NFL Week 12 Predictions: 5 Players Who Will Light Up Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is a time for food, family and—if your family is anything like my family—fistfights that result in trips to the emergency room.

It's also about football.

Sure, we've come to associate the holiday with bad football, but the NFL has actually lined up some pretty good games for us this year. Furthermore, they should help keep us entertained as we stuff ourselves full of turkey and take swings at our second cousins.

Yes, sir. Today is a day to be thankful for football. By extension, today is also a day to be thankful for football players—especially these five dudes.

You're going to remember what they did on Thanksgiving Day, 2011.

Reggie Bush, Miami Dolphins

Reggie Bush is still not an every-down running back, but he has settled into a nice little niche with the Dolphins. He gets about 13 to 15 carries per game and catches passes out of the backfield. This role has allowed him to rack up some pretty nice yardage totals.

In addition, he has been finding his way into the end zone as of late and scored four touchdowns in his last three games.

I'm looking for more success from Bush against the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday. The Cowboys have handled running backs pretty well this year, but they allowed three consecutive 100-yard rushers before the Washington Redskins broke up the streak on Sunday.

Dallas' defense is good, but it's not impenetrable.

Since Bush is probably the most dangerous weapon that the Dolphins have, expect him to see plenty of action.

Charles Woodson, Green Bay Packers

If you're an NFL fan looking for something to be thankful for, be thankful for Charles Woodson. He's one of the great cornerbacks in the history of the NFL and he's been playing at a high level ever since he came over to the Packers.

I'm looking for Woodson to have a big day against the Detroit Lions. Matthew Stafford can be erratic with his accuracy, and that's going to hurt him against a corner as good at finding the ball as Woodson is. 

It's been a while since Woodson's last pick, and it's been an even longer while since his last pick-six. I'm thinking he gets both on Thursday.

Calvin Johnson, Detroit Lions

Wide receivers don't get much more dangerous than Calvin Johnson. He's big, he's strong, he's fast and there are times when he seems virtually unguardable.

This is especially true of plays in which Stafford chucks it up for grabs. Nobody can contend with Megatron in these situations, and situations like these are how he puts points on the board for his team.

Strangely enough, Johnson has yet to find the end zone in the month of November. He's due for at least one touchdown grab, and I think he's going to get it against a Packers defense that has issues containing opposing passing attacks.

Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys

Remember what Tony Romo did on Thanksgiving back in 2006? He threw for over 300 yards with five touchdowns and no interceptions, leading the Cowboys to an easy victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

I'm not expecting Romo to be that good against the Dolphins, but I do expect him to be pretty darn good. We are, after all, talking about a quarterback who has thrown eight touchdown passes and no interceptions in his last three games.

We're also talking about a quarterback who is going up against the league's 25th-ranked pass defense.

Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers

No surprise here, right? Aaron Rodgers has been making defenses look silly all season, and I don't expect that to change on Thursday against the Lions.

True enough, the Lions are not exactly a pushover when it comes to defense. They have a beastly pass rush, and it's a big reason why they're holding opposing passers to 192.8 passing yards per game.

However, they haven't yet faced a guy as good as Rodgers. 

Shoot, there are no guys as good as Rodgers.