First off, I’d like to thank this opportunity to wish everyone a safe and Happy Thanksgiving today. This is by far my favorite holiday of the year, with food, drinks, friends, family, and of course football to enjoy all day long.

There’s a fairly solid slate of action this year in the NFL’s celebration, as compared to last year, and while I think the final outcome of all three games will be fairly predictable, we could get several close contests to watch and enjoy this afternoon and evening.

With that in mind, here’s how I see things breaking down…

Green Bay (6-4) @ Detroit (2-8) - 12:30 pm EST

On paper, this one looks to be another blowout in Motown, but after putting up huge numbers last week against Cleveland, the Lions should have a much higher level of confidence heading into a showdown with their division rivals from Green Bay. Having QB Matt Stafford and WR Calvin Johnson active and starting won’t hurt either, and although the Packers should ultimately prevail, I like Detroit’s odds of keeping this game interesting for a change.

That said, Packers QB Aaron Rodgers has been playing lights out all season long, proving himself to be a legit franchise QB and giving Green Bay a chance to win every week, so the Lions are definitely going to have their hands full today.

Prediction: Green Bay 34 – Detroit 24

Oakland (3-7) @ Dallas (6-4) – 4:15 pm EST

Two of the Raiders three wins have come as surprise victories over better teams, so if your expecting them to lay down and let the Cowboys waltz all over them this afternoon, you’re sadly mistaken. That said, Dallas always seems to play better on Thanksgiving so I’m feeling a nailbiter coming on for this one, but with Oakland involved you really can’t tell which team is going to show up.

I doubt we’ll see a lackluster offensive performance for the Cowboys again this week, especially if they can establish their run game, as the Raiders are particularly poor on defense in that regard. Oakland QB Bruce Gradkowski has injected some life into the Raiders locker room as of late, but I don’t think he’ll have enough to overcome a Dallas’ stout defense.

Prediction: Dallas 24 – Oakland 17

New York Giants (6-4) @ Denver (6-4) – 8:20 pm EST

This is shaping up to be the best contest of the day, with both teams in the hunt for a playoff spot and eager to put a W up on the board. For the Broncos, this is as close to a must win game as it gets, with the Chargers now one game up on them in the division race and a four game losing streak in tow. The Giants need a win tonight as well if they want to keep pace in the always competitive NFC East division, and as such, it’s likely to be a slugfest from the opening kickoff.

Shutting down Broncos QB Kyle Orton and WR Brandon Marshall will be key for the Giants defense, as they have the ability to really hurt New York in the passing game. On the flip side, the Broncos will likely feed off their crowd early and bring a lot of pressure to try and harass Manning into making a mistake or two, giving their offense the short field they need to run out to a comfortable lead.

Prediction: New York Giants 24 – Denver 21

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