NFL Picks Week 16: Latest Odds, Prop Bets, Over/Under Lines and Predictions

Veteran bettors know what a challenge the NFL's Week 16 schedule offers each year. 

The slate isn't simply a problem because of an odd schedule, where the league swaps out a Thursday game with a pair of Saturday offerings, then shifts two more games to Monday. 

Oddities aside, most don't have the usual amount of time near the end of December to devote to the necessary research, which is a shame considering major divisional battles and teams looking to play the spoiler line the schedule. 

We're here to help, though, as oddsmakers out of Las Vegas have already unpacked the entire week's worth of lines.

For those who want to get the process out of the way early or simply capitalize on a line sure to adjust as the week progresses, here's a look at the full offering. 

NFL Week 16 Matchups, Odds

Indianapolis at Baltimore (-14)  | O/U 41.5 

Atlanta at New Orleans (-5) | O/U 

Buffalo at New England (-13) | O/U 47

Cleveland at Chicago (-6.5) | O/U 38.5

Denver at Washington (-3.5) | O/U 41

Detroit (-5) at Cincinnati | O/U 43

L.A. Chargers (-7) at N.Y. Jets | O/U 42.5

L.A. Rams (-7) at Tennessee | O/U 48

Miami at Kansas City (-10) | O/U 43.5

Tampa Bay at Carolina (-9.5) | O/U 

Jacksonville (-4.5) at San Francisco | O/U 42.5

N.Y. Giants at Arizona (-4) | O/U 39.5

Seattle at Dallas (-5) | O/U 47

Pittsburgh (-10) at Houston | O/U 44

Oakland at Philadelphia (-9) | O/U 47.5

The line for Minnesota at Green Bay has not been decided, likely due to the uncertain status of Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

Indianapolis at Baltimore (-14)

One of the week's biggest lines seems obvious enough, right? 

The Baltimore Ravens remain right in the thick of the playoff race and seem to have hit a stride lately as most expected of the veteran team. The opposite corner of the ring features an Indianapolis Colts team seemingly going through the motions while trying to reach the finish line. 

It isn't hard to see why this is such a large line. These Colts haven't just lost five in a row—they let the 5-9 Denver Broncos come to town last time out and watched as Brock Osweiler threw two touchdowns on 17 attempts in a 25-13 Denver win. 

Meanwhile, the Ravens have won four of their last five, the exception being the understandable one-point road loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. While still far from perfect, it's clear Joe Flacco is starting to heat up: 

If the Ravens didn't have anything to play for, the outlook might be a bit different here. But the underlying motivations mean full effort (unlike some teams right now) and it's a bad matchup considering the Colts have all of two touchdowns and interceptions from Jacoby Brissett over his last four outings while the offense hasn't scored more than 16 points in a game since Week 9. 

These Ravens rank fourth at 18.3 points allowed per game, so exploiting an offense lacking playmakers and effective schemes while going through the motions shouldn't be too difficult a task. If a downtrodden team such as the Broncos can do it, so can the surging Ravens. 

Prediction: Ravens 28, Colts 10

Cleveland at Chicago (-6.5)

There obviously isn't playoff seeding on the line when the Cleveland Browns and Chicago Bears get together around the holidays. But what makes the contest interesting rests elsewhere in drama such as the future of head coaches and the order of next year's draft. 

Is this the week the Hue Jackson-led Browns finally get a win? Changes in the front office aren't likely to act as some sort of emotional boost to get players motivated. And the Browns can't complain too much if they lose, right? They're inching closer toward holding a pair of top-five draft picks next year. 

More than anything, though, this simply looks like an easy time to side with the favorite because the Bears are at least somewhat competitive while rallying around Mitchell Trubisky, a guy the organization thinks could be a great long-term solution under center. 

He's thinking things continue to get better, too, as captured by Chris Emma of 670 The Score: 

Last time out, Trubisky threw for more than 300 yards on the road in a 20-10 loss to the Detroit Lions. The week before, he played a ball-control game while totaling two touchdowns in a 33-7 rout of the Cincinnati Bengals. 

Over the same span, the biggest talking point surrounding the Browns was the fact they forced overtime in a 27-21 loss to the Aaron Rodgers-less Green Bay Packers. 

So yes, this one seems obvious enough. This is Cleveland's last serious shot to get a win before facing Pittsburgh in Week 16. But this is a Bears teams rallying around a budding talent. And perhaps more importantly, it's a more talented team at home capable of riding a ground game averaging 4.4 yards per carry to victory. 

Prediction: Bears 27, Browns 14

Seattle at Dallas (-5)

Before the season, a Week 16 encounter between the Seattle Seahawks and Dallas Cowboys likely seemed a great contest littered with playoff implications. 

Now they're eighth and ninth in the NFC playoff race, respectively, and seemingly major long shots to make it into the postseason. 

The Seahawks have come unglued over the past two weeks, dropping a road game to the Jacksonville Jaguars in 30-24 fashion before getting absolutely handled in a 42-7 loss to the Los Angeles Rams. The latter was a forcible changing of the guard in the NFC West and how the Seahawks recover isn't easy to figure out. 

Though disappointing, Cowboys fans likely aren't too thrilled either because the team waited until it was too late to make a run. They've won three games in a row, though even beating Seattle might not do much for the playoff outlook thanks to the strength of the NFC South. 

Did anybody mention the Cowboys get the return of Ezekiel Elliott? Not that head coach Jason Garrett is telling anyone how he'll use his star running back. 

"Just have to wait and see," he said, according to ESPN.com's Todd Archer. "Got to see how he is [Tuesday], got to see how he practices as the week goes on."

The Seahawks are a serious going-through-the-motions candidate here. They're on the road, losers of two straight—one of those an all-timer in the embarrassing department at home—and have team leaders taking potshots at one another. 

Dallas is far from a perfect team, but quarterback Dak Prescott has managed games well enough with Elliott out.

The star running back will look to put on a show in his return and keep those small playoff hopes alive, so expect the Cowboys to win at the point of attack at home and pull away late. 

Prediction: Cowboys 28, Seahawks 20

Stats courtesy of NFL.com. Odds according to OddsShark.