The Minnesota Vikings and San Francisco 49ers looked like easy winners entering last week’s games, but in the NFL, nothing is certain. Both powerhouses got down big early before rallying to win, enabling thousands of survivor and knockout pool players to advance. Now, it’s on to Week 12 and another round of NFL knockout pool picks. The Week 12 NFL schedule features two massive favorites: New Orleans vs. Carolina (+9.5), and Cleveland vs. Miami (+10.5). But is there a safer pick on the slate for your NFL survivor picks? The SportsLine Projection Model has your back with the optimal Week 12 NFL picks and survivor strategy.

This model, which has simulated the entire NFL season, has ranked in the Top 10 on NFLPickWatch for three years running. Additionally, it beat over 96 percent of CBS Sports office pool players last season. Anyone who has followed it has consistently crushed their NFL picks.

For NFL Week 12, we can tell you the model is not going with the heavily Saints, who are favored by 10 according to the current NFL odds, even though they’re at home facing struggling Carolina and winning 77 percent of the model’s simulations. The Panthers have played well behind quarterback Kyle Allen, going 5-3, and should bounce back strong from their puzzling 29-3 home loss to Atlanta last week. Carolina isn’t likely to commit four turnovers again. 

And last year, the Panthers played New Orleans extremely tough, losing the first meeting 12-9 before winning the second one, 33-14. The Saints are currently dealing with key injuries, including to cornerback Marshon Lattimore (hamstring) and guard Andrus Peat (arm). Peat is out for several weeks, while Lattimore’s is questionable for Sunday.

There’s another team winning just as often as the Saints that the model loves for your NFL knockout picks this week. Picking this team also sets you up for the rest of the season. You need to see who it is before locking in any NFL predictions or picks. 

So which team is a must-back in your NFL Week 12 survivor pool? Visit SportsLine now to see which team carries you to victory in Week 12, all from the proven computer model that’s ranked in the top 10 on straight-up picks three years running.