Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com
There are fewer games than normal on Sunday in Week 12 because of the three Thanksgiving Day matchups around the NFL, although the league helped boost the Sunday slate by wiping out byes this week.
Let’s say the NFL ceased to exist in 15 years or so. At that point, it’s easy to see a scenario where historians say the two best quarterbacks ever were Tom Brady and Patrick Mahomes. They have met three times as professionals, with Brady holding a 2-1 edge including playoffs – all while he was with the New England Patriots.
By far the marquee matchup this Sunday is Mahomes’ Kansas City Chiefs at Brady’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers with a 4:25 p.m. ET kickoff. It could easily be a preview of Super Bowl 55, which also will be held in Tampa. Or, it could be the final time they ever face off because the Chiefs and Bucs won’t be scheduled to play for another four years in the regular season, and we presume the 43-year-old Brady will have retired by then. Kansas City is a 3.5-point favorite and is a stellar 15-4 ATS in its past 19 games.
There are only a few divisional games on Sunday. At 1 p.m. ET, the Tennessee Titans visit the Indianapolis Colts. In Week 10, the Colts went to Nashville on a Thursday night and won 34-17 with a dominant second half helped by some Tennessee mistakes on special teams. Should Indy win again in this one, it would have a clear path to the AFC South title with the season sweep and tiebreaker. The Colts are -3.5 and have covered seven of the past nine at home in the series.
The Miami Dolphins should have little trouble continuing their playoff push with a 1 p.m. ET kickoff at the winless, hapless New York Jets. In Week 6, the Jets were inept offensively in a 24-0 loss in south Florida. Ryan Fitzpatrick threw for three touchdowns for the Fins, and what no one saw coming was that it would be his final start – rookie Tua Tagovailoa has taken over since. Rare you see a guy yanked after a victory but it has worked out, although Tua was benched in a Week 11 loss in Denver. He remains the starter. Miami is -7 and has covered five straight against the Jets.
The NFL’s oldest rivalry is renewed in the Sunday night game as the Chicago Bears visit the Green Bay Packers. The Bears are out of their bye on a four-game losing streak and their offense is a joke. The Packers are pulling away in the NFC North. They are 8.5-point favorites and have covered 14 of the past 19 in the series.
Week 12 concludes on Monday with the Seattle Seahawks visiting the Philadelphia Eagles. They could meet in this postseason just like they did last year when Seattle won 17-9 in Philly. The Seahawks are -5.5 this time and have won 10 of their past 11 games on the east coast.
