NFL Survivor Pool Picks and Advice: Week 12

by Chris Vasile - 11/25/2020

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes

Week 11 in the National Football League was a pretty straight-forward one by most accounts. The teams that were supposed to win the games won, and the teams that pulled off the upsets (Dallas, Denver, Tennessee and Los Angeles) were all the better team on the day and rightfully deserved the win. As we enter into Week 12 of the season, teams in the playoff hunt will need to pull out all the tricks in order to win ball games, while teams that are looking forward to next season may try and iron out some kinks or already be mentally checked out. It’s up to us to determine which one of the bad teams are going to take pride in playing spoiler, while which of them are trying to lose and get a better draft selection in the upcoming draft. Good luck.

For those of you who are reading this and are unsure what a survivor pool is, or are new to the survivor pool world, give this piece a quick read as it’ll break down what it is and offer up a few strategies on how to navigate the season.

Cleveland Browns over Jacksonville Jaguars: Until further notice, the Jaguars will be a play against team. The offense is brutal. And with Luton under center, they haven’t been able to move the ball with any purpose. The Browns are coming off a win against the Eagles in a game in which their defense played well. We think that’ll be the difference once again here, and we’ll take the Browns to get their third straight win.

New York Giants over Cincinnati Bengals: I can’t believe I’m recommending a play on the Giants as a top play, but the Bengals are screwed with Finley under center. He couldn’t complete a simple pass against Washington in relief of Joe Burrow. And with a rested Giants team waiting, he won’t fare much better in this spot. Take the Giants.

Seattle Seahawks over Philadelphia Eagles: Perhaps the only team in the NFL with a worse offense is the Bears, and that’s saying something. The Eagles, particularly Carson Wentz, simply have no clue what to do on offense. Wentz is a turnover machine, and this may be the game where he makes the Seahawks leaky defense look like the 1985 Bears. The Seahawks are the better team, and Russ should shred this poor Eagles secondary.

Los Angeles Rams over San Francisco 49ers: The Rams are a good football team. They have an efficient offense and a great defense. We fully expect them to handle a Niners team that is just playing out the stretch and looking forward to next year. The Rams are in the hunt for a division title. And losing this game, after winning a tough road game be Tampa on Monday, would set them back five steps after taking two steps forward.

Houston Texans over Detroit Lions: I’m not sure I’ve seen a more unmotivated and poorly coached team than the Lions. They stink. Matthew Stafford’s ability glosses over a lot of their issues because he’s talented, but Houston is the better team in this matchup and will get the win.

Washington over Dallas Cowboys: Don’t let the Cowboys’ win last week fool you into thinking they are a good football team. They beat up on an overrated Vikings squad and now have to come back on a short week against a division rival. I’ll take Washington, the team with the better defense, over Dallas’ swiss-cheese defense any day of the week.

Kansas City Chiefs over Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Mahomes over Brady. Hill, Kelce and Edwards-Helaire over Evans, Gronkowski and Jones. I like everything about the Chiefs more than I do about a Tampa Bay team that just can’t win tough ball games.

Green Bay Packers over Chicago Bears: One of the league’s top offenses against one of the league’s worst. The Packers should be pissed off after blowing that game last week to the Colts. We expect them to come out with vengeance and get a much-needed win.

Pittsburgh Steelers over Baltimore Ravens: How do we not go back to the well with the Steelers this week? The Ravens simply look lost, and it seems to me that opposing teams have started to figure out Lamar Jackson. The Steelers already beat the Ravens and now get to play them at home (the game was moved to Sunday). Steelers defense shines once again as the Steel Curtain go to 12-0.

Las Vegas Raiders over Atlanta Falcons: If there was any game the Falcons were going to win, it would have been last week against Taysom Hill and the Saints. The Falcons managed three field goals, and that simply won’t be good enough against a Raiders team that is fighting for their postseason life and that can put up points – as we saw on Sunday night.

Buffalo Bills over Los Angeles Chargers: The Bills got the bye at the right time and now should be refreshed and ready to chase down a division title. They lost a heartbreaker to the Cardinals and now they get a Chargers’ team that’s coming off a win against the lowly Jets – a game in which they gave up 28 points. I expect the Bills’ offense to explode for 30+ in this one.

Tennessee Titans over Indianapolis Colts: The last two weeks, the Colts have wins against the Titans and Packers. In both of those games, they should have lost. But thanks to a handful of lucky breaks, they emerged victorious. This is a payback game for the Titans, and we like them to get the job done now that they’ve seen what the Colts and Rivers like to do offensively.

Carolina Panthers over Minnesota Vikings: I mean, why not take a shot with Carolina in this game? They held a better offensive team (Detroit) to no points and now get to take on a Vikings offense that is bottom barrel. The Panthers may roll with PJ Walker once again, which we don’t mind. But if Teddy Bridgewater comes back, that’s a bonus.

Arizona Cardinals over New England Patriots: Just when you thought the Patriots were starting to turn the corner, they go to Texas and lay a stinker. I like the dynamic of the Cardinals’ offense, and I don’t think the Pats’ defense has the speed needed to keep up with Murry and Co.

Miami Dolphins over New York Jets: I’ll say it once again; No bet against the Jets is a bad bet. The Dolphins were never going to win in altitude in Denver with a rookie QB. However, they will win on the road in New York, against a bad Jets team.

Denver Broncos over New Orleans Saints: Similar to above, the Saints got the win with Taysom Hill at home against a bad Falcons team. Now they travel to Denver and take on a Broncos’ team that is playing with some confidence. This is the upset of the week.

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Start:	December 12, 2024 @ 7:30 PM
Expert:	Tony George
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NFL Survivor Pool Picks and Advice: Week 12

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