NFL Christmas Day Picks: Free PrizePicks Lineup & Free Pick

Christmas brings us two NFL games between four NFL Playoff teams this year, with some of the best teams in the AFC taking the field. First, at 1 p.m. ET, we have the Chiefs vs. Steelers, followed by the Ravens vs. Steelers at 4:30 p.m. ET. 

The NFL Christmas games are going to bring us non-stop action. PrizePicks is the easiest way to cash in on your takes for the game.

Below, we’ll go through our staff’s top NFL Christmas Game picks to build a 6-Pick NFL PrizePicks Lineup for Christmas day. Each pick is from a different member of our staff, who combed through the board to find their favorite pick. 

By combining these six picks, you can reach up to 41.5x payouts in a Power Play Lineup, or 27x in a Flex Play Lineup — and still profit if you miss one pick!

Use these picks plus the Nikola Jokic free pick to build your Christmas Day Lineup on PrizePicks, and enjoy the holiday in the green. Let’s get into the PrizePicks Lineup for Christmas Day.

‍

PrizePicks Christmas NFL Lineup & Free Picks

Here is the Playbook staff’s PrizePicks 6-Pick Lineup for the NFL Christmas games, plus the Nikola Jokic Free Pick that you can also use in your Lineups!

• Steelers RB Najee Harris 43.5 Rush Yards — Less
• Steelers TE Pat Freiermuth 29.5 Receiving Yards — More
• Steelers WR George Pickens 79.5 Receiving Yards — More (Demon)
• Chiefs WR Xavier Worthy 3.5 Rush Yards — More
• Texans RB Joe Mixon 17.5 Rush Attempts — Less
• Texans TE Dalton Schultz 34.5 Receiving Yards — More
• Nikola Jokic 0.5 Points Free Pick on PrizePicks

Steelers RB Najee Harris 43.5 Rush Yards — Less

The tides may finally be turning for the top back in the Steelers backfield. For the first time this season, Najee Harris has had lower snap share percentage in three straight weeks to backup RB Jaylen Warren. 

It’s the perfect storm for a less here, as Harris' grip as the teams RB1 may be slipping, and now he’s met with the NFL's third-best defense in rush yards allowed per game in the Chiefs. The Chiefs are just 91.4 rush yards a game, and Harris has cleared this projection in three of his last five — I don’t see his fortune changing on Christmas Day against a stout run defense.

— Pick by Ryelan Jones

Steelers TE Pat Freiermuth 29.5 Receiving Yards — More

Steelers QB Russell Wilson was all that TE Pat Freiermuth needed to finally breakthrough this season. He’s been finding the end zone, with a touchdown in three of the last four games. He also has more than 45 receiving yards in three of the last five.

This is an opportunity for Freiermuth to have a big game against one of the toughest opponents they’ll see all season. The Chiefs are a good defense, but they have not been able to stop tight ends. They’ve allowed 1,090 yards to the position, which is the most in the league, and they’ve allowed tight ends to go more than this yardage number in all but one game. Recent tight end performances against the Chiefs include Texans TE Dalton Schultz 4-45-1, Chargers TE Stone Smart 3-54, Raiders TE Brock Bowers 10-140-1, and Panthers TE Ja’Tavion Sanders 3-49.

— Pick by John Supowitz

💰 Use Promo Code "Playbook": Get $50 instantly with your first $5 NFL Lineup

‍

Steelers WR George Pickens 79.5 Receiving Yards — More (Demon)

George Pickens is back, and that means the Steelers offense will be firing on all cylinders here in a home matchup with another explosive offense that is getting healthy at the right time.

Pickens has established himself as one of the best receivers in the NFL this year, not only with incredible ball skills, but his ability to stretch the field and get on the end of Wilson’s deep balls. Steelers QB Russell Wilson is averaging 271 passing yards per game with Pickens healthy, and only 168 in the two games without him. 

With Wilson under center this year, Pickens has has at least 80 yards in three of six games, and 74 in two of the games he missed in — including the Bengals game, where he played through a hamstring injury.

But look — let’s not pretend like the Steelers don’t love to run the ball. They’re 27th in pass rate over expectation, per nfelo. If they get a lead, they’re going to try to sit on it. We have to count on the Chiefs and QB Patrick Mahomes passing the ball and these teams exchanging punches for Pickens to really hit his ceiling.

