NFL Week 13 picks: Colts, Broncos, and Seahawks
Lorenzo Reyes is back with his best bets for NFL Week 13 games, including Thursday’s Thanksgiving slate.
Lorenzo’s Locks
Thanksgiving week in the NFL sees all 32 teams in action but spread out over four days instead of the usual three. A trio of holiday matchups on Thursday preceded the new Black Friday football tradition, putting more emphasis on the week leading up to Sunday’s slate.
Still, there are plenty of good games on Sunday. Divisional games in the AFC North, AFC South, and NFC South could determine who wins those divisions. There’s also a matchup between two of the best teams in the NFL this season, the Baltimore Ravens and the Philadelphia Eagles.
Most of these matchups are expected to be close affairs. There are only a few with odds that we would like to bet against the spread. Last week, we went 2-1 in our picks against the spread, thanks to close games in Carolina and Chicago.
Here are our three picks against the spread for Week 13 with odds from BetMGM:
Best picks against the spread NFL Week 13
Seattle Seahawks (-2) at New York Jets
Seattle just knocked off another divisional opponent in Week 12 with a 16-6 win over the favored Arizona Cardinals. Now, the Seahawks head out on the road with a chance to beat the spread again, thanks to their defense.
Seattle’s allowing under 300 yards per game since the Week 10 bye. It is a small sample size, but it came against two good offensive play callers in San Francisco (Kyle Shanahan) and Arizona (Drew Petzing). New York is coming off a bye but has lost seven of their last eight games. Even if they keep things close, the Seahawks are 3-1 in one-score games this season. Seattle’s getting hot at the right time, while the Jets are facing more questions about the future.
Best upset picks of NFL Week 13
Carolina Panthers (+6) vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Another week, another Panthers pick against the spread. Yes, Tampa Bay looked dominant against the reeling Giants, but Carolina played Kansas City closer than most in Week 12. The Panthers will stay home again this week against the Buccaneers, opening the door again for a close game between NFC South opponents.
The Buccaneers offense has been impressive this season despite losing top wideouts Chris Godwin and Mike Evans to injury, the former for the whole season. However, Panthers head coach Dave Canales is familiar with the Buccaneers organization from his time as offensive coordinator there last season. His knowledge, how fiercely the Panthers played last week, and Bryce Young’s improvement could keep this one close.
Like last week against the Chiefs, we don’t expect Carolina to win, but this feels more like a three- or four-point margin, not six.
Pittsburgh Steelers (+3) at Cincinnati Bengals
Yes, the Steelers just lost their third game of the season to the worst team in the division, the Cleveland Browns. But did you see the conditions they were playing in? It’s hard enough reason to make them 3-point underdogs against one of the worst defenses in the league this season.
Cincinnati is fresh off a bye, but the Steelers had extra time thanks to playing on Thursday night last week. Pittsburgh held Baltimore, one of the two best offenses in the league, to 16 points the week prior. The Bengals’ top-ranked passing game is not too tough a task.