NFL picks and predictions for Week 13

Note: These first three picks was posted in our thread on Thursday. I am listing them here for record-keeping purposes.

Thursday Night Football: Strangely enough, both of these teams also played last Thursday. The Cowboys won a big divisional game, which was their tenth straight win overall, to take a commanding 10-1 record lead in the NFC. The Vikings lost a key division battle to drop to 6-5 and fall behind the Detroit Lions. The offensive issues came up again in that game, and Sam Bradford threw a late interception that allowed Detroit to kick the game-winning field goal in regulation.

Eventually, something has to give and Dallas will lose a game. The Vikings are capable of winning in any given week if their defense is lights on. However, I’ll continue to trust Dallas’ offense to control the line of scrimmage and have no reason to believe that Minnesota will have some form of offensive explosion. Cowboys 23, Vikings 17

Looking Back: Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak might have made a season-altering blunder in overtime last week when he attempted a 62-yard field goal. I know it's tough to play for the tie, but it would've been the right decision for playoff positioning. A tie would have them as a playoff seed today. The loss puts Miami ahead of them and gives Kansas City a leg up on them. They should get a win against a Jaguars team that has lost six straight, but has the damage already been done? Broncos 28, Jaguars 13

Home Cooking: The Detroit Lions have won six of their last seven games, but five of those games were at home, each of which were victories. They are on the road now against a hot Saints offense. New Orleans is also still looking to get back into the NFC South playoff race, and if they get a win here, then they've got a very interesting divisional match-up with the Buccaneers coming up soon. I'll go with the Saints to win a close one. Saints 23, Lions 20

Despite Everything...the Packers are still in this, and a 27-13 road win was a good way to close out a stretch of four road games in their last five games played. They've got the Seahawks next week before facing each of the three teams in their division to close out the year, so they cannot afford to drop this one to the Texans. The Texans are 5-1 at home and 1-4 on the road this year, so it seems fitting that they'll drop to .500 here. Packers 27, Texans 21

Game of the Week: A week after a disappointing effort against the Eagles, the Falcons came out and demolished the Arizona Cardinals. The Chiefs, meanwhile, used every last second possible to secure an overtime victory over the Broncos, a much-needed win to keep them in contention in the crowded AFC West playoff hunt. Kansas City did face some coverage issues last week that I think could continue this week, and the drain in general for them should be a bit more. Falcons 24, Chiefs 20

Blowout of the Week: It's too bad the Patriots have lost Rob Gronkowski for the season, but Martellus Bennett will still be there to pick up the slack and the recent return of Dion Lewis gives them another weapon to utilize on offense. Meanwhile, the Rams are 4-7 and face the Patriots, Falcons, and Seahawks over the next three weeks. It looks like Jeff Fisher is going to actually finish much worse than that "7-9 bullshit." Patriots 38, Rams 10

Two Playoff Teams? In a blink, the Miami Dolphins have won six games in a row to be at 7-4 and a current wildcard spot in the AFC. Remember that this is the same team that would have started the season at 0-5 had the Browns not missed a couple of rather-gimmie field goals against them. Meanwhile, Baltimore keeps defying me with their defensive efforts. In previous weeks, I've already said that a team's good run defense would stop Miami, and I was wrong. I haven't learned, though, because I like Baltimore's run defense to disrupt Miami's offensive flow and force Ryan Tannehill into some mistakes. Ravens 22, Dolphins 17

Dead and Buried: The Eagles have lost six of their past eight games, but the Bengals are now 3-7-1 and don't have the offensive spark they need with the absence of A.J. Green and Giovani Bernard. Philly should get back on track this week, and just in time to remain a threat in the NFC. Eagles 26, Bengals 17

Browns Fans' Game of the Week: If you're a Browns fan, this is the game of the week. The 49ers and Bears have 1 and 2 wins and currently are in line for the No. 2 and No. 3 picks, respectively. That means both are threats to the Browns' chances at No. 1 overall should Cleveland end up winning a game. The 49ers have come closer to winning the past couple of weeks, and I think Chicago got there one near-magical game from Matt Barkley a week ago. The 49ers will take this one. 49ers 27, Bears 17

Hovering Around: The Bills are hovering in playoff contention at 6-5, but I have no good feel for whether they can start being more consistent to actually push into a postseason spot. The Raiders are one of the funnest teams to watch in the NFL. Their offense keeps delivering the goods, but the trepidation has to be there that the defense isn't there yet and will cost them one of the weeks and possibly in the postseason too. Raiders 31, Bills 24

Shootout of the Week: The Giants have not scored or allowed 30 points in a single game all season, which is pretty remarkable. This is the week where I will buck against that trend and predict that both streaks will be broken in a good old shootout. Pittsburgh, fresh off of a dominant performance over the Colts, will snap the Giants' six-game winning streak. Steelers 33, Giants 30

Hard-Pressed to Guess: They did it again last week -- the Buccaneers flew under the radar with a 14-5 win over the Seahawks. That game a week after they beat the Chiefs in Arrowhead 19-17. I don't know what they've done to flip the switch defensively over the past three weeks, but it's working. It'll be hard to pump the breaks on the Chargers' offense, though, and I think they get a win to make the AFC playoff race slightly more interesting if the likes of Miami and Denver lose. Chargers 27, Buccaneers 23

Ties That Weren't Against Each Other: Stick a fork in the Cardinals; they just aren't a good team this year I guess. They are 4-6-1, and three of those wins came against the 49ers (twice) and the Jets. I feel like the Redskins deserve a better fate than their current 6-4-1 record, and they have little margin for error if they want to hold off the likes of the Packers, Vikings, Buccaneers, and Saints in the wildcard race. Redskins 28, Cardinals 24

Sunday Night Football: Speaking of "sticking a fork in," you can do that to the Carolina Panthers. They can certainly rebound next year, but too many games this year have seen them off in general. It's not their year. Seattle had an odd offensive slump on the road last week against the Buccaneers, but are 5-0 at home and will be looking to take out a team that has become a recent regular season and postseason rival to them. Seahawks 24, Panthers 20

Monday Night Football: Even though quarterback wasn't the big issue last week for the Colts, they'll be thrilled that Andrew Luck was just cleared to play on Monday Night. The Jets are a mess this year and Indianapolis can move into a three-way tie for first place in the AFC South if the Texans lose on Sunday. Colts 31, Jets 17