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Best NFL Christmas Games to Bet on in Week 17

The NFL Week 17 schedule gets started on Thursday with a triple-header of Christmas Day games on Netflix. We've previewed all three NFL Christmas games below.

Thursday| 1:00 PM ET | Dallas Cowboys vs. Washington Commanders (+6.5, O/U 50.5)

One of the NFL's wildest streaks is over as the Philadelphia Eagles have repeated as NFC East champions, the first time that's happened since 2004. Philadelphia's win over Washington last Saturday eliminated the Cowboys (6-8-1) from making the playoffs for the second consecutive year. But Dallas can still finish .500 by beating the Commanders and Giants, two teams quarterback Dak Prescott has dominated for a decade, on the road these last two weeks.

Washington (4-11) is having a poor season due to numerous injuries to quarterback Jayden Daniels and other key players. The Commanders are 1-9 since a 3-2 start. They may not even have backup Marcus Mariota available for this game after he was knocked out of Saturday's loss to Philadelphia, putting veteran Josh Johnson in line to start.

With a high total (50.5 points) because of the way the Cowboys play games in 2025, there is still a shot they can become the first team in NFL history to finish .500 while scoring 500 points and allowing 500 points. That's arguably the most fitting finish ever for a team that traded Micah Parsons right before the season.

Thursday| 4:30 PM ET | Detroit Lions vs. Minnesota Vikings (+5.5, O/U 44.5)

Maybe the highest-stakes game on Thursday is in Minnesota in a rematch between the Lions and Vikings. Detroit's loss at home to J.J. McCarthy earlier this season is a significant reason why Dan Campbell's team is on the outside looking in at the playoffs right now, following a 15-2 year where they were the No. 1 seed. However, by losing both coordinators and not making splashy hires to replace them, the Lions haven't been as strong on either side of the ball this year. They've also just lost back-to-back games for the first time since early in 2022 after a controversial finish against Pittsburgh, where the go-ahead touchdown was taken off the board twice in the final seconds by correct calls.

However, Detroit's running game is not what it was last year, when the offensive line was stronger, and Ben Johnson was coordinating the offense. Jared Goff has done a very good job of limiting turnovers for the Lions, while they remain No. 2 in points per game scored; however, it hasn't been as effective as last year. Tight end Sam LaPorta has also been a significant loss due to injury.

As for the Vikings, they're 7-8 after stacking three wins here late in the season following their own disappointing fall from a 14-3 record last year. The Vikings have had quarterback issues all year, and with another injury to J.J. McCarthy, they could be turning to backup Max Brosmer to start this game. That's not good news for Justin Jefferson putting up numbers as a receiver against a vulnerable secondary.

However, this is a must-win game for the Lions to keep their postseason hopes alive. The Lions must win their final two games and hope the Packers (9-5-1) lose their final two games to return to the playoffs for the third consecutive year.

Thursday| 8:15 PM ET | Denver Broncos vs. Kansas City Chiefs (+12.5, O/U 36.5)

It's a changing of the guard year in the AFC West with the Denver Broncos (12-3) looking to complete a sweep of the Chiefs (6-9) for the first time since 2014 when Peyton Manning was the quarterback. The Chiefs enter Thursday at their lowest point of Andy Reid's tenure since 2013. Not only is the team 6-9 with two injured quarterbacks out for the year, but it was also announced this week that the team looks to move from Missouri to Kansas by 2031. So, the days at Arrowhead Stadium are numbered for the team.

But on Thursday night, we'll see how much the crowd still cares to see a team that's a 12.5-point underdog and may have to start Chris Oladokun at quarterback after Sunday's injury to Gardner Minshew. The Chiefs lost 26-9 to the Titans, one of the worst teams this year, in a game where the offense averaged just 14.4 yards per drive. They were around 38 yards per drive with Patrick Mahomes at quarterback this season.

This is for the Broncos to get right after playing their worst game of the season, too, in Week 16 in a 34-20 loss to the Jaguars. It was the first time all season the Broncos lost a game by more than a field goal, and the first time they didn't have a fourth-quarter lead this year. The loss snapped Denver's 11-game winning streak, which they'll hope does not jeopardize their shot at the No. 1 seed. However, if the Broncos win this game, they'll still need Houston to beat the Chargers on Saturday, as the AFC West will come down to the Week 18 game against the Chargers, who defeated Denver in Week 3.