NFL Week 12 Picks: Matchups Guide, Advice and Early Score Predictions

With every NFL team through its bye week, a full slate of games is on the schedule for Week 12.

There will be plenty of football on Thanksgiving with the traditional home games for the Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys, as well as a nightcap with one of the oldest rivalries in the NFL as the Chicago Bears visit the Green Bay Packers.

Nine games fill the early Sunday slate, followed by two late games. It all sets the table for a battle between two first-place teams in the New England Patriots and Denver Broncos Sunday night.

The Monday Night Football game may not be the best matchup on paper, but division rivalry games often provide plenty of drama.

Here's a look at the full schedule, predictions and some analysis of a few key games for Week 12.

Thursday, Nov. 26	Time (ET)	TV	Projection
Sunday, Nov. 29	Time (ET)	TV	Projection
Monday, Nov. 30	Time (ET)	TV	Projection
Philadelphia Eagles at Detroit Lions	12:30 p.m.	Fox	Detroit, 28-20
Carolina Panthers at Dallas Cowboys	4:30 p.m.	CBS	Carolina, 30-21
Chicago Bears at Green Bay Packers	8:30 p.m.	NBC	Green Bay 23-16
Oakland Raiders at Tennessee Titans	1 p.m.	CBS	Tennessee, 20-13
Buffalo Bills at Kansas City Chiefs	1 p.m.	CBS	Kansas City, 26-16
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Indianapolis Colts	1 p.m.	Fox	Tampa Bay, 30-27
New York Giants at Washington	1 p.m.	Fox	New York, 35-34
New Orleans Saints at Houston Texans	1 p.m.	Fox	Houston, 20-9
Minnesota Vikings at Atlanta Falcons	1 p.m.	Fox	Minnesota, 24-21
St. Louis Rams at Cincinnati Bengals	1 p.m.	Fox	Cincinnati, 27-20
San Diego Chargers at Jacksonville Jaguars	1 p.m.	CBS	Jacksonville, 23-10
Miami Dolphins at New York Jets	1 p.m.	CBS	New York, 28-21
Arizona Cardinals at San Francisco 49ers	4:05 p.m.	Fox	Arizona, 40-10
Pittsburgh Steelers at Seattle Seahawks	4:25 p.m.	CBS	Seattle, 21-17
New England Patriots at Denver Broncos	8:30 p.m.	NBC	New England, 28-19
Baltimore Ravens at Cleveland Browns	8:30 p.m.	ESPN	Cleveland, 14-13

Falcons Try to End Tailspin as Vikings Come to Town

Following an Oct. 11 win against Washington, the Atlanta Falcons were 5-0 and riding high. However, in hindsight, it's easy to see that record was fool's gold.

Four of the Falcons' wins were against the NFC East—a division where the first-place team is 5-5—and the other was against a reeling Houston Texans squad.

Fast-forward six weeks, and the Falcons have lost four of five, with the lone win a 10-7 victory against the 2-8 Tennessee Titans.

The latest setback came in the final minute of Week 11's 24-21 loss to the Indianapolis Colts, who were playing without injured star quarterback Andrew Luck.

Falcons wide receiver Roddy White was not happy after the game, per ESPN.com. "We haven't finished a game in about a month," White said. "We've got to find a way to finish one of them."

Now the 7-3 Minnesota Vikings come to town fresh off a tough loss to division rival Green Bay. They'll bring the NFL's leading rusher in Adrian Peterson, while Atlanta could be without its leading rusher, Devonta Freeman, who suffered a concussion in the loss to the Colts.

There may be no end in sight for the Falcons, who still have to play the 10-0 Carolina Panthers twice in the final six weeks and need every win they can get to stay in the playoff hunt.

Atlanta may yield the fewest rushing yards per game in the NFL, but Peterson could run on the 1985 Chicago Bears. He'll be the difference, especially if Freeman is out, as the Vikings continue to vie for the NFC North title.

Vikings win, 24-21.

Playoffs? Jacksonville in the Playoffs?

The Jacksonville Jaguars won nine games between 2012 and 2014, which is one less than the Panthers have this season. It hasn't been a spectacular year for the 4-6 Jags, but believe it or not, they are just one game out of the NFC South division lead.

Wins in three of four games have them back in the wild-card picture as well, as they also are just one game out of the sixth and final wild-card spot.

Led by the emergence of second-year quarterback Blake Bortles (2,623 yards, 20 touchdowns) and budding wide receivers Allen Hurns and Allen Robinson, Jacksonville has a great shot to get to .500 the next two weeks.

The first step to achieving that milestone is beating the reeling, 2-8 San Diego Chargers in Week 12.

It's gotten so bad for San Diego that in a 33-3 home loss in Week 11 to the Kansas City Chiefs, it allowed running back Spencer Ware, who had nine career carries coming into the game, to rush for 96 yards and two touchdowns.

Jacksonville needs to (and can) win this game to be taken seriously as a playoff contender. Despite its subpar record, history is on its side, according to NFL Network:

Jacksonville will handle a San Diego team that is winless on the road this season.

No team is completely healthy at this point, but Hurns, Robinson and running back T.J. Yeldon are playing well through nagging injuries and will be able to outscore a Chargers offense that hasn't topped 30 points since Week 4—the last time the team won a game.

Jaguars win, 23-10.

Tom Brady vs. That Other Denver Quarterback

It's a Sunday Night Football matchup we've all been waiting for: Tom Brady vs.…Brock Osweiler? 

An injury to future Hall of Famer Peyton Manning forced backup quarterback Osweiler into his first start in Week 11. He threw for 250 yards and two touchdowns in a 17-15 road victory against the Bears.

It was a decent performance, but no matter how well he played, this is not what everyone had in mind when the NFL schedule was released. It was supposed to be Brady vs. Manning for the 17th time.

However, with Osweiler under center, it might end up being a better game. While Brady is second in the NFL in touchdown passes, Manning leads the NFL in interceptions. 

In one start, Osweiler accomplished something Manning has not all season, per the NFL's official Twitter account:

There had been speculation Manning was being benched. However, per ESPN.com, Denver head coach Gary Kubiak said Manning is in Charlotte, North Carolina, consulting with an orthopedic foot specialist regarding his torn plantar fascia. Kubiak also said that Manning is "doing everything he can possibly do to get himself healthy and get himself back on the field."

In reality, the Denver defense is the reason the Broncos are 8-2 and leading the AFC West. It's allowed the second-fewest points in the NFL this season and scored two touchdowns in the Broncos' only game where they put up 30-plus points.

The only other team to allow fewer points is New England.

The Patriots also have scored the second-most points in the league, and they will prove to be too much for an ailing Denver offense trying to work around a quarterback situation it has not seen since Manning arrived in 2012.

Osweiler may play well, but Brady will continue his Pro Bowl ways and improve to 1-0 in the first matchup of Brady vs. Brock.

Patriots win, 28-19.