Detroit Lions fans show support against the Cincinnati Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium.
The NFL season is cruising (sort of) along. There's been some hiccups, and you never really know when a team could get shut down due to COVID-19, but we're here for week eight, and the picks are still rolling in. At this point in the season, you have a pretty good idea about who is good and who isn't, unless you look at the NFC East, where everyone is bad but it doesn't matter because someone has to win it. Tom Brady and the Bucs look very legit. The Steelers might be the best team in football and the Seahawks suddenly look like they might not be contenders. The playoff pictures are coming into focus and every game matters. It's going to be a crazy finish to this season.
Like always, these are our straight up picks and not ATS. For all our NFL bets of the week, tune into the Complex Sports Load Management podcast, where we break down every game by the spread. Not to toot our own horn, but we're on a pretty crazy ATS picks streak right now. So if you're into that kind of thing, check out the podcast. As for the straight-up picks, Zion came back with a huge performance last week and has now taken the lead. Who is going to take it this week? Here are our week 12 NFL straight up picks. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!
Overall Records
Chopz - 97-63
Adam - 98-62
Angel - 103-57
Zion - 105-55
Houston Texans at Detroit Lions
Channel: CBS
Point Spread: Texans -3
Chopz: What a game. Give me the Texans on the road.
Adam: The Lions are 37-41-2 all time on Thanksgiving. Add another L to the ledger.
Zion: Texans win because it feels like the Lions lose on Thanksgiving every year
Angel: The Lions need to try better to give us a better product on Turkey Day. We can’t keep doing this. Texans on the road.
Washington Football Team at Dallas Cowboys
Channel: Fox
Point Spread: Cowboys -3
Chopz: I think Dallas wins this.
Adam: Give me Washington because I feel like everybody is going to pick Dallas after the Cowboys looked competent last week.
Zion: Cowboys because they are more competent than we think.
Angel: The Cowboys are winning this one, they have to.
Baltimore Ravens at Pittsburgh Steelers
Channel: NBC
Point Spread: Steelers -4.5
Chopz: Steelers. Ravens have way too many important guys out and have been struggling.
Adam: O/U 276: milliliters of tequila I consume on Thanksgiving/passing yards for Ben Roethlisberger against the Ravens top 10 pass defense. Take the over on me, the under on Ben, and the Steelers to win.
Zion: Ravens.
Angel: I want to go with the Ravens here so bad, but they’re gonna be missing some key guys. The Steelers remain undefeated.
Las Vegas Raiders at Atlanta Falcons
Channel: CBS
Point Spread: Raiders -3
Chopz: Swerve, give me the Falcons.
Adam: Raiders after a slight hesitation.
Zion: Raiders win this game.
Angel: West Coast teams don’t fair well on the East Coast at 1pm, but I’m still taking the Raiders. They’re the better team.
Arizona Cardinals at New England Patriots
Channel: FOX
Point Spread: Cardinals -2.5
Chopz: Cardinals get the road W.
Adam: Taking the west coast team playing on the east coast and a 1 p.m. ET kickoff.
Zion: Cardinals.
Angel: I want to take Arizona, but I’ll take the Pats here.
New York Giants at Cincinnati Bengals
Channel: FOX
Point Spread: Giants -6
Chopz: Giants win easy.
Adam: Danny Dimes does his best work on the road and the comedown from losing Smokin’ Joe Burrow will be real for the Bengals.
Zion: The road to the NFC East title, the Giants cruise. Three in a row.
Angel: Giants win but only because Burrow and Mixon are out. I hope they lose, though (for draft purposes.)
Cleveland Browns at Jacksonville Jaguars
Channel: CBS
Point Spread: Browns -7
Chopz: Browns win.
Adam: Head says Browns, heart says Jaguars. I’ll go with my head.
Zion: Browns.
Angel: Browns I guess, but I think the Jaguars cover.
Carolina Panthers at Minnesota Vikings
Channel: FOX
Point Spread: Vikings -3.5
Chopz: Give me the Vikings.
Adam: No Christian McCaffrey, but Teddy Bridgewater appears on track to be back. If he is, I’ll roll with the Panthers.
Zion: Panthers.
Angel: Vikings. I want to take the Carolina points if Teddy plays, though.
Tennessee Titans at Indianapolis Colts
Channel: CBS
Point Spread: Colts -3
Chopz: This is a huge game. I’ll take the Titans to get some revenge.
Adam: Two teams coming off their most resounding wins of the season. I trust the Colts at home more than I do the Titans on the road. Plus, we just saw Indy pretty thoroughly beat their division rival two weeks ago.
Zion: Titans.
Angel: Give me the Titans because the Colts need to come back down to Earth.
Los Angeles Chargers at Buffalo Bills
Channel: CBS
Point Spread: Bills -5.5
Chopz: My upset of the week. Chargers on the road. It's Justin Herbert time.
Adam: Bills with no hesitation.
Zion: Bills.
Angel: Bills easily. I’ve been a Josh Allen believer from jump. Check the tape!
Miami Dolphins at New York Jets
Channel: CBS
Point Spread: Dolphins -7
Chopz: What a bad game. I’ll take the Dolphins to win but the Jets to cover.
Adam: No way Tua gets benched against the Jets. Dolphins by a lot.
Zion: Dolphins.
Angel: Fins.
New Orleans Saints at Denver Broncos
Channel: FOX
Point Spread: Saints -5.5
Chopz: Saints squeak out a win on the road.
Adam: Swerving and going with the Broncos.
Zion: Saints.
Angel: Saints win in an easy one on the road.
San Francisco 49ers at Los Angeles Rams
Channel: FOX
Point Spread: Rams -7
Chopz: Rams are legit. They win this.
Adam: Rams, but am I crazy for worrying about a letdown? Even against a rival?
Zion: Rams.
Angel: The Niners are depleted. I’ll take the Rams.
Kansas City Chiefs at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Channel: CBS
Point Spread: Chiefs -3.5
Chopz: My rule is to always take Brady to bounce back after he loses a game but my other rule is never pick against Patrick Mahomes. Chiefs.
Adam: I flipped a coin and it came up Chiefs.
Zion: Tom Brady is looking mighty WASHED. Chiefs win big.
Angel: The Bucs are frauds. Give me the Chiefs.
Chicago Bears at Green Bay Packers
Channel: NBC
Point Spread: Packers -8.5
Chopz: Packers.
Adam: Bears are just 2-8 in their last 10 regular-season trips to Lambeau. Gotta go with Green Bay.
Zion: Packers.
Angel: Green Bay.
Seattle Seahawks at Philadelphia Eagles
Channel: ESPN
Point Spread: Seahawks -5
Chopz: Seattle gets a road win.
Adam: I wish I had a good Carson Wentz joke to get off. I don’t. He’s just straight up awful right now and there’s zero justification for taking the Eagles here.
Zion: Seattle.
Angel: Hawks.