We know what we’re thankful for on this Thanksgiving week, and that’s a whole heck of a lot of football betting action! Here at Bankroll Sports, we are analyzing the Week 12 NFL odds and making our NFL Week 12 picks for the best games on the docket for the week ahead.

Of course, we have to start on Thanksgiving Day, where there are a lot of road teams that are showing some tremendous promise. In fact, in a somewhat rare twist, all six of the teams that are going to be playing on Turkey Day this year at least have a puncher’s chance at making the playoffs.

First timers of Thanksgiving Day football, the Houston Texans are going to be taking on the Detroit Lions at Ford Field. These are two teams that are headed in opposite directions right now, as the Texans are as hot as could be, while the Lions have dropped two in a row and might be in some massive trouble when push comes to shove. This is probably a must win for Detroit, especially with the NFL schedule that lies ahead, but matters don’t really look all that good for it, knowing that it is a three-point home dog to a superior Houston outfit.

The Cowboys are the other regulars on Thanksgiving Day, but the difference between them and the Lions is that they generally win. Detroit generally loses. The Cowboys are the only of the three home teams that are favored on Thanksgiving Day, as they are giving 3.5 to the Washington Redskins. The winner of this one is going to be in second place in the NFC East, while the loser will drop to third. Both teams are still chasing the Giants though, and both know that this is a great chance this week to try to cut the deficit in the division.

The last game of the night features the New England Patriots and the New York Jets. This clash ended with a New England victory in overtime the first time out this year, and both are gearing up for another close one. The Pats opened this one up at -6.5 before the news that TE Rob Gronkowski might miss the rest of the regular season with a broken forearm. Odds have it, the adjustment will be minor, but definitely will be at least in the backs of the minds of NFL bettors before they place their football bets in this one.

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Sunday’s slate of action still has a lot of question marks at the moment. The Chicago Bears and Pittsburgh Steelers still don’t know what the heck is going on with QB Jay Cutler and QB Ben Roethlisberger respectively, though we have a hunch that both will sit. The Bears take on the Minnesota Vikings in a crucial game that will likely help decide whether either of these teams are going to be able to hang around for the rest of the year. Pittsburgh faces the Cleveland Browns in a sandwich game between the loss to the Ravens and the road game in Baltimore in lucky Week 13.

The showcase game of the weekend will be one of the late afternoon games. The San Francisco 49ers — most likely with QB Alex Smith — are going to have to go on the road to the Bayou to take on the New Orleans Saints, who are quietly back to .500 and quietly just a game out of the playoffs after a disastrous 0-4 start to the season. Interim Head Coach Joe Vitt knows that this is probably the biggest coaching game of his career, and he very well could be auditioning for another big time job here in the spotlight of Sunday night. The game has opened at a pick ’em, and it should be quite a great battle between arguably the best offense and arguably the best defense in the conference.

Not to be outdone is Sunday Night Football between the New York Giants and the Green Bay Packers. The G-Men are in control of the NFC East, but regardless of what happens on Thursday in Big D, the gap in the division will be a heck of a lot tighter if this one is lost. QB Eli Manning has played terrible football of late, while QB Aaron Rodgers continues to impress and might be the best quarterback that football has to offer. This is a rematch of the NFC Divisional playoff game from last year, one in which the G-Men came to Lambeau Field and beat the snot out of the Packers. Especially off of their bye week, this is why New York is laying 2.5 to Green Bay.

Unfortunately, the week ends with a dud of a game on Monday Night Football, as the Philadelphia Eagles host the Carolina Panthers. Both Head Coach Andy Reid and Head Coach Ron Rivera know that they are on some pretty hot seats right now, and the loser of this one is only going to be in worse shape. QB Nick Foles is almost certainly going to have to start once again in place of the injured QB Michael Vick, but there is still a supreme confidence that Philly, even after that dismal showing last week in our nation’s capitol, will be able to come up with a win. Philly is -2.5 against the Panthers.

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The theme of the week is close NFL point spreads. There are only three games all week long that showcase games that are featuring teams that are greater than -3.5. The Cincinnati Bengals are getting the nod by 7.5 over the Oakland Raiders in their quest for the postseason, while the team at the head of the class in the AFC West, the Denver Broncos, are the biggest favorites of the week at -10 on the road against the hapless Kansas City Chiefs.

Aside from that though, everything is expected to be close. Potential AFC playoff teams are seemingly all going on the road this weekend. We’ve already discussed New England and Houston, but they clearly aren’t the only team that might have some problems on enemy soil. The Baltimore Ravens visit the San Diego Chargers and are laying 2.5 points, while the Steelers should be short favorites against the Browns as discussed earlier. Meanwhile, that could open the door for the Indianapolis Colts to get back in control in the AFC Wild Card race, as it hosts the Buffalo Bills. If the Bills are going to get back into the chase though, this is a game that has to be won. The oddsmakers are insinuating that this could be close though, knowing that the visitors are only getting a field goal after watching Indy get blown away by the Patriots last weekend.

The other major showcase game in the NFC this weekend sees the Tampa Bay Buccaneers going against the Atlanta Falcons. This is a tremendous opportunity for Tampa Bay to assert itself as a legitimate player in the role for the NFC title this year. The team is lined at a pick ’em to open up the week at home against arguably one of the best few teams in the league. The Falcons have been undervalued all year long though, and all they keep doing is winning. Still, they’re 9-1, and many have to think that they are going to get beaten in this one by a truly surging team.

The highest ‘total’ of the weekend thus far on the board is the 52.5 of the Bills and the Colts. In all likelihood, that will hold, and it might be the only ‘total’ that settles in the 50s this week. However, the Jets and Patriots started off the week at 50 as well. There are two games in the 30s as well, neither of which we have discussed quite yet. The Miami Dolphins and the Seattle Seahawks are expected to reach just 37.5 points, while the Hawks are laying a point and a half on the road. The Arizona Cardinals, giving two to the St. Louis Rams in the desert, also only figure to play in a game that features just 37.5 points.

2012 NFL Week 12 Odds @ Bet Guardian Sportsbook (as of 11/19/12):
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Week 12 NFL Betting Odds for Thursday, November 22nd
103 Houston Texans -3.5
104 Detroit Lions +3.5
Over/Under 48.5

105 Washington Redskins +3.5
106 Dallas Cowboys -3.5
Over/Under 47

107 New England Patriots -7
108 New York Jets +7
Over/Under 48

Week 12 NFL Spreads for Sunday, November 25th (1:00 ET Kickoffs)
221 Oakland Raiders +9.5
222 Cincinnati Bengals -9.5
Over/Under 50.5

223 Pittsburgh Steelers -1
224 Cleveland Browns +1
Over/Under 34.5

225 Buffalo Bills +3
226 Indianapolis Colts -3
Over/Under 50.5

227 Denver Broncos -10
228 Kansas City Chiefs +10
Over/Under 44

229 Tennessee Titans -4
230 Jacksonville Jaguars +4
Over/Under 44.5

231 Minnesota Vikings +6
232 Chicago Bears -6
Over/Under 38.5

233 Atlanta Falcons -1
234 Tampa Bay Buccaneers +1
Over/Under 50.5

235 Seattle Seahawks -2.5
236 Miami Dolphins +2.5
Over/Under 37.5

NFL Week 12 Betting Lines for Sunday, November 25th (4:00 ET Kickoffs)
237 Baltimore Ravens -1
238 San Diego Chargers +1
Over/Under 47

239 San Francisco 49ers -1
240 New Orleans Saints +1
Over/Under 49

241 St. Louis Rams +1
242 Arizona Cardinals -1
Over/Under 37

Sunday Night Football Week 12 Odds for Sunday, November 25th
243 Green Bay Packers +3
244 New York Giants -3
Over/Under 50.5

Monday Night Football Week 12 Lines for Monday, November 26th
245 Carolina Panthers -3
246 Philadelphia Eagles +3
Over/Under 40.5