2021 NFL picks, score predictions for Week 12

Las Vegas Raiders (5-5) at Dallas Cowboys (7-3)

Thursday, November 25, 4:30PM ET

Apparently the Kansas City Chiefs are back, because they put a real hurting on the Dallas Cowboys in Week 11. Holding the top-ranked offense to only nine points is certainly impressive. Still, I don’t think the Cowboys are going to stay down long after taking that punch to the gut.

It also helps that they’ve got the Las Vegas Raiders coming to town. In case you missed it, the Raiders have been a bit out of sorts as of late. They’ve lost their last three games, and continue to crumble in pressure situations. The off-field drama may have just been too much for this franchise to handle in 2021.

Either way, the odds of the Raiders upsetting the Cowboys on Thanksgiving Day seem long at best. Dallas’ offense will be revving for a chance at redemption, and their defense isn’t going to give Derek Carr an inch. More than likely, this could be an ugly game for Las Vegas that sees fans turning the channel before the third quarter is over.

Despite the ugly loss, the Cowboys are still one of the best teams in the NFC. We’ll see evidence of that on Thanksgiving, when they stuff the football down the Las Vegas defense’s throat and send the Raiders packing like a bunch of bloated, over-full relatives.

Prediction: Cowboys win 41-17 | Spread: Cowboys (-7)