Thursday’s Specials: Sub-par football, sub-par food, and another opportunity for the AFC West to prove its dominance. Happy Thanksgiving!

Packers at Lions (Early Afternoon)
Everyone loves to complain about the Thanksgiving matchups. I understand the protest. And yes, even I don’t think the Lions are very exciting to watch. However, it is Thanksgiving, not a Sunday afternoon. How many of us really have the time to fully invest our attention in a three hour football game? Not many. Thanksgiving Day football functions like summertime baseball. Sure, I’ll turn on the Phillies’ game every night but I won’t actually sit and watch it. The game’s on for background news as I hang out with friends or sit outside by the pool. Thanksgiving football serves the same purpose. Everyone’s hanging out, enjoying the festivities, and there’s a football game on the tube just in case the conversation turns to politics or why TLC was forced to cancel Jon and Kate Plus Hate. With that said, I’ll watch every single game. I even purchased the NFL Network for my dad so I don’t miss the nightcap. PACKERS

Raiders at Cowboys (Late Afternoon)
Now this I don’t understand. The Cowboys’ schedule is full of intriguing matchups. Why does the NFL stick us with the Oakland Raiders when there is no other game to watch? Give us the Chargers or an NFC East rival would you? Obviously, I’ll be rooting for the Raiders here. Maybe we’ll get lucky and one of Dallas’ players will channel his inner Leon Lett and do something so mind boggling that it will ultimately cost the Cowboys the game. Chances are slim, but hey, it’s a holiday. Crazy things can happen. For the sixth year in a row, I petitioned both my family and my in-laws to bag the traditional Turkey dinner for something more exciting like Salmon or Pizza. For the sixth year in a row, there were no takers. I’m in the minority here. I hate Thanksgiving food. While I’m very thankful to have such food available, I’m not a fan. Stuffing? No Thanks. Turkey? Only on a hoagie. Mashed potatoes? French Fries please. Casseroles? Dear God no. Pie? Ice cream is all I need. I really appreciate all the Indians and Pilgrims did hundreds of years ago. I just wish they ate something else. COWBOYS

Giants at Broncos (Evening)
What’s this? A potentially competitive Thanksgiving football game with playoff implications? Fantastic! The Giants saved their season last Sunday (barely). Traveling across the country on a short week to play another desperate team won’t be easy. Even at 6-0, I was never big on the Broncos. There’s a significant difference between winning games and not losing them. At the beginning of the season, Denver played solid football and made few mistakes. They’d hang around long enough to make one or two plays to steal a victory. Now, the Broncos are making costly mistakes on both sides of the ball and can’t make the big plays when opportunities arise. Players and coaches are frustrated, the quarterback is who we thought he was, and the defense is fatigued. Needless to say, the playoff outlook is not bright in Denver. The Giants’ outlook isn’t very promising either. Their highly touted running game of a year ago is long gone. The defense has allowed opposing offenses to march up and down the field in both victories and defeats. Everything that has made the Giants the Giants is non-existent. Luckily for New York, the NFC is mediocre for the 473^rd consecutive year, so they’ll be in the playoff mix even with a loss. At this point, I think the Broncos are the poorer poor team. GIANTS

Picks
Green Bay Packers (-9.5) at Detroit Lions (According to ESPN.com)
Oakland Raiders at Dallas Cowboys (-14)
New York Giants (-7) at Denver Broncos

(Lines as of 11/25, 4:52PM ET, from bodog)