NFL Predictions Week 15: Can't-Miss Picks and Matchup Guide

Bet on NFL Week 15 games at your own risk. A cavalcade of tossups and lopsided bouts with cavernous spreads make most upcoming matchups tough calls.

That just means the oddsmakers are doing their job well, as there's no laughable betting line to giddily exploit. This is a week where the 6-7 St. Louis Rams are favored to best the 10-3 Arizona Cardinals, and it's absolutely justified.

Although the following games are not slam dunks, they're the best calls on the Week 15 docket. Nobody would blame you for not trusting a trio of losing clubs to come through in the clutch, but that's how the weekend's best bets happened to play out.

Matchup	Spread*	Pick Straight Up	Pick ATS
Arizona Cardinals at St. Louis Rams	STL -4.5	STL	ARI
Pittsburgh Steelers at Atlanta Falcons	PIT -1	PIT	PIT
Jacksonville Jaguars at Baltimore Ravens	BAL -14.5	BAL	BAL
Green Bay Packers at Buffalo Bills	GB -4.5	GB	GB
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Carolina Panthers	CAR -3	TB	TB
Cincinnati Bengals at Cleveland Browns	Even	CIN	CIN
Houston Texans at Indianapolis Colts	IND -7.5	IND	IND
Oakland Raiders at Kansas City Chiefs	KC -11.5	KC	OAK
Miami Dolphins at New England Patriots	NE -9	NE	MIA
Washington Redskins at New York Giants	NYG -7	NYG	NYG
Denver Broncos at San Diego Chargers	DEN -4	DEN	DEN
New York Jets at Tennessee Titans	NYJ -1	NYJ	NYJ
Minnesota Vikings at Detroit Lions	DET -9.5	DET	MIN
Seattle Seahawks at San Francisco 49ers	SEA -10.5	SEA	SEA
Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles	PHI -3	DAL	DAL
New Orleans Saints at Chicago Bears	NO -2.5	NO	NO

Washington Redskins at New York Giants (-7)

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Yes, Washington is such a disaster that the 4-9 New York Giants are a solid bet despite a seven-point spread.

Yes, the same Giants who lost to the Jacksonville Jaguars two weeks ago.

Since stunning the Dallas Cowboys in Week 8, Washington has dropped its last five games, three by at least 20 points. Following a brief glimpse of success, Colt McCoy plummeted back to earth during a shutout by St. Louis.

And back to Robert Griffin III Washington goes. Despite decaying from face of the franchise to benched, he vowed to The Washington Post's Mike Jones that the experience hasn't punctured his self-efficacy.

“Your confidence can’t be shaken by anything that happens in your career, so for me, my confidence is sky high,” Griffin said. 

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He doesn't deserve the recent backlash, with a 69.9 completion percentage and 7.33 yards per attempt, but Washington's secondary still makes Big Blue the deserving choice.

Jay Gruden's club has surrendered an NFL-worst 8.2 passing yards per attempt with an NFC-low five interceptions.

For all of New York's struggles, it has a budding star in Odell Beckham Jr., who has compiled 723 receiving yards in the last six games. The rookie posted those incredible numbers at a resoundingly consistent clip, as highlighted by ESPN Stats & Info.

Beckham made his NFL debut right after the Giants trounced Washington in Week 4. Don't expect another 45-14 massacre, but Eli Manning should once again enjoy a fine day at the office during a double-digit victory.

New York Jets (-1) at Tennessee Titans

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This is it. Everything hangs in the balance during this pivotal, loser-take-all clash between the two-win New York Jets and Tennessee Titans.

Pride can help the winner sleep a little better at night, but a meaningless victory won't make Marcus Mariota an option on draft day. With these top contenders sparring for the better pick, the scoreboard won't dictate the real victor here.

Things are looking bright for the Titans, who are poised to drop their eighth straight game. Since upsetting the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 1, they've only defeated the Jaguars by two points in an outcome that could come back to haunt them.

Tennessee once again displayed its league-worst defense last Sunday, surrendering 131 rushing yards and a touchdown to rookie Andre Williams, who averaged 2.9 yards per carry before Week 14. 

Rats, that's the one thing Gang Green does well. Only the Seattle Seahawks have accumulated more rushing yards per game, and Chris Johnson has resurfaced at an opportune time.

The former Titan has gained 158 rushing yards over the past few slates, eclipsing the single-game 100-yard barrier for the first time with the Jets. Per ESPN.com's Rich Cimini, he talked about not framing this as a revenge game...shortly after doing exactly that:

Johnson and Chris Ivory will run the ball down Tennessee's throat, and New York's No. 7 defense isn't the team's problem. But hey, Alabama's Amari Cooper would also make a great addition to the offense next year.

Minnesota Vikings (+9.5) at Detroit Lions

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Will the Minnesota Vikings rise to .500 with an upset over the Detroit Lions? No, it's highly unlikely. They will, however, make it close enough to spare a double-digit defeat.

The Vikings haven't suffered such a fate since Week 6, when they lost 17-3...to the Lions. One way or another, each of their ensuing seven bouts was decided by eight points or fewer.

Other than the weather, what has changed since last time? For starters, scoring three points is hard to sustain. Even the Jaguars, who rank last in scoring, still post 15.3 points a game. 

Nobody expects Minnesota to flourish against Detroit's No. 2 defense, but a progressing Teddy Bridgewater can at least stave off another humiliation. The rookie quarterback has completed over 70 percent of his passes in back-to-back games, collecting nine touchdowns and three picks in the past six matches.

Although Detroit has recently rediscovered its rhythm with consecutive 34-17 victories, Minnesota quietly boasts the NFL's No. 6 passing defense. Nobody is asking for a miracle but simply to lose by seven rather than by 10.