Nothing is better than sitting with friends and family on Thanksgiving and watching a full day’s slate of football games. The turkey with stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, and some football on the side make Thanksgiving a holiday that nearly every sports fan enjoys. These are my predictions for this year’s Thanksgiving football games.
12:30 P.M. Green Bay Packers vs. Detroit Lions:
The 4-6 Green Bay Packers travel to Detroit to face off against the 8-2 Lions. This is an important game for both teams. The Packers are coming off a narrow victory against the Los Angeles Chargers, but are facing serious injury issues – including star running back Aaron Jones who sustained an ankle injury that will likely take him out of this contest. The Packers need to win this game if they still want a chance at making the playoffs. The Lions’ comeback win against the Chicago Bears has allowed them to move closer to clinching the NFC North Division and a playoff spot. The Lions are full of stars on the offensive side of the ball – with 2 top running backs (David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs), Amon-Ra St. Brown, and explosive rookie tight end Sam LaPorta in the passing attack. With the Packers recently sustaining serious injuries to key players and coming into the game as the weaker team overall, the Lions should cruise past the Packers and move to 9-2 overall on the season.
4:30 P.M. Washington Commanders vs. Dallas Cowboys
The 4-7 Washington Commanders travel to Texas to play against the 7-3 Dallas Cowboys. The Commanders’ playoff chances took a major hit last week when they got blown out by the disastrous New York Giants. The Commanders, and their head coach Ron Rivera, are on the hot seat and need to get the upset victory this week. That will be a difficult task, however. The Dallas Cowboys are injury-free at this point of the season, and just destroyed the Carolina Panthers, with running back Tony Pollard finally finding his game as well with a touchdown. With exceptional play by quarterback Dak Prescott and wide-receiver CeeDee Lamb, expect the Cowboys to decimate the Commanders and for Pollard (like Zeke Elliott in years past) to jump into the Salvation Army kettle this Thursday afternoon with at least one trip to the end zone.
8:30 P.M. San Francisco 49ers vs. Seattle Seahawks
The 7-3 San Francisco 49ers travel to Seattle to play the 6-4 Seahawks. The 49ers have had their ups and downs this season, sustaining injuries to Brock Purdy, Deebo Samuel, and Trent Williams early in the season. But the 49ers have triumphed, bouncing back from a three-game losing streak, including an impressive victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last week. The Seattle Seahawks are no pushovers though. Geno Smith may not be playing at the level he was last season, but he has still managed to lead the Seahawks to a better than .500 record. The Seattle crowd always makes it difficult on opposing teams as well. The Seahawks, however, will likely be without sophomore star running back Kenneth Walker III, which will hurt their chances of upsetting the 49ers. The 49ers’ offense is stacked with Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk, George Kittle, and eventual hall-of-fame running back Christian McCaffrey. The Seahawks and their home crowd will keep this game close for 3 quarters or so, but eventually, the 49ers will emerge as winners of this NFC West battle.
