10 Bold Predictions For NFL Week 13

The Philadelphia Eagles and the Seattle Seahawks will fly over their opponents on Thanksgiving Day. Philly’s offense hasn’t missed a beat since Mark Sanchez took over at quarterback, and Jeremy Maclin will rack up over 125 receiving yards. The nightcap will pit two underachieving offenses, but it will be the defending champs who knock off their arch-rival San Francisco thanks to a career game from Russell Wilson.

One bright spot from last week’s 23-3 loss to the Colts was the pressure the Jaguars put on Andrew Luck, sacking him five times. Chris Clemons led the charge with a hat trick of takedowns; he will play a central role in Week 13. In addition to pressuring Eli Manning, the Jaguars will utilize the electric Denard Robinson against the Giants’ 31st-ranked run defense.

This won’t be the first time this season that the Bengals won’t take care of business against an NFC South team in regulation. But unlike in Week 6 against the Panthers, Cincy will prevail in overtime. Mike Evans will have another great outing, but A.J. Green will outplay him down the stretch and boost the Bengals to their eighth win of the year.

In a matchup of two of the league’s most prolific passers of the past decade, the Saints will snap a three-game losing streak. Of course, this will be an aerial affair, as Drew Brees and Ben Roethlisberger are the NFL’s third and fourth-ranked quarterbacks in terms of passing yards. Kenny Stills will continue his ascendance with big plays in the second half.

Oct. 16 was the last time the Patriots’ margin of victory was less than 22 points. That streak, as well as their seven-game stretch of wins, is under threat this week as they travel to Lambeau Field. However, expect the Patriots to go back to the ground game against the Packers’ 30th-ranked run defense. The one-two roundhouse punch of LeGarrette Blount and Jonas Gray will be too much for Green Bay.

Not only is this Chiefs team playing in their hostile home environment, but they are also emotionally charged following the scary loss of Eric Berry for the season to a mass in his chest. Dwayne Bowe will be the first Kansas City wide receiver to catch a touchdown pass this season as the Chiefs hand the Broncos their third loss in five games.

The Buffalo secondary is no joke (they rank fifth in passing yards allowed), but expect another week of practice with Brian Hoyer to pay off for Gordon. With Jordan Cameron likely returning this week, Gordon won’t be the only guy the Bills will have on their mind. Any and all one-on-one matchups that Gordon gets will mean good things.

Mark these words: Munnerlyn will snag a Cam Newton pass and take it back for six. Munnerlyn’s former teammate, Josh Norman, called him out this week in the media, so you can bet that the veteran is eager to exact some vengeance. He’s no stranger to the end zone: He’s logged five career pick-sixes, including two in each of the past two seasons. He’s about due for one.

Fully rested after last Thursday night’s tense victory, the Raiders come to St. Louis hoping to continue building. If the Rams’ loss to San Diego last week taught us anything, it’s that Shaun Hill holds this team back. Look for the Raiders to force several turnovers, including one by the old man Charles Woodson, as they win their second consecutive game.

Mettenberger has quietly been putting together a nice rookie season. Last week, he put up his first 300-yard performance, and the LSU product hasn’t thrown more interceptions than touchdowns in any game. But true accolades won’t come until Mettenberger has actually earned a victory, which will happen this Sunday against a slumping Texans team.