Green Bay (7-4) at Detroit (4-7)
When: Thursday, December 3rd 2015
Where: Ford Field, Detroit, MI
Time: 8:30 ET | TV: NFL Network
The slumping Green Bay Packers look to keep pace with Minnesota in the NFC North when they visit the resurgent Detroit Lions on Thursday night. The Packers were rolling towards another division title when they got off to a 6-0 start heading into their bye week. Since then, they have dropped four of their last five contests and are now a game behind the Vikings in the North. They suffered back-to-back road losses to then unbeaten Denver and Carolina, but then came home and lost to these Lions for the first time since 1991 at Lambeau Field. Green Bay then beat up Minnesota to appear back on track, but suffered another home loss on Thanksgiving to the Bears. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers is normally among the league’s most accurate passers, but has failed to post a completion percentage better than 57.4% over his last four games, even though he has nine touchdowns versus two interceptions in that span. Rodgers is 10-3 with 24 TDs and five interceptions in his last 13 meetings versus the Lions. Running back Eddie Lacy has seen a re-emergence with back-to-back 100-yard games since the Packers were held to 47 yards on the ground by the Lions in the Week 10 loss. The Packers are tied for fifth in the league with 30 sacks and have only surrendered 48 points in their last three games. Safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix had 11 tackles and an interception in the Week 10 matchup.
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The Lions are playing the complete opposite since their bye week. They started off a miserable 1-7 with their only win coming by three points over Chicago and they were letting up over 30 points a game. Since the bye week, they have reeled off three straight wins and have held each opponent to under 17 points. They managed only 18 points in each of their victories over Green Bay and Oakland, but erupted for 45 points on Thanksgiving against Philadelphia. Matt Stafford threw for 377 yards and five touchdowns in that game and hooked up with Calvin Johnson on three of those scores. It was Johnson’s first TD since Week 7 and has 921 receiving yards on the season despite break 100 only once. Running back Theo Riddick has 10 receptions for 134 yards and a touchdown in the last two games. The Lions haven’t swept the Packers since 1991 and a win today would not only do that, it would keep them alive in the Wild Card hunt. They enter Week 13 just two games behind Seattle for the final playoff spot, although, they do have five teams ahead of them.
The trend says take the Lions here, but the Packers defense should be able to slow Detroit down like they did in Week 10. I know the Lions offense was great against the Eagles, but who hasn’t been. I just can’t see the Packers losing a game they must have. They are a better team.
Pick: Packer -3
