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Welcome back to our NFL Survivor Pool Picks for Week 13! Happy Thanksgiving to all reading this, and I hope that your celebration is festive and safe! Congratulations if you're still alive in your Survivor pool, as there's still a lot of work left to do to be the last entrant standing, but we'll help get you there every week! Week 12 was a pretty easy week, as a ton of favorites ended up winning. Of course, some roads were easier than others.
While the San Francisco 49ers cruised to their win over Carolina at home on Monday night, Baltimore beat the New York Jets by just 13 points. Jacksonville was taken to overtime by the Arizona Cardinals, and the Seattle Seahawks had much more of a battle with Tennessee on the road, winning by just six points. That's the life of somebody still alive in Survivor Pools, as the mantra of "survive and advance" rings true each week.
All season long, this article will help guide you through weekly Survivor Pool advice for each NFL week, with a handful of teams to target and several teams to avoid using each week. Survivor league strategy is a major part of winning your pools, so we'll help dissect each pick with all angles accounted for. We'll be previewing Week 13 of the NFL season through a Survivor Pool lens, with more information and data points about each team to help guide you on your quest to win your Survivor pool!
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Survivor Pool Tools and Resources
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Survivor League Guide
For detailed Survivor pool strategy and tips to help you win, check out our "How To Win Your Survivor League" guide!
Implied Point Totals, Point Spreads, and Over/Under Totals for Week 13
Before jumping into the Survivor pool picks for Week 13, it's helpful to get an overview of the slate with implied point totals, point spreads, and over/under totals from betting markets. All lines come courtesy of FantasyLabs each week.
Let's look at the Survivor pool pick recommendations to target and avoid for Week 13!
Top Survivor Pool Picks to Target for Week 13
Los Angeles Chargers vs. Las Vegas Raiders
*My top pick for Week 13*
There's no such thing as a "Black Friday sale" or a "doorbuster" when it comes to Survivor Pool recommendations, but the Chargers are going to be a big-ticket item this week when they host the Las Vegas Raiders. The Chargers are 10-point favorites at home against the struggling Raiders, who just fired Chip Kelly as their offensive coordinator. Simply put, these Raiders are a far cry from the team that beat the New England Patriots on the road in Week 1, as they've won just one game besides that -- a 20-10 win over the Tennessee Titans.
While the Raiders have been a team that hasn't been competitive for much of the season, the Chargers are fresh off their Week 12 bye and look to build momentum into the home stretch of the season. Los Angeles won their previous matchup 20-9 way back in Week 2, and should have little trouble with the careening Raiders. As a top-10 team in defensive EPA on the season, they should be able to neutralize Geno Smith and company.
In terms of using the Chargers again in your Survivor Pool for the rest of the season? That's probably a no, as the Chargers finish the season with the Eagles, Chiefs, Cowboys, Texans, and Broncos after this game. This is your only shot to get the Chargers in a favorable situation like they have this week against the Raiders, and they're going to be the overwhelming chalk play this week in Survivor.
Miami Dolphins vs. New Orleans Saints
If you have already used the Chargers in your pool and want a pick that very few will use, but will save some of the heavy hitters for the rest of the season? Well, Miami may just be that pick. It's not the cleanest setup for the 4-7 Dolphins, but they are 5.5-point favorites at home against a 2-9 Saints team that will likely be without Alvin Kamara due to a sprained MCL, which typically requires a multi-week recovery.
Since Miami's debacle against the Browns in Week 7, the Dolphins have won three of their last four games thanks to Tua Tagovailoa facilitating the offense and leaning on both De'Von Achane and Jaylen Waddle to carry the production. Like the Chargers above, the Dolphins are also coming off a bye and are rather fresh at home against a subpar opponent.
DE'VON ACHANE 59 YARD TD 💨
(via: @NFL)pic.twitter.com/wrwandyZQu
— B/R Gridiron (@brgridiron) November 9, 2025
This pick with the Dolphins is certainly for the risk-taker in mind, but if you've used a lot of the top teams, these are the spots you'll likely have to make big decisions on. It's unlikely that Survivor Pool managers have used Miami this season, so they're likely available. The Dolphins have picked at the third-highest rate among RotoBaller Survival Pool tool users, so the groupthink here is that it's an advantageous spot to use the Dolphins this week.
Other Survivor Picks in Consideration:
- Los Angeles Rams (at CAR)
- Seattle Seahawks (vs. MIN)
Top Survivor Pool Picks to Avoid for Week 13
San Francisco 49ers at Cleveland Browns
Coming eastward are the San Francisco 49ers, who draw the next assignment against the Cleveland Browns in Shedeur Sanders' second start. The 49ers are 8-4 and quarterback Brock Purdy's first two starts since returning from a turf toe injury, and are 4.5-point favorites on the road against the Browns.
Cleveland has had their faults on offense, as the Browns are the worst team in the NFL in EPA per pass attempt and just 22nd in EPA per carry on the ground. However, they're a stout defense as the third-best defense in overall EPA per play behind the Houston Texans and Los Angeles Rams, while spouting the league's best rush EPA per carry. Notable is 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey's per-carry efficiency this season, which has been one of the worst in the league this season.
That said, McCaffrey has been one of the best receivers in football this season, and that's how McCaffrey will need to move the ball. Purdy threw three interceptions in their Week 12 win against the Panthers, and that's not a sustainable winning formula. While the 49ers are a better team top to bottom than the Browns, the Browns carry enough strength at key positions to put some doubt into selecting San Francisco in Survivor Pools for Week 13.
Jacksonville Jaguars at Tennessee Titans
The prevailing narrative throughout this season has been "pick the opponent of the Tennessee Titans", and it's worked for the most part this season, besides one dropped touchdown from Emari Demercado that sparked the Titans' comeback for their only win of the season. Jacksonville gets the Titans in Tennessee in Week 13, and are sizable favorites this week as 6.5-point favorites on the road.
Even in a loss to the Seahawks, the Titans, and, namely, Cam Ward, looked the best he's looked this season. It's still a 1-10 team we're talking about that is 30th in offensive EPA per play and 27th in defensive EPA per play, but Rome wasn't built in a day.
sheesh Cam Ward ‼️
SEAvsTEN on FOX/FOX Onehttps://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/z6iYLTBhsC
— NFL (@NFL) November 23, 2025
It's not like Jacksonville is a world-beater by any stretch, as they just went to overtime against the Cardinals last week and escaped with a 27-24 win. They were in a game with the Raiders and won by a point. They're the best example of a team that plays up AND down to competition. While playing Tennessee's opponents this season has largely been a favorable spot, I'm choosing to distance myself from that strategy, at least for Week 13.
Other Risky Survivor Picks:
- Buffalo Bills (at PIT)
- Baltimore Ravens (vs. CIN)
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