Be Thankful: it’s the NFL weekend!
Thanksgiving weekend brings a lot of things to the table: good food, good company, and amazing shopping deals that slash prices down to next to nothing.
This year however, Thanksgiving is set to smash world records as the best of the best American football rivalries come to a head in the NFL weekend line-up. Not sure where you should stand? Here’s a quick overview of what’s going to go down.
The Chicago Bears and the Detroit Lions have been rivals ever since the Lions were known as the Portsmouth Spartans, way back in 1930! The Spartans beat the Bears 7-6 in their first meet up in October, but a week later, the Bears got their own back with a stinging 14-6 victory over the Spartans. In total, the teams have had over 177 meetings.
Last time the Bears played the Lions was on November 11th, with a 34-22 victory to the Bears, adding salt to the proverbial wound for the Lions, who have been struggling continuously this season. For three years running, the Lions won every match against the Bears until 2017, barring a singular win by the Bears in 2016.
This season, the Lions are struggling to gain back momentum after having lost to the Minnesota Vikings. Historically, the Lions have pulled it back before: they’ve won 9/10 of their meetings, but the Bears have the home advantage at 3-1 at home, with a 12.3 points-per-game rate.
The Chicago Bears are strong contenders to win this one, adding on to their previous victory in November 11th.
The Washington Redskins and the Dallas Cowboys have a legendary, filmic rivalry and this NFL weekend could reach boiling-point for a half-century’s worth of bad blood. The Cowboys and the Redskins are known for their off-field skirmishes, and while the Cowboys currently hold a two-game lead over the Redskins it’ll be a hard win for the Cowboys unless they can knock the Redskins off their defensive game.
Furthermore, Adrian Peterson gives the Redskins a pretty good chance of pulling off a win despite the Cowboys’ lead in Week 10 – he’s managed a 99 yard run on 24 occasions and could be set to break 100 yards this weekend.
If the Redskins win this match, it’ll be the third consecutive home-turf win this year. That’s more and more incentive for them to play their best and really amp up their defense.
The Atlanta Falcons and the New Orleans Saints are masters of the bad-blood rivalry craft. Founded one year apart in the Deep South, they’ve been vying to be the ultimate team in the region for the last forty years, and this time should be no different. 99 meetings later, the Atlanta Falcons hold the all-time series lead 52-47 to the New Orleans Saints, as well as a 3-2 lead for the NFL Super Bowl.
The Saints look like clear contenders for their fourth consecutive win on the road. Brees’ 11-8 lead over MVP Matt Ryan, in addition to his 13 touchdowns and maximum of 30 incompletions, means that this game could be a short, sharp, victory for the Saints. Add in the Falcons’ sudden onslaught of injuries, and the odds for the Falcons drop even further.
Don’t write them off yet, though! Matt Ryan’s skills should not be underestimated, and the Atlanta Falcons could still pull off a last stand in their long-time blood feud.
There’s a lot to consider if you’re going to back one of these teams: historically, all these rivalries have wins on both sides of the table, and the long-running feuds between them means that they’re well versed in each other’s tactics, both defensive and offensive.
Furthermore, with the exception of the Atlanta Falcons vs the New Orleans Saints match, the winning teams can still surprise viewers with a victory or a loss out of the left field.
Mr Green will be constantly updating the odds on these three games, with LIVE betting options! So, check in often, and place your bets before the turkey’s out of the oven!
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