LITTLE ROCK — All times CentralTexans at Lions
11:30 a.m., CBS 1 LINE - Texans by 3 /2LAST MEETING Houston beat Detroit 28-21, Oct. 19, 2008 LAST WEEK Houston beat Jacksonville 43-37 OT; Detroit lost to Green Bay 24-20 RANKINGS Texans: offense (6), defense (4); Lions: offense (2), defense (10) NOTES Houston only NFL team that can clinch spot in playoffs with victory and losses from handful of other teams. Texans have won 4 in a row overall and are 4-0 on road. Texans looking for first 10-1 start in 10-year history and second consecutive postseason for first time. QB Matt Schaub AFC offensive player of week after completing 43 passes for 527 yards, both totals tied for second most in NFL history, and team-record 5 touchdown passes in OT victory over Jacksonville. ... Detroit QB Matthew Stafford coming off one of worst games, connecting on 43.6 percent of 39 passes with 2 interceptions and 1 fumble in loss to Green Bay. Lions leaving WR Titus Young inactive for week after Coach Jim Schwartz said second-year pro had “unacceptable” behavior against Packers. Lions rookie LT Riley Reiff, first-round pick, expected to make start in place of Jeff Backus, whose injured right hamstring likely to end 186-game starting streak. Lions, playing 73rd game on Thanksgiving, have lost 8 in a row and 11 of last 12 in their annual showcase.
Redskins at Cowboys 3:15 p.m., FOX 1 LINE - Dallas by 3 /2LAST MEETING Dallas beat Washington 27-24 OT, Nov. 20, 2011 LAST WEEK Washington beat Philadelphia 31-6; Dallas beat Cleveland 23-20 OT RANKINGS Redskins: offense (8), defense (26); Cowboys: offense (tied 11th), defense (7) NOTES Washington 0-6 against Dallas on Thanksgiving Day. QB Robert Griffin III last week became first rookie in NFL with 200 yards passing, 4 passing touchdowns and 75 yards rushing in same game. Griffin played one college game at Cowboys Stadium (Nov. 26, 2011) when he completed 7 of 11 passes for 106 yards and 1 touchdown, and ran 14 times for 62 yards and 2 scores in first half for Baylor against Texas Tech. He didn’t return in second half because of concussion-like symptoms. Griffin needs 145 yards passing to break Norm Snead’s team rookie record of 2,337 set in 1961. Only 94 yards shy of breaking Cam Newton’s NFL rookie QB singleseason rushing record of 706. ... Dallas QB Tony Romo 5-0 on Thanksgiving Day with 14 touchdowns and 4 interceptions. Danny White is only Cowboys starting QB with more Thanksgiving Day victories (7). Dallas has won 3 in a row, and 6 of 7, in series. Cowboys’ 62 victories over Redskins most over any team.
Patriots at Jets 7:20 p.m., NBC LINE - Patriots by 7LAST MEETING New England beat New York 29-26 OT, Oct. 21 LAST WEEK New England beat Indianapolis 59-24; New York beat St. Louis 27-13 RANKINGS Patriots: offense (1), defense (28); Jets: offense (29), defense (14) NOTES New England playing on Thanksgiving for fifth time, going 2-2 in previous appearances. New York playing on holiday for second time in three years and is 1-3 on Thanksgiving - but went 3-0 from 1960-62 as New York Titans of AFL. In last meeting, Patriots LB Rob Ninkovich forced and recovered fumble by Jets QB Mark Sanchez to seal OT victory. Since 2010 season, Patriots combined 18-0 in second half of regular season, including 8-0 in both 2010 and 2011. Patriots Coach Bill Belichick needs one victory to become eighth NFL coach to record 200 victories. QB Tom Brady 4-0 with 10 touchdowns and 1 interception in past four regular-season games against Jets. He’s 17-5 overall vs. New York, including New England’s playoff loss in 2010 postseason. ... Since top WR Santonio Holmes was lost for season against San Francisco in Week 4, Jeremy Kerley leads Jets with 30 catches, 393 yards receiving and 13.1 yards per catch. Backup QB Tim Tebow has been used only in limited role this season, seeing just 3 snaps on offense last week.
Sports, Pages 31 on 11/22/2012