The Detroit Lions look to remain in first place in the NFC North when they travel to take on the Minnesota Vikings in NFL Football action Sunday. The game is scheduled for a 1 p.m. start time and it will be televised live on FOX. Currently the odds for the game have the Vikings favored by a small amount.
The Lions could be without both Calvin Johnson and Reggie bush in this one. That's certainly not good for a Detroit team that has sputtered a bit offensively, which is something nobody anticipated based on their recent years.
Matthew Stafford wasn't able to get the ball down field last week against Buffalo when Johnson came out of the game. Minnesota will look to use that same two-high safety look that Jim Schwartz and the Bills used, but Stafford should be able to adjust better this time around after a full week of practice and assuredly getting it drilled into his head.
Minnesota will once again start rookie Teddy Bridgewater in this one. He's coming off an injury and should be back to healthy, but he'll have to try to find a way to stay upright against a very good Detroit defense. The Lions rank second best in the league in giving up just 15.6 points per game this season. Only the San Diego Chargers surrender fewer points per game this year, giving up 12.6 themselves.
Detroit ranks inside the Top 10 defensively in passing yards per game and rushing yards per game — plus are No. 1 in total defense so far this season as well.
But Minnesota has played the Lions tough, covering eight of the last 10 matchups with Detroit.
In this one, however, the defense will be the difference. Playing in a week coming off a loss to Buffalo where they should have won, Detroit will find a way to get it done. Bridgewater is going to be under pressure all game and the Lions should be able to force him into some bad decisions. Expect Detroit to be able to take advantage of that.
Free Pick: Detroit 28, Minnesota 24
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