NFL Week 12 Picks: Predicting Matchups Between Playoff Hopefuls

The list of NFL playoff contenders usually dwindles as the season progresses, but a wide-open landscape has provided multiple squads with hope to snatch a postseason bid.

By losing to the Buffalo Bills on Sunday, the New York Jets opened the floodgates for the AFC's final Wild Card spot. Essentially every team other than the Jacksonville Jaguars can realistically stake a claim for finishing as the conference's sixth-best squad.

Even the Houston Texans, who have lost their last four games by a combined 12 points, could theoretically embark on a six-game winning streak and sneak in at 8-8. It's not likely with the Denver Broncos, New England Patriots and Indianapolis Colts waiting, it's unlikely. But who knows?

The NFC, especially the East portion, is far from settled as well. The Dallas Cowboys could let the New York Giants break even with them after starting 0-6. 

That's the way this crazy season has gone.

Away	Home	Time (ET)	Predicted Winner
New Orleans Saints	Atlanta Falcons	8:25 p.m. (Thur.)	Saints
Pittsburgh Steelers	Cleveland Browns	1:00 p.m	Steelers
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Detroit Lions	1:00 p.m	Lions
Minnesota Vikings	Green Bay Packers	1:00 p.m	Packers
San Diego Chargers	Kansas City Chiefs	1:00 p.m	Chiefs
Chicago Bears	St. Louis Rams	1:00 p.m	Bears
Carolina Panthers	Miami Dolphins	1:00 p.m	Panthers
New York Jets	Baltimore Ravens	1:00 p.m	Ravens
Jacksonville Jaguars	Houston Texans	1:00 p.m	Texans
Tennessee Titans	Oakland Raiders	4:05 p.m.	Titans
Indianapolis Colts	Arizona Cardinals	4:05 p.m.	Colts
Dallas Cowboys	New York Giants	4:25 p.m.	Cowboys
Denver Broncos	New England Patriots	8:30 p.m.	Broncos
San Francisco 49ers	Washington Redskins	8:30 p,m. (Mon.)	49ers

Pittsburgh Steelers at Cleveland Browns

The Giants aren't the only big-name slow starters who inconceivably have a pulse.

Despite a tumultuous 0-4 beginning to their 2013 campaign, the Steelers are entrenched in the thick of things after winning four or their last six contests. All but one of their remaining games come against AFC teams vying for playoff consideration, and they already hold a win over the 5-5 Jets.

After downing the Detroit Lions, the Steelers can continue their rally by defeating their AFC North cohorts in Cleveland. Although they have lost four of their past five and are down to their third-string quarterback, the Browns are also well and alive.

Expect a dirty battle between two tough defenses, each of which boast top-10 marks in pass prevention. The big matchup to watch in shutdown corner Joe Haden versus wideout Antonio Brown, who leads the league in receptions. If Haden can lock him down, the Steelers will have a hard time accruing points.

Then again, Jason Campbell, who followed two strong performances with three interceptions against the Cincinnati Bengals, is a complete uncertainty at quarterback. That's enough to give Pittsburgh the slight edge.

Prediction: Steelers 13, Browns 9

New York Jets at Baltimore Ravens

An elementary school student taking a basic aptitude test could accurately predict the Jets' outcome every time, but experts have no clue what to expect.

The Jets have followed the win-loss pattern to a tee all season, touting a fierce pass rush and deep-play passing ability one week but a feckless secondary and passing offense the next. Which version is for real?

Following the pattern leads us to another Gang Green victory, which could be supported by their ability to shut down Ray Rice and Baltimore's running game. 

On the other hand, the Ravens have been spurned by a slew of close defeats. After getting destroyed by the Denver Broncos, they have suffered their last five letdowns by a 3.4-point average margin of defeat. The Jets, meanwhile, attained their five victories with a 3.8-point average margin and their five losses by 20.8 points per defeat.

Maybe the Jets enjoy playing up to their competition and that fire will resurface against the defending champions. But from Geno Smith's 56.3 completion percentage and 20 turnovers to the defense's 250.8 passing yards allowed per game, the Jets are simply not that good.

Prediction: Ravens 20, Jets 10

Dallas Cowboys at New York Giants

The Giants bouncing back from six consecutive losses to prevail with four straight victories is a great story, but it ultimately means nothing if they falter against the Cowboys.

At first thought, it feels easy to discredit the Giants' winning stretch and condemn them back to irrelevancy. After all, they've defeated Josh Freeman, Matt Barkley, an injured Terrelle Pryor and Scott Tolzien to get back into the race.

But are the Cowboys really any good? Instead of criticizing Tony Romo for costing the team games, fans should be praising him for somehow keeping this team competitive. Ranked 28th in the run, 29th against the run and last with 313 yards surrendered through the air, Dallas might not have a win to its name without Romo under center.

While linebacker Sean Lee was originally expected to miss three to four weeks after injuring his hamstring in Dallas' Week 9 loss to the New Orleans Saints, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram's Clarence Hill tweeted that Lee is not officially out for Sunday's division showdown:

Without Lee, who has amassed 93 tackles and four interceptions, Eli Manning should produce his first 300-yard performance since Week 5, but his 57.1 completion percentage and 17 interceptions looks awfully close to Geno smith's numbers during a shaky rookie campaign.

Now that they finally have to face a real offense, look for the Giants to fall back down to earth.

Prediction: Cowboys 34, Giants 26