Matchup wise, the Chiefs have actually faced a wildly low number of elite receivers this year, which is padding their stats. Somehow, they dodged Bucs WRs Mike Evans and Chris Godwin, played the Chargers without WR Ladd McConkey (who is not elite yet, but is made elite by top-tier QB play), played the Bengals without Tee Higgins, and then when Texans WR Tank Dell was having a career day, he suffered a season-ending injury. The Chiefs just run so pure.

That said, they have given up 11 receptions-108 yards to Browns WR Jerry Jeudy, 6-97 to Raiders WR Jakobi Meyers, 6-81 and a touchdown to Panthers WR David Moore in recent games.

And now, they get Pickens. And it’s going to be so glorious for the entire country to see him cook this fraudulent Chiefs secondary on Christmas. It cannot go understated how important Pickens is to this offense and how it flips the script for this team. Expect him to get a warm welcome back in the lineup.

‍— Pick by Christian Hardy

Chiefs WR Xavier Worthy 3.5 Rush Yards — More

Even with the addition of veteran WRs like DeAndre Hopkins and Hollywood Brown, rookie Xavier Worthy is finding his place in an experienced Chiefs offense.

The Chiefs have found ways to utilize Worthy and his speed, outside of lining him up at receiver or returner. Worthy has been used as a rusher multiple times throughout this season, but even more so the past few weeks.

In his last two games, Worthy has six carries for 40 rushing yards, averaging 6.7 yards per attempt. Prior to Week 15, Worthy only had one game with more than three carries. Head coach Andy Reid seems committed to gadget plays to get one of the fastest players in the league the ball. 

It seems as if Reid and the Chiefs may have discovered something with Worthy as a ball carrier, so expect them to continue incorporating him into the run game. Worth has cashed this projection in five of his last six games.

— Pick by Khadir Curry

Texans RB Joe Mixon 17.5 Rush Attempts — Less

The Ravens' defense is not ideal for Texans RB Joe Mixon to have success on the ground. Although the Texans just lost WR Tank Dell for the rest of the season, the Ravens have one of the most dominant defensive lines in the NFL. The Ravens lead the league in rush defense, allowing just 80.7 yards per game.

The Ravens defense will be forcing the Texans to beat them through the air, especially due to Dell's most recent injury meaning an increase in blitzing percentage.  With less than 15 carries in three of his last five games, Mixon has seen an increased role in the passing game which will be effective to negate pressure.

The Ravens' secondary is 31st in passing yards allowed; although the Texans are shorthanded, Houston should be able to find some success through the air. I expect a lot of play action concepts and an increase in receiving for TE Dalton Schultz and Mixon.

With the Texans coming into this game as the underdog, it’s worth noting that Mixon has only 14 rushes in each of the Texans last two losses.

— Pick by Austin Wells

💰 Use Promo Code "Playbook": Get $50 instantly with your first $5 NFL Lineup

‍

Texans TE Dalton Schultz 34.5 Receiving Yards — More

The Texans will be short on depth at wide receiver with WR Tank Dell (knee) out for the season. With him going down in the second half last week, Texans TE Dalton Schultz caught five of eight targets for 45 yards. That marked the third time over the last six games that Schultz has recorded at least 45 receiving yards. 

Schultz also received at least seven targets in a game three times during that span. The Texans might need to throw a lot to keep up with the high-powered Ravens offense, which could leave Schultz with plenty of targets.

— Pick by Mike Barner

Nikola Jokic Free Pick on PrizePicks

It’s not just NFL games on Christmas — there’s plenty of NBA action too. On Christmas night, Nuggets center Nikola Jokic only needs one point to hit his projection on PrizePicks. 

His points projection is the free pick for Christmas Day on the last day of the Picksmas promotion. 

You only need one more pick to cash out on your Lineup if you choose a 2-Pick, but you can only use the Nikola Jokic free pick once. So choose wisely as you build your Lineup!

‍

Win Money on the NFL Christmas Games 

As you settle in for the NFL Christmas Day Games, don’t miss the real money action on PrizePicks. It’s the easiest way to cash in on your sports knowledge for these NFL games. Between the Chiefs vs. Steelers and Ravens vs. Texans, there are tons of elite players to lock in your Lineup for Christmas Day action. 

Just pick more or less on at least two player stat projections — like yards or receptions — and get paid if your picks are right. The more you pick, the more you could win on the NFL action! Pick up to six players to reach the highest payout multiplier and have a shot at $1 million in cash in the Picksmas promotion.