First things first, I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving with friends, family or whomever else you may have spent the day with.

As I’m sure some of you noticed, I did not put out my column last week. Was it because I was tired of coming up short in my quest for a winning week? Not entirely. I was back home in the Chicagoland area enjoying a few days off with my family and friends for the holiday. Truthfully, I wish I was able to make it back home more often. I don’t see them as much as I would like to.

I also spent all of Sunday driving back into town, so for the first time this season, I missed a good 90% of the NFL Sunday. Because of that, I feel naked. I feel out of the loop. That is just not something that happens to me very often. I’ve watched as many highlights as possible to try to catch myself up, but it’s just not the same.

Luckily for me, I spent a nice chunk of Friday as well as my entire Saturday watching the final regular season weekend of college football.

Rightfully so, most of the attention around here was on The Game between Michigan and Ohio State as well as the heated rivalry surrounding Notre Dame and USC. However, there were two games on opposite ends of the country that really got my attention.

The first contest took place on Friday night and was for the right to hoist The Florida Cup. Florida and Florida State played an incredibly exciting game that featured prolific offensive play for all four quarters. The Seminoles ended up walking away with a 45-38 victory after stopping the Gators in the red zone late.

Perhaps even more exciting, at least for the first three quarters, was the Apple Cup battle between Washington and Washington State on Saturday night. For those willing to stay up into the wee hours of Sunday morning, this game was the perfect end to a busy day across the sport. It was the total definition of a track meet, especially in the first half, as both teams seemingly tried to follow up their previous touchdown drive by scoring quicker than before. Former Indiana standout Michael Penix Jr. was phenomenal, throwing for 485 yards and accounting for 5 touchdowns for the Huskies in their 51-33 victory. Perhaps the most exciting part of this one, for me at least, was sitting alongside two friends that had bet on Washington and seeing their reactions as the chaos ensued.

Unfortunately, Rivalry Weekend is perhaps the most bittersweet weekend in the sport. You get all of these great matchups and more times than not the games deliver. But when the smoke clears, only a fraction of these teams will be playing again next weekend for conference championships, and bowls are still weeks away. Thank goodness my Missouri Tigers roasted some Hog on Friday and became bowl eligible by beating the Arkansas Razorbacks.

A fun fact. When I was at my freshman initiation at Mizzou, they had already been members of the SEC for a couple of seasons. (Many know that Missouri’s biggest rival is the Kansas Jayhawks, which is one of the most brutal rivalries in the history of college sports. It goes back much further than that too. I suggest a deep dive.) Anyways, since joining the SEC, Mizzou does not have the yearly contest with Kansas anymore. They play Arkansas in the “Battle Line Rivalry.” At my initiation, upperclassmen tried to sell the rivalry to us by explaining that Arkansas has the word Kansas in it. I’ve never looked at that state the same way.

Well… while working on this introduction, I’ve just gotten a notification on my phone that longtime White Sox José Abreu is officially leaving the team to sign a three-year deal with the Houston Astros. This hurts. A lot. Paul Konerko was my hero as a kid, but I grew up with Abreu leading the Sox through many bad years, always hoping there was a light at the end of the tunnel and that he could win a championship as our captain one day. He was always the one bright spot on a ton of bad teams and I could probably write an entire column based on my favorite moments of his. I joked about how upset I’d be if he joined the Cubs a few weeks ago, but seeing him actually gone now has hit me in a way I didn’t expect. I’m heartbroken. Thank you for everything, Pito.

That wraps things up on my end. I’m going to attempt a format change to the picks this week. I’m still going to pick every game, but I’m only going to give a sentence or two on why I think each team is going to win. If I’m having a hard time, I’m going to flip a coin. Going extremely in depth hasn’t done me any favors.

THURSDAY NIGHT

Buffalo Bills (-4) at New England Patriots

Both teams played on Thanksgiving and the Patriots might have played better despite losing their game to Minnesota. We have not seen an impressive version of the Bills since mid-October. I never get the Thursday night game anyways, so we go to the coin.

The Pick: Bills -4

1 O’CLOCK SUNDAY

Green Bay Packers (-4) at Chicago Bears

Both starting quarterbacks are questionable going into this one and the Bears have the worst defense in the league. If Justin Fields can’t go this is going to be a bloodbath. Hope I’m wrong but I just don’t see it happening this week.

The Pick: Packers -4

Cleveland Browns (-7) at Houston Texans

The Texans are tanking like nobody else in the league. The Browns will finally see what Deshaun Watson looks like under center after almost two years away from the game. I could see Watson coming out a little rusty but Houston is so bad it might not matter.

The Pick: Browns -7

Jacksonville Jaguars (-1.5) at Detroit Lions

Trevor Lawrence had the game that finally made him look like he could be a generational quarterback against Baltimore Sunday, but Detroit has been playing some of its best ball recently. The Lions are better at home and Jacksonville has struggled stringing wins together.

The Pick: Lions +1.5

Pittsburgh Steelers at Atlanta Falcons (-1)

Kenny Pickett is improving week by week for the Steelers and just had what was perhaps his best game as a pro so far against the Colts on Monday night. On the other side, the Falcons might be starting to fall back down to Earth. Looking for T.J. Watt and George Pickens to have big games in this one.

The Pick: Steelers +1.5

New York Jets at Minnesota Vikings (-3)

Mike White completely revitalized the Jets offense in place of Zach Wilson last weekend, while the Vikings are coming off a mini-bye after winning on Thanksgiving. I wonder if White will continue his success or if it came because he was playing against the Bears. Vikings keep it going at home.

The Pick: Vikings -3

Washington Commanders (-1.5) at New York Giants

These two seven-win teams are trending in opposite directions coming into this one. Washington is one of the hottest teams in the league, winning six of its last seven games, while the Giants have dropped three of four, with the one win coming against Houston. I would think these trends keep continuing, but what do I know?

The Pick: Commanders -1.5

Tennessee Titans at Philadelphia Eagles (-5.5)

Not much more needs to be said about the Philadelphia offense. Very few quarterbacks are playing better than Jalen Hurts right now. The Eagles do have a rather poor run defense however, and the Titans have the best running back in the game. This is going to be a close one. The Pick: Titans +5.5

Denver Broncos at Baltimore Ravens (-8.5)

They’re going to have to do studies to figure out what the heck happened to Russell Wilson. I would usually say that this is too many points in the NFL, but Denver STINKS. I honestly don’t think the Ravens are all that either, but whatever. Time for the coin. Gross, the coin likes Denver.

The Pick: Broncos +8.5

LATE AFTERNOON SLATE

Seattle Seahawks (-7) at Los Angeles Rams

Before the year started, did any of you think we’d get this spread at any point this season? The Rams are slumping to the finish line while Seattle has dropped its last two and is looking to get back on track. Picking against the Rams has actually been the one trend that’s worked for me this year.

The Pick: Seahawks -7

Miami Dolphins at San Francisco 49ers (-3.5)

This is the game I’m most excited for this week. Miami boasts the league’s best offense and the Niners have the league’s best defense. This should be a really good one and I don’t know who’s going to win. There’s only one thing left to do. To the coin!

The Pick: Dolphins +3.5

Los Angeles Chargers (-1.5) at Las Vegas Raiders

The Chargers have gotten better over the past few weeks, as have the Raiders. Josh Jacobs is positioned for another huge day against a rough Chargers run defense, but I think Los Angeles has enough guys playing to get the job done.

The Pick: Chargers -1.5

Kansas City Chiefs (-2.5) at Cincinnati Bengals

This is another great game coming to you late in the afternoon. The Chiefs will surely want some revenge for the Bengals knocking them out of the playoffs last year, but Cincy is heating up similar to last year’s run. I think this is going to be a close game, with the winner going either way.

The Pick: Bengals +2.5

WAITIN’ ALL DAY FOR A SUNDAY NIGHT

Indianapolis Colts at Dallas Cowboys (-10.5)

It’s a short week for Indy and the team is facing off against a top defensive unit in the league. This could get ugly fast as long as Dallas plays to its potential. With the Cowboys coming off a few days of extra rest, I like Dak and the Boys at home.

The Pick: Cowboys -10.5

MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL

New Orleans Saints at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (-3.5)

Both of these teams have been nearly impossible to judge this season. A good performance one week leads to a laid egg the next. I want no part of picking this game but I have no choice. Good thing I have my trusty coin here to help me out.

The Pick: Saints +3.5

From the initial run, it’s clear that the coin has a soft spot for the underdogs. Hopefully it doesn’t steer me wrong. I hope you all enjoy the new format and have a great week. At least if I get a bunch wrong this week I didn’t waste an extra thousand words doing so. If the coin starts heating up I might have to start worrying about my job. Until we meet again next week, cheers.