NFL Week 16 Picks: Heavy Favorites That Are Guaranteed to Cover the Spread

When the NFL season whittles down to the final week or two, there are often a couple teams that are already locked into their playoff positions. Because of how close things are this year in both conferences, however, every team has something to play for in Week 16.

This means that the league's elite teams aren't going to take their foot off the pedal like they so often do late in the season in order to rest their starters for the playoffs. Every prospective playoff team is still battling to either stay in the postseason picture or get a better seed.

With that said, some of the league's elite teams have business to take care of against bottom feeders. Here are three heavy favorites that should have no problem covering the spread in Week 16.

New England Patriots (-9.5)

With a record of 11-3, the New England Patriots are closing in on clinching the No. 1 seed in the AFC. In order to do that, however, they must first beat the Miami Dolphins on Saturday.

While Miami has played much better as of late, there is no question that the Pats are deserving of their status as 9.5-point favorites. New England beat Miami by 14 in Week 1, and honestly not much has changed for the two teams since then.

Even if New England didn't need this game for playoff positioning, head coach Bill Belichick wouldn't dare rest his starters. He plays to win every game, and whether you like him or hate him, you have to respect that.

Quarterback Tom Brady torched the Miami secondary for over 500 yards in the opening week and while he may not do that again, he should have a field day against a Dolphins team that is trying to limp past the finish line.

Baltimore Ravens (-12.5)

The AFC North-leading Baltimore Ravens were humming along with four straight victories prior to a drubbing at the hands of the San Diego Chargers last week. After that whooping, the Ravens are sure to be ornery this weekend when they host the Cleveland Browns.

Baltimore had little trouble in a 14-point win over Cleveland a couple weeks ago, and the Ravens should be even hungrier on Saturday.

Ravens running back Ray Rice ripped the Browns for over 200 rushing yards in their previous meeting, and he will likely be relied upon to exploit Cleveland's 31st-ranked run defense once again this weekend.

The Browns don't have much on offense to hurt the Ravens, so I expect Baltimore to make an example of the hapless AFC North cellar dwellers.

Green Bay Packers (-12)

After shockingly losing to the Kansas City Chiefs last week, the Green Bay Packers' run at an undefeated season is over. While some may think that they will now be content to rest their starters and prepare for the playoffs, I highly doubt that to be the case.

The San Francisco 49ers can still catch the Packers and take the No. 1 seed, so Green Bay will probably have to be all hands on deck against the Chicago Bears on Christmas night.

Quarterback Aaron Rodgers and the rest of the Packers can't be at all happy after letting one slip away against a mediocre Kansas City squad. When you combine that with the fact that they are playing their fiercest rival at home on the big stage, it is almost a guarantee that the Packers will come forth with their best effort.

If they do that, then the injury-riddled Bears have no hope of keeping up.