The Atlanta Falcons are squarely in the middle of the pack among wild card contenders in the NFC this season, with the possibility of beating New Orleans in December for the NFC South Division title still in play. Things are cloudy on the playoff forecast front, so here's a handy guide as to who you should be pulling for this Turkey Day.
(Wait, did you just say your "fantasy team, that's who?" Get out. Get out now.)
Packers at Lions (12:30 p.m. ET, FOX) Correct Cheering: "GO PACK GO!" and/or "HEY AARON, LET'S PLAY IN TRAFFIC!"
Green Bay might drop a game or two down the stretch, but with the Bears losing Jay Cutler, they're in no danger whatsoever of losing the NFC North lead, and likely the overall No. 1 seed in the NFC. Detroit, meanwhile, might be rivaling Buffalo for best second-half free fall. The good news is that unlike the Bears, Atlanta has the head to head advantage over the Lions with a win last month. Still, an extra loss wouldn't hurt, and since we're above cheering for injuries, a particular defensive lineman for Detroit exacting mafia hits on Green Bay's skill position players is just too classless a scenario to ever daydream about.....Suuuuh....
Dolphins at Cowboys (4:15 p.m. ET, CBS) Correct Cheering: "GO FISHES GO."
Regardless of the ever-present conspiracy theory that Cowboys owner Jerry Jones violated common decency and a large pile of business ethics than usual in pilfering Bobby Petrino for his alma mater Arkansas and should be cast into the fiery pits of hell, cheer for Miami for more obvious, wild card related issues. With the Giants' collapse Monday night, it's no guarantee the Cowboys won't win the NFC East, but just to be safe, it's always prudent to cheer for an AFC team against any NFC team in playoff contention.
49ers at Ravens (8:20 p.m., NFLN) Correct Cheering: "Why aren't you watching college football right now?"
San Francisco feels a lot like last year's Atlanta team - fast approaching a first round bye with less attention than the Packers, Saints or whichever NFC East club FOX has their wagon hitched to this year. Like the Packers in the NFC North, there's NO danger of San Fran being caught at this point, not even by a potential NFC South winning Falcons team looking for a bye. Cheer for whomever you'd like on this one, or just watch the Texas / Texas A&M (ESH EE SEE!) game like a self-respecting Atlanta football fan.