NFL Week 12 Picks: New England Patriots vs. New York Jets

NFL handicappers are busy computing tight end Rob Gronkowski's value in terms of the point spread, as the New England Patriots (7-3) take on the New York Jets (4-6) on Thanksgiving Day, with the opening kickoff from MetLife Stadium scheduled for 8:20 p.m. ET on CBS.

The Patriots are currently seven-point road favorites in the Week 12 NFL betting odds (courtesy of SBR Forum), while the total opened up at 51 in the market.

Gronkowski is expected to miss a few weeks after undergoing surgery on his broken forearm on Monday, which is a major blow for New England's offense that leads the league in averaging 35.8 points and 431.9 yards per game.

Let's take a closer look at this AFC East divisional matchup from a betting perspective, while offering a total prediction along the way. 

New England Patriots

It's very hard to go against the New England Patriots this time of year, considering they've gone 18-0 during the second half of the regular season since the 2010 campaign.

Sports bettors will also find that the defending AFC champions have compiled a dominating 11-2 against-the-spread (ATS) record in their last 13 road games against the New York Jets.

New York Jets

The New York Jets need to get back to their ground-and-pound style of play, which will keep New England's high-scoring offense on the sideline.

Total players will notice that the UNDER has cashed in five of the team's last six games when playing on Thursday.

Las Vegas Perspective

I reached out to Jimmy Vaccaro earlier this week about this high-profile affair. He serves as the public relations director for William Hill U.S., and here's what he had to say: 

"

Jets are on the oxygen after last week's win at the Rams. Wouldn't be surprised if this game is decided late, so taking the points would be a premium.

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Prediction

I'm going to recommend that readers wager on the total in this contest, as the UNDER is 2-0 in Thursday night games this year when featuring a divisional battle with a road favorite—falling short of the number by an average of 12.5 points.

NFL Week 12 Pick: Under 51

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