OK, you knuckleheads…

Happy and Safe Thanksgiving to one and all.

Week 11 Recap:
Vs. W/L (12-4)
Vs. Spread (8-8)
Vs. O/U (10-6)

For the Season:
Vs W/L: 96-64-0
Vs Spread: 73-87-0
Vs. O/U: 83-77-0

Here’s where we’re at via the Spread relative to the “Sportsline Experts”:

Expert “J”: 92-67-0
Expert “P”: 92-67-0
Expert “H”: 89-70-0
Expert “S”: 81-78-0
Expert “R”: 77-82-0
Expert “D”: 76-83-0
PFN: 73-87-0

That was a pretty good week. It has been rather amusing to watch and listen to the historical revisionists in the national media whine about the Patriots’ success. It’s almost as if there’s a conspiracy that categorizes certain teams as perpetual “winners” (Dallas, Miami and Pittsburgh) and certain teams as “losers” (New England, NY Jets, etc.). When a team that has traditionally lost becomes competitive for a sustained period (such as has been the case with the 49’ers of the ‘80’s and the Patriots of this decade) the national media regards their success as a fluke rather than the result of superb management. When the Cowboys went on their last tear in the early ‘90’s, there were no cries of running up the score or trying to denigrate a tremendous accomplishment. Every dog has his day. For the better part of four decades it was the Patriots who were the laughingstock of the NFL and the extent of their mismanagement was the stuff of legend. That was before Mr. Kraft took control. Things are different now, but the Patriot fans who have been with this team from the AFL days are humble in the Patriots’ current success because we know all too well what it feels like to be in that place where the Dolphins’ fans now find themselves.

The great thing about a Belichick-coached team is they don’t care at all about anything except their immediate opponent. While the football world is abuzz concerning the streak and what will happen in the postseason, the Patriots are focused on knocking the livin’ snot out of the Eagles on Sunday night. There remains a great deal of football to be played and New England will play each game is a season.

Game Balls: Priest Holmes, Kansas City. Holmes was one of the league most durable runners for many years before a neck injury prematurely ended his career. After significant time away from the game, he had a great comeback this year that was cut short when he suffered another injury to his neck last week and he wisely decided to retire.

Jacksonville: Though not an upset, they proved once and for all that the Chargers are frauds.

NY Jets & Cleveland: Two terrific OT wins. Outside of Pittsburgh, the Steelers are downright ordinary. It was also great to see the Referee “do the right thing” in the Browns-Ravens game. If the crew allowed the original call on the field goal try at the end of regulation to stand it would’ve been a big-time black eye for the League.

New England: 56-10!

Duds: New Orleans, Ravens and Cincinnati.

Let’s do the Turkey Day games, shall we?

Green Bay -3.5 At Detroit 48

This is the first “meaningful” Thanksgiving Day game the Lions have been in since the glory days at Tiger Stadium. If they win, they’ll be a game back in the NFC Black N’ Blue. As always, Kitna will be the wild card. If he’s hot then it’ll be a classic, if he’s not (like last week), then you know what to expect. Meanwhile, Favre is this year’s Renaissance Man in the NFL and the Pack is in the midst of a historic run of their own.

Projected Final Score: Green Bay 31, Detroit 24.

At Dallas -13.5 NY Jets 47.5

If you’re a Jet fan, it’d be a good idea to have fully digested your holiday meal before tackling this one because things may get a tad ugly for the visitors. Big D is playing some football these days.

Projected Final Score: Dallas 31, NY Jets 13.

Indianapolis -11.5 At Atlanta 41

Who will be “Quarterback of the Week” in Atlanta on Thursday night? Does it really matter at this stage? Besides, there are only 28 households in the USA who get "NFL Network" who'll actually be watching and less than half who have a roting interest in the outcome. Indy really struggled last week as it was a case of injuries finally catching up. This week Manning ought to be pleased looking out at Atlanta’s woeful pass defense. Heck, Dungy could pull in a couple of kids from a pickup game outside and Manning would have no trouble picking apart the Falcons' D. But the injuries combined with the awful spread, nah.

Projected Final Score: Indianapolis 27. Atlanta 17.