The NFL season has started but how do you know which games to watch and which to skip? Ask our favorite police duo with their good cop, bad cop precaps of all the matchups in the National Football League this weekend. To see which games will be televised in your area, check out 506sports.com’s essential NFL maps.
Week 12
Sunday, November 23, at 1:00 p.m. ET
Cleveland Browns at Atlanta Falcons
Good cop: The Browns are only one half game out of first place in their division and the Falcons are tied for first place in theirs! As we get closer to the end of the season, the margin for error gets smaller and smaller!
Bad cop: All that is true but what you’re glossing over is that the 6-4 Browns are tied for last place in their division while the 4-6 Falcons are tied for first in theirs. Divisions are stupid.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Chicago Bears
Good cop: These teams both had big wins last week to keep their seasons alive!
Bad cop: Alive but in a persistent vegetative state.
Cincinnati Bengals at Houston Texans
Good cop: These teams have shown themselves to be adaptable survivors this year! The Texans are on their second quarterback of the year and may be missing their best running back too! The Bengals were without their best offensive player for more than a month! These teams show how football is a true team game!
Bad cop: It’s a team game but that doesn’t mean you can win the Super Bowl without stars. These teams don’t have stars.
Detroit Lions at New England Patriots
Good cop: I can’t wait to see this game! The Lions have a top three defense this year but no one is smarter at figuring out how to attack defenses than Patriots coach Bill Bellichick and quarterback Tom Brady!
Bad cop: I got nothing.
Green Bay Packers at Minnesota Vikings
Good cop: The Vikings are building a new stadium, so this year they are playing outdoors on the University of Minnesota’s field! That means these two NFC North division rivals will get to play a cold-weather home game in Minnesota! Old-school!
Bad cop: If the Vikings defense manages to even dirty Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ jersey a little bit, I’ll be surprised.
Jacksonville Jaguars at Indianapolis Colts
Good cop: Young quarterbacks Andrew Luck and Blake Bortles might be rivals for the next decade or more!
Bad cop: True. And maybe one day it will be a good rivalry, but for now I’m guessing we’ll see another game like the one between them earlier in the year when the Colts beat the Jaguars 44 to 17.
Tennesse Titans at Philadelphia Eagles
Good cop: The Eagles try to get back on track after their blow-out loss to the Packers last weekend!
Bad cop: And if they can’t beat the Titans, watch out for the Philly fans to pelt the field with boos, bottles, and batteries. That’s how bad the Titans are. That’s how they do in Philly.
SUNDAY, November 23, AT 4:05 and 4:25 P.M. ET
St. Louis Rams at San Diego Chargers
Good cop: The Rams are giant killers! They specialize in bringing strong teams to their knees! Their last three wins have been against the excellent Broncos, 49ers, and Seahawks! Let’s see if they can keep it going against the Chargers!
Bad cop: I’m not sure that I’d label the Chargers as an excellent team. In fact, I’m sure I wouldn’t. The Chargers’ last four games have been a close win over the Raiders, close losses to the Chiefs and Broncos, and a terrible loss to the Dolphins. The Chargers are just bad enough to easily beat the Rams.
Arizona Cardinals at Seattle Seahawks
Good cop: If the Seahawks lose this game, they’re morally eliminated (as opposed to mathematically) from catching the Cardinals for the division title! They’re gonna play hard!
Bad cop: Of course they will. Professional football players are paid to play hard. That said, you’re right, I think this will be a good game too. Which, means it will probably be terrible. Might as well just skip it.
Miami Dolphins at Denver Broncos
Good cop: The Dolphins are one of the hottest teams in the league over the last two months! Their only two losses in that time were three or four point losses to quality teams! Meanwhile, the Broncos just lost a stunner to the Rams! I think the Dolphins have a shot here!
Bad cop: Facing a pissed off Peyton Manning at home in Denver? I don’t think so.
Washington Redskins at San Francisco 49ers
Good cop: The two biggest soap-operas of the 2014 season face each other in a football game! How could you miss this?!
Bad cop: Daytime television at its worst.
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 23, AT 8:30 P.M. ET
Dallas Cowboys at New York Giants
Good cop: The Giants are the most dangerous kind of rival — the rival with nothing to play for except your demise! Watch out Cowboys!
Bad cop: The Cowboys are the most dangerous kind of rival — the rival that’s better than you. Watch something else.
MONDAY, November 24, AT 7:00 and 8:30 P.M. ET
New York Jets vs. Buffalo Bills in Detroit
Good cop: Fresh off their good deeds, the Buffalo Bills travel to Detroit to cheer up their fans with a victory!
Bad cop: I have to say, after 9+ feet of snow in a week, I do hope the people of Buffalo get their power back in time to see their team beat the Jets.
Baltimore Ravens at New Orleans Saints
Good cop: Despite their up and down seasons, these two teams are still in the drivers seat to make the playoffs… if they can win this game!
Bad cop: I like the driving metaphor. The Ravens are stuck in a traffic jam in the AFC North division. The Saints are close to the head of the pack in the tricycle race that is the NFC South.