NFL Picks Against the Spread Week 13: Teams That Will Cover in Marquee Matchups

It's not quite the end of the season yet, but the NFL is entering its home stretch in 2013, which makes just about every Week 13 game of at least some importance to the playoff picture.

Victories for franchises on the fringe of contention could catapult any one of them to miraculous runs through the postseason, while a loss at this juncture could prove pivotal in shaping a team's destiny.

Several clubs that would be in the playoffs if the season ended today are favored by a generous margin this week and will take care of business in covering the spread.

Read on to find out which those are, along with a complete list of Week 13 picks.

San Francisco 49ers (-9.5) over St. Louis Rams

The Rams may be in last place in the NFC West, but they are on an impressive two-game winning streak. If they were to beat San Francisco on Sunday, St. Louis would be just one game out of the wild-card race should the Arizona Cardinals lose in Philadelphia.

All of those rather crazy "What if?" scenarios will be put to rest by the Niners, who will steamroll the Rams in Candlestick Park.

Supplementing stud running back Frank Gore—who had a season-best 151 yards and a touchdown in Week 4's 35-11 victory in St. Louis—with a better aerial attack can only lead to better things.

For the first time since Week 1, Colin Kaepernick looked like a truly competent pocket passer against Washington on Monday Night Football, completing 15 of 24 passes for 235 yards and three touchdowns.

Although Washington's secondary is suspect, it was just the type of performance Kaepernick needed to get back on track and to give San Francisco's offense formidable balance.

The Rams' pass-rushing duo of Robert Quinn and Chris Long is scary, but Kaepernick's athleticism and the stout Niners offensive line helps to neutralize its impact.

Plus, Kellen Clemens is under center for St. Louis, and he isn't exactly a threat to make big plays on such a vaunted opposing defense.

Establishing the run will be difficult for the Rams, and although first-round rookie Tavon Austin has been explosive to say the least in the past two games, San Francisco will game-plan to take him away.

That should lead to an easy blowout win for the Niners as they continue to get their 2013 season back on track.

Prediction: 49ers 31, Rams 13

Denver Broncos (-4.5) over Kansas City Chiefs

It says something that the Broncos are favored—even after blowing a 24-point lead last Sunday night and hitting the road to one of the most hostile NFL environments in Arrowhead Stadium.

Beyond Denver QB Peyton Manning redeeming himself for a lackluster performance in Foxboro, there are unfortunate circumstances that befall the Chiefs.

Justin Houston and Tamba Hali were both injured in Week 12's loss to the San Diego Chargers in which the defense yielded a season-high 41 points. The two aforementioned players have accounted for 20 of the Chiefs' 37 sacks.

Facing the prospect of missing those two in matching up with Manning and the No. 1 scoring offense is daunting in and of itself.

Even with Houston and Hali in the lineup in Week 11, Manning shredded Kansas City for 323 yards and a touchdown without being sacked once in a 27-17 triumph.

Credit Chiefs signal-caller Alex Smith for trading punches with the Chargers in what had to be his best game with his new team last week. Smith threw for 294 yards and three touchdowns—including a five-yard strike to Dwayne Bowe to put KC up 38-34 with 1:22 left.

However, Denver is better at defending the run than the Chargers are, so that will make Smith and Co. more one-dimensional.

The question marks for the Chiefs on defense are too discouraging to endorse them even at home, where Manning will be bent on vengeance after his worst performance of the year.

This will give the Broncos two wins over the Chiefs and put them in sole possession of the AFC West lead, maintaining course for the No. 1 seed in the AFC.

Prediction: Broncos 45, Chiefs 27

Seattle Seahawks (-5.5) over New Orleans Saints

So Seahawks cornerback Brandon Browner—already saddled with a groin injury anyway—is facing a one-year suspension, and fellow corner Walter Thurmond has been tagged with a four-game ban—both for violations of the league's substance abuse policy.

That still isn't enough to stop Seattle from winning this one at CenturyLink Field.

Away from the confines of the Superdome, Drew Brees is simply a different quarterback.

He's still great, but he still has to negotiate a Seahawks defensive backfield featuring Pro Bowl safeties Earl Thomas and Kam Chancellor, not to mention Richard Sherman, arguably the best corner in the NFL.

Marshawn Lynch and dual-threat QB Russell Wilson lead a dynamic rushing attack that is third in the league and could feature more of the electric Percy Harvin after a bye week to prepare.

Defending the run has been problematic for the Saints at times, so as long as the Seahawks can get physical in the beginning, they should get off to a fast enough start to ward off a Brees comeback bid late.

For what it's worth, too, New Orleans is just 18th in scoring touchdowns in the red zone (52.5 success rate), while the Seahawks give up TDs in that area only 38.46 percent of the time (h/t TeamRankings.com).

Superstar Saints tight end Jimmy Graham has been hobbled, and faces a defense that, per ESPN.com, has given up touchdowns to tight ends in just two games this season.

All of those factors add up to Seattle covering this spread on Monday night and Wilson preserving his perfect home record as the Seahawks' starting signal-caller.

Prediction: Seahawks 24, Saints 16

Away Team	Home Team	Pick (Spread)
Green Bay Packers	Detroit Lions	Packers (+6)
Oakland Raiders	Dallas Cowboys	Raiders (+9.5)
Pittsburgh Steelers	Baltimore Ravens	Steelers (+3)
Jacksonville Jaguars	Cleveland Browns	Jaguars (+7)
Tennessee Titans	Indianapolis Colts	Titans (+4)
Chicago Bears	Minnesota Vikings	Vikings (-1)
Miami Dolphins	New York Jets	Jets (-1.5)
Arizona Cardinals	Philadelphia Eagles	Cardinals (+3)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Carolina Panthers	Buccaneers (+8)
New England Patriots	Houston Texans	Patriots (-9)
Atlanta Falcons	Buffalo Bills	Bills (-3)
St. Louis Rams	San Francisco 49ers	49ers (-9.5)
Denver Broncos	Kansas City Chiefs	Broncos (-4.5)
Cincinnati Bengals	San Diego Chargers	Chargers (-1)
New York Giants	Washington Redskins	Giants (-1)
New Orleans Saints	Seattle Seahawks	Seahawks (-5.5)