Week 12 NFL Picks: Last-Second Look at Under-the-Radar Matchups

Every week a few NFL games come out of nowhere to be wildly entertaining bouts until the end.

Look at Week 11, where a struggling Tennessee team gave playoff-bound Indianapolis all it could handle. Or when Oakland won an entertaining close affair in Houston.

Week 12 is sure to have similar games to catch despite the lack of overall intrigue for one reason or another.

We know to watch when the Denver Broncos and New England Patriots clash. After a full look at the schedule, we'll take a look at a few unexpected contests sure to entertain.

Away	Home	Prediction
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Detroit Lions	Lions
Minnesota Vikings	Green Bay Packers	Packers
Jacksonville Jaguars	Houston Texans	Texans
San Diego Chargers	Kansas City Chiefs	Chiefs
Carolina Panthers	Miami Dolphins	Panthers
Pittsburgh Steelers	Cleveland Browns	Steelers
Chicago Bears	St. Louis Rams	Bears
New York Jets	Baltimore Ravens	Ravens
Tennessee Titans	Oakland Raiders	Titans
Indianapolis Colts	Arizona Cardinals	Colts
Dallas Cowboys	New York Giants	Giants
Denver Broncos	New England Patriots	Broncos
San Francisco 49ers	Washington Redskins	49ers

Chicago Bears Sneak Past St. Louis Rams

At first place in the NFC North, Chicago is a fun team to watch. But what about when starting quarterback Jay Cutler is out of the lineup? He will be Sunday per ESPN's Adam Schefter:

This one also looks dim considering the other team is 4-6 St. Louis, also without its starting quarterback.

But wait—watch this one anyway.

St. Louis can make this competitive. This is the team that beat down Indianapolis 38-8 in Week 10.

Heck, the Bears can still be entertaining with Josh McCown under center (he has thrown for five touchdowns and no interceptions in spot duty).

That will also be what decides the close game. Marc Trestman's offense simply gets production from its quarterback. To make matters worse, St. Louis just placed top corner Cortland Finnegan on injured reserve:

Enjoy this one as Chicago puts together a thrilling final drive.

Prediction: Bears 23, Rams 20

Indianapolis Colts Survive Scare Against Arizona Cardinals

The Indianapolis Colts are a team to watch simply because they cannot decide if they want to be contenders or not.

Arizona sure does.

It's easy to forget the Bruce Arians storyline here, which makes this an interesting game along with the fact both teams are similar.

Indianapolis has dropped three games to mediocre teams this year but has beat up on contenders such as Seattle. Meanwhile, Arizona has won three straight and sits in playoff contention.

Arizona has made most of its money this season with the league's No. 2 rush defense that allows just 81.4 yards per game. That won't mean much here, as the Colts don't rely on a ground game thanks to the bust Trent Richardson has morphed into.

Andrew Luck has thrown seven touchdowns to three interceptions in his last four games. Against a pass defense that ranks No. 20 in the league, expect Luck and the Colts to survive a late scare in the desert as they once again play up to the competition.

Prediction: Colts 27, Cardinals 23

New York Giants Stun Dallas Cowboys

This isn't a routine NFC East matchup that would have fans excited.

It should.

Yes, New York is 4-6, and Dallas is .500 once again. Dig deeper—the Giants' season is on the line after four straight wins as both teams desperately try to keep pace with division-leading Philadelphia.

Even better, these two teams put on quite the show in Week 1 in a 36-31 Dallas victory.

The outcome is relatively easy to predict because the Cowboys defense ranks dead last overall with 439.8 yards allowed per game and is a bye week removed from allowing over 600 yards of total offense.

New York's offense finally has balance thanks to the return of running back Andre Brown, who is already the team's leading rusher after just two games.

Which team wins is obvious, but this one will be fun to watch—it's the journey, not necessarily the conclusion.

Prediction: Giants 35, Cowboys 30

Follow @Chris_Roling