Thanksgiving is a great day to spend with the family and feast on great food and celebrate great traditions. It’s also a great day to watch football. This year brings some exciting games to us as the New England Patriots visit the Detroit Lions, the New Orleans Saints go to Dallas to take on the Cowboys and the New York Jets host the Cincinnati Bengals. I don’t envision a lot of defense being played on Thursday, as each game should be relatively high scoring. There won’t be much drama, as each game features a playoff-bound team and one that is evaluating talent for next season.
12:30pm — New England Patriots (8-2) @ Detroit Lions (2-8)
The Patriots are coming off a nail-biter in which they picked off Peyton Manning to seal the victory. The Lions were blown out by the Cowboys. Thanksgiving football is a big deal to the Lions and their fans, but I can’t imagine them competing with New England. Detroit has a hard time stopping the run, and they’re not spectacular in pass coverage either. The Lions simply don’t have the firepower to handle the Patriots, and the Lions haven’t won on Turkey Day since 2003.
Prediction: New England 31, Detroit 16
4:15pm — New Orleans Saints (7-3) @ Dallas Cowboys (3-7)
The Saints have won three in a row, and the Cowboys have won consecutive games for the first time all season. Looking back a few weeks ago, I thought this would be a sure blowout win for the Saints, but interim coach Jason Garrett has these Cowboys fired up, as they have beaten the Giants and Lions in rather convincing fashion. Dallas will keep it close for a little while, but New Orleans is too good a team to lose this game.
Prediction: New Orleans 27, Dallas 17
8:20pm — Cincinnati Bengals (2-8) @ New York Jets (8-2)
The Bengals are having a rough season, and the Jets aren’t playing to their level lately. The Bengals will move the football through the air, as the Jets’ pass defense isn’t nearly as good as their run defense. The Jets will simply pound the ball down the Bengals’ throats and mix in some passes. The Jets won’t be as dominant as they were in their playoff win over the Bengals last year, but the result will be the same.
Prediction: New York Jets 30, Cincinnati 20
