NFL Week 12 - Turkey Day Recap + Sunday Preview

Aloha! I have been traipsing around the Big Island of Hawaii, so please excuse the lack of a turkey day football preview. Ten minutes of the Cowboys-Redskins game is the extent of exposure I've had to any live sports while on Hawaii Standard Time, but here's a little Turkey Day football knowledge for you - 

• There are three games that are played on Thanksgiving (Lions vs. ___, Cowboys vs. ___, & League Choice for the night/primetime game)
• The Lions have been hosting since the 30's
• The Cowboys have been hosting since the 60's
• The use of throwback jerseys happens frequently

As you prob already know, this past Thursday the Lions lost to the Texans in OT (31-34), the Cowboys lost to the Redskins (31-38), and the Patriots murdered the Jets (49-19).

SUNDAY
49ers - Smith or Kaepernick? This is THE big question of the week and will be scrutinized for the rest of the season by the entire league. The niner's starting QB Alex Smith suffered a concussion a couple weeks ago and was not cleared to play last week, so Colin Kaepernick stepped in and had an amazing game. Smith has a 19-5-1 record over the past two seasons, which is really good, so giving the start to a back-up QB (which is most likely going to happen) who had one great game is kind of F'ed...if I were Alex I'd be pissed. Oh, and I guess I should mention that the 49ers (7-2-1) are playing the Saints (5-5). The Saints are ranked 32nd in the league (AKA LAST PLACE) in defense and they have a couple injured players on their O-line. The Niners defense is ranked 2nd in the league and their outside linebacker Aldon Smith is scary good (just 2 sacks shy of tying a record you prob don't care about). Advantage def goes to the Niners. 

10AM Games

http://www.chicagotribune.com/media/photo/2012-11/73161307.jpg

Vikings (6-4) - Bears (7-3): These teams are vying for 1st place in the NFC North and they're playing each other twice in the next three weeks. The Bears are coming off a short week with an embarrassing loss to the Niners, but will have their starting QB Jay Cutler back. The Vikings have lost 10 of the last 11 games in Chicago, so they'll need to do a lot for history not to repeat itself.

Falcons (9-1) - Bucs (6-4): The Falcons obviously have a better record (and the edge in this game), but the Bucs are on a 4-game win streak. Watch their running game against the Falcon's struggling run defense; if the Bucs can expose this they may sneak up and upset the Falcons.

5PM Game
Packers (7-3) - Giants (6-4): As a 49ers fan I want both teams to lose :) I'm hoping for a tie, but wishful thinking aside, the Packers have won in New Jersey (Yes, the NY Giants play in NJ) the last four times. Also, Giant's QB Eli Manning hasn't thrown a TD since Week 7. So with Eli's latest suckitude and with Aaron Rodgers all-around awesomeness, I think the Packers will eke this one out. 

Don't worry, I'll soak up a little extra sun for you :)