Thursday marks the continuation of one of the NFL's stranger traditions. The Dallas Cowboys play every Thanksgiving; that much is a given. What isn't is what happens the following Thursday. For the fourth consecutive season, the Cowboys will follow up their Thanksgiving matchup with another mid-week game. 

You might argue that having a team play on consecutive Thursdays allows that team to get a full week of rest leading up to the second game, but if that were truly the motivation here, then why wouldn't the Lions be the team consistently biting the second Thursday bullet? They have done so only once. 

I'm sure there is an explanation here, one that is likely financially-driven. But it will always be strange that for two weeks during the stretch run, the same team is taken out of its routine and told "you play on Thursdays now." Will it impact today's top picks? No. But one of the joys of being granted this space is the right to use it for any manner of complaint on my mind on a given day. 

All lines via William Hill.

1. Dallas Cowboys at Chicago Bears: Under 43.5

As we discussed last week, the Cowboys have struggled against top-10 defenses this season. In three games against such opponents, they have averaged less than 12 points per game. If that trend holds in this game, the brunt of the scoring burden is on the Bears. Chicago has scored more than 25 points only once this season, and it forced five turnovers in that game. The Cowboys rarely score against good defenses, and the Bears rarely score against any defenses. That should combine to give us a fairly low-scoring game tonight.

SportsLine expert R.J. White has hit 26 of his last 38 against-the-spread picks involving Bears games, and he's released a play for tonight's matchup. Find out which side of the spread he's on only at SportsLine.

2. Philadelphia 76ers at Washington Wizards: Wizards +7

The 76ers are getting the respect of a championship contender with this line. A seven-point spread on the road is steep. If this game were in Philadelphia, where the 76ers are 10-0, it would be warranted. But this is a 5-6 road team that has been outscored by 0.5 points per 100 possessions on the road. Of those five road wins, only one, a 114-95 defeat of the moribund Cleveland Cavaliers, would have covered a seven-point spread. The 76ers are the better team, but there is little statistical evidence to suggest that they will cover this spread.

CBS Sports analyst Barrett Sallee is on a blistering roll this season, going 27-14-1 with his college football best bets. He's released three more for championship weekend, and you can get them all over at SportsLine.

3. Houston Rockets at Toronto Raptors: Raptors -2

This is another pick that is dependent on location. The Raptors just lost their first home game of the season on Tuesday. They are outscoring opponents by over 10 points per 100 possessions in Toronto, and they have a distinct advantage in this game when it comes to the bench matchup. Toronto's secondary unit, particularly when Siakam shares the floor with Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and Terence Davis to form one of the most energetic groups in the league, is running opponents off the floor. Houston, meanwhile, is getting killed by 7.4 points per 100 possessions whenever James Harden sits. Asking anyone to beat the Raptors in Toronto would be a tall order. Asking them to do so while essentially knowing that they are operating at a deficit based on the bench just seems impossible.

Who should you back against the spread, on the money line and the total in every Week 14 NFL game? And which Super Bowl contender gets stunned? Visit SportsLine to see their Week 14 NFL cheat sheet, all from the model that is up over $7,000 on its top-rated picks.