It’s Thanksgiving week, and football fans can be thankful for a full slate of NFL games! There are no bye weeks this week, and all 32 teams will be in action.
This is a first-time NFL slate, with the league adding a Black Friday game in addition to the traditional Thanksgiving Day tripleheader.
That Black Friday game between the New York Jets and Miami Dolphins just misses our cut, but one of the Thanksgiving games is our Game of the Week. Before we get to that though, let’s highlight some of the top matchups on Sunday…
5. New England Patriots (2-8) at New York Giants (3-8)
Sunday, 1:00 p.m. ET on FOX
The Patriots and Giants are best known for playing classic Super Bowls against each other, but their meeting this year looks a little different. Some would argue the loser of this game is really the winner, picking up a key game on the path to a top draft pick.
The Giants are coming off a surprise win, having beat the Washington Commanders 31-19 last week. Third-string quarterback Tommy Devito started the game and threw three touchdown passes. Meanwhile the Patriots may be making a quarterback change, with Bill Belichick mum to start the week about Bailey Zappe possibly stepping in for the struggling Mac Jones.
Will the Patriots take one more step toward getting their long-term replacement quarterback? Or do the Giants come back down to earth after a big week last week? If New York can get a similar effort from Devito this week, Big Blue may be looking at a winning streak.
4. Cleveland Browns (7-3) at Denver Broncos (5-5)
Sunday, 4:05 p.m. ET on FOX
This Browns-Broncos matchup features two teams currently jockeying for position in the AFC Wild Card picture. Despite both teams having been written off at different points this year, they both remain in playoff contention into the second half of the season.
The Browns have lost two of their most important offensive players for the season. Running back Nick Chubb was lost to a knee injury early in the year, and just last week quarterback Deshaun Watson was ruled out for the year with a shoulder injury. Yet the Browns’ dominant defense continues to keep them in and is even winning them games, as was the case last week with a 13-10 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. It was the first win in the career of rookie fifth-round pick Dorian Thompson-Robinson.
Meanwhile, Denver is rolling after a 1-5 start. The Broncos have won four games in a row, most recently beating the also-hot Minnesota Vikings this past Sunday 21-20. That followed back-to-back wins over two AFC favorites in the Buffalo Bills and Philadelphia Eagles.
Denver’s defense will be a tough test for Thompson-Robinson. As was the case last week against Josh Dobbs, Cleveland should make things tough on the quarterback, giving the offense an opening to win the game.
3. Jacksonville Jaguars (7-3) at Houston Texans (6-4)
Sunday, 1:00 p.m. ET on CBS
First place in the AFC South is on the line Saturday afternoon when the Jaguars visit the Texans in a divisional battle. A Texans win would tie the two teams’ records for now, but because Houston won the first matchup of the year between the two teams, DeMeco Ryans’ squad would move into first place with the head-to-head tiebreaker.
The Texans won that game handily in Jacksonville, 37-17. Houston was outgained 404 yards to 366 in that game, but the defense forced a pair of key turnovers.
That game was two months ago, and both teams have grown a lot since. In particular, this will be a big test for rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud. Some have called Stroud a sleeper in the MVP race – a big performance in this game might help drop the ‘sleeper’ label from that tag.
2. Buffalo Bills (6-5) at Philadelphia Eagles (9-1)
Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET on CBS
After a couple of tough weeks, the Bills seemingly got back on track last week dismantling the Jets 32-6. Just how real was their bounce-back? We should find out this week, when they travel to visit the Eagles, who just knocked off the defending Super Bowl-winning champion Chiefs in Kansas City on Monday night.
Amid their struggles, the Bills fell out of the ranks of NFL contenders in recent weeks. If they want to prove they still belong in that group, a win over Philadelphia would be a massive statement. Do they have it in them to make that happen, though? Given the way this Eagles defense plays, their offensive limitations may be too much.
1. San Francisco 49ers (7-3) at Seattle Seahawks (6-4)
Even with their last-second 17-16 loss to the Los Angeles Rams last week, the Seahawks are still viewed as a surprise breakout team and playoff contender. Just how real is Seattle? We’ll find out over the next month as they begin a brutal stretch of their schedule that begins Thursday night against the 49ers, followed by games against the Cowboys, 49ers again, and then the Eagles.
The big question for Seattle in this one is the status of quarterback Geno Smith. Smith suffered an elbow injury in that Rams game, and missed most of the second half before returning late. He’s expected to play, but just how much he’ll be able to do remains a question.
Last year the 49ers swept the Seahawks, including a third win in the playoffs. That came after Seattle had won four games in a row head-to-head. Which team will pick up this rivalry win Thursday night – the first of the two meetings between the teams this year? With Smith banged up, this is a good spot for San Francisco.
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