Turkey Day Preview
Gridiron Experts Turkey Day Preview
Green Bay Packers at Detroit Lions
The Packers head to Detroit to square off against a team that has lost five games in a row on Thanksgiving. While this Thursday’s match-up sounds easy, Green Bay is without cornerback Al Harris and linebacker Aaron Kampman, who both will have season-ending knee surgeries. Fantasy owners are licking their lips as each team could have big numbers on both sides of the ball this week. Aaron Rodgers has had a huge season in ’09, but has taken way too much time to get his number one target Greg Jennings involved in the fun. Up until last week Jennings had been somewhat of a non factor in Packers games, allowing Donald Driver to take on more of a lead role.
This week should be a better game than expected; the Packers are trying out new starters on defense while the Lions defense will just be trying to keep up. Gridiron Experts expects more out of Detroit this week, but the 11 point favorite Green Bay Packers will win and cover.
Green Bay 31-17
Oakland Raiders at Dallas Cowboys
What a bad game. Even back in April before people knew who has going to a be a good this year, we all knew the Raiders were going to suck. When deciding on the Thanksgiving match-ups each season it almost seems like the Cowboys get a free win with their turkey-day opponents. In the last couple years, I can’t think of a tough match-up the Cowboys have had to face. Do they want people to tune in? Because this game is when I take a turkey-nap.
The Raiders are off a huge victory (that Gridiron Experts called !!) beating the Bengals at home, while the Cowboys pulled off a nail biter against the Redskins with a late 4th quarter score in week 11. The offense hasn’t been on track for Dallas in the last couple weeks, but with the Raiders coming to town things are going to straighten themselves out. Tony Romo has never lost as a starter on Thanksgiving (maybe thanks to the weak schedule) but it might be the running game that takes over in this one; the Raiders rank 30th in the NFL against the run, yielding 157.7 yards per game while the Cowboys are the second-most efficient team running the ball at 5 yards per carry. The Cowboys are 13.5 point favorites, and we expect an ugly blow out that will have you rolling your eyes in boredom.
Dallas Cowboys 28-10
New York Giants at Denver Broncos
This game saves the day in my opinion. The Giants are surprising 6.5 point favorites on the road in Denver this week…something has got to give. The Broncos have not hosted a Thanksgiving Day game since 1963; they would love to get a win here to have a long week off, before kicking off a two game road trip that will decide their season. The Giants and Broncos are a lot alike, both teams started strong and both teams have taken a downward spiral in the standings. The Giants had to go to overtime to end their losing streak last week, while the Broncos looked terrible against the Chargers in week 11.
Denver wide receiver Brandon Marshall got into a heated exchange with rookie running back Knowshon Moreno on the sideline after Moreno fumbled into the end zone against San Diego, and the pressure is starting to be felt by first year wonder Josh McDaniels. The G-Men are more like midgets in the running game this season and have lost the ability to control the game with their power running back Brandon Jacobs. 6.5 point underdog Broncos will have to show their fans that they are not going to lay down and die, this game is a must win for the Broncos and may be the turning point of the season. We like the Broncos in an upset at home.
Denver Broncos 26-24
Related posts:
