Week 12 Recap/Week 13 Thursday:

For The Week:
vs. W/L: (9-7)
vs. Spread: (8-8)
vs. Aggregate: (9-7)

For The Season:
Vs. W/L: (116-59-1)
Vs. Spread: (94-82)
Vs. Aggregate: (87-88-1)

Spread vs. “The CBSSportsline Experts”:

Richard: 96-79-0
PFN: 94-82-0
Judge: 92-83-0
Harmon: 89-86-0
Madden: 87-88-0
Prisco: 81-94-0
“SpiN”: 84-91-0

W/L vs. “USA Today Experts”

PFN: (116-59-1)
Nate Davis 116-59-1 (.662)
Sean Leahy 116-59-1 (.662)
Skip Wood 114-61-1 (.651)
Jim Corbett 111-64-1 (.634)
Jeff Zillgitt 109-66-1 (.622)
Jarrett Bell 107-68-1 (.611)
Larry Weisman 105-70-1 (.599)
Tom Pedulla 101-74-1 (.577)

Starting this week, we’re throwing the “USA Today” experts (W/L only) into the competitive mix, and so far, so good. Week 12 was full of surprises, though we connected with the underdog Jets, Indy and the Patriots. We were dead wrong on Green Bay, Buffalo, Jacksonville and Cleveland. Week 13 presents a number of terrific challenges for those teams who are looking to squeak into a Wild Card berth. Thursday’s games appear to be two turkeys and one competitive game. Let’s analyze the Thanksgiving Day games, shall we?

Tennessee -10.5 At Detroit 44.5

Once upon a time, the Lions were a competitive franchise that always played well on their traditional Thanksgiving Day game, as evidenced by the photo above when they demolished the Pack back in '62. The days of the amazing Barry Sanders seem like ages ago…This year, the 0-11 Lions get to host the 10-1 Titans to kick off the holiday games. During this horrible losing streak, the Lions could be counted on to give the opposition at least a half of competitive football before fading. Last week, it was only a quarter. They were up 17-0 on Tampa Bay after 15 minutes before the ill winds of fortune blew them to smithereens. The previously unbeaten Titans fared none better at home getting manhandled and embarrassed by the streaking Jets. It’s a genuine question as to whether they’ve peaked as a team. This week, they need to reestablish their dominating defense and play a consistent 60 minutes. This is the Lions’ only nationally telecast game all season, and they don’t want to be humiliated before millions of viewers.

Projected Final Score: Tennessee 28, Detroit 17

At Dallas -12.5 Seattle 46.5

Over the course of the past two weeks, the Cowboys have righted the ship and are moving into crunch time with a head of steam. The division may be out of reach but the Wild Card appears to be more of a certainty with each week. Last week, they flattened the ‘Niners with ease and have another potential cupcake waiting in the wings. The Seahawks limp into Big D running on fumes at this point as injuries derailed what was projected to be a highly competitive season. They fought tooth and nail with Washington last week and the will to succeed remains despite having been bloodied and bowed. Their problem will be facing a team that’s playing its best football when the games really matter. It adds up to a long afternoon for Coach Holmgren’s crew.

Projected Final Score: Dallas 31, Seattle 17

At Philadelphia -2.5 Arizona 47

The only thing going in Philly’s favor on Thursday night is that West Coast teams are winless so far whenever they travel East. On the ugliness scale it’s hard to top what’s going on in Philly these days, as the “warm and cheerful” natives of the City of Brotherly Love have turned on their “Iggles” with a vengeance. Barring an unexpected collapse by their NFC East rivals, they’re just going through the motions hereafter and there will be BIG changes come the offseason. In a dumb move, Reid benched McNabb for the second half last week only to re-install him as the starter this week. When did Reid suddenly get so short-sighted? Granted, this has not been a vintage year for McNabb, but a lot of the problems weren’t his fault. His primary targets were injured for a good chunk of the season and defenses have keyed on Westbrook as a result. McNabb has a few good seasons remaining but it appears as if they’ll happen elsewhere. By benching the starter, Reid probably lost the locker room in the process and he, too, probably won’t be around much longer.

Into this swirl of dysfunction come the Cardinals, looking to break the West Coast losing streak and not allow the opponent to score over 50 points, as occurred when they visited the Meadowlands earlier in the year. They could lose every game hereafter and still win the horrible NFC West (ain’t sayin’ much there). Offense is not the issue, as they put up 29 points against a tough Giant defense but their defense played like…Cardinals. Despite all of Philly’s offensive inconsistencies, they still have a good defense (except for last week).

Projected Final Score: Philadelphia 27, Arizona 24