NFL Week 17 Picks: Predictions for Favorites and Underdogs

With every Week 17 game taking place on Sunday, bettors aren't able to rely on the usual staggered schedule that allows them to fully concentrate their efforts on prime-time contests surrounding the madness that transpires on Sunday afternoon.

That said, wagers must be chosen wisely.

We've seen numerous favorites upset by underdogs many times throughout this unpredictable season. In fact, Week 16 concluded with the favored Denver Broncos falling to the Cincinnati Bengals. In an effort to end 2014 on a high note, and line our pockets with some cold-hard cash, getting a head start on this week's favorable spreads is a necessity.

Before we take an in-depth look at one favorite and one underdog poised to best Vegas' line, let's first glance at the full slate of games, their corresponding odds and a pick against the spread for each.

Matchup	Spread	Pick ATS	Reason
San Diego at Kansas City	Even	Chargers	Kansas City will be hurting without Alex Smith at the helm.
Jacksonville at Houston	HOU -10.5	Jaguars	The Texans' quarterback situation will ensure this isn't a blowout.
Philadelphia at NY Giants	NYG -2	Giants	There will be too much Odell Beckham Jr. for the Eagles to handle.
Buffalo at New England	NE -5	Bills	It's unlikely New England plays its starters, so the Bills take this one.
Dallas at Washington	DAL -5.5	Cowboys	The Dallas offense is too prolific for Washington's porous defense.
Cleveland at Baltimore	BAL -13	Ravens	This wont be pretty with Connor Shaw at the helm for Cleveland.
Chicago at Minnesota	MIN -6	Bears	These teams match up well. Expect this game to stay close.
Indianapolis at Tennessee	IND -7	Colts	See analysis below.
Carolina at Atlanta	ATL -3.5	Falcons	Matt Ryan and the Falcons offense is red hot right now.
NY Jets at Miami	MIA -6	Jets	New York's ground-and-pound attack will keep this game close.
New Orleans at Tampa Bay	NO -4	Saints	Drew Brees will want to make a statement in the season's finale.
Oakland at Denver	DEN -14	Raiders	Oakland's been playing better of late, and Denver isn't as dangerous.
St. Louis at Seattle	SEA -12.5	Seahawks	The Seahawks are just too good in every phase of the game.
Arizona at San Francisco	SF -6.5	49ers	Arizona doesn't have the offense to put up points on the 49ers defense.
Detroit at Green Bay	GB -7.5	Packers	Aaron Rodgers has been unstoppable at home this season.
Cincinnati at Pittsburgh	PIT -3.5	Bengals	See analysis below.

All game odds courtesy of Odds Shark and current as of December 26.

Notable Favorite: Indianapolis Colts (-7) at Tennessee Titans

Win or lose, the Colts are solidified as the AFC's No. 4 seed. This is due to a clash between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cincinnati Bengals for the AFC North. If Pittsburgh wins, they would finish with the same record as Indianapolis (assuming the Colts beat the Titans) but own a head-to-head tiebreaker. If the Bengals win, their tie would give them a slightly better overall record.

That said, there's not much of a reason for Indianapolis to play its starters in Week 17. Although, there are a few reasons why we should expect the team to play its starters for at least a good portion of Sunday's contest.

The Colts haven't played well of late—they were blown out by the Dallas Cowboys in Week 16—and they need to create some momentum heading into the postseason. The team's injury report gave a glimpse into head coach Chuck Pagano's thinking for this week—starting Coby Fleener in place of an injured Dwayne Allen is a sign the first team will be taking the field.

Adding to the promise the starters will be in action, Zak Keefer of the Indianapolis Star reported Reggie Wayne called a players-only meeting due to the team's recent struggles:

These players will surely want to get in some more reps before the playoffs begin.

If the starters do take the field for Indianapolis, the game's end result shouldn't be much different than the last time these teams met—the Colts won 41-17. Keep an eye on this going forward, and if there's more clarification on starters playing for Indianapolis, this becomes a very favorable wager.

Prediction: Colts 31, Titans 17

Notable Underdog: Cincinnati Bengals (+3.5) at Pittsburgh Steelers

This is a major battle for the rights to the AFC North and the conference's No. 3 seed entering the playoffs. The last time these teams met, the Bengals controlled the early portion of the game, but the Steelers fired away in the fourth quarter, scoring 25 points to win by a score of 42-21.

Although, much has changed from the last time around.

In Week 14, rookie running back Jeremy Hill carried a mere eight times against Pittsburgh, gaining 46 yards and averaging 5.8 yards per carry. In Week 16, Cincinnati put its new offensive identity on display, utilizing a run-heavy offense that allowed the team to rack up 207 rushing yards on the Denver Broncos' second-ranked run defense.

Cincinnati was able to control the clock against Denver, keeping quarterback Peyton Manning on the sidelines and out of rhythm. This resulted in the future Hall of Famer throwing a season-high four interceptions. Expect to see that same strategy against Pittsburgh's second-ranked passing attack.

Once the Bengals establish a ground game, it will open up passing lanes for Andy Dalton against the Steelers' 27th-ranked pass defense. The last time these teams faced off, Dalton completed 21 of his 29 passing attempts for 302 yards, two touchdowns, zero interceptions and a passer rating of 128.8. He'll have opportunities to find even more success on a balanced offense.

Helping Dalton's case for a big day against Pittsburgh is the availability of All-Pro receiver A.J. Green, who returned to practice on Friday, according to Richard Skinner of Cincinnati.com.

Steelers coach Mike Tomlin expects to see a big difference in Cincinnati's offense this time around, according to Skinner's report:

"

Just because we played them a couple of weeks ago is one thing, but in that short period of time they've committed to Jeremy Hill as their feature runner and we've seen the results of that. (Cornerback Dre) Kirkpatrick has risen to the occasion for them defensively. That's different from the last time. It doesn't take long for things to change and roles to be altered and evolve over the course of a football season.

"

This is a different—and more dangerous—Bengals team coming into this Week 17 clash. Expect this series to be even at one game apiece heading into the playoffs.

Prediction: Bengals 27, Steelers 24