NFL Week 12 Picks: Favorites That Are Locks to Cover the Spread

The 2013 NFL season has been full of shocks and surprises which has made it an incredibly entertaining year for fans. On the other hand, it’s been extremely difficult to predict how games will unfold, but in Week 12 there are some certainties.

Away Team	Home Team	Winner	ATS Pick
New Orleans Saints	Atlanta Falcons	New Orleans Saints	NO -9
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Detroit Lions	Detroit Lions	TB +9
Jacksonville Jaguars	Houston Texans	Houston Texans	JAC +10
Minnesota Vikings	Green Bay Packers	Green Bay Packers	MIN +5
San Diego Chargers	Kansas City Chiefs	Kansas City Chiefs	KC -5
Carolina Panthers	Miami Dolphins	Carolina Panthers	CAR -4
Pittsburgh Steelers	Cleveland Browns	Pittsburgh Steelers	PIT +2
Chicago Bears	St. Louis Rams	Chicago Bears	CHI +1
New York Jets	Baltimore Ravens	Baltimore Ravens	BAL -3.5
Tennessee Titans	Oakland Raiders	Oakland Raiders	OAK -1
Indianapolis Colts	Arizona Cardinals	Arizona Cardinals	ARI -2.5
Dallas Cowboys	New York Giants	New York Giants	NYG - 2.5
Denver Broncos	New England Patriots	New England Patriots	NE +2.5
San Francisco 49ers	Washington Redskins	San Francisco 49ers	SF -5

Here are three favorites that are guaranteed to cover the spread and score important victories in Week 12.

Note: All spreads are courtesy of VegasInsider.com

New Orleans Saints (-9) over Atlanta Falcons

Heading into the season, this was considered a premier game for Thursday Night Football between two NFC contenders. Instead, it will be a lopsided victory for the New Orleans Saints.

The Atlanta Falcons have been riddled by injuries and suffocated by their woeful defense. That doesn’t bode well for them in a game against one of the most devastating offenses in the league.

Atlanta has given up 30 points in seven of their 10 games so far, and the Saints are a safe bet to make it eight out of 11 games.

Matt Ryan has struggled without Julio Jones on the field, and Steven Jackson hasn’t looked like the prized free-agent signing many thought he would be (although he’s still getting his legs back underneath him).

The Falcons offense won’t be able to keep pace with Drew Brees and the Saints. With a plethora of weapons and an opportunistic defense, New Orleans will be able to secure a double-digit victory to keep its lead in the NFC South.

Carolina Panthers (-4) over Miami Dolphins

The Carolina Panthers are the hottest team in the NFL, winning six games in a row including two big-time victories over the San Francisco 49ers and the New England Patriots.

They face a Miami Dolphins team that is in disarray, losing five of their last seven games to negate their hot start to the season.

Miami is coming off an impressive victory of their own against the San Diego Chargers, but the team is overmatched against the Panthers.

The Dolphins are ranked 25th in rushing defense, giving up 123 yards per game, which plays right into Carolina’s hands.

On offense, the matchup gets even worse for Miami. Its offensive line has been dreadful all year, giving up 41 sacks—the highest mark in the league—and failing to block well in the running game.

The Panthers boast one of the best front sevens in the NFL, and they’ll be able to win the battle in the trenches all game.

Carolina is the much better team right now, and Ron Rivera's squad will be able to control the time of possession and the clock with its top-10 ground game. The Panthers will extend their winning streak to seven games with a convincing victory over the hapless Dolphins.

New York Giants (-2.5) over Dallas Cowboys

We’ve already discussed the hottest team in the league (the Carolina Panthers), but do you know who the third-hottest team in the NFL is? The New York Giants have won four in a row to bounce back nicely from their 0-6 start to the year.

Eli Manning is starting to play better—meaning he isn't throwing it to the other team as much—but the biggest change has been the return of Andre Brown. Brown has been a workhorse back for the Giants since his return from injury, and he’s given the offense some much-needed balance.

That offense is matched up against arguably the worst defense in the league in the Dallas Cowboys. Dallas has been a sieve defensively, giving up 440 yards of total offense per game (32nd in the NFL).

Both offenses are stocked with playmakers, but the Cowboys haven’t been able to stop anybody all season (except for the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 7). When they played the Giants in Week 1, Manning threw for 450 yards and four touchdowns (and three interceptions), and he'll be able to replicate that level of production this week.

Look for the Giants to win a shootout and pull even with Dallas in the division.

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