, taking care of the Falcons in overtime and ending a four game skid of their own. A short week and the Giants having to deal with traveling back two time zones with little time to rest and prepare should help the Broncos, and it's not as if the Giants are a team without flaws, but I've seen the Broncos defense get exposed as being unable to stop the run. I've also seen how the NFL appears to have solved Josh McDaniels defenses. I don't think it will be as awful as the 32-3 whooping the Chargers administered, but I do think the Broncos will fall again. Giants 26 Broncos 20

My Picks Scorecard:

Last Week: 10-6
Season to Date: 103-57