NFL Week 17 Picks: Updated Spreads and Predictions for Closing Schedule

The NFL's closing slate saves the best for last.

This goes for the wealth of divisional matchups and the sheer on-paper blowouts about to unfold. So it goes when the New England Patriots get the Miami Dolphins, the Pittsburgh Steelers get the Cleveland Browns and the Kansas City Chiefs get the Oakland Raiders, among other lopsided projections.

With playoff spots up for grabs, teams hungry to spoil and most just wanting to end the season on a high note, Week 17 usually stands as a place for bettors to get themselves a strong buffer of insurance going into the playoffs.

Let's help dissect how bettors should approach the week by taking a look at the full updated spreads below.

NFL Week 17 Odds

Game	Spread	O/U	Predicted Winner
Philadelphia at N.Y. Giants	NYG -3	52	NYG 33-28
N.Y. Jets at Buffalo	NYJ -1.5	43	NYJ 20-17
Washington at Dallas	NL	--	WAS 30-21
New Orleans at Atlanta	ATL -4	52.5	NO 28-27
Oakland at Kansas City	KC -7	43.5	KC 28-20
Pittsburgh at Cleveland	PIT -11	47.5	PIT 44-28
Minnesota at Green Bay	GB -3	46.5	MIN 27-24
Baltimore at Cincinnati	CIN -9	42.5	CIN 35-17
Detroit at Chicago	E	45	DET 17-10
Tampa Bay at Carolina	CAR -11.5	46.5	CAR 36-17
Jacksonville at Houston	NL	--	JAC 21-17
Tennessee at Indianapolis	NL	--	IND 20-16
New England at Miami	NL	--	NE 30-13
San Diego at Denver	DEN -9	41	DEN 27-10
St. Louis at San Francisco	STL -3	37	STL 14-3
Seattle at Arizona	ARI -4.5	47.5	ARI 24-20

Odds courtesy of Odds Shark.

Odds Analysis

Minnesota at Green Bay (-3)

Here's maybe the most interesting line of the week.

The Green Bay Packers took down the Minnesota Vikings back in Week 11, 30-13. Much has changed since, though, with quarterback Aaron Rodgers and Co. suffering a humiliation at the hands of the Arizona Cardinals in 38-8 fashion this past Sunday.

Perhaps most notable, though, is the change in the Vikings, who beat the Chicago Bears 38-17 two weeks ago and last week stomped the New York Giants 49-17 with the offense rushing for 218 yards and three scores while the defense forced three interceptions.

Before the two-win streak, Minnesota almost upended the same Arizona team that just blew away Green Bay, losing 23-20. For head coach Mike Zimmer, the recent stretch has his team ready for the playoffs.

“I think that we’ve learned the kind of mentality that we have to have these last four weeks,” Zimmer said, according to Matt Vensel of the Minneapolis Star Tribune. “Really, the Arizona game, I think we had the right mentality. Going forward from that game on, we’ve played with the mentality that I like to play with.”

It's easy to think Rodgers could get back into form and toss a couple of scores like he did the first time these two teams met, but he just collapsed last weekend, throwing one pick, suffering eight sacks and fumbling three times, with the opposition returning two of them for touchdowns.

Road game or not, the Vikings have the defensive talent to ruin Rodgers' timing behind a shaky line and control the game with star running back Adrian Peterson and a booming ground game.

Prediction: Vikings 27, Packers 24

Baltimore at Cincinnati (-9)

Las Vegas doesn't seem worried about the Cincinnati Bengals. 

Bettors shouldn't worry either.

Cincinnati just took a last-second overtime loss to the Denver Broncos when AJ McCarron fumbled a snap. But that's the point: McCarron's a backup in place of Andy Dalton who didn't have top-tier weapon Tyler Eifert, and his defense played without safety George Iloka. Yet the Bengals still forced overtime.

Of course, it's all positive vibes around the Baltimore Ravens too after the team rallied around quarterback Ryan Mallett to take down the Pittsburgh Steelers last Sunday.

Still, these rivals met in Week 3 in Baltimore, and the Ravens simply had no answer for wide receiver A.J. Green, who caught 10 passes for 227 yards and two touchdowns. It might have been Dalton under center then, but McCarron's performance shows that pretty much any quarterback can line up in Cincinnati's quarterback-friendly scheme and make great use of the elite weapons to find success.

Bettors might find issue with this line after McCarron injured his non-throwing wrist against Denver, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, but again, when the Cincinnati coaches have the right approach (see the first half against Denver compared to the second half), even an elite defense such as Denver doesn't stand a chance.

Bettors should bank on the Bengals coming correct against a rival as they gun for a playoff bye, which gives them more time to get Dalton back.

Prediction: Bengals 35, Ravens 17

San Diego at Denver (-9)

Those Broncos might have looked sluggish while ending a two-game skid. But a win's a win, and concerns over the team's performance can fade. 

Against an elite Cincinnati defense, quarterback Brock Osweiler put a sloppy first half behind him and finished with 299 yards and a touchdown while getting 73 yards and a score from running back C.J. Anderson on just nine carries.

Now Denver turns its attention to the four-win San Diego Chargers, a team that has lost three of its last four and only sports wins over iffy clubs such as the Detroit Lions, Cleveland, the Jacksonville Jaguars and Miami. 

Osweiler and Co. took care of business against these Chargers in Week 13, 17-3, while shutting down Philip Rivers, who went just 18-of-35 with an interception.

If the Chargers were healthier, this might be a contest. But the team's without wideout Keenan Allen and now has safety Eric Weddle and tight end Ladarius Green out of the picture. Corners Jason Verrett and Patrick Robinson suffered injuries last week, meaning wideout Dontrelle Inman had to go in and play safety.

In other words, Denver's going to coast against a team wishing the season had ended weeks ago.

Prediction: Broncos 27, Chargers 10

Stats courtesy of NFL.com and accurate as of December 27. All advanced metrics courtesy of Pro Football Focus